The Invincible Summer of Juniper Jones – Daven McQueen

The Invincible Summer of Juniper Jones by Daven McQueen

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Received: Raincoast Books
Published: June 16th, 2020
Publisher: Wattpad Books
Recommended Age: 13+
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Historical Fiction, Racism, Friendship

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REVIEW:

This is a beautiful book about a life-changing summer shared between two characters full of heart. After his father leaves him with his aunt and uncle in an unknown place, Ethan thinks he’s going to spend the worst summer ever. No one in Alabama seems to want him there, excluding but sometimes even including his extended family, except this one strange girl named Juniper Jones, who is like no one Ethan has ever met.

Fake It Till You Break It – Jenn P. Nguyen

Fake It Till You Break It by Jenn P. Nguyen

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Received: Raincoast Books
Published: May 28th, 2019
Publisher: Swoon Reads
Recommended Age: 11+
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Romance, Summer, Family, Love/Hate Relationships

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REVIEW:

This is the perfect YA romance to read during the summer, perhaps at the beach or next to the pool or even late at night while everyone is sleeping and you’re awake under the atmospheric moonlight. Just don’t read it during a snowstorm, that’s all I ask.

If It Makes You Happy – Claire Kann

If It Makes You Happy by Claire Kann

My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Received: Raincoast Books
Published: June 4th, 2019
Publisher: Swoon Reads
Recommended Age: 12+
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Summer, LGBTQIA+, Family, Romance, Friendship

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REVIEW:

Having adored LET’S TALK ABOUT LOVE from the same author, I absolutely needed to read this book. But now that I have, it’s hard to believe that the two were written by the same person.

Stay Sweet – Siobhan Vivian

Stay Sweet by Siobhan Vivian

My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Received: Publisher
Published: April 24th, 2018
Publisher: Simon & Schuster BFYR
Recommended Age: 11+
Pacing: Normal/Fast
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Summer, Community, Business, Romance, Friendship

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BLURB:

Summer in Sand Lake isn’t complete without a trip to Meade Creamery—the local ice cream stand founded in 1944 by Molly Meade who started making ice cream to cheer up her lovesick girlfriends while all the boys were away at war. Since then, the stand has been owned and managed exclusively by local girls, who inevitably become the best of friends. Seventeen-year-old Amelia and her best friend Cate have worked at the stand every summer for the past three years, and Amelia is “Head Girl” at the stand this summer. When Molly passes away before Amelia even has her first day in charge, Amelia isn’t sure that the stand can go on. That is, until Molly’s grandnephew Grady arrives and asks Amelia to stay on to help continue the business…but Grady’s got some changes in mind…

Summer Constellations – Alisha Sevigny

Summer Constellations by Alisha Sevigny

My rating: 2 of 5 stars
Received: Publisher
First Published: May 1st, 2018
Publisher: KCP Loft
Recommended Age: 12+
Pacing: Slow
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Summer, Contemporary Romance, Family

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BLURB:

Julia Ducharme is ready for a fresh start. Her little brother has finally recovered from a serious illness, and now she just wants to enjoy peak season at the campground her family owns. Maybe this will be the year her annual summer fling with Dan Schaeffer becomes something more. But her summer dreams are quickly shattered. First, Dan arrives for vacation with a new girlfriend in tow, and then Julia discovers this may be her last summer in the only home she’s ever known. Crushing medical bills have brought her single mom to the brink of bankruptcy, and a wealthy developer is sniffing around the campground. He sees what Julia sees: lush woods, a pristine lake, miles of trails for adventure. Unlike Julia, he thinks this is the perfect spot for a casino resort.

Review: Summer of Sloane by Erin L. Schneider

Summer of Sloane by Erin L. Schneider

My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Received: Hachette Book Group Canada
Publication Date: May 3rd 2016
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Point of View: 1st Person & Feminine
Recommended Age: 12+
Pacing: Normal
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Contemporary, Drama, Family, Romance

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BLURB:

Warm Hawaiian sun. Lazy beach days. Flirty texts with her boyfriend back in Seattle.

These are the things seventeen-year-old Sloane McIntyre pictured when she imagined the summer she’d be spending at her mom’s home in Hawaii with her twin brother, Penn. Instead, after learning an unthinkable secret about her boyfriend, Tyler, and best friend, Mick, all she has is a fractured hand and a completely shattered heart.

