Second Chance Summer in Sophomore Reading Challenge

Aug 07, 2011 Shanyn rated it it was amazing

Shelves: wow, preordered, src

I waited for Second Chance Summer for two years. Right after I finished Amy & Roger's Epic Detour (still one of my favorite books) I looked for Morgan Matson's newest. Anticipation? I was full of it. When I got home from work on May 8 and retrieved the book from my porch, the first thing I did was hug it. Then I posted a picture of it on Twitter and marveled at the beautiful cover.

Full Review: http://chickloveslit.com/2012/06/revi... ...more

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Aug 10, 2011 Andi (Andi's ABCs) rated it it was amazing

Shelves: own, would-recommend, favorites, amazon-review

Some books reach you on such an emotional level that they quickly become a part of you. Second Chance Summer did exactly that. It was by far one of the most exquisitely written stories about love, loss, and second chances. It is a story of hope and trust and opening yourself up to the unknown even when it gets scary. It's a story of growing up.

I was immediately pulled in by the story of Taylor. Since she was younger the one thing Taylor was good at was running when things got hard. A middle chil Some books reach you on such an emotional level that they quickly become a part of you. Second Chance Summer did exactly that. It was by far one of the most exquisitely written stories about love, loss, and second chances. It is a story of hope and trust and opening yourself up to the unknown even when it gets scary. It's a story of growing up.

I was immediately pulled in by the story of Taylor. Since she was younger the one thing Taylor was good at was running when things got hard. A middle child with a genius older brother and a ballet protege younger sister, Taylor never really found her place in her family. She felt like the let down, the disappointment, of the family. The only place she ever really felt like you fit in was at the lake house her family went to every summer until she was twelve. With Henry her first crush/boyfriend and Lucy her best friend, Taylor knew she belonged. But in her 12th summer, the last year they went to the house Taylor did something that split them apart and instead of sticking around to fix things she ran and never saw them again. Fast forward 5 years and Taylor's whole world is coming in on her. Her father has been diagnosed with Pancreatic cancer and only has the summer left. Wanting to spend time with the whole family they pack up and go to their summer house. Now Taylor is not only faced with the memories and people she once left behind with no explanation, she now has to face the fact that in a few short months she will no longer have her father there for her. In a summer of second chances and making memories Taylor has to decide flight or fight.

I really don't think I have the words to describe how much I not only loved this book but how it touched me in a way others books haven't. Pancreatic cancer has been a huge part of my life. I've lost someone very close to me to it and I know how devastating it can be to a family when it is not caught in time(which is the case quite frequently with this disease). Morgan Matson used this in a way that was both true and emotional and I could totally put myself in Taylor's place. It's a scary disease and it works fast and that was captured perfectly and in a way that I had never seen in a book before. One second Taylor's dad was fine and in the next he was in such pain he couldn't even talk. It was heart wrenching in a very very real way. That alone made me love this book in a way that I haven't loved anything else really.

Then there was Taylor herself. She was so terrified to get hurt, to live her life and own up to her mistakes that she constantly wanted to just run. She wanted to run far and she wanted to run fast. She had been doing just that all her life until her father, without knowing it, made her stand still. He made her go back to the lake house and face her demands and the people she had hurt in the past. Without meaning to her father taught Taylor to grow up and to learn that nothing was unfixable. Nothing was broken forever if you didn't want to be. And with Henry and Lucy there showing her that people deserved to get a second chance Taylor grew in a way that I never would have imagined.

I bawled my eyes out for about the last 30 pages of this Sarah Dessen meets Jenny Han book and it was by far worth every tear I shed. It was deep and funny and a real coming of age story. Morgan Matson hit it out of the park with this book and it was completely worth all of the good things I heard about it. One of my favorites of 2012 and I look forward to for from them EXTREMELY talented story teller! ...more

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Jun 03, 2011 Princess Bookie rated it it was amazing

Shelves: read2013

My Thoughts: Oh my freaking gosh, I loved Second Chance Summer. I went into it hoping I would enjoy it but I fell madly in love with it. I loved it to pieces. I loved every single second of it even when things weren't perfect.

We are introduced to Taylor who lives with her mother, father, older brother Warren and younger sister Gelsey. They aren't the perfect family but things are normal and they care for one another.

