The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han

Synopsis (Mil gracias, Jenny Han):

Belly measures her life in summers.

Everything good, everything magical happens between the months of June and August. Winters are simply a time to cout 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. 

My Review:

Jenny Han, if you're reading this, you have gained another fan. I could not put this book down! This book was the perfect sunny escape from the drabness that is the weather right now. Belly is a character that is easily relatable and refreshingly normal. Her faults weren't put on a showcase, but luckily they weren't completely unnoticeable either. On top of that, there were some things that Belly thought/did that weren't completely understandable, which I liked. I think it showed that there were times that Belly couldn't be completely honest with herself, and that this summer was one in which she learned a lot about who she was.  Belly and the other characters go through a lot during this summer, so there are a lot of issues going on in this book, and Han makes sure that all of them have the appropriate weight. Given that this all takes place over one summer, there is a lot of background info that Han has to let us in on, and she does so really well with just the right amount of flashbacks that you get the background you need. On that point, I also appreciated the shortness of the chapters- which I took as representation of the shortness of summer days. 

While some may view this as a love story, I see this more of a story of discovery, not only with Belly, but the other characters as well. I fell in love with this book, so I wouldn't feel right giving it anything less than: 

Five Stars

Be sure to get your copy of The Summer I Turned Pretty, out now! Make sure you get it soon because the sequel, It's Not Summer Without You, comes out April 27 :)