Twenty Boy Summer Review

Title: Twenty Boy Summer

Author: Sarah Ockler

Pages: 304
 Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

Publication Date: June 1, 2009

My Edition: Hardback

Reading Level: Young Adult

Borrowed from: the library

Summary from Goodreads: 
"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 her best friend Frankie, twenty days in is the perfect opportunity to have a summer fling, and if they meet one boy ever 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 that kind of romance, and it was with Frankie's older brother, Matt, just before his tragic death one year ago.

Beautifully written and emotionally honest, this is a debut novel that explores what it truly means to love someone and what it means to grieve, and ultimately, how to make the most of every single moment this world has to offer. 

Review:

Twenty Boy Summer was a heartwarming, sweet, honest story about a girl who loses her best friend and first love in a freak accident and then has to live and overcome their secret love. The coming-of-age story consists of loss, love, and friendship which combined together made for a beautifully, well written story. The beginning starts off with a very sad description of the tragic accident and was so emotional that it made me cry. The title seems to allude that it will be all about dumb, boy crazy girls but was much more than that. The author described an amazing story about two best friends grieving the loss of a loved one who are just trying to find themselves again. The cover goes perfectly with the story and is just so pretty!

Anna, Frankie, and Matt were all best friends, but after Matt's death everything changes. Anna was in love with Matt but had to keep it a secret until Matt told his sister Frankie, but when he dies before being able to tell his sister, Anna doesn't know how to deal with the loss and their secret. Frankie and her parents keep their feelings to themselves and have stopped talking to each other altogether. 

Several months later, Frankie drastically changes from being shy and reserved to an outgoing and boy crazy girl. When Frankie comes up with a plan to hook up with twenty boys, ten guys each, over their beach vacation, Anna dislikes idea but goes along with it to satisfy Frankie. Over the course of their vacation, Frankie goes from guy to guy while Anna starts to fall for a guy and begins to release her feelings for Matt each day. Anna and Frankie's vacation story was exciting and pretty fun to read about and not as sad and somber as the beginning.

The relationship between Anna and Frankie was strained at times, but they were truly best friends. Matt's death in a way brought them together and helped both girls learn more bout themselves. I loved Twenty Boy Summer much more than I expected, and I read it in about one sitting because it's impossible to put down! Their story made me long to swim in the ocean, to soak up the sun, and to meet a fun, summer guy. Twenty Boy Summer is Sarah Ockler's debut book, and I absolutely can't wait to read her next book Fixing Deliah Hannaford when it comes out this fall. If you looking for a fun, amazing, summer read, then I would start reading Twenty Boy Summer right away because you will not regret it!

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