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Product Description
From Publishers Weekly
At five-foot-eleven ("and counting"), Haven is "all bony elbows and acute angles, like a jigsaw puzzle piece that can only go in the middle, waiting for the others to fit around it to make it whole." But it is not just a sudden growth spurt that prevents the 15-year-old from fitting into the comfortable grooves of her "old" life; her family is also changing at an alarming rate. Her sports-anchor father divorces his wife for Channel 5's "Weather Pet." Her jilted mother joins a set of aging, Barry-Manilow-listening, swinging singles and Haven's once plucky sister, Ashley, seems to wilt on the arm of her all-too-boring fiance. Amidst the flurry of preparations for her father's second marriage and her sister's wedding, Haven finds a connecting link to her more serene past when one of Ashley's former boyfriends appears on the scene. First-time author Dessen adds a fresh twist to a traditional sister-of-the-bride story with her keenly observant narrative full of witty ironies. Her combination of unforgettable characters and unexpected events generates hilarity as well as warmth. Ages 12-up.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From School Library Journal
Grade 7-9?That Summer could refer to the current one through which 15-year-old Haven is suffering, or it could be the one a few years ago when everything seemed perfect. Nevertheless, both summers affect her and she is a different person at their conclusions. Dessen has cast her story with a group of forgettable characters who plod their way through a cliche-ridden coming-of-age novel with a lot of subplots. There is the long-suffering mother and her scatterbrained best friend. Then there is toupee-wearing Dad, who honks from the driveway on visitation nights. Add the boy-crazy best friend and the moody older sister who is planning her wedding and making everyone miserable. The most memorable character is Summer Lee, a remnant of that long ago season when everything was just right, who shows up at the precise moments he is needed and offers support to Haven. The setting is a suburb where all the houses look exactly the same (kind of like the characters). There is nothing seriously wrong with Haven's life, except that she doesn't fit in, physically or emotionally; she is six-feet tall and still growing. She is unwilling or unable to accept change in her life, and pines for the days when her parents seemed happy and she didn't fight with her sister and the sun always shone...Sigh. Still, Haven has a good sense of humor, and her insightful barbs about everything from shopping malls to TV-news readers add some depth to the story.?Lucinda Lockwood, Thomas Haney Secondary School, Maple Ridge, BC
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Inside This Book
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First Sentence
The day my father got remarried, my mother was up at six A.M. defrosting the refrigerator. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
The day my father got remarried, my mother was up at six A.M. defrosting the refrigerator. Read the first page
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Most helpful customer reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
3.0 out of 5 stars
A look at the past and the present,
By QUEEN_OF_EVERYTHING (Outside Philly) - See all my reviews
This review is from: That Summer (Paperback)
Dessen's novel, THAT SUMMER, is most likely referring not to the summer 15 year-old Haven is now in the middle of, but a summer that has already passed her by and now remains a fond memory. That summer, the one she fondly reminisces of, was filled with the happy sort of memories that make the present seem bland and melancholy in comparison. Her sister, Ashley, was dating Sumner Lee, a ruggedly handsome boy who has held a special place in Haven's heart, even though their relationship has long been over with. When Haven begins seeing him around the neighborhood and at the mall, however, old, happy memories come to mind. Now, Ashley is a bride-to-be. Her groom, Lewis, is boring and not the brother-in-law Haven wants.The summer that past also was a time when she, Ashley, her mother, and her father were a happy family, a family that was sticking together and had a seemingly bright future ahead. Too bad things didn't stay that way. As Haven's present summer goes on, she finds out why Ashley and Sumner split. She deals with her father's marriage to The Weather Pet, the young, blonde bombshell who is replacing her mother. And she also comes to the realization that people aren't always who you think and want them to be. Ashley's relationship with Lewis makes her feel secure because she knows he'll never hurt her. Haven's ways of dealing with the unpleasant is focusing on the past. Although this is not a favorite of mine, Dessen is one of my favorite authors. I have yet to dislike any of her books. Haven, the protagonist, no longer lives in a perfect world. As she deals with the awkwardness of puberty, along with other awakenings, readers come to understand that more and more. What Dessen does successfully is create a likeable and believable character who many will be able to relate with, making this YA novel a worthwhile and enjoyable read, despite lacking the sparkle found in DREAMLAND and THIS LULLABY.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
2.0 out of 5 stars
Hm...a little disappointing,
By "snowconemiss" (somewhere over the rainbow) - See all my reviews
This review is from: That Summer (Paperback)
though i am a fan of dessen, this book really disappointed me. i read this right after 'someone like you' and it doesn't even compare. in this book, haven's character is poorly developed. you never really get to know anything about her besides that she gets angry at the world. dessen's usual strong maincharacters did not appear in this book as we learn that haven acts as a doormat for most of her life, going along with things she doesn't believe in without a peep. when i read other people's 5 star reviews of the book i am definetly surprised and wonder whether they were fully conscience while reading.
2.0 out of 5 stars
Dreaming of Books Review,
By
This review is from: That Summer (Paperback)
That Summer is Sarah Dessen's first book and I found it a little disappointing. Not much happened and the story was pretty boring. I couldn't relate to Haven because she closed herself off from her family so much. She always kept her true feelings to herself and everything was pent up inside of her. I was just waiting for her to explode and have a meltdown and when she did it was anticlimactic because she did it in from of a stranger.The only other Sarah Dessen book that I've read is The Truth About Forever which I thought was very good. So if you're thinking about reading on of her books, I'd recommend that one over this one.
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