The Summer That Changed Everything - Ann BrasharesPages: 274
Publisher: Corgi
Release Date: 4th March 2010
Other Titles by this Author: The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants, The Second Summer of the Sisterhood, Girls in Pants, Forever in Blue, Girl of Lost Things, The Summer (of You and Me), My Name is Memory (UK 27/05/10, US 01/06/10)
Polly, Jo and Ama were best friends.
Were…
For no real reason their friendship faded, and now the girls face their long summer holiday without each other.
But this will be a summer filled with drama and memories, love and loss, tears and laughter. This will be a summer that changes everything.
Can the girls get through it without each other…?
The Summer That Changed Everything is a beautiful summer tale of friendship, love and loss.
The four girls from The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants were mentioned throughout the novel and one even had a cameo. In the eyes of Ama, Polly and Jo, those girls and their story are legendary. But I haven’t read the books about the Sisterhood. I know, I know, I’m very ashamed of myself. It seems like the stories of the Sisterhood are teenage rites of passage and The Summer That Changed Everything seemed to bring this to a younger generation, like passing those beloved teen classics down to your little sister.
It’s been a while since I’ve read a book like this; it was completely refreshing. I tend to read a lot of intense paranormal romances so it was nice to return to the kind of book that I would have read before I started blogging. The Summer That Changed Everything is full of a different kind of life and energy to my usual reads. It reads like the soft, warm fulfilment of a day spent out in the sun enjoying life. And while The Summer That Changed Everything is a subtle, summer read, it also deals with bigger issues that you face growing up, such as, divorce, alcoholism, kissing another girl’s boyfriend and drifting away from your friends. But they weren’t forced down your throat at all, they sat in the background having a silent effect on the lives of the girls just as they really would.
One of my favourite things about The Summer That Changed Everything is it’s format. If you’re a regular reader of my reviews you’ll know that I love split narration as I love to hear all sides of a story! Polly, Jo and Ama are three very different girls that live very different summers and their story probably would have been impossible to tell in any other way. I also really loved the facts about willow trees that were scattered between the chapters. They held the novel on an underlying string that really pulled everything together. I love them!
I really enjoyed The Summer That Changed Everything and I definitely hope to read more of Ann Brashares’ books in the future. Especially The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants series!
For my 2010 100+ Reading Challenge
Sophie
Ooh, thanks for the review! This sounds great and it's already on my wishlist! :)
ReplyDeleteThank you for a wonderful review! I love the sound of this, and the way the Sisterhood girls were mentioned.
ReplyDeleteI have read and loved Sisterhood Of Travelling Pants. I am sure I will like this as much. Loved the review
ReplyDeleteLovely review. I have this to read but I was a little hesitant about it. Not my normal kind of read but I think I might enjoy it now. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteThis is an awesome review! I should be reading this soon and I've been hoping I'll like it, but now I feel really sure I will.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely love this sentence from your review in particular: 'It reads like the soft, warm fulfilment of a day spent out in the sun enjoying life'. It's just beautiful.
I enjoy split narration too, and this sounds like a fun read. Thanks for the great review!
ReplyDeletei love this book im reading it now wish der was a movie on it like sisterhood of travelling pants
ReplyDeletei love it sooo much ama jo n polly r great n ama n noah need to have a follow up mybe a next book ?
ReplyDelete