Loved Judy Blume as a tween/teenager and love her books as an adult too.

The book tells the story of Vix and Caitlin, polar opposites who spend every summer together at a Caitlin’s dads vineyard. Caitlin is the ‘IT’ girl and Vix can’t believe her luck that she is Caitlin’s chosen one. Summer after Summer and become ‘Summer Sisters’.

During these summers they navigate their teenage years, exploring boys. Until it’s time to go to College.

Years later having gone on separate paths since school the friendship between the two has grown distant and strained until one day Vix receives a phone call from Caitlin asking her to return to the Vineyard for her wedding. Vix decides to go if only to uncover what really went wrong with their friendship all those years ago and if they can ever truly be summer sisters again.

The story spans over eighteen years from when the girls are twelve to their thirtieth birthdays and how they make their way through life.

No one can captures these stories better than Judy Blume

Ah Judy Blume, I hadn’t read a book by her for decades so to pick this up and be transported back in time was quite something. I loved and admired Victoria’s character enormously and I was reminded of what I love about the honesty in Blume’s writing. Caitlin is much less likeable but completely enthralling and the descriptions of summer life on the vineyard were amazing. I loved the whole book and was so thankful for an opportunity to travel back in time with Judy!

Everything you would expect from a Judy Blume book. I had read many of her books as a teenager and this one didn't disappoint. The way she writes about friendship between the 2 girls is very realistic and plausible, and could easily be a story that happens to so many (without the rich setting!). Makes me relive memories of reading other books and I want to go back and read more!

I received an ARC of this book thanks to NetGalley and publisher Little, Brown Book Group UK in exchange for an honest review.

So this book was published in the 90s originally and sadly it very much feels like it. It's not a bad book by any means, and if I'd read this as a 12-13 year old, I think it would have really stuck with me. Summer Sisters is the story of two friends, Caitlin and Vix, as they grow up and go through various familial and romantic dramas together. It's one of those typical stories where the friendship is a little toxic and unhealthy, and things kind of sprout around that.

The main reason this book felt dated to me was the focus on sex. The main characters start engaging in sexual activity from the age of 14, and they way they initially explore sex is through things they do together. This 'pseudo-lesbian friendship' thing is something I've read in a lot of teen books from the 90s and it just doesn't hit with a modern audience in my opinion. There are just so many better examples of a) actually queer relationships and b) unhealthily intense female friendships available to read about now.

The focus on sex and sexual awakening also made this book quite boring. I love books by authors such as Kate Cann for the way they focus on teenage girls discovering their sexuality, but this book lacked any real character or interest beyond the acts themselves. There is some family drama going on but that didn't really interest me either, and I ended up skimming the whole book for this reason.

Overall I think I would have liked this book if I was a teenager again and it was the 2000s, but this didn't offer me anything much as a modern reader or young adult. It's not bad but it doesn't particularly stand out either

Overall Rating: 3/5 stars

Thanks to the publishers and Netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for a review.

I wanted to love this. Sadly I couldn't gel with any of the characters and it's a DNF for me.

Judy Blume was my favourite author when I was a child/ teenager and I’ve enjoyed a couple of her more recent books as an adult over the years. Summer Sisters was a perfect blend of my Blume reading experiences to date. I felt very nostalgic when reading and enjoyed this pleasant non taxing coming of age story. Loved the characters and location and the memories this book evoked.
I’ve ordered a copy of this one for my teenage daughters.
Recommend, an easy, memorable summer read.

I’m too old to have read any Judy Blume books when I was a YA and unfortunately I’m afraid to admit too old to enjoy this book now. It all just seemed too much a book for a YA which is probably who it was always aimed at.

