Where was this book this summer?
588719
What a great book!
I wish I would have had it this summer on my family "car" vacation.  (The airplane mode of travel doesn't seem to be an option anymore.)  I look forward to using many of the ideas in this book during the up coming holiday season on our way to the grandparents.
The original ideas in this book far exceed the "slug bug" or "row row your boat" games and songs I played with my brothers and sisters in our family car.  Additionally, Diane Flynn Keith has come up with ideas for activities for your shorter cross town excursions too.  I have already done some of her activities and they worked.
A must read for anyone who drives a car with children inside.
Using Diane Flynn Keith's ideas has made my driving time enjoyable, less stressful, and has helped me be a better parent.  I don't hear anymore, "are we there yet?"
This book is an easy read and more importantly fun!
897543
I enjoyed this book very much, but then I don't go in looking for flaws as I have read from some of you.  I enjoyed for the suspence and readability.  Good new word.  But I was actually looking for Water's Edge.  I had read in these reviews that the name was changed to this one.  But WHOEVER was wrong.  Where is that book?  The little I read was fantastic, is it ever coming out?
1286008
The new book by Sarah Addison Allen will make it feel like Summer.
Lost Lake is set in Suley, Georgia, for one memorable, sticky Summer.  Newly widowed Kate and her daughter, Devin, unknowingly work together to not only reawaken Kate to living again following the death of her husband, but also to save Lost Lake and the people bound to it.

But let me go back a minute.  Before you read Lost Lake, there is a prequel ebook short story called Waking Kate.  I am always one for extending the story, and the prequel just intrigues you about what may be coming.

Addison Allen is a master of description, using phrases that open up the imagination centers in your mind.  To the right was Lost Lake itself, a dense round plop of gray-green water surrounded by trees with Spanish moss hanging from their limbs, like the long hair of ladies dipping their heads to sip from the lake.  Isn't that divine?!

The characters are rich and you just want to meet all of them.  Lisette, the French cook at the camp, born without a voice box but possessing a poison pen and a ghost in the kitchen; Eby, the owner of the camp and always a dreamer; Devin and her mother Kate, free spirits re-gaining their wings.  My favorite is Bulahdeen, a smart and sassy elderly lady with a penchant for wine and who tells it like it is.  I just want to be around her.

If you want a book that will warm you up right now, or you need some Summer vacation reading material, Lost Lake will fit the bill.  Check out other books by this author, too.  They won't disappoint.  My favorite is The Girl Who Chased the Moon.  All have a hint of something otherworldly, like the alligator that isn't really there.  Or is it?
170532
This is such a "me" book-I loved the MC so much and completely clicked with the sense of humor displayed. The storyline is about the summer adventures of a young woman with a love of history, color, reading, Jane Austen...in other words, someone a lot like me!

In this case her name is Libby and she is going to be a historical reenactor at a 1791 village in Maine; this includes wearing historically accurate clothing, leading a group of little girls through time-era appropriate cooking and craft activities, and interacting with her peers including a seriously dedicated impersonator and the annoying nerdy Garrett who is investigating possible paranormal activities that are attracting more attention to little Camden Harbor.

Well, as I mentioned I loved Libby. She loves Mr. Tilney, who we both agree is seriously underappreciated and is far more our type than Mr. Darcy (although I still prefer Mr. Knightley most of all). She loves colors and fashion and has a great memory for history. She also stands up for her friends in an awesome scene where she punches a guy (totally justified). I totally want to be best friends with her and her best friend Dev, who had a bizarre story line in New York City before showing up to hang out with Libby for the rest of the summer.  The other characters are not very well-developed but they are a lot of fun and add local color to Libby's time there.

This is a fast-paced book, going quickly over the whole summer, almost like little vignettes into Libby's life but still with an over-arching plot. I would have enjoyed knowing a bit more about Libby's life at home, maybe how her parents and school have shaped her interests. I also wanted a lot more about Dev's plot, which left me very confused.

Overall: Just hit all the right notes for me-if we often agree on books, this might be right up your alley!

Cover: Of course I love the polka dots and the pink but I think it would be better with some glitter (maybe the actual cover does?)
2257500
I love reading books set on a beach during summer. Moonglass by debut author Jessica Kirby opens with the end of main character Anna's summer vacation. Anna's father has been transferred from Pisom Beach to Crystal Cove. Anna must leave behind the beach where her mom died, her friends, her grandmother, and being a new life at the Cover. There, she finds love and will finally confront her grief.

