The Summer That Changed Everything (2010) - Plot & Excerpts
Sometimes I really like to read a good YA book. There is something about the friendship, the angst, the adventure of growing up that makes me feel at the same time nostalgic and young. Ann Brashares is one of my favorite authors of this type of story. I can admit that I LOVED the 'Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants' series without either guilt or embarrassment. The only real problem with this book is that it is NOT the Sisterhood book that it tries so hard to be. It is the story of three best friends (friendship: check) struggling with growing pains (angst: check) as they each spend their summer vacations in different, challenging ways (adventure: check). The problem is not in the story itself, it is in the fact that there was no significant BACK story. It was hard to be engaged with the characters because you don't know much of their history, either separately or as a unit. You don't get to KNOW them. Brashares tells how they met, but not really how their friendship grew. It felt like maybe this was a book in a series and I had somehow skipped Book One. I even did a search to make sure that this wasn't the case. That being said, '3 Willows' was a nice easy summer read. I'm just disappointed that it didn't live up to its potential. "Blah." This book is completely predictable and just keeps reminding you of her previous Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series, which was much better. All the character's in the book resemble the girls in the previous books, and even their adventures are very similar to the character's they shadow. I don't recommend this book. If anything just read the original Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, 3 Willows is just a watered down version and not worth the time.
What do You think about The Summer That Changed Everything (2010)?
This book was alright. To me it didn't make sense to start a book in a series with new characters.
—jazmania
While not as good as the Sisterhood series, I enjoyed this similar young adult read.
—Sam
Loved it! Some of my favorite books are written for young adults!
—Necey
I wish she'd write more stories for these girls!
—Christy