I was the biggest Judy Blume fan in my teens…… this is a book I never read! I loved it, the way the characters Victoria and Caitlin came together and the complexities that surrounded their friendship, families and friends! Read in one go on a flight and was immersed from page 1

I grew up with Judy Blume and always liked that I was ten years younger than Margaret. Well it turns out I’m also roughly ten years younger than Vix and Caitlin and so many of their experiences growing up were so similar to mine despite the decades difference. I can’t believe I didn’t read this book when it was first published but I wonder if maybe it didn’t get much buzz here in the UK in the pre-internet days of 1998. Still, I was as a middle aged woman in the year of the beautiful cinematic release of ‘Are you There God’ able to read this novel courtesy of Netgalley and the publishers to whom I will be forever grateful.
To me Summer Sisters feels like having my adolescent heroines from Judy’s pen suddenly grow up and live through the late 80’s and 90’s
This is total nostalgia where chaotic parents and grandparents rub shoulders with strong and powerful girls and women. My only tiny criticism is that the male characters of Daniel, Gus and Sharkey weren’t as fully fleshed out as the adults and our two protagonists. But this is a story about the girls even if it is told from many characters viewpoints.
I loved the first chapter then going straight into flashback and staying there. There are so many books doing alternate chapters of then and now and as a device it’s starting to become stale.
I inhaled this book in a day which didn’t surprise me at all! Another winner from Judy.

I really enjoyed this. Stories of long friendships always appeal to me so I was drawn in immediately. The times it spanned all came to life and felt very real. I loved the relationship between Vix and Caitlin in how it changed and yet remained the same. I particularly liked being in Vix's head. At first I wasn't sure about the jumping around of POV but it really gave a good sense of each character. A great read and true exploration of friendship in its warmth, love, hurt and heartbreak.

@currentlyreading__
Book 56 of 2023

Us bookworms born in the 1970s will have devoured @judyblume4real books - I practically inhaled them, flicking pages furiously and delving into the fictional worlds of Fudge Hatcher, Sheila Tubman, Margaret Simon, Denise Fenner and Katherine Danziger. These were rites of passage - they were primarily entertainment but they bonded female friends with discussions about religious affiliations, emotional and physical maturity, menstruation and the trials and tribulations of teenage existence. So, when on @NetGalley, I came across the possibility of reviewing 'Summer Sisters' I jumped at it. I knew nothing of the novel but was thrilled to see it was written for adults and had been hailed as "a book to return to again and again" by the literary phenomenon Colleen Hoover.

'Summer Sisters' was written in that immensely readable style of Blume - characters jumping off the page; a true coming of age novel. The cast of characters is wide and varied and even though there are many characters, each is necessary to the plot and how we view the lives of twelve year old self-proclaimed 'summer sisters' Vix Leonard and Caitlin Somers who spend the season together in Martha's Vineyard each year. Caitlin lives a life of privilege and eccentricities and Vix, with a totally different existence in Santa Fe, fully immerses herself in the summers of pushing boundaries, blossoming relationships and growing up.

Starting in 1977 we move with Vix and Caitlin through historical backdrop such as the Tiananmen Square Massacre and the AIDS epidemic to highlight the movement of time and the growth of the girls into women who will navigate betrayal, breakdowns and maintaining their promise to NBO - never be ordinary. This is not an ordinary novel - it's full of heart, surprise and nostalgia.



#bookstagram #bibliophile #bookworm #book #booknerd #bookstagrammer #kindle #instabook #reader #bookobsessed #bookstagramuk #readersofig #bookreview #readersofinstagram #judyblume #summersisters

Thank you for my copy of this book to read and review.

I feel like the only person not to have read Judy Blume when I was younger.

The blurb of this book really appealed to me…summer holidays, mysterious families, new adventures, coming of age. It did not disappoint.

A beautifully written, enjoyable story.

Vix and Caitlin are the Summer Sisters of the title of this coming of age story by Judy Blume. Like many others I devoured everything by her whilst growing up and Summer Sisters did not disappoint.
The girls spend each summer of their adolescence at Caitlin’s fathers house at Martha’s Vineyard, they come from very different backgrounds and Vix is never really sure why Caitlin has chosen her to be her Summer Sister. As the years pass they experience many firsts during their summers together. As they grow up the dynamic between them changes and they find themselves growing apart but there is always that pull of those long summer days.
This was such an enjoyable read and I can thoroughly recommend it to teenagers and adults who remember their teenage years fondly.

