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3.68 AVERAGE
3.68 AVERAGE
The book was decent, and that's all. It didn't make me laugh, or cry, but it wasn't bad.
Anna goes on a trip with her best friend Frankie to Zanzibar, California. They create their own challenge, Twenty Boy Summer. In which they try to meet twenty boys before the end of the vacation. But Anna doesn't want to meet boys. She still isn't over the death of her first boyfriend, only a little over a year ago. But no one knows that she and Matt dated. And she can't tell anyone one because she made a promise. And Matt is Frankie's brother.
Anna is a blase character. Even though Matt died, and she is grieving. I felt like she didn't have a lot of structure. I wanted to like Frankie, but she made it hard with all her trashy friend moves. Frankie's parents were horrible. Their son died, but they still have a daughter, and they should get a clue.
Sam was a weak love interest. It was almost aggravating how understanding he was. He never got mad at Anna. And he didn't really have a reason to, but he was all most too perfect.
It was an easy read, but I did put off really reading it for awhile, before I hunkered down and read the whole thing.
When Frankie found out about Matt and Anna's relationship, and had her whole episode. I wanted to fight. I mean come on girl, he was your brother, but you weren't the only person who lost him.
3/5 stars, utterly average.
Anna goes on a trip with her best friend Frankie to Zanzibar, California. They create their own challenge, Twenty Boy Summer. In which they try to meet twenty boys before the end of the vacation. But Anna doesn't want to meet boys. She still isn't over the death of her first boyfriend, only a little over a year ago. But no one knows that she and Matt dated. And she can't tell anyone one because she made a promise. And Matt is Frankie's brother.
Anna is a blase character. Even though Matt died, and she is grieving. I felt like she didn't have a lot of structure. I wanted to like Frankie, but she made it hard with all her trashy friend moves. Frankie's parents were horrible. Their son died, but they still have a daughter, and they should get a clue.
Sam was a weak love interest. It was almost aggravating how understanding he was. He never got mad at Anna. And he didn't really have a reason to, but he was all most too perfect.
It was an easy read, but I did put off really reading it for awhile, before I hunkered down and read the whole thing.
When Frankie found out about Matt and Anna's relationship, and had her whole episode. I wanted to fight. I mean come on girl, he was your brother, but you weren't the only person who lost him.
3/5 stars, utterly average.
Unlike most reviewers of this book, I didn't like it.
The back flap assured this was a book of love, grieving and friendship which was appealing at first.
The first chapter, I will admit, broke my heart and it was impossible for my eyes not to well. But that was the only time I felt really something. I hated Frankie and her bitchy-ways, plus the always mispronouncing something -which felt ridiculous at times- and Anna was annoying, giving us the composed and sainty girl act.
I found it outrageous the way of speaking about virginity, treated as something to shed and not give, in love, to someone.
In conclusion, after being mildly disturbed, I just loved the ending and was happy I finished it.
The back flap assured this was a book of love, grieving and friendship which was appealing at first.
The first chapter, I will admit, broke my heart and it was impossible for my eyes not to well. But that was the only time I felt really something. I hated Frankie and her bitchy-ways, plus the always mispronouncing something -which felt ridiculous at times- and Anna was annoying, giving us the composed and sainty girl act.
I found it outrageous the way of speaking about virginity, treated as something to shed and not give, in love, to someone.
In conclusion, after being mildly disturbed, I just loved the ending and was happy I finished it.
I used to read this book at least once a year when I was a teenager, and reading it now as an adult really made me realize how much of this book has stuck with me for so long
I ended up enjoying this book a lot more than I thought I would. I was just looking for a quick, cute summer read and this book kept coming up in my recommendations, so I decided to give it a try. I expected it to be just that: a quick, cute read, but not anything substantial that I'd remember. But I was wrong. This book ended up having a lot more to it than I originally expected. Some parts of it were cheesy and predictable, but in a fun way. Other parts were full of heart and really, honestly captured grief. I definitely recommend this one.
adventurous
lighthearted
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The title & summary don't really tell what the story is about. I enjoyed the storyline & the characters but there was too much drawn out angst that got boring
Title: Twenty Boy Summer
Author: Sarah Ockler
Publisher: Little, Brown
Date Published: 2009
Genre: Young Adult
Main Themes: Love, Friendship, Family, Grief, Secrets
Pages: 290
Plot (from book jacket):
" 'Don't worry Anna. I'll tell her, okay? Just let me think about the best way to do it.'
'Okay.'
'Promise me? Promise me you won't say anything?'
'Don't worry.' I laughed. 'It's our little secret, right?'
According to Anna's best friend, Frankie, twenty days in Zanzibar Bay is the perfect opportunity to have a summer fling, and if they meet one boy every 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 her romance, and it was with Frankie's older brother, Matt, just before his tragic death one year ago."
Ahhhh! I devoured this book; it was simply stunning. Seriously! I hadn't heard a bad review about it, but I was hesitant. Was it too good to be true? Nope, apparently not!
The characters were so amazing in this novel - I came to love Frankie, Anna, Matt, and Sam! Anna was an awesome narrator with the perfect balance of truthfulness, wit, and sarcasm. Sam was definitely swoon worthy; I loved that he wasn't just a good looking guy Anna meets on vacation, he was smart and had depth as well.
Frankie and Anna's relationship was one of my favorite parts of the story. I think that it perfectly captured what many best friend relationships are like: there is jealousy, love, protectiveness, and a billion other emotions and feelings all wrapped together - not just happiness and sunshine.
