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The Summer I Learned to Fly
- By Dana Reinhardt
- Genre: Coming of Age
Common Sense Media says
Touching coming-of-age story with some mature themes.
Parents say
Kids say
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that the protagonist in this coming-of-age story is a 13-year-old girl who sometimes makes dangerous decisions. Not only does she befriend a runaway teen and hangs out with his friends who smoke and squat in an abandoned barn, but she also sneaks out of her room at night to help Emmett on a quest, and steals money from her mother's cheese shop. But her heart is in the right place; Drew is learning to be a friend, and along the way learning to make her own choices -- and to believe that miracles do happen, even if they happen slowly.
What's the story?
When Drew spends the summer working at her mother's new cheese shop, she befriends the strange boy who has been eating the leftover food she leaves in the alley behind the store. She has her own complications in life -- including an unrequited crush on an older boy and a mother who seems to be dating again -- but as she learns Emmett's darker secrets, she puts everything on the line for him, risking her relationship with her mother and sacrificing something she really loves.
Is it any good?
The author weaves together many elements to create this tender coming-of-age story: There's the cheese shop, her mother's new mysterious boyfriend, the journal she finds left behind by her dead father, the accident that leaves her crush disabled, Emmett's family tragedy, his quest to find a miracle, and more -- not to mention Drew's many names -- she's also sometimes Robin or Birdie. But the author handles this material expertly, using these varied elements to create Drew's vivid world, and help readers understand her sometimes dangerous choices. Readers may have a hard time believing how emotionally vulnerable the young characters are with each other at times, but they will still be moved by the obvious love they share, especially Drew and Emmett, who learn what it takes to be true friends.
What families can talk about
Families can talk about coming-of-age stories. What does this term mean? How is Drew's perspective about life different than it was in the beginning?
What makes a hero? Can a book's protagonist be a good role model even if he or she makes dangerous choices, as Drew does here?
How concerned should parents be with how characters behave? Does the behavior of fictional characters have any impact on how teens act? What about characters in movies or television shows?
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Kid, 12 years old
December 2, 2011
AGE
Good story of friendship but the moral isn't okay.
I found the character relationships in this book irritating. The mom is being purposely deceptive to Drew about the fact that she's dating someone, and Drew acts rather obnoxious back. Emmett supposedly cares for Drew, but there is nothing to prove that he truly does, and I really didn't feel like he did: it completely seemed like Emmett was using Drew. Also, there are severe moral and personal value issues in the theme. That Drew runs away on a quest for a boy she doesn't even know is shown as "personal growth," and the story basically says "it's okay to run away and join a group of fanatics." Drew doesn't even believe that what she does will work, but she still runs away to do it. My last complaint was Emmett himself: he bothered me to no end, and that Drew was for some reason convinced that he was the solution to many problems drove me bonkers! I think that most kids will look past these and feel that this story is a sweet story of friendship, but the imbedded morals really need discussion. Also, some people might get bored with the slow pace and ceaseless way Drew does something, and then twists it into something her mom would be okay with her doing.
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| Author: | Dana Reinhardt |
| Book type: | Fiction |
| Genre: | Coming of Age |
| Publisher: | Random House |
| Publication date: | July 12, 2011 |
| Number of pages: | 224 |
| Hardcover price: | $15.99 |
| Publisher's recommended age(s): | 12 - 12 |
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