The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han
Genre: YA Realistic Fiction
Blurb (on back of book): 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 terrible and wonderful summer, the more everything changes, the more it all ends up just the way it should have been all along.
UPDATED x4 REVIEW
MY OPINION: ******
I have barely any room left on Goodreads to keep reviewing this book so I'm going to keep this short. This is probably my fourteenth time reading this book (though I haven't recorded each one on GR) and it just keeps getting better. Anyone who knows me knows this is one of my favorite series of all time and I love it with my entire soul.
I reread this book simply because the TV show just came out and it's been a bit since I've revisited my favorite Cousins Beach. I absolutely love the TV show and have rewatched it several times since its June 17th release date but it was very different from the books. The gatekeeping part of me wants to fight for my Conrad so badly because so many core Conrad scenes were erased in the show.
I've been Team Conrad ever since I first read these books years and years ago. I love that man with my entire soul and I will forever defend him, no matter what he does. He carried so much around with him and was so strong for his brother and for everyone else, even though he was obviously hurting inside.
I love Jeremiah but I only see him as a platonic best friend to Belly. I love their friendship and I feel like a romance between them ruined their unbreakable bond as seen in the later books (IFKYK). I love his positivity and angelic personality and also getting to see his more emotional side underneath the happy layers.
Cam Cameron deserved better. I think I used to be a Cam hater for some reason but now I am fully on his side. Belly treated him horribly and he didn't deserve that, especially since he was extremely nice and non-toxic and loyal. Everything about his character was perfect and yet he got brushed aside and was literally never spoken about again. I hope he gets some sort of redemption in the show, at least. Give him a partner or something.
Steven is such a sweetheart and I love him with my entire soul. He's funny and sarcastic and everything an older brother normally is to a younger sister. I didn't like Taylor as much in the books as in the show and found her to be annoying. Susannah is too good for this world and I loved seeing how Laurel balanced her out. Their friendship is to die for.
The book is so much more palpable than the show, especially for the Team Conrad supporters. I love the show but the book portrays so much more emotion and depth than any show could. I am almost equally in love with both versions but the book will always have my middle-school heart.
I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a cute summer read.
Main Character: Belly
Sidekick(s): Conrad, Jeremiah, Taylor, Susannah, Laurel, Cam, etc
Villain(s): Misunderstandings, cancer, anger, grief, etc
Realistic Fiction Elements: This book is all very real to life.
Comments
Post a Comment