Carol Lunney-Hampson

About The Author

Carol Lunney-Hampson

Growing up, Carol Zalewski Lunney-Hampson spent summers with her family who ran a fish camp on the Delaware River in Northeastern Pennsylvania.

Summers on the river were always full of fun and challenges. The author has used her memory of these adventures to craft a historical fiction novel that takes place during the summer of 1955. It was a special summer in many ways: the Polio vaccine was approved for distribution, and the Northeast was hit with two consecutive hurricanes. The first one, Connie, dumped a lot of rain in the area and was followed within a few weeks by Diane, a more intense storm that caused tremendous damage.

In this story, the author focuses on the family’s financial challenges and how they might be resolved. But the fun times are also highlighted, Stella’s newfound friend and her horse, the July 4th Celebration, hayrides and corn roasts.

Stella’s Very Special Summer is meant to give tweens in the present time frame an idea of how Stella, a tween herself and her friends, spent their summer vacation. There were no cellphones, TV or iPad to entertain them.

The author has tried to gently educate the readers about the life cycles of various creatures used as fish bait. This includes the nightcrawler, the Dobson Fly larva called “clipper” and the immature lamprey eel.

She also introduces the readers to ethnic foods like kielbasa sausage, city chicken, golumbki and Polish apple cake. All of these are mentioned during mealtimes.

The author left Pennsylvania in the mid-sixties to finish her education in eastern North Carolina. In her professional career, she taught college biology, researched and published in the field of Electron Microscopy, and spent twenty-plus years working in the world of pharmaceuticals.

Presently retired, she lives on a creek near the coastal town of historic New Bern, North Carolina, with her husband and enjoys writing, gardening, tennis and sailing.