I recently read the book The Summer I Turned Pretty written by Jenny Han. I chose this book because the title was intriguing and I am familiar with the author. First I’ll introduce the location, characters, and give a quick summary. The majority of the story takes place in a summer home along the water at Cousins Beach. Cousins Beach is based on locations such as the Hamptons and Cape Cod. The house is very beachy and the perfect place to spend the summer. The main characters in the books are Isabel Conklin (A.K.A “Belly”), Conrad Fisher, Jeremiah Fisher (A.K.A. “Jere”), Steven Conklin, Susannah Fisher (A.K.A “Beck”), and Laurel Conklin. Every summer life long best friends Susannah and Laurel bring their kids together and spend a few months at the Fisher’s summer home. The story is from Belly’s perspective as she spends the summer with her mom and brother as well as recalls memories from past summers as this is a tradition that has taken place her whole life. Jenny Han summarizes the book staying “Belly measures her life in summers. Everything good, everything magical happens between the months of June and August. Winters are simply a time to count the weeks until the next summer, a place away from the beach house, away from Susannah, and most importantly, away from Jeremiah and Conrad. They are the boys that Belly has known since her very first summer — they have been her brother figures, her crushes, and everything in between. But one summer, one wonderful and terrible summer, the more everything changes, the more it all ends up just the way it should have been all along.”
People should read this book because it is a very easy summer read. The characters are very likable and the story flows well and holds the reader’s attention throughout the book. A big focus throughout the story is the romance between Belly and the Fisher boys which isn’t particularly a topic I personally enjoy reading but I love books about summertime so overall I enjoyed reading this.
