Title: The Summer Between Us
Author: Andre Fenton
Genre: Young Adult Fiction
Publisher: Formac Publishing
Rating: 4.5/5 stars
Pages: 223
Review:

The Summer Between Us is such an emotional read. I’m familiar with the author’s work, as I read Annaka a while back, and I really did love his writing style and how he was able to convey the emotions of growing up and not being accepted by your family, learning to speak up, and doing what you love. This is the kind of book that reads like a big hug, comfort in the midst of a whirlwind that is life. It’s definitely a relatable book, and I’m sure many people could be comforted by it. I like that this book touched on subjects like race, eating disorders, and family matters when your family just straight up won’t accept you for being who you are and pursuing the things that you want to. However. As someone who is of mixed race, much the main character of this book, Adrian, I found the mentions and examples of racism very interestingly written out.

Personally, I’ve never faced such discrimination because I’m not white. I was talking to some of my friends about this book, and it did stir up a lot of conversation between my non-white friends and I. It forced me to think about how the history of a community, and even the social status of an individual might impact their experience of racism. I felt that it was a real eye-opener, and that I was enlightened a bit more on these subjects.

Other than race, this book also touched on eating disorders, which is something that I don’t have any experience with, so I won’t talk about that one a whole lot, but I think that it was good to read about what it’s like to have an ED. I think that this book did a good job explaining it, what the thought process is like, and what it’s like to actually act on it and then start to see changes in your body. The other thing is just Adrian’s struggles with being a man. He’s part of a group called “Unpacking Masculinity” and I thought this spoke volumes to how some people struggle with something as simple as their own gender, and what it really means to be masculine or feminine, especially in a world where the lines between the two are so blurred.

Now. Let’s talk about the characters of The Summer Between Us.

Adrian
Adrian just finished high school, and is trying to get into college. The problem is, he doesn’t really know if he wants to go to college or not. His girlfriend of three years, Melody (Mel for short) is going to go on a cross country trip with her band Black, Brown, and Infamous, and Adrian is torn between the two. Support his girlfriend or do something that can promise him a more solid future and do what he’s interested in. Adrian as a character and as a person was also really good to read about. He felt very much like a real person, and someone that you can actually relate to. Even though my life would differ a lot from Adrian’s life, I found myself being able to relate and understand his struggles and what he was going though.

As for Adrian’s personality, you can tell that he’s trying to better himself, like his weight loss journey, and the way that he thinks. Also how much he loves Mel, which is really sweet, and I loved reading about their relationship in this book. I thought Adrian was a pretty solid character overall, and I think he was a pretty good driving force for this story.

Melody
Mel is cool. I liked Mel. Mel is the kind of girlfriend that stands up for what she wants, and she can and she will fight you if you piss her off. Don’t piss off Mel. Also she drives a purple camero which is also kinda fire, and on top of that she’s in a punk rock band and doesn’t like people being emo. She’s so real for that.

Donny
Solid best friend. Solid wingman. Would’ve liked to see some more depth in Adrian and Donny’s relationship. I always like to know why characters are friends, and I’m not sure that I really saw enough here.

The other bandmates
I kinda wish we got more of the other characters. There were a lot of characters that just kinda felt a little bit left out in certain parts, and I think the bandmates were some of those people. The main characters were the main characters, and then the side characters were side characters. I wish Mel wasn’t the only one who got development.

When I finished this book, I was truly left with so many different emotions. And to Andre Fenton, thank you for writing this book, as I feel like many teenagers can relate to the characters and the struggles that were mentioned in this book, and I genuinely enjoyed reading it all and seeing how it all fell into place at the end.

Here’s a quote that I really liked from this book before I go:
“I all ready know what I am.” I finally let out, “I’m worthy of the life I want to lead.” ~ Adrian Carter (Page 187)

Here is the official synopsis from Formac:

Award-winning African Nova Scotian writer Andre Fenton’s third novel tackles contemporary social issues such as class difference and colourism in the Black community in this vibrant coming-of-age story.
“An empowering journey of self-actualization and a look at the intimate bonds that shape a person.” — Kirkus Reviews

This coming-of-age story follows eighteen-year-old Adrian Carter as he graduates from high school and confronts difficult decisions about his future, all while dealing with the stress and pressure he feels to please those closest to him. As Adrian navigates the emotional highs and lows of the summer between graduation and the post-secondary future, he negotiates the difficulties of forging a path in life against others’ expectations.
Despite his wish to follow his longtime girlfriend Mel on her cross-country trip with her band, Adrian is hesitant about spending too much time in the punk’s scenes majority-white spaces. Adrian struggles with these feelings and works to find common ground with his emotionally distant father. Meanwhile he starts to understand that his own passion is grounded in a desire to support a community he’s forged on his own.
Dealing with important themes (a desire for independence, identity, first love, familial tensions) from the nuanced perspective of a biracial teen, this story tackles key contemporary social issues. Class differences, colourism in the Black community and the structural barriers limiting access to post-secondary education for Black youth are all embedded in Andre Fenton’s readable narrative.

That’s all for now, people. Thank you for reading this rather long book review, I hope you enjoyed it, and go check out The Summer Between Us on the Formac catalogue!