Ice Cream, Swimming and Stoops: The Best Narratively Stories of Summer

Find a spot in the shade, grab a glass of lemonade, and meet the boys and girls of summer in seven sizzling untold tales.

1. Stoop Stories By Gabrielle Sierra

Photo by Gabrielle Sierra

Street games, horseplay, sunning stray cats and sneaking up on grandma: a lifelong Brooklynite recalls summertime moments as seen from her family’s front porch.

2. One Extremely Wet, Incredibly Hot American Summer By George Schön

Illustration by Devyn Park I was a 24-year-old theater teacher at a Jewish summer camp. She was a beautiful 17-year-old junior counselor. My only camp friend was losing his mind. Let’s just say it was a summer I’ll never forget. 3. The Inside Scoop By Michael Stahl

Photo by Kyria Abrahams In the truck with a Mister Softee veteran who's been melting hearts in Queens for 27 years. 4. Breaking Into the Holy Grail of Texas Swimming Holes By Mark Wheeler

Photo courtesy Greg Holly In unbearably hot Central Texas, a unique underground ecosystem creates ice-cold springs that seem sent from the gods—including one otherworldly oasis protected by active security on a remote private ranch. 5. The Real Mermaid By Lauren R. Weinstein

Illustration by Lauren R. Weinstein As Coney Island’s longstanding summer tradition struggles to continue in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, a cartoonist looks back at one seriously epic Mermaid Parade. 6. How to Play in a Sprinkler By Lilly O'Donnell

Illustration by Dakota McFadzean Three generations of New Yorkers relish the finest summer pleasure the city has to offer—a sprint through shooting walls of water. 7. The Ice Cream Man in the Summer of Sam By Maria Smilios

Illustration by Marc Pearson In New York’s sultry summer of ’77, a whiskey-swilling old man befriends three latchkey kids with cartons of ice cream and haunting stories they’ll never forget.