Once she arrives in Honolulu, though, Sloane hopes that Hawaii might just be the escape she needs. With beach bonfires, old friends, exotic food, and the wonders of a waterproof cast, there’s no reason Sloane shouldn’t enjoy her summer. And when she meets Finn McAllister, the handsome son of a hotel magnate who doesn’t always play by the rules, she knows he’s the perfect distraction from everything that’s so wrong back home.

Review: Love & Gelato by Jenna Evans Welch

Love & Gelato by Jenna Evans Welch

My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Received: Borrowed
Publication Date: May 3rd 2016
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Point of View: 1st Person & Feminine
Recommended Age: 12+
Pacing: Fast
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Mystery, Contemporary, Romance, Summer, Family, Italy, Adventure

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BLURB:

“I made the wrong choice.”

Lina is spending the summer in Tuscany, but she isn’t in the mood for Italy’s famous sunshine and fairy-tale landscape. She’s only there because it was her mother’s dying wish that she get to know her father. But what kind of father isn’t around for sixteen years? All Lina wants to do is get back home.

But then she is given a journal that her mom had kept when she lived in Italy. Suddenly Lina’s uncovering a magical world of secret romances, art, and hidden bakeries. A world that inspires Lina, along with the ever-so-charming Ren, to follow in her mother’s footsteps and unearth a secret that has been kept for far too long. It’s a secret that will change everything she knew about her mother, her father—and even herself.

People come to Italy for love and gelato, someone tells her, but sometimes they discover much more.

Must-Read Review: The Loose Ends List by Carrie Firestone

The Loose Ends List by Carrie Firestone

My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Received: Hachette Book Group Canada
Publication Date: June 7th, 2016
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Point of View: 1st Person & Feminine
Recommended Age: 13+
Pacing: Slow
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Contemporary, Family, First Love, Adventure, Life and Death, Humour

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BLURB:

It’s a summer for first love, last wishes, and letting go.

Maddie has big plans to spend the last months before college tying up high school “loose ends” alongside her best friends. Then her beloved grandmother drops two bombshells: (1) Gram is dying. (2) She’s taking her entire family on a round-the-world cruise of dreams come true—but at the end, Gram won’t be returning home.

With a promise to live in the now without regrets, Maddie boards the Wishwell determined to make every moment count. She finds new friends in her fellow Wishwellians, takes advantage of the trip’s many luxuries, gets even closer to her quirky family, and falls for painfully gorgeous Enzo. But despite the copious laughter, headiness of first love, and wonder of the glamorous destinations, Maddie knows she is on the brink of losing Gram, and she struggles to find the strength to let go in a whirlwind summer shaped by love, grief, and laughter.

Review: The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (Sisterhood, #1) by Ann Brashares

The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Received: Borrowed
Publication Date: 2001
Publisher: Delacorte
Point of View: 3rd Person & Alternative
Recommended Age: 12+
Pacing: Fast
Genres &  Themes: Young Adult, Contemporary, Summer, Friendship, Coming of Age, Romance, Family

BLURB:

FOUR VERY DIFFERENT FRIENDS. ONE PAIR OF MAGICAL PANTS. AND A SUMMER APART …

We, the Sisterhood, hereby instate the following rules to govern the use of the Traveling Pants:

1. You must never wash the Pants.

2. You must never double-cuff the Pants. It’s tacky. There will never be a time when this will not be tacky.

3. You must never say the word “phat” while wearing the Pants. You must also never think “I am fat” while wearing the Pants.

4. You must never let a boy take off the Pants (although you may take them off yourself in his presence).

5. You must not pick your nose while wearing the Pants. You may, however, scratch casually your nostril while really kind of picking.

6. Upon our reunion, you must follow the proper procedures for documenting your time in the Pants.

7. You must write to your Sisters throughout the summer, no matter how much fun you are having without them.

8. You must pass the Pants along to your Sister according to the specifications set down by the Sisterhood. Failures to comply will result in a sever spanking upon our reunion.

9. You must not wear the Pants with a tucked-in shirt and belt. See rule #2.

10. Remember: Pants = love. Love your pals. Love yourself.

Review: The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Received: Bought
Publication Date: January 10th 2012
Publisher: Dutton Books
Point of View: 1st Person & Feminine
Recommended Age: 13+
Genres &  Themes: Young Adult, Contemporary, Summer, Cancer, Ilness, Romance, Friendship, Family, Life, Dreams

BLURB:

Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel’s story is about to be completely rewritten.

Insightful, bold, irreverent, and raw, The Fault in Our Stars is award-winning author John Green’s most ambitious and heartbreaking work yet, brilliantly exploring the funny, thrilling, and tragic business of being alive and in love.