On the scale of things kids look forward to, summer reading ranks between the chicken pox and Aunt Gertie’s olive loaf. Homework in July? Not the greatest publicity move for the written word. Time to relieve summer reading of this bad rap — with books that pack an educational punch but won’t have your kid running for the Xbox.

They hate museums? Bring the museum to them. Two Chicago grade-schoolers solve a high-stakes art crime in the exciting picture book Chasing Vermeer (ages 9-12), illustrated by Brett Helquist of Lemony Snicket fame. The younger set will love Babar’s Museum of Art (baby-preschool), a delightful elephantine take on Botticelli, Da Vinci, Magritte, and Picasso.

So you planned to read them Proust by the third grade, but life got in the way. Isabel Allende’s second young-adult novel, Kingdom of the Golden Dragon (10 and above), is an enchanting, globetrotting adventure that will have your kids hooked on magical realism. AP English, here they come.

Have please and excuse me vanished from your children’s vocabulary? Bring back their manners with a new edition of the zany 1930s classic Manners Can Be Fun (ages 9-12), by Munro Leaf, creator of Ferdinand the Bull. They’ll giggle all the way through their next thank you note.

Dread the birds-and-bees chat? Leave it to the master. (She taught you, after all.) Judy Blume’s classics (ages 9-12) are being reissued in a box set. (Sure beats having them learn about it from Gossip Girl.)

And speaking of protecting their innocence … It’s an election year, and that means politicians are spouting jargon everywhere they turn. Show them What Presidents Are Made Of (ages 4-8), a volume of wacky portraits and quirky facts. If the Walls Could Talk: Family Life at the White House (ages 4-8) has the scoop on 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

The other big summer event? The Olympics! Squeeze some cultural context between synchronized swimming and the javelin throw with an illustrated history of The Parthenon (ages 9-12).

Beware of street meat? Pigeons are people too? There’s no scholarly reason to read Mo Willems’ The Pigeon Finds a Hot Dog! (baby-preschool), but it’s too darn funny to pass up.

It’s summer. Kids deserve light reading, too.

All books are available online. Or, even better, support your local bookstore.