Thursday, August 18, 2011

A Reader's Ramble- Twenty Boy Summer

Hi guys, today I am going to be doing a Reader's Ramble on Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler. I finished this book pretty quickly.. it was so addicting!



Page count- 290
"Don’t worry, Anna. I’ll tell her, okay? Just let me think about the best way to do it." "Okay." "Promise me? Promise you won’t say anything?" "Don’t worry.” I laughed. “It’s our 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. 

Plot- This review is going to be a lot of me ranting on how good great this book is, so be prepared! The story line was amazing, hooking, exciting, sad, heart breaking, and just great to read. This book kept me interested all the way through. There was never a point where I was bored. Ockler starts the story out in the past, where Anna and Matt still have that secret crush on one another. It caught my attention quickly because I know what it feels like to have a crush on someone and not know if they like you back. I was so satisfied when he kissed her, that is what I was waiting for. Then when he dies, it just literally breaks your heart.

One of the reviews for this book says the story "Breaks your heart and puts it back together again." That is totally true here. There are some really sad and heart wrenching moments between Anna and Frankie, and even the other characters. She did a great job getting the feelings across and connecting to the reader. I could feel the characters' pain like it was my own.
And having Anna keep her and Matt's relationship a secret just adds more suspense to this story. Everyone thought she was just the best friend, no one really knew how she felt and how much his death hurt her too. It was just amazing.

Setting- Zanzibar Bay California, the dream vacation spot. Boys and beaches galore. It was a great fit for the story, I personally love the beach so I enjoyed it being set there. It was a place where no one knew their tragedy and no one pitied them, a place where they were normal. A place that really helped Anna in the long run. A place where Matt and Frankie had plenty of memories and great times. I loved it.

Theme- I'd definitely say the theme of this novel is letting go. Anna needed to learn to let go of Matt sometime, and eventually she finally did, with the help of Sam Macintosh. It's hard to let go of things or people like that in our lives, and this book was a great example of someone's struggle to do that. It touched my heart.

Characters- Like I said, no negatives. I fell in love with all of the characters as I was introduced to them. They were all very realistic and relateable. Their problems could easily happen to anyone, anywhere.

Anna and Frankie were just those perfect best friends who everyone saw as one. They went through the same tragedy together and felt the same pain. They always did everything together and helped each other through life. Frankie was the mischievous, more irresponsible one in the pair, encouraging Anna to try new things and take risks. She portrayed a girl who was going through loss, and how she dealt with it was normal.
Anna was the one I could relate more with, but I loved them both the same. She was the good girl who didn't want to hurt her best friend in any way. Kept secrets and sat smiling through the pain, always comforting Frankie and helping her get through. All the characters, major and minor, were brilliant.

Cover- LOVE LOVE LOVE! It's so beautiful and unique. When I first saw this book as a small picture on the internet, I thought the patches on the heart were patches of denim. But turns out, the heart is made of sea glass! It is really cool and has such symbolism in the story. I would definitely pick this up off a shelf if I was browsing for a book.

Overall- As said before, nothing bad about this book in my opinion! It was a pretty quick read for me, I couldn't put it down! It is one of my favorites by far. The ending was great and I loved the message it gave out. Sarah Ockler is just an amazing author who plays with your emotions in her writing. She is nice too.. she messaged me on Goodreads after I left a comment on her profile! How awesome is that? You could imagine me freaking out when I see a message from one of the best authors ever in my inbox. It was exciting. If you haven't read her other book, Fixing Delilah, read it! It is also an amazing read!

With that being said, this book gets 5/5 stars! I highly recommend it to everyone!

***Warning, there is some PG-13 content in this novel.

4 comments:

Savannah Jean said...

My favorite book EVER! Well, one of them.

Anonymous said...

Wow, it sounds like you loved it! It also sounds like a great plotline, and hearing you rave about it makes me want to try it. :) By the sounds of it, Sarah Ockler is one of your new favorite authors - true or false? :)

And how cool that she messaged you, that's AWESOME! :D

Paige Woiner said...

@Qui- Same here!

@Taylor Lynn- Def read it, it's amazing! Yes, Sarah Ockler is now one of my favorite authors haha! She is great at what she does!

I know! I got an email saying I had a messsage from Sarah and I'm like.. "Who's Sarah?" Then I go on Goodreads and it said Sarah Ockler and I'm like OH MY GOD!! Haha :p

Anonymous said...

I'd be the same way! And I didn't know you could contact authors on GoodReads... I think I really may have to check out that website. ;)