The book that I chose to review for the 1st quarter is Second Chance Summer,by Morgan Matson. This Juvenile fiction, 'young adult' novel was 465 pages. The story told of a young teenage girl named Taylor Edwards and her experience with her odd and busy family after being told devastating news about her father. Her family decides to take a visit to their summer lake house for the first time in about 5 years to spend some quality time with each other for, possibly, the last time. At this lake house that her and her family haven't visited, Taylor rekindles her feelings for her former best friend named Henry, whom she had left behind, and as we continue to read, we learn of great the growth and maturity that Taylor must experience, in a timely fashion, with her family and her friends around her before it is too late.
I enjoyed this book to be honest, partially because it was an easy read, in my opinion. In the beginning of the story, the protagonist is not as open as she becomes in the end. We get to learn more about how she is genuinely feeling as the story progresses and I love that because we get to see how relatable she actually is. She is just a young girl, like myself, who is going through stuff and is used to being closed off but learns to grow and open up to people. I loved this book because it was slightly romantic which, for me, is always a plus and, it had a good ending. Having a good ending is so important to me because books that have bad endings leave a bad taste in my mouth and leave me upset that the story didn't end how it should've ended, or how I believed it should've ended. The novel had a nice tone to it. It took place in the summer, which is usually a relaxing and exciting time for most people. I think the simplistic and relaxing style of writing helped the novel read better to the audience because it did not stress the reader, but instead it let the reader flow through the words. I would not change anything about the book mainly because I feel like if I were to change it, it would not flow as smoothly as it did. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants a relaxing "love story" of a relatable teen.
~Joy Umeh
Your summary makes the book seem very ominous. I feel an incentive to read it. I like that you mentioned that the main character grows throughout the story because I like being able to see that when I read a book. You invest so much time in a character that you want to see them mature and succeed.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, I wouldn’t chose this novel to read as it seems basic and bland, coming from your description, but I can see why you g adults would like to read this as many of them could relate to the protagonist and like to them at their best at the end of the story. Good novel choice and should be recommended to more young people.
ReplyDeleteBased on your review, it persuades me to read more brief summaries of the novel and to further learn more about the author and her previous work. Personally, I find this to be an intriguing novel not just because of the typical romance in which most young adult novels have, but the use of the author displaying this type of topic with the introduction in which she has done. You typically don't see authors initiate this type of topic with a tragic opening but she did, and that overall leads me to want to read it more. Further, I, as much as the next reader, enjoy character development in whatever novel or story that I am invested in. Overall, I would love to read a novel such as this one!
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