The Summer I Turned Pretty, by Jenny Han, is a romance novel and the first in a three-novel
series.
The Summer I Turned Pretty follows Isabella, or Belly, Conklin for one summer. Every year, she
visits Cousins Beach with her brother, Steven, and they stay with the Fishers. The Fishers consist
of Susannah Fisher and her two sons, Conrad and Jeremiah. After spending years having a crush
on Conrad, it only took one summer for Conrad to finally take notice of Belly. But that isn’t all,
Jeremiah also seems to be interested now. The three of them spend a summer together, full of
heartbreak but also new beginnings. Follow along as Jenny Han takes you through a riveting
tale about one summer in Cousins and how much of Belly’s life could change.
In The Summer I Turned Pretty, Jenny Han takes you through the ups and downs of Belly’s life,
through when she must to make hard decisions but also when she is having the most fun of her
life. The effective writing makes the reader feel like they are in the text. The detailed imagery
allows us to immerse ourselves in the experience and all the emotions Belly is feeling with
Conrad and Jeremiah. The suspense involved in the decision of choosing between Conrad and
Jeremiah also draws readers in. It keeps the reader on the edge of their seat because the tide
always shifts as to who it seems like Belly will choose. In the first three-part series, Han uses
different literary techniques and symbolism to signify meaning with Conrad and Jeremiah’s
actions. Overall, the novel delivers on its expectations but does not exceed them.