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Loading... Summer of '69by Elin Hilderbrand
Top Five Books of 2019 (144) Best Beach Reads (59) Books Read in 2019 (2,288) » 2 more Books Read in 2021 (3,588) Historical Fiction (62) Loading...
Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. No current Talk conversations about this book. I have read other books by Elin Hildebrand, so I expected to escape into a light, fast-moving novel. Ms. Hildebrand delivered. Summer of ‘69 as a title intrigued me, because it was the year I, like the character Jessie Levin, turned 13. It was the middle of three momentous years for me and for the country. Ms. Hildebrand scattered enough authentic summer of ‘69 cultural references — the moon landing, Chappaquiddick (up close and personal for one of these fictional characters), and Woodstock, overlaid by the Vietnam War and the wealth of fantastic music that summer. It is not a literary masterpiece, but it is very good beach reading material, or on the back deck on a beautiful early September evening with a glass of Pinot noir, like me. Elin Hilberbrand’s latest Summer of ’69 is a disappointment from this beloved author. The nostalgia of the late sixties isn’t enough of a backdrop to warrant a contrived plot dealing with the anxiety of having a son in Vietnam, marriage turmoil, and coming of age. Elin does her usual excellent detail of Nantucket with a brilliant writer’s essence. Yet an emotional core is missing. no reviews | add a review
Belongs to SeriesSummer of '69 (1) Distinctions
Fiction.
Literature.
Historical Fiction.
HTML:Four siblings experience the drama, intrigue, and upheaval of the '60s summer when everything changed in Elin Hilderbrand's #1 New York Times bestselling historical novel. Welcome to the most tumultuous summer of the twentieth century. It's 1969, and for the Levin family, the times they are a-changing. Every year the children have looked forward to spending the summer at their grandmother's historic home in downtown Nantucket. But like so much else in America, nothing is the same: Blair, the oldest sister, is marooned in Boston, pregnant with twins and unable to travel. Middle sister Kirby, caught up in the thrilling vortex of civil rights protests and determined to be independent, takes a summer job on Martha's Vineyard. Only-son Tiger is an infantry soldier, recently deployed to Vietnam. And thirteen-year-old Jessie suddenly feels like an only child, marooned in the house with her out-of-touch grandmother and her worried mother, while each of them hides a troubling secret. As the summer heats up, Ted Kennedy sinks a car in Chappaquiddick, man flies to the moon, and Jessie and her family experience their own dramatic upheavals along with the rest of the country. In her first historical novel, rich with the details of an era that shaped both a nation and an island thirty miles out to sea, Elin Hilderbrand once again earns her title as queen of the summer novel. No library descriptions found. |
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)813.6Literature English (North America) American fiction 21st CenturyLC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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This story touches on everything that was going on that summer - Chappaquidick, the space launch, Woodstock coming up and racial tension. I've always enjoyed Elin's books and this one didn't disappoint. ( )