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Gone-Away Lake Chapter Books

How would you like to spend a picturesque summer exploring old houses, enjoying the marvels of nature, and making new friends? Take the whole family on a vicarious summer adventure in the Gone-Away Lake series by Elizabeth Enright—it’s a complete and utter delight, perfect for read-aloud.

Book cover of Gone-Away Lake by Elizabeth Enright

Where Is Gone-Away Lake?

During a chance afternoon of exploration in a swamp, Portia Blake and her cousin, Julian, stumble upon something unexpected: a long-abandoned lakeside community. The decrepit buildings are in extreme disrepair, overgrown with vines, and completely uninhabited—or are they?

A memorable summer of adventure begins at Gone-Away Lake, with unexpected friendships, shared stories, and the opportunity to create something beautiful out of something almost lost.

Take our free Gone-Away Lake checklist to your local library!

About the Author

Elizabeth Enright wrote twelve books for children before her death in 1968, and the lasting impact of her work continues today. Enright won the Newbery Medal in 1939 with Thimble Summer and a Newbery Honor in 1958 for Gone-Away Lake. She also wrote the beloved Melendy Quartet series.

Enright spent much of her life in New York, but she was born in Illinois and had deep ties to the Midwest, thanks in part to childhood visits with her uncle—renowned architect Frank Lloyd Wright—at his estate in Wisconsin. The Midwestern influence is easily noted in the settings of some of her books.

One of the many endearing aspects of Enright’s work is her intense appreciation of nature and the seamless way that she intertwines this love with her stories.

About the Books

Book cover of Return to Gone-Away

In Gone-Away Lake, we meet Portia, who is “beginning to be eleven,” and Julian, who is an “ardent amateur naturalist.” Before long, we also make the acquaintance of an elderly woman named Minnehaha Cheever and her eccentric and distinguished brother, Pindar Payton, who are the only inhabitants at Gone-Away Lake. A sweet friendship forms as “Aunt Min” and “Uncle Pin” introduce the children to the history of Gone-Away Lake, and a summer of flurried activity follows as the children choose one of the abandoned homes to transform into a clubhouse.

At its core, Gone-Away Lake is a quiet, peaceful book with kind, gentle characters and minimal conflict. In fact, the Syracuse, New York, Post-Standard newspaper may have said it best in 1966, calling the book “a wonderful story about likable people.” And we agree!

The sequel, aptly titled Return to Gone-Away, picks up where the first book ends and reintroduces us to the beloved cast of characters from book one. Portia’s family is now in the midst of renovating one of the forgotten houses on the lake, and the children are not without hope that they’ll discover hidden treasure as they clean and repair the mansion. It’s a summer of stories, searches, and surprises during this memorable Return to Gone-Away.

Best of all: contemporary editions of the Gone-Away Lake series still feature the original black-and-white illustrations by famed children’s book illustrators Beth and Joe Krush. The illustrations perfectly suit the style and flavor of the series and are as charming as the text.

The Gone-Away Lake Series at a Glance

Book cover of Gone-Away Lake by Elizabeth Enright

Author: Elizabeth Enright
Genre: classic children’s fiction
Interests: friendship, childhood, mystery, exploration, home
Suggested age range: 7 to 12
Gender preference: boys and girls
In the series: 2 books, 224 to 272 pages

Gone-Away Lake Series Checklist

Download the Gone-Away Lake Series Library List

Do your kids need extra encouragement to read?

Take our Gone-Away Lake Series checklist to your local library and have your child check off the books as he reads them.

Looking for more great chapter books? We’ve got you covered!

FREE Chapter Book Library Lists

All About Learning Press, Inc. is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. All proceeds from our partnership with Amazon.com will be donated to local libraries.

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Caryn

says:

We read Gone-Away Lake a few years ago with our young kids. Such a wonderful and gentle book to introduce mystery, wonder, excitement, and a little suspense. We had many adventures to a place we lovingly named “The Gulper”, complete with trails, logs, swamps, and getting stuck in the muck. Sweet, sweet memories made from the stories in this lovely book. Thank you for always suggesting beautiful and safe books for our family to share.

