Someone Like Summer [Library Binding]

M. E. Kerr (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 3, 2007

Annabel first sees him playing soccer near her house. His name is Esteban—she sees it on the back of his team shirt. He notices her, smiles, then looks back over his shoulder at her again.

It is the beginning of summer in the resort town of Seaview. It is also the start of a romance between a young Colombian who came to town to work and the daughter of a local contractor whose crews are entirely Latino—new immigrants who are changing the face of Seaview.

This is the summer of war in Iraq, and of Hurricane Katrina. But in Seaview there are other concerns. In Annabel's house her new boyfriend is at the top of the list. And Esteban's sister has harsh words for his choice of a girlfriend.

M. E. Kerr weaves a compelling story of star-crossed love and a small-town problem of nationwide significance.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

*Starred Review* In Kerr's stirring teen romance, there are many parallels with Naylor's popular Alice series, including Dangerously Alice (see p.41): in both, the narrator is a smart high-school junior with a sweet older brother and a widowed father who is dating a nice woman. But the big difference here is that issues of race, class, and politics (including the war in Iraq) are a part of the contemporary Romeo-and-Juliet drama. Tall, blonde, blue-eyed Annabel, 17, is in love with Esteban, a Latino immigrant, who turns out to be part of an undocumented group of workers in her town in the Hamptons. The love is intense. They can't keep their hands off each other; in fact, he is the one who stops them from going too far. Prejudice is rough from all sides, including the town's powerful benefactor, who targets the illegals, and Esteban's older sister, who calls Annabel "flour face" and thinks all white girls are loose. The main characters disturb all the stereotypes. Annabel's loving, gruff dad employs illegals because he can pay them less, and he treats them well even as he badmouths them--but no way will he allow Esteban to hook up with his daughter. As things build to a searing climax, Annabel realizes she has asked little about Esteban's dad, who was assassinated back "home" in Colombia. And Kerr crosses other romantic boundaries. Esteban is short--he stands on his toes to kiss Hazel Rochman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

“Kerr crafts an agile contemporary tale of interracial young love. A masterful story from a critically acclaimed author.” (Kirkus Reviews )

“The field of YA literature has been enriched for decades by the fine work of M.E. Kerr, who has never hesitated to tackle controversial topics.” (KLIATT )

“Kerr gives a sensitive rendering of a biracial romance in this timely novel.” (Publishers Weekly )

“A stirring teen romance . . . issues of race, class, and politics (including the war in Iraq) are a part of the contemporary Romeo-and-Juliet drama.” (Booklist (starred review) )

“The book has an integrity of conception that is a solid base for the sophistication of its wit and humor.” (Chicago Tribune Books )

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 12 and up
  
• Library Binding: 272 pages
• Publisher: HarperTeen (July 3, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061141003
• ISBN-13: 978-0061141003
• Product Dimensions: 7.3 x 5.4 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,305,263 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars How Does She Do It?, July 3, 2007

By 

Peter (Michigan) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Someone Like Summer (Hardcover)

Throughout her legendary career, M.E. Kerr has demonstrated an uncanny knack for writing exactly the right book at exactly the right time. GENTLEHANDS made the atrocities of the Holocaust vivid for late twentieth-century American kids. NIGHT KITES was the very first novel from a mainstream publisher to feature a gay man with AIDS. LINGER provided a stunning (and rare) fictional depiction of the first Iraq war. Now we have SOMEONE LIKE SUMMER, a romance between a Long Island girl and an illegal immigrant from Colombia. Considering how long it can take to write a book, not to mention the lengthy publication process that follows, how amazing that this book is being published at exactly the right time -- as our country is embroiled in a controversial battle over immigration. Ms. Kerr has done it again!

The book is timely and topical but -- even better than that -- it's a great love story. The romance between its multifaceted protagonists, Annabelle and Esteban, is emotionally-involving and heartbreaking, as both teens battle family and community resistance to their relationship. The dialogue is fast-paced and often humorous. This book reads like a dream.

Buy a copy of SOMEONE LIKE SUMMER and throw it in your beach bag; it's the perfect "beach book" for Summer 2007. When the season's over, shake the sand from its pages, and place it on your bookshelf. Sometime in the dark days of winter, you'll want to read it again -- and you'll be instantly transported to a time of barefoot walks on the shore, foggy afternoons in the sand dunes, and warm romantic nights, as you experience this perfect summertime romance again.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing, September 12, 2008

By 

Charlotte Blasier (Charleston, SC) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Someone Like Summer (Hardcover)

As a fan of ME Kerr and a librarian, I was quite excited to see this book arrive at our YA department. As soon as I saw the author's name I knew it was a must read. Unfortunately, I got 90 pages into the book and had to stop reading. The characterization was completely undeveloped and the dialogue was painful. I felt like the dialogue between the two main characters sounded like an episode of California Dreamin' or another one of those horribly acted Saturday morning teen shows from the 90s. I could understand Esteban spoke poorly since English was not his first language. But Annabel, her English was nearly as bad. Some of her sentences made no sense or were just very awkwardly worded. The plot development was poor as well. In young adult writing every word is important to the structure and tone of the story..not so in this story.

I think ME Kerr is a wonderful author and I love the connection with libraries she has, but this book was just a complete mess in my opinion. I have never written a bad review before and I dont want to hurt anyone's feelings. I was just so surprised this book came from such a talented YA author.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Little Random, July 24, 2008

By 

G. K. RN "optimism always." (somewhere in the caribbean islands) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Someone Like Summer (Hardcover)

This book was pretty good. It was fast-paced and held your interest, and the romance was cutesy and nice.

But it seemed a little bit random to me. There was something sort of off about Esteban--I couldn't put my finger on it, but he was strange. Also, his romance with Annabel--where did it come from? It basically started out of the blue. They looked at each other. And in their first-ever conversation, it was just..odd. Then out of nowhere, BAM, they're head-over-heels for each other. The lack of a build-up to this was very disappointing. People complain about the lack of build-up in Stephenie Meyer's "Twilight," between Edward and Bella. But that couple had much more basis than Esteban and Annabel.

Then other things just didn't seem to fit. Such as Virgil and Mitzi's break-up, and Virgil wanting Mitzi to be tested for AIDS. Did we ever find out anything from there? No. Also, when Esteban wrote the song--about someone like summer. Nothing else ever came from it. Just..random.

All in all, it was a good read, but it doesn't leave you thinking, wow, that was the greatest book ever. No, it actually leaves you wanting a better, more fulfilling book, if you ask me.