What I loved the most about Moonglass were the less obvious components. At it's surface, Kirby's book is a simple summer read. Yet, if we dig a bit deeper we can find some literary motifs, and I think half the fun is realizing a book is deeper than one initially thought.

There is a motif throughout the book based on sea glass. Sea glass is a bit like diamonds in the rough. You see, the ocean wears down these rocks and what emerges is a thing of beauty. Much like Anna, where life knocks her down, but she perseveres.

Furthermore, the way Anna's mother commits suicide is reminiscent of The Awakening by Kate Chopin, and definitely worthy of discussion. Both women end up walking into the ocean as a means to meet their maker, for different reasons though. Moonglass takes on the theme of depression within it's short pages. I think this theme is handled with sensitivity and respect. We get a very human picture of Anna's mother. She's never just the character who is depressed and depression is her only defining quality. Instead she is a well rounded character with a background and a history.

However, least you think Moonglass is too heavy, there is a bit of romance thrown into the mix. I would say the romance is comparable to that of a Sarah Dessen novel. We have a main character who is obviously suffering her own problems, but there's a boy, usually a nice guy to help the main character out. Honestly, the romance felt a bit chaste to me. Kirby's male lead Tyler is a lifeguard at the Cove, but he's also a local. The relationship between Tyler and Anna slowly develops. The furthest these 17 year olds go is kissing. I believe this novel could be appropriate for younger teens looking for a romance-y read.

Perhaps my favorite aspect of Moonglass was the exploration of father-daughter relationship. Anna and her father experience their fair share of ups and downs. Both are strongly affected by their grief for the missing piece of the family. Anna's father is obviously doing the best he can for her, but he's not the perfect parent. Nor is Anna the perfect daughter. They fight, yet understanding emerges between the two, much like in real life.

Moonglass is a compact book, but it packs an emotional punch with quite a few surprises. This is a great book for a breezy summer day, if a bit heavy.
4280822
Loved it! Fun, entertaining and kept me wanting to know more and more. Definately recommend it specially if you are looking for a fun summer reading between classes
:)
3201235
Entangled Publishing and NetGalley provided me with an electronic copy of The Summer Before Forever, in exchange for an honest review.

Best friends Chloe Stone and Jenna Quigley go on a road trip to Destin, Florida, where her father is living with Chloe's soon-to-be stepmother.  Complicating matters is her almost stepbrother London, as Chloe feels an instant connection to him.  When Chloe's problems from home follow her, she and Jenna come up with a plan to help.  As Chloe tries to work out her feelings, will something unexpected come out of her summer?

Although the story and the characters were good, there was nothing that particularly set it apart from other books in the genre.  As it was, I had the feeling that I read a book last year that was remarkably similar.  The Summer Before Forever is great for YA readers who are looking for a summer beach read.
4487865
I love, love loved this book. I could hardly put it down. I wish this author had more for me to read because I so enjoyed her first novel! Its one of the best books I read this summer. A must-read. In fact, I think this book would make a great film (although they are never as good as the books, right) Enjoy!!
2504251
A perfect summer book.  It takes some fun and unexpected turns along the way and worth the read even if you know the ending two chapters in.  It's a quick, unchallenging read.  Free via Amazon prime.
1817836
Nice summer mystery/coming of age story.  Loved all the different characters in this story.  Read like a small midwest town in summer: familiar, comfortable, hot, and slightly unknowable to strangers.  Towards the end I had  the mystery narrowed down to three suspects. Author did a great job of not spoiling the end too soon.