Every summer they go up to their house up in the mountains and spend the summer ...more

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Jun 25, 2012 Daph (Loving Books) rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: own-this-book-physical-copy, favorites, 2012, release-june, made-me-cry, contemporary, on-the-rollercoaster-of-feels

Guys, guys.. Seriously, this book. This book. There's no way I can put into words how much I loved it. It was one of my favourites of 2012 and it's still in my favourite books, well over a year after I read it.

Taylor was so easy for me to relate to. I really felt her emotions -- I really felt connected to all of the characters and their stories and I can only say props to that. It's really something to write a story that really connects to its reader.

The setting was great -- I loved that the eve ...more

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Jul 18, 2011 Hannah rated it really liked it

Shelves: own-finished-copy, 2014

I loved Morgan Matson's debut, Amy & Roger's Epic Detour, so I'd been waiting to read Second Chance Summer for a while now. And luckily, Morgan Matson's sophomore novel lived up to my expectations - Second Chance Summer is another great summer read that will tug at your heartstrings!

What I loved most about Second Chance Summer is the family storyline. I loved all of the characters, especially Taylor's siblings: Warren and Gelsey are both fully-developed and fun to read about, and I enjoyed seein I loved Morgan Matson's debut, Amy & Roger's Epic Detour, so I'd been waiting to read Second Chance Summer for a while now. And luckily, Morgan Matson's sophomore novel lived up to my expectations - Second Chance Summer is another great summer read that will tug at your heartstrings!

What I loved most about Second Chance Summer is the family storyline. I loved all of the characters, especially Taylor's siblings: Warren and Gelsey are both fully-developed and fun to read about, and I enjoyed seeing how their relationships developed over the course of the novel. And even if 'liked' is the wrong word to use here, I really appreciated the story of the approaching death of Taylor's father. I loved the moments she got to share with him, and I also really liked how we got to be there with Taylor and to see her dad's health deteriorate every day. Most grief-related books I've read start after someone has died, so I really liked actually getting to witness this process in Second Chance Summer.

I also loved reading about Taylor's friendship with Lucy. The subtle and reluctant way these two start to forgive each other brought a smile to my face. I especially liked their relationship in the first half of the novel, when they are reconciling and getting to know each other again; in the second half, sadly, their friendship is no longer the focus and Lucy's character loses some of her dynamics.

This loss of focus on Taylor's friendship with Lucy is mainly because, in the second part of the novel, the romance takes center stage. And unfortunately, the romance is the only part of the novel I didn't enjoy as much as I had hoped. Honestly, Henry's character seemed kind of bland to me: we are told that he's a nice guy and that him and Taylor share some kind of special connection, but we are never shown this in a way that would make me really understand what makes the two of them click. I also found the drama in their relationship towards the end of the novel kind of unnecessary formularic.

Despite my issues with the romance, I really enjoyed Second Chance Summer. With beautiful writing and the perfect balance of lighthearted and emotional scenes, Second Chance Summer is a great summer read. I can't wait to read Morgan Matson's next book, Since You've Been Gone!

Reviewed at http://www.paperbacktreasures.blogspo... ...more

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Jul 27, 2013 Sasha rated it really liked it

Shelves: young-adult, romance, contemporary, enjoy, makes-you-think, best-covers, guilty-pleasures, high-school, drama, summer

What a great read! Morgan Matson's Second Chance Summer was just great. It passed time and it definitely got some of my thinking gears moving. I love the atmosphere of the book, the way everyone seemed to be a part of this bigger community (even though the town seemed small). I loved the idea that you could walk to the Vet shop or the bakery, it seemed wonderful. Taylor's character wasn't what made this book great for me. She seemed to have loads of problems, like we all do, except her dad has c ...more

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May 15, 2014 Andi (Andi's ABCs) added it · review of another edition

Shelves: rereads, pulse-it-riveted

Just as amazing the second time around!

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Feb 16, 2012 Britt rated it it was amazing

Shelves: src12

This, to me, is the perfect summer read. It evokes the feeling of summer - lake houses, summer jobs, and the boy next door, with a heartbreaking twist. I was afraid to read this one in public because I just knew that I would wind up sobbing (I wound up reading it while I was home and I did cry like a baby.) Full review to come at Not So Teen Reads. ...more

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