Title: Twenty Boy Summer
Author: Sarah Ockler
Pages: 290
Rating: 4.5/5
"Don't worry, Anna. I'll tell her, okay? Just let me think about the best way to do it."
"Okay."
"Promise me? Promise you won't say anything?"
"Don't worry." I laughed. "It's our secret, right?"
According to her best friend Frankie, twenty days in ZanzibarBay is the perfect opportunity to have a summer fling, and if they meet one boy ever day, there's a pretty good chance Anna will find her first summer romance. Anna lightheartedly agrees to the game, but there's something she hasn't told Frankie---she's already had that kind of romance, and it was with Frankie's older brother, Matt, just before his tragic death one year ago.
Beautifully written and emotionally honest, this is a debut novel that explores what it truly means to love someone and what it means to grieve, and ultimately, how to make the most of every single moment this world has to offer (Cover Blurb).
When I first saw the cover of this book, I was expecting a quick, light, flowery romance. However, what Ockler offers is a hard hitting, emotional, coming of age tale that I could not put down. I had a really slow reading week, and I was determined to read some today. This morning, I picked up Twenty Boy Summer. I had only read about fifty pages this week but I had no trouble getting caught up in the story and finishing it today. I adored this read. It was so heartfelt and touching, and I could not put it down!
Author: Sarah Ockler
Pages: 290
Rating: 4.5/5
"Don't worry, Anna. I'll tell her, okay? Just let me think about the best way to do it."
"Okay."
"Promise me? Promise you won't say anything?"
"Don't worry." I laughed. "It's our secret, right?"
According to her best friend Frankie, twenty days in ZanzibarBay is the perfect opportunity to have a summer fling, and if they meet one boy ever day, there's a pretty good chance Anna will find her first summer romance. Anna lightheartedly agrees to the game, but there's something she hasn't told Frankie---she's already had that kind of romance, and it was with Frankie's older brother, Matt, just before his tragic death one year ago.
Beautifully written and emotionally honest, this is a debut novel that explores what it truly means to love someone and what it means to grieve, and ultimately, how to make the most of every single moment this world has to offer (Cover Blurb).
When I first saw the cover of this book, I was expecting a quick, light, flowery romance. However, what Ockler offers is a hard hitting, emotional, coming of age tale that I could not put down. I had a really slow reading week, and I was determined to read some today. This morning, I picked up Twenty Boy Summer. I had only read about fifty pages this week but I had no trouble getting caught up in the story and finishing it today. I adored this read. It was so heartfelt and touching, and I could not put it down!
The writing in this novel was very true to life, and I could feel every bit of Anna's grief due to the loss of Matt. Her feelings of confusion and sorrow stayed with you the entire time you read the story. I'm really looking forward to reading more fo Sarah Ockler, and seeing what other wonderful ideas she comes up with!
The one part of this book that really bothered me was the focus on sex. Both of the main characters were fifteen, and their main goal for the summer was to meet twenty boys and for Anna to lose her virginity. Maybe I'm turning into an old woman, but I was shocked by the implication that it was ok for fifteen year old girls to chase after guys and put so much focus on losing their virginity. I'm pretty sure I wasn't thinking about that kind of stuff when I was fifteen. Also, this book is recommended for ages 12 and up. I'm pretty sure if I had a twelve year old daughter, I would NOT want her reading this book! End of rant.
So all in all, I really enjoyed Twenty Boy Summer and would love to hear what others who have read it thought about it!
No comments:
Post a Comment