Well, I must have been living under a rock as although I had heard of Judy Blume, I have never read any of her books!! The synopsis of The Summer Sisters sounded like a book that was right up my street, and it definitely was. It follows two best friends, Vix and Caitlin who come from very different backgrounds. It’s truly the perfect summer coming of age read which brings back memories of the freedoms of summer we had as children and the complexity of friendship.
Thanks to NetGalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK, Sphere for advance access to this gem of a book

Thank you NetGalley and Little, Brown Book Group for this eCopy to review

I grew up on Judy Blume so was really looking forward to reading Summer Sisters, however I just found it very cringeworthy in places.

The story on its own is wonderful about 2 girls who become summer sisters holidaying on Martha's Vineyard with Caitlin's father each year. There are a lot of themes such as divorce and remarriage, growing up, disabled rights, death, mental health troubles, and without the overly sexual parts it would have been a magnificent story.

Judy Blume is a fantastic storyteller loved by people of all ages. Her book "Summer Sisters" is a beautiful love story that also explores the power of friendship and tenderness. It's filled with adventures, both good and bad, and reminds us of the importance of paying attention to our lives before it's too late. The novel captures the essence of love in its many forms, from friendships to passionate connections, and leaves a lasting impact on readers. It is a magnificent tale about growing up, creating memories, and cherishing the meaningful moments in life.

Judy Blume must be having a revival, because hot on the heels of the movie adaptation of her 1970 classic "Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret" comes a rerelease of "Summer Sisters", originally published in 1998. I'm going through a summer reading nostalgia phase recently, and with the birth year of the main protagonists in this novel being the exact same as mine, I hoped this would bring me right back to my childhood and coming-of-age summer experiences, and O Boy, it does with spades.

Victoria's (Vix) life is about to change, because the coolest girl in school asks her to join her for the summer in her Dad's Martha's Vineyard holiday home and little does she know, but 1977 is only the first summer of many to come on the island, because herself and Caitlin make an extremely intense connection, Vix falls right into step in the unconventional Somers household and a lifelong friendship is forged. The sense of place is outstanding. Set in the pre-internet/ mobile phone days, once the girls hit the island they are absorbed into the setting and nothing from her New Mexico home reaches Vix. Year by year the girls become part of the landscape and relationships bloom with local boys, but everyone, visitors and locals alike, recognise the charms these girls nicknamed "double trouble" possess.

Spanning decades of the girl lives, this story captures female friendship at it's best and it's worst, they protect and encourage each other, but inevitably loyalties are challenged, and betrayals are racked up. Two very different personalities emerge, but will their friendship stand the test of time, or will their conflicts tear them apart.

This book is impossible to put down. I relate to so much of the experiences these girls had, also the dynamics of being half of a duo where one tends towards unpredictable. Although the writing is a little YA for my liking, it perfectly suits the timeframe. In contrast to so many similar, but more modern "young ones on holiday" stories I have recently read, it is surprisingly innocent. Having teenage sex and the odd spliff are about as shocking as it can get, still the power dynamics at play within friendship are fully explored to great effect.

I'm sure anyone reading this newly published edition will consider it Historical fiction, which feels hilarious to me, but anyone who grew up in the 70s and 80s will find so much to reminisce over, maybe to chuckle at, and probably even to cringe at. A great pick for your summer reading list.

Publication date: 1st August 2023
Thanks to #littlebrownbookgroupuk for the ARC

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I read everything Judy Blume I could get my hands on when I was a kid. So to get the chance to read this book was such a huge moment for me. Reading the book felt like retuning to those pre teen years; it was such a good hit of nostalgia.

Summer Sisters is a truly excellent novel, following Vix and Caitlin’s journey was engaging, funny, sad and everything in between. Would highly recommend!!

What a beautifully written retro classic! I loved Judy’s books as a young girl and this took me back to those good days. A fabulous book that many will enjoy!

This is my first read from Judy, and it definitely won't be my last. I've been wanting to read her books for a long time, but it's just never happened. Summer Sisters has been re-released with a brand new cover, so I couldn't jumped at the opportunity to read this and dove straight in.

Set during the late 70s to mid 90s. The story follows teens Caitlin and Vix as they navigate their way through life. Born from different lifestyles. They are very much like chalk and cheese buy very much like real sisters.

I loved this book, told from multiple points of view, except Caitlin. Very much a coming of age and beyond read. I can see why people love Judy Blumes books. I can't wait to read more of her books.