My book club read it and everyone enjoyed this novel.
1517774
I just finished reading A Death In The Hamptons by Matt Bloom, and thought it was an excellent book. It was extremely funny and it pulled no punches in poking fun at the Hamptons. I've been there several times before and thought Mr. Bloom paints the scene, the landscape and the characters out there quite vividly. Although there is a murder, A Death In The Hamptons is more of a satire than a mystery. It's the best book I've read all summer and highly recommend it if your on the beach or on the couch.
297756
One brilliantly sunny day in July, I decided to head out to the lake to bask in the sun and read.  Unforuntately, I realized halfway there that I hadn't bought anything to read.  So, I trotted over to my local used bookstore and began browsing their recent acquisition table.  This little volume immediately gained my attention.  It looked like fun, it looked like it would be a quick read, and it was short enough that it wouldn't keep me from continuing in any of the other books that I was already reading.  So, off to the lake with this book in hand I went.
KAFKA WAS THE RAGE was quite a nifty little read.  I had read a fair amount about the Beats at one point, so this had some of the same post-WW II Manhattan atmosphere, but that was set more in the area of Columbia University, so this shifted the scene further south.  There is no real story to tell here.  Broyard merely recounts in a more or less anecdotal form a number of events and individuals from a particular moment in time.  He has a gift for summoning up particular moments in vivid detail, and a talent for the brilliant line.  An example of the former is his recounting of an adventure in which he took Delmore Schwartz, Clement Greenberg, and Dwight MacDonald to a Spanish Harlem nightclub.  Another is his description of his art professor Meyer Schapiro.
Some great lines:
"I thought that being a Communist was a penalty you had to pay for being interested in politics."
[on Dylan Thomas] "To him, an American party was like being in a bad pub with the wrong people."
[on Delmore Schwartz] "Like Samuel Johnson, whom he resembled in many ways, Delmore was not interested in prospects, views, or landscape.  He had looked at the city when he was young, and saw no need to do it again."
[on a painter friend] "His voice was soft, deep, and cultivated and his manners were a history of civilization."
As one might expect (and hope for) in a memoir set in such a vibrant era, the book is marvelous for its incessant name-dropping of famous individuals who pop up briefly as characters:  figures as diverse as Erich Fromm, Maya Deren, Anais Nin, Caitlin and Dylan Thomas, W. H. Auden, Gregory Bateson, as well as the previously mentioned Schwartz, Greenberg, MacDonald, and Shapiro.
1236370
Here's another book that's part of the Summer Reading Challenge from BookSparks! If you guys are following along, you'll know that this is one of the books we're reading this month! 25 Sense by Lisa Henthorn looked like a great book when they arrived this month, so I was excited when I finally got to read it.

The protagonist, Claire Malone, moved from west coast to New York to chase her dream career as a television writer. She's a woman in her late twenties going through what other women in their late twenties are experiencing such as problems with money, with love, with career and of course, sprinkle in some family drama!

25 Sense shared with readers a bit about what it's like to make a television series, and that was pretty interesting. Claire just happens to fall into an affair with her much older boss, Sean and then tries to backpedal out of the trouble that goes with that in the workplace. Claire ultimately realizes that heading back to California is the ticket to changing everything.

While I'm definitely not in my 20's (or 30's or 40's), I could remember the days of making bad choices and doing things that weren't very clever, so I could sympathize with Claire and her choices.  What wasn't around when I was 20 was Twitter, but now that I'm big on social media, I'm on Twitter everyday and I loved how at the beginning of every chapter there was a tweet (Twitter post). I'll confess, I went to Twitter and did a search for @clairlymalone LOL!

If you are looking for a well written and really fast read mixed with romance, drama and comedy, 25 Sense is the book for you. It's a great book to take to the beach or to cuddle with on the couch on a rainy day.

I received a complimentary paperback copy of this book from the publishers and BookSparks as part of the 2016 Summer Reading Challenge in exchange for this post, which is my honest review and unbiased opinion.
1119201
Great summer read. I passed it on to my Principal to read with his daughters. He is a bit of a prankster himself, I think, if we could catch him.
3521013
It was a good book - not what I typically read but had seen it as summer reading recommendation. Good story.
632228
Up at Butternut Lake, by Mary McNear, is a great read to start off your summer vacation. Widowed single mother Allie Beckett decides to pick up everything and leave her old life, full of painful memories, behind for good She heads for a cabin that she remembers from her childhood, on Butternut lake in MinnesotaBut when she arrives, she starts to wonder if she has bitten off more than she can chew. Raising a young son on a remote lake is not without its challenges, and small town life isn't as anonymous as she originally thought Not to mention, the only neighbor for miles is an arrogant, annoying male who seems to find her irresistible.

Will Allie find peace at Butternut lake? Will she find the strength to move on with her life? Will she find love again?

Up at Butternut Lake is a novel about second chances, healing and learning to appreciate the simple things in life. If you like reading romantic trilogies, there are two more books set to come out following Up at Butternut Lake, so keep an eye out for Mary McNear on the bookshelves (and maybe here on my site).

[...]
2147315
This little short story is getting me soooo excited about the new book!  Does anyone know...are Drum and Margot in "The Blue Bistro?"  The Blue Bistro is my favorite Elin book and I am dying to figure it out.  I may just have to reread it.  Looking forward to "Beautiful Day."