In this early chapter book series, April and Mae are back with another story of their friendship. Their pet cat and dog are always involved in their adventures. They decide to have a sleepover and sleep outside in their backyard. The story talks about all things camping. Pictures help to give context clues for potentially new camping vocabulary.

April, May, and their pets decide to have a sleepover. May isn’t sure about sleeping outside in a tent but April says it will be fun. Will they have a good time or not?

I’ve read a couple books about best friends trying to camp out in their backyards with their pets in the past year, but this one managed to go a different route than normal even if it had a similar set up to others. April helps problem solve ways to make May more comfortable, and when one of them conks out before all of their activity ideas is accomplished, the other makes a plan to adjust and finish in the morning. It’s a cute early reader friendship story featuring a relatable topic. I like how these two friends look out for each other. I need to look into getting this series for our elementary library.

Notes on content: One of the girls attempts to tell a scary camp story but it isn’t very scary at all (partly because she can’t decide what the scary part will be so it lacks conviction).

I received an ARC of this title from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

My daughter loves this series and was excited to preview this newest title, April & Mae and the Sleepover. In this story, April and Mae plan a backyard sleepover in a tent that makes Mae a bit nervous. This sweet tale shows young readers what how to be a supportive friend and show up for those we care about.

These books are great for beginning readers with their expressive illustrations and simple sentence structure. I would say this book compares to level 2/3 early readers. This is a wholesome series that I would recommend to parents and young readers.

Thank you to Charlesbridge and NetGalley for gifting my family with an ARC to review! We enjoyed it.

Available March 14, 2023

Since I live in Alaska where camping is common, albeit with more concerns that that the ground is hard, I could only imagine the discussion this story might ignite. "Do you have your bear spray?" "Yes, and my bear bells, too!" Now, true, while most discussions won't involve bears and potential lethal dangers lurking about, it was fun to envision how young friends in different places might plan out such an adventure. That's the joy of this series. That no matter where you live, it has applicable lessons to share.

In this case, we even get a glimpse of April and Mae's homes. They come complete with the cat on one doorstep while the dog waits, probably none too patiently, in the window of the other. April wants to camp in the backyard but Mae, a night owl, isn't too sure about it. April reassures her and promises a tent, s'mores, sleeping bags, songs, and stories....and maybe, just maybe a shooting star to make a wish on. That's another good discussion motivator, discussing if the reader has ever seen a shooting star and what they'd wish for. Of course, depending on the bent of the child, that could even lead to a discussion of what is a shooting star anyway, not to mention why people wish upon them. The illustration of the shooting star was quite sweet, too, I might mention.

This is a fun series. Fun to read with lots of chance for interaction between those involved in the reading. For beginning readers, the target audience, there is lots of repetition and the simple illustrations add to the story without distracting. Readers will learn how true friends interact, find ways to reach agreement when opinions or likes are different, and gain confidence as they see they aren't the only ones with questions about the world that surrounds them.

Thanks #NetGalley and #Charlesbridge for allowing me to spy on April and Mae's camp out. Loved that the pets were not just invited but got their own cushions, too.

April and Mae are two girls who are friends but are quite different. They deal with typical elementary type problems such as being nervous during a sleep over. Young readers in the age 5-7 range will relate to these characters for sure.

The writing is in large font, and simple sentences, which is great for early readers. The text is made up of mainly decodable words and sight words and I think it would be accessible for children in about grade 1. I think this would be a great book for those students who are becoming a bit bored with simple leveled picture books and want to see themselves as a reader of longer books, but I would be hesitant to call it an early chapter book or recommend it to students above grade 2.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book!

Very cute collection of kids books. In this book the girls decide to have a sleepover outside. It is clear that April has camped in the past while Mae has not. Mae was scared to camp outside and kept thinking about scary things while April continued to sleep. Mae finally thought happy thoughts and was able to fall asleep. This story teaches how you may not like something you are doing but when you do it with the company of others it’s not that bad. This would be perfect for a mini book box.

The perfect beginner book series I would say!

I love how the books in this series are written. It’s so easy to read along and make the kids understand.

They are pretty full of good vibes, the characters always ready for fun activities and be helpful whenever required. The friendship is goals for all.

The illustrations are so good.

Just pick this series for your kids. They would learn a lot of new words and what it like to have a sleepover.

Thank you, Charlesbridge, for the advance reading copy.

Thank you NetGalley and Charlesbridge books for this eARC.

I was drawn to this book because my birthday is in April and my middle name is Mae.

When I was younger, my insomnia made me a huge night owl like Mae. I liked camping, but needed allllll my pillows and blankets to do so, just like Mae. This story was so sweet. I loved that April went out of her way to make Mae cozy so they could sleep outside in the tent. Their friendship and their animals friendship is so genuinely adorable. This book made me very happy!