Summertime Treats: Recipes and Crafts for the Whole Family

It's summer and the kids are home...for three whole months! What better time to relax together, whipping up delicious treats in the kitchen or dabbling in fun crafts indoors and out. Parents will find plenty of ideas and inspiration for magical summer days in Summertime Treats, the handbook to keeping families cool and creative during the best months of the year. From an afternoon with the kids making Shake-Rattle-and-Roll Ice Cream and Big Bug Bungalows to a fabulous Fourth of July Star-Spangled Celebration and a Memorial Day Tailgate Picnic, author Sara Perry suggests wonderful ways to please every member of the family including parents and other grown-ups. Fully illustrated with photographs throughout and chock-full of tempting snacks, summer drinks, fun projects, and clever ideas, this antidote to the allure of the television lets parents and kids of all ages have a great time cooking and making things together. Summertime Treats is second in a series that began with Halloween Treats (0-8118-2197-8), books that blend whimsy and elegance in ways both adults and children will appreciate.

Sara Perry is the author of The Complete Tea Book, Summertime Treats, Christmastime Treats, and Great Gingerbread, all from Chronicle Books. She lives in Portland, Oregon.

Jonelle Weaver -- whose clients include Food & Wine, Martha Stewart Living, and Gourmet -- lives in New York City.