Looking for lighthearted books to read during this summer? We’ve got you. Jenny Han’s Summer series are relaxing, young-adult romance books that will take you back to memories of breezy summer nights, adventures, and summer love. And if you have already read the “To all the boys I’ve loved before” trilogy or watched the movies I’m sure you would love this series as well. But if you are not much of a reader then don’t worry, the books are being turned into Amazon Tv series soon. The release date is not yet announced, but it is expected to air this year. Some of the cast is already announced, having Lola Tung, Jackie Chung, Rachel Blanchard, Christopher Briney as some of the main roles.
“The summer I turned pretty”
The books follow the story of Isabel (Belly) whose family’s friends own a beach house at Cousin’s beach and she, alongside her mother Lauren and her brother Steven, go there every summer. Her mother’s friend who owns the house, Susannah, has 2 sons Conrad and Jeremiah. They have always seen Belly as their sister and someone who they’d tease and protect. But this summer, the summer Belly turns pretty, things kind of change and they look at her differently. She has always had a crush on Conrad, but this summer he is kind of moody, hides his feelings into smoking, and quits football. Conrad’s parents face problems and may end up getting divorced and there is also the fact that Susannah is sick. But overall the story is about falling in love, casual dates, and a summer Belly will never forget.
Spoiler alert here are some quotes from the book:
-“Moments, when lost, can't be found again. They're just gone.”,
-“In the dark, you can feel really close to a person. You can say whatever you want.”
This book was first published in 2009.
“It’s not summer without you”
Spoiler alert The second book starts with the death of Susannah and now the families are left grieving. Belly wouldn't return to the beach house, but she gets a call from Jeremiah that Conrad has been skipping classes and that he has disappeared. Conrad has gone to the summer house because his father planned on selling it. But of course, Lauren, Belly, and the boys don’t let him sell Susannah’s favorite place. Overall this book is very emotional and talks about grief, heartbreaks, the hard things we face, and the decisions we need to make.
Here are some quotes from this book:
-“I will never look at you in the same way ever again. I'll never be that girl again. The girl who comes running back every time you push her away, the girl who loves you anyway.”
-“I didn't want to make the same mistake my parents made. I didn't want my love to fade away one day like an old scar. I wanted it to burn forever.”
This book was first published in 2010.
“We’ll always have summer”
Spoiler alert The third books follow the story of Belly and Jeremiah after they ended up together at the end of the second book. Jeremiah expressed his feelings for her openly while Conrad backed away because he didn’t want to hurt his brother. Now in the third book, Jeremiah does something really stupid that Belly rethinks if the decision she made was the right one and if there is still time to make things right. She wonders who is the boy she should give her heart to.
Here are some quotes from this book:
-“Maybe that was how it was with all first loves. They own a little piece of your heart, always.”
-“But just because you bury something, that doesn’t mean it stops existing.”
This book was first published in 2011.
In conclusion, the books are easy to read with a great flow, but they are also filled with a lot of emotion from love to grief and sadness. The books taught me how the memories we hold dear to our heart can’t be erased and how there is always time for a new beginning in life. I would definitely recommend them to every teenager.