Twenty Boy Summer - Banned Book #2

The second book I chose to read for the banned/challenged book challenge this month (books people are trying to get on the ALA list). Again I don't think there should be a bann on this book but I would only recommend this for young adults and older teens not tweens.

Title: Twenty Boy Summer
Author: Sarah Ockler
Genre: Young Adult, Fiction
Page Count: 304 Pages
Rating: 4/5

“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 Anna’s best friend, Frankie, twenty days in Zanzibar Bay is the perfect opportunity to have a summer fling, and if they meet one boy every 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 her romance, and it was with Frankie’s older brother, Matt, just before his tragic death one year ago.
TWENTY BOY SUMMER explores what it truly means to love someone, what it means to grieve, and ultimately, how to make the most of every beautiful moment life has to offer.

My Review:

Two girls dealing with their grief over the loss of a loved one, told in a honest and emotion felt way. I was drawn to Anna from the first lines, and I was crying by the end of the first chapter.

Told from Anna's perspective you work through the emotions and decisions she has to make when faced with moving on after the death of a loved one, but Sarah Ockler also shows the varying shades of denial and diversion that the other characters use to try and survive the grieving process as well.

It was also a fun story of a summer vacation with two best friends. I found it to be a quick but fulfilling read.

My Rating: 4/5

You'll like this series if you liked:

The Last Song by Nicholas Sparks, The Last Summer by Ann Brashares, Keeping the Moon or Along For the Ride by Sarah Dessen.