I've been reading a lot of books where an important person in the main characters life has died (Broken Soup, Evermore, Willow,I Heart You, You Haunt Me, etc) and I really thought that those authors did well, but I really liked Sarah Ockler's depiction in particular. Twenty Boy Summer is most closely related to I Heart You, You Haunt Me (in that the boyfriend/love interest is the character that is lost), but I really liked how the author portrayed Anna's feelings and confusion. If you liked I Heart You, You Haunt Me by Lisa Schroeder, I would definitely recommend Twenty Boy Summer.
Ratings (Out of 10):
Plot: 10
Characters: 10
Writing style: 10
Romance: 10
Originality: 10
Total: 50/50 (A!!)
I think it is quite obvious that I think everyone should read this book! Add this review to the rest of the stack of glowing reviews!! :) Skip the library for this one - you're going to want it on your shelf!
Author: Sarah Ockler
Publisher: Little, Brown
Date Published: 2009
Genre: Young Adult
Main Themes: Love, Friendship, Family, Grief, Secrets
Pages: 290
Plot (from book jacket):
" 'Don't worry Anna. I'll tell her, okay? Just let me think about the best way to do it.'
'Okay.'
'Promise me? Promise me you won't say anything?'
'Don't worry.' I laughed. 'It's our little secret, right?'
According to Anna's best friend, Frankie, twenty days in Zanzibar Bay is the perfect opportunity to have a summer fling, and if they meet one boy every 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 her romance, and it was with Frankie's older brother, Matt, just before his tragic death one year ago."
Ahhhh! I devoured this book; it was simply stunning. Seriously! I hadn't heard a bad review about it, but I was hesitant. Was it too good to be true? Nope, apparently not!
The characters were so amazing in this novel - I came to love Frankie, Anna, Matt, and Sam! Anna was an awesome narrator with the perfect balance of truthfulness, wit, and sarcasm. Sam was definitely swoon worthy; I loved that he wasn't just a good looking guy Anna meets on vacation, he was smart and had depth as well.
Frankie and Anna's relationship was one of my favorite parts of the story. I think that it perfectly captured what many best friend relationships are like: there is jealousy, love, protectiveness, and a billion other emotions and feelings all wrapped together - not just happiness and sunshine.
I've been reading a lot of books where an important person in the main characters life has died (Broken Soup, Evermore, Willow,I Heart You, You Haunt Me, etc) and I really thought that those authors did well, but I really liked Sarah Ockler's depiction in particular. Twenty Boy Summer is most closely related to I Heart You, You Haunt Me (in that the boyfriend/love interest is the character that is lost), but I really liked how the author portrayed Anna's feelings and confusion. If you liked I Heart You, You Haunt Me by Lisa Schroeder, I would definitely recommend Twenty Boy Summer.
Ratings (Out of 10):
Plot: 10
Characters: 10
Writing style: 10
Romance: 10
Originality: 10
Total: 50/50 (A!!)
I think it is quite obvious that I think everyone should read this book! Add this review to the rest of the stack of glowing reviews!! :) Skip the library for this one - you're going to want it on your shelf!
As soon as I was finished reading Fixing Delilah by Sarah Ockler, I went out to my library and found Twenty Boy Summer and started it almost immediately. I was wondering if this book would be a bit disappointing because I had enjoyed Delilah so much but this book did not disappoint in any way. This was a book that I will have to add to my ever-growing list of books that made me ugly-cry well after the book was finished.
I loved everything about this book. I loved the friendship between Anna and Frankie. It was so raw and so real and it brought me back to my days as a teen with my best friend at the time. I loved going on trips together but there was also so much that we were afraid to tell each other. This is the same for Anna and Frankie; Anna hides that she was dating Frankie's brother and Frankie lies to Anna because of her insecurities.
I loved the family dynamics in this novel as well. As close as Anna is to Frankie's family she will never fully be a part of it and I think Anna's mother worried about that when she sent Anna to Zanzibar Bay. Anna is stuck kind of floating because while she is not a part of Frankie's family her grief is very real and she really has no one to talk to about it.
I could not put this book down and it had my emotions on high the entire time I was reading this novel. I kept thinking of how unfair life can be sometimes. I know that this was a novel and therefore not real but things like this happen all the time and it really makes you feel thankful for what you have in life. Overall I give this book 5 out of 5 stars and I think I have found myself a new favourite author.
I loved everything about this book. I loved the friendship between Anna and Frankie. It was so raw and so real and it brought me back to my days as a teen with my best friend at the time. I loved going on trips together but there was also so much that we were afraid to tell each other. This is the same for Anna and Frankie; Anna hides that she was dating Frankie's brother and Frankie lies to Anna because of her insecurities.
I loved the family dynamics in this novel as well. As close as Anna is to Frankie's family she will never fully be a part of it and I think Anna's mother worried about that when she sent Anna to Zanzibar Bay. Anna is stuck kind of floating because while she is not a part of Frankie's family her grief is very real and she really has no one to talk to about it.
I could not put this book down and it had my emotions on high the entire time I was reading this novel. I kept thinking of how unfair life can be sometimes. I know that this was a novel and therefore not real but things like this happen all the time and it really makes you feel thankful for what you have in life. Overall I give this book 5 out of 5 stars and I think I have found myself a new favourite author.
This book had a slow start and I almost didn't finish it because it wasn't that interesting, but the middle and end were interesting and fascinating, like gossip.