Summer of Brave

Amy Noelle Parks' Summer of Brave is a warm, funny friendship story for 11 year olds about a girl who's very good at keeping everyone happy, except herself.

What happens

Every year Lilla and her best friends, Vivi and Knox, blow dandelions on the last day of school. Whoever blows off the most seeds picks the Summer Wish. Past summers have included a lemonade stand and a lot of toothpicks sneaked into people's shoes.

This year Vivi wins. And she wishes for a Summer of Brave.

That means doing things you're scared of and telling the truth, even when someone might not like it. The first challenge is to keep a count of every white lie. Silences count too.

Lilla is sure she hardly ever lies. Then she starts counting.

Her parents have divorced, very politely. They've bought a house split into two flats, so Mum lives upstairs and Dad lives downstairs, and Lilla goes up and down the back stairs between them. They keep asking if she's okay. She keeps saying yes.

There's also a big exam result, a special high school both parents want her to aim for (in different subjects), and a summer job Vivi was hoping to get herself. And Lilla has started noticing things about Knox that she's not ready to say out loud.

Being inside Lilla's head is the best bit. She's quiet and careful and very funny about her parents' big serious phrases. She'll tell you that her parents believe in Child-Centered Divorce, and then that it mostly means being asked if she's okay a billion times a day.

It's very relatable for anyone who's ever said "fine" when they weren't. Your reader might know a Vivi too (the friend who's sure she knows what's good for you).

The book is set in an American town and school, so it's grades rather than years. There's gentle crush talk and a mention of periods, nothing more.

If your reader likes real-life stories about friends and families more than dragons, this one's a gem.

What to read next

If they'd like another girl working out her place in a family that's changed shape, try The List of Things That Will Not Change, which starts with a green notebook and a list her parents wrote for her.