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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent story about a girl who learns to like herself,
By A Customer
This review is from: Blueberry Summer (Library Binding)
I first read this book when I was in grade school, and I still love it, 20 years later. Cass Phillips, suffering from low self-esteem, is forced to spend the summer babysitting her eight-year-old brother on the family farm in Maine. She is overweight and surly, but manages to capture the attention of a boy who is attracted to her mind. Of course she loses weight by the end of the book but it's not about her trying to keep some guy. It's that she found out what was bothering her and stopped eating to solve her problems. She grew up, gained some self-confidence from handling a large crisis and found out that she had something to offer the world. This is an excellent book for young women with self-esteem issues. There is a sequel called "The Fabulous Year" which I have read that is great also, but I am not sure if there are others. Amazon lists the books by this author but unfortunately, there are no synopsis with the titles. Anyway, check this one out, you won't be disappointed!
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The next logical step after the American Girl books,
By Jocelyn Price (St. Louis, mo United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Blueberry Summer (Library Binding)
I remembered this book fondly from my middle school years. I recently looked it up on a whim, bought a used copy and enjoyed rereading it after so many years.
First, the story is set in the mid-20th century, in a simpler time, but girls who grew up reading the American Girl series are used to that. To me, this story is a logical next step from the AG series, because it addresses teen-aged issues in an intelligent, but delicate matter. Cass, the herione, is a grumpy, discontented, overweight teen-aged girl. When the story begins, she is looking forward to spending the summer away from her family and planning to remake herself into a glamourous creature like she sees in magazines. When her older sister gets sick, Cass's mother has to leave and tend to her, leaving Cass in charge of her younger brother and the farm, including the animals and the upcoming blueberry harvest. Cass's father is a fisherman who is not home much, so she is left to her own judgment for the first time. Cass is angry and resentful about the situation. She fights constantly with her younger brother,Peter, but their situation is improved when they make the acquaintance of Adam Ross, a summer tenant on the island. Although Adam is only a bit older than Cass, he is intelligent, mature and warm-hearted. Adam, Cass and Peter begin a friendship that transforms Cass, helping her to see her little brother in a kinder light and to see herself as a competent, caring person. As the story continues, Cass is faced with problems coping with the blueberry harvest, and is distracted by the charms of another summer tenant who moves in down the road. Her loyalty is also tested when she calls on some unconventional friends to help her with the harvest. Cass comes through the experience not unscathed, but with new confidence in her abilities and worth as a person. Essentially, this is a story about making the right choices and learning about yourself. As the mother of two teen-aged girls, I want to particularly comment on the relationship between Cass and Adam. First and foremost, they become friends. Adam's poise and good sense become a model for Cass, who comes to see the value in calmness and kindness, and gives up her whiny ways. It is a healthy, happy relationship that you seldom read in teen-aged novels. The quality of their relationship is the key here, not sexually-driven angst. That is why I compare this book to the American Girl books that came after it. Also, I was struck by the quality of the writing and the descriptions of life in a New England fishing town. The writing paints a lovely picture of the land, the people and the life they led. That is also similar to the AG books, which allows young readers a glimpse into life in another time and place. A romantic relationship does develop between Cass and Adam in the sequel to "Blueberry Summer", called "The Fabulous Year". I vaguely remember the characters of Cass and Adam in another book by this same author, although at that point, they are married (he has completed med school and she is a nurse) and are secondary characters to the younger characters. If someone knows what I am talking about, I hope they will post that information here, as I am curious to know about it. So, as the mother of teen-aged girls, and a former teen-aged girl myself, I give a heart-felt recommendation to "Blueberry Summer". Cass Phillips was an important part of my teen-aged years, and I was delighted to reacquaint myself with an old friend.
2 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Blueberry Summer not for Today's Teens/Preteens,
By
This review is from: Blueberry Summer (Library Binding)
For the first 160 pages or so the heroine mostly obsesses about her hairdo, weight, clothes, pesky younger brother, and two older boys, but then there is a dramatic event that makes intriguing reading for the last 30 pages or so, with a surprise ending, although if readers had been paying attention to this boring story, they would have not been surprised. This book was first published by Whittlesy House in 1956. Almost a half-century later, this book will seem somewhat quaint to today's young people.
I read this book to find out why it was a favorite of another (deceased) author whose biography I am working on. I still can't figure out why.
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