The Summer I Turned Pretty, by Jenny Han

Hey all! 

I just finished reading The Summer I Turned Pretty, by Jenny Han! 

It's so nice to have the time to binge-read again! I read this in under 2 days, and it felt great!

"Belly measures her life in summers. Everything good, everything magical happens between the months of June and August. Winters are simply a time to count the weeks until the next summer, a place away from the beach house, away from Susannah, and most importantly, away from Jeremiah and Conrad. They are the boys that Belly has known since her very first summer--they have been her brother figures, her crushes, and everything in between. But one summer, one terrible and wonderful summer, the more everything changes, the more it all ends up just the way it should have been all along."

This book is a great summer read for anyone who wants to kick back and relax by the pool, or in the sunshine. It's light, fluffy, and not-too-serious. Plus, my favorite, it has short chapters! 

The Summer I Turned Pretty is about Belly (short for Isabel), who goes to the same summer house every year, and spends her time with the same people, summer after summer. Since she was young, she has been in love with one of the guys she stays with - the mysterious Conrad. She believes this summer might finally be the one where Conrad notices her. Yet, at a party, she meets Cam, a super sweet guy who becomes her first summer romance. 

This book was cute! I mean, none of the characters stuck with me as a favorite - you never really go deeply into these characters, their backstories or their appearances. 

Belly was kind of annoying in my opinion. She seemed to consider herself to be the center of the world, and every little action anyone did was for or against her. I was honestly uncomfortable with how she approached Conrad at the end of the book, trying to get him to admit he had feelings for her, even though there was no way for her to get any leads towards that. And I really didn't like how she used Cam to get Conrad jealous. 

Cam was adorable though! He was a Latin nerd, super sweet and considerate, and incredibly gentle. His character was a great contrast with Belly's, but he was only ever a tool for her - she was never happy about introducing him to her family and friends, and always seemed nervous or pushy around him. 

Conrad was fine, I guess. He was constantly moody and a bit of a jerk, but we never really got to know his point of view, or where his sudden anger stemmed from. I really wish we could have had one chapter with his point of view at one point! 

Jeremiah was actually great - he was always joking, smiling and simply happy! He was a steady, light factor in the story, however, I didn't appreciate it much when he suddenly told Belly that he liked her. It lasted one page. 

I loved their moms, though! Suzanna and Laurel were awesome friends and were always there for each other throughout the summer.

Now the plot was fine, very summery and very contemporary, yet slightly predictable and cliche. 

What was cool, though is that, like a good Coldplay song, this book was relatable in the sense that the characters could be anyone - yourself, someone you know, or fictional characters. The beach town could be any beach town, and the situations are common enough to be altered to be applicable to anyone. 

I really loved the flashbacks presented through this book! It was nice to have the characters mention a memory and then have the memories played out in the book, with just enough detail for it to even feel like a memory - slightly blurry yet crystal clear at the same time, if that makes sense! 

Overall, it was an enjoyable read, even though I had some problems with the characters. 

I'm giving this book 3.5/5 feathers! 

Have you read The Summer I Turned Pretty? What is your favorite summer read? Let me know! 

Have a great day! 

Stay bookish!