Camp Rolling Hills (Camp Rolling Hills Series #1)

by Stacy Davidowitz

Overview

The first book in a hilarious and heartfelt series about the particular magic of summer camp—a place where reinvention is possible and friends are like family—from sparkling debut talent Stacy Davidowitz.

Finally, it’s summer! Stephanie—aka Slimey—has been counting the days until she can return to her favorite place in the entire world, Camp Rolling Hills. And this year she’s especially happy to be back—she’ll have eight blissful weeks away from home, where life has been decidedly rocky.

New kid Bobby, on the other hand, is pretty sure he’s in for the worst summer of his life. He does not understand his weirdo cabinmates, the group singing, and the unfortunate nicknames (including his: Smelly). But he does understand Slimey, and the two soon fall in crush. This summer might not be so bad after all!

But then a fight sets off an epic, campwide, girls-versus-boys prank war. Bunks are raided! Boxer shorts are stolen! And it’s up to Slimey and Smelly to keep the peace.

“Stacy Davidowitz gets the magic of camp and the wonder of being twelve just right. Camp Rolling Hills is both heartwarming and laugh-out-loud hilarious.” —Elissa Brent Weissman, author of Nerd Camp

Includes black-and-white illustrations

Camp Rolling Hills series:
Camp Rolling Hills (#1)
Crossing Over (#2)
Breakout (#3)
Freefall (#4)

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781419718854
Publisher:	Amulet Paperbacks
Publication date:	05/10/2016
Series:	Camp Rolling Hills Series , #1
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 7.62(h) x 1.00(d)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Stacy Davidowitz is an acclaimed author and playwright. Her star-reviewed novel The Chance to Fly, coauthored by Tony Award–winning actress Ali Stroker, was named a best children’s book of the year by the Chicago Public Library, Parents, and Bank Street College of Education. It was also selected by the National Education Association as a featured title for Read Across America. Davidowitz is best known for her four-book Camp Rolling Hills series, inspired by her coauthored Camp Rolling Hills the Musical, which continues to have productions across the country. She is also the author of the Hanazuki chapter book series based on Hasbro’s YouTube series. She has written award-winning plays that have been produced regionally and internationally, and are published by Broadway Play Publishing, Stage Rights, and YouthPLAYS. When she is not writing, she teaches creative writing, female empowerment, and musical theater in schools, camps, foster care facilities, and juvenile detention centers. She is a proud graduate of Tufts University and Columbia University, where she earned degrees in drama, psychology, and acting. Fun fact: growing up, Davidowitz was in seven productions of Annie. She lives in upper Manhattan with her husband and twin boys. Learn more about Davidowitz online, where in addition to all things books, you can watch clips of her performing as a kid.

Editorial Reviews

05/02/2016
Stephanie (aka Slimey) and Bobby (aka Smelly) learn a lot about relationships in this quirky debut novel, first in the Camp Rolling Hills series. Twelve-year-old Slimey has been a camper at Rolling Hills every summer for as long as she can remember, and she loves almost everything about it. Smelly feels like he has been thrown to the wolves, sent to camp so his parents can work out their marital problems. Moreover, he has to keep "Bizarro Bobby" ("the name he'd given to his anxiety, after Superman's Bizarro") in check, hidden from his welcoming and eclectic bunkmates. Slimey senses a connection with Smelly when they talk, especially after she discusses her father's recent death. When an epic miscommunication complicates the tenuous relationships Smelly has formed, he must rise to the challenge in order to make things right. Spot-on combinations of sweet adolescent romance and teenage angst round out an engaging summer read with plenty of energy and originality to keep kids tuning in for more. Available simultaneously: Crossing Over. Ages 8–12. Agent: Erica Rand Silverman, Sterling Lord Literistic. (May)

Publishers Weekly

Readers who love camp should feel comfortable with the lively fun, but even noncampers will relate to the theme of friendships renewed. The dollop of romance is the extra marshmallowy goodness cementing the story together. For those looking for a new series to explore, this will more than suffice.

Booklist

"A light summer read for the middle school set, especially those who enjoy summer camp stories with a touch of puppy love romance."—School Library Journal

"The book celebrates summer camp as a safe place for children to reinvent themselves, to experiment and be more daring than they might otherwise be. The author's love for camp shines through... it's a strong choice for first-time campers and for those who find camp and its rituals delightful." —Kirkus

Readers who love camp should feel comfortable with the lively fun, but even noncampers will relate to the theme of friendships renewed. The dollop of romance is the extra marshmallowy goodness cementing the story together. For those looking for a new series to explore, this will more than suffice.—Booklist

Spot-on combinations of sweet adolescent romance and teenage angst round out an engaging summer read with plenty of energy and originality to keep kids tuning in for more.—Publishers Weekly

From the Publisher

Readers who love camp should feel comfortable with the lively fun, but even noncampers will relate to the theme of friendships renewed. The dollop of romance is the extra marshmallowy goodness cementing the story together. For those looking for a new series to explore, this will more than suffice.

Booklist

02/01/2016
Gr 4–6—Slimey is ready to get back to Camp Rolling Hills, having put in her 10 months in her regular life, and she wants to live her two months at camp to the fullest. Robert—soon to be known as Smelly—is new to camp and has been under a lot of stress lately; his mom has promised to send him his anxiety medicine if he needs it. A budding romance that culminates in a single three-second kiss and some hand-holding, the story is told mostly through funny, jocular dialogue among bunkmates and friends. Slimey is part of the older girls' cabin and Smelly is her counterpart in the boys' cabin. Camp high jinks and s'mores by the fire lend a feeling of semiautonomy and freedom away from parents, while the part-epistolary format gives the novel an authentic kid feel. Despite the generally upbeat tone, the characters work through some real anxieties and fears, relying on friends to help them through and build self-confidence. The "will they, won't they" kiss conundrum lends itself to a slightly older, middle school audience. VERDICT A light summer read for the middle school set, especially those who enjoy summer camp stories with a touch of puppy love romance.—Ellie Lease, Harford County Public Library, MD

School Library Journal

2016-03-02
An anxious boy and a grieving girl on the cusp of adolescence find nascent love at Camp Rolling Hills, a summer camp steeped in its own mythology and culture. The book features the two worst nicknames for protagonists in recent memory. Slimey, age 12, has been going to Camp Rolling Hills since she was a little girl, but it's Smelly's first summer. Smelly, who suffers from anxiety and gains confidence over the course of the novel, is there because his parents need time to work out their marriage difficulties. Slimey, who works hard to hide her pain, is still heartbroken over the death of her father. This slice-of-summer novel is overpopulated, with six characters in the boys' bunk and six in the girls' plus two counselors, and readers may have trouble keeping track of who's who. With all these characters, it's a shame it's not more obviously diverse, with one Yiddish-spouting Asian boy and another with an Afro (but white skin in the thumbnail guide to the characters in the frontmatter). It's told from alternating third-person perspectives, Slimey's and Smelly's, augmented by funnily realistic letters home from other campers. The book celebrates summer camp as a safe place for children to reinvent themselves, to experiment and be more daring than they might otherwise be. The author's love for camp shines through, and although this novel will likely have a narrow appeal, it's a strong choice for first-time campers and for those who find camp and its rituals delightful. (Fiction. 8-12)

Kirkus Reviews