Robin

says: Customer Service

You are so welcome, Caryn. Thank you for such a sweet description of this book and the togetherness it built with your family!

Renae Burks

says:

I search your blog for recommendations for my son on chapter books and never come up empty handed. Thank you for being a trusted source for recommendations on quality, appropriate chapter book series.

Robin E.

says: Customer Service

Renae,
Thank you for letting us know that you and your son have enjoyed our chapter book recommendations! ?

Kate

says:

These books sound great! I will look for them to read to my children. Thanks so much!

Robin E.

says: Customer Service

You are welcome, Kate. I hope your children enjoy them as much as we have. ?

LAURA MALZON

says:

I introduced my daughter to the gone-away books because of your post, and she fell in love! Thank you for sharing these great books!

Robin E.

says: Customer Service

Laura,
Thank you for letting us know that your daughter has loved this series!

Tracey

says:

This is a great idea to foster a love for books, I’m looking forward to trying it.

Lynda

says:

I think my daughter will enjoy these books.

Jessica

says:

Thanks for the review! I am constantly looking for new books to read!

Robin E.

says: Customer Service

Jessica,
You are welcome. In case you haven’t seen them, we have a number of chapter book reviews.

Crystal

says:

Always looking for interesting chapter books that keep attention of 1st, 3rd and 5th grader.

Robin E.

says: Customer Service

Crystal,
Your children may be just the right ages to enjoy this series. I hope they do enjoy it.

Tonya

says:

This looks great for my current kiddos!!!

Michelle

says:

I really appreciate your book series reviews. They are so helpful for our family! We are always in search of good books with moral qualities and values. Thanks so much for sharing!

Merry

says: Customer Service

Hi Michelle,

You’re welcome! Happy reading :-).

becky scott

says:

Wow! I really appreciate the information on the books. When I go to the library, it is sometimes hard to find wholesome books. As for the 7-12 age range, my daughter has read The Little House on the Prairie series, but I haven’t heard about this author. Thank you so much!!!!

Robin E.

says: Customer Service

Becky,
You are welcome, and I hope your daughter enjoys this series. Gone-Away Lake is similar in reading level to many of the Little House books.

Jana

says:

Looking forward to trying these!

jen

says:

I love these!, just ordered to add to our library :)

Lacey

says:

Thanks so much for all of the book recommendations. It makes it so much easier to find good, quality literature.

Robin E.

says: Customer Service

You are welcome, Lacey!

Jennifer

says:

Oh, these are so great! We love the Melendy family books by the same author, too.

Robin E.

says: Customer Service

Jennifer,
I haven’t read the Melendy family books, but now I am interested! Thanks for mentioning them.

Amber Richards

says:

Thanks for the review! My oldest is reading the book per your recommendation and my 7 year old is listening to it on cd.

Vicky

says:

Thank you! We will definitely get these.

Danielle

says:

We love books!

Megan

says:

Always great to learn of new book series suggestions!

Kimberly

says:

Great series

Danielle

says:

I love getting new book recommendations! Thanks!

Heather

says:

I haven’t heard of these, they seem interesting. I really love how you have been sharing books lately. Some we have and read and some we didn’t know about. Thank you for sharing.

Merry

says: Customer Service

You’re welcome, Heather. Good books are like meeting new friends. :-)

Cara F

says:

Books ❤️

Amy

says:

❤️❤️❤️

Kim

says:

Sounds like a good story to read aloud to all my kiddos :) Love book recommendations.

K

says:

These look great to engage my reader whom gets overwhelmed with too much print! Thanks!

Merry

says: Customer Service

I hope she enjoys the story as much as we did!

Melissa

says:

Love all of your books.

Betsy

says:

We can’t wait to try these books.

I will be adding these to our (long!) list of books to read!

Lynae

says:

We loved this book as well. Read it years ago, need to read book two!