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cupofbooksreviews's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I have given The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han four out of five stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The summer vibes were immaculate and Han’s writing transported me directly to the summer house where I wanted to bask in the sun and splash in the pool with Conrad, Jeremiah, Belly and Steven.
I watched the tv series before reading this book, which is unlike me but when you have a never ending TBR and are desperate to watch tv shows then sacrifices have to be made! I don’t know if my memory is clouded but I can’t remember Belly being as whiny in the tv show than she was in the book. I understand that we read flashbacks and that she’s presently fifteen (turning sixteen), however there were a lot of things that she did which made me look at her in a very immature light and it infuriated me at times.
Love triangles isn’t my favourite trope but I’m here for the Conrad and Jeremiah content.
I love Jenny Han and want to read everything she’s ever written!
A super fast, summery read which I did enjoy and look forward to reading the other two books in the trilogy!
The summer vibes were immaculate and Han’s writing transported me directly to the summer house where I wanted to bask in the sun and splash in the pool with Conrad, Jeremiah, Belly and Steven.
I watched the tv series before reading this book, which is unlike me but when you have a never ending TBR and are desperate to watch tv shows then sacrifices have to be made! I don’t know if my memory is clouded but I can’t remember Belly being as whiny in the tv show than she was in the book. I understand that we read flashbacks and that she’s presently fifteen (turning sixteen), however there were a lot of things that she did which made me look at her in a very immature light and it infuriated me at times.
Love triangles isn’t my favourite trope but I’m here for the Conrad and Jeremiah content.
I love Jenny Han and want to read everything she’s ever written!
A super fast, summery read which I did enjoy and look forward to reading the other two books in the trilogy!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Terminal illness and Cancer
ashleyjean6's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
A coming of age story set in a seemingly perfect small US beach town. The premise, mother & kids going away Dan's the father's for the summer, reminds me of other books set early in the 1900s near NYC (a la mad men). However this is YA and ALL about the kids, particularly the lone girl, and youngest, in the bunch. There are some problematic passages about diet culture/ body image that I really disliked. They're not even needed!! I'd let my elementary aged daughter read this, except not because of that. (It's not the focus of the book. But those stupid asides are what get stuck in a young girls head). The ending leaves you hanging, so have the next book in the series ready. I also enjoyed the narrator.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief, Alcohol, Cancer, and Terminal illness
syraluna's review
emotional
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cancer and Alcohol
Minor: Infidelity
plaidalucky's review against another edition
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cancer
dblue236's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
By the time I got halfway through this book, it was glaringly apparent to me that I am not its target audience. But having said that, I can absolutely see its appeal for teenage girls and if I had read it 20-25 years ago, I probably would have adored it. It's well written and the characters are lovable, and once I learned to get past the massive amount of teen angst, I did enjoy the story. The "big reveal" toward the end was painfully obvious from about 20 pages in, but it was a good bit of escapism and overall I enjoyed it despite being too old and cynical for it.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief, Chronic illness, Cancer, and Terminal illness
Minor: Alcohol, Drug use, Gaslighting, and Sexual content
ebby013's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
While this book was slightly uneventful, I’m excited to continue the series to see where the characters go. The time-jumps were slightly hard to follow while listening to the audiobook. It might be easier to follow along while reading it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer
lucyatoz's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han is a young adult story featuring Isabel, or as she goes by her nickname in the book Belly, which I think most teenagers would have bulked at!
This novel has issues. Belly is an annoying teenager, with an internal monologue which did get some what irritating. Jeremiah and Conrad, the son's of her Mum's best friend, are the people who she has spent the Summer with, along with her brother Steven, for a long time. They are your typical American boys, who enjoy swimming, football, playing computer games, and teasing Belly.
It is not my kind of read personally, but wanted to read something that I would not normally read. They are some topics that affect teenagers, such as drinking alcohol and using drugs, which are mentioned but not really elaborated on. Both mother's are divorced, or about to be, with one also having a relapse of cancer, which again is touched on but not really part of the story as such. It is mainly centred around Belly and, for me, this lead to very self-centred story, when it could have been so much more.
I borrowed a copy of this book from Taunton Library and listened to it on cloudLibrary. I read this for prompt 10, told in a non-chronological order, for the 52 Book Club Reading Challenge 2024.
This novel has issues. Belly is an annoying teenager, with an internal monologue which did get some what irritating. Jeremiah and Conrad, the son's of her Mum's best friend, are the people who she has spent the Summer with, along with her brother Steven, for a long time. They are your typical American boys, who enjoy swimming, football, playing computer games, and teasing Belly.
It is not my kind of read personally, but wanted to read something that I would not normally read. They are some topics that affect teenagers, such as drinking alcohol and using drugs, which are mentioned but not really elaborated on. Both mother's are divorced, or about to be, with one also having a relapse of cancer, which again is touched on but not really part of the story as such. It is mainly centred around Belly and, for me, this lead to very self-centred story, when it could have been so much more.
I borrowed a copy of this book from Taunton Library and listened to it on cloudLibrary. I read this for prompt 10, told in a non-chronological order, for the 52 Book Club Reading Challenge 2024.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cancer, Infidelity, Terminal illness, Blood, Bullying, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Drug use and Alcohol
neliasbookshelf's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Cancer
underscoresyd's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
lighthearted
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
justice for cam cameron 😭😭
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer
Moderate: Violence and Mental illness
brittanylee0302's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
I really loved the idea of this book. It's reflective of a summer you can relate to or kind of always wanted. It also explores young love & real life troubles & worries. That being said, I found Belly's characrer confusing. Often she seemed really mature in her flashbacks which ranged from age 11 to 14 but then when she's 15/16 she has a more immature outlook. I also found the flashbacks themselves a little confusing. They seemed misplaced a lot & irrelevant & the disorder of them made the story hard to follow. I also felt like Cam was super toxic & was an odd side interest, if you could even call him that.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer
Minor: Violence and Death of parent