About the Author

Ann Brashares is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series, The Whole Thing Together, The Here and Now, 3 Willows, The Last Summer (of You & Me), and My Name Is Memory. She lives in New York City with her family. 

Visit Ann online at AnnBrashares.com and follow @AnnBrashares on Twitter.

Reviews

“Light and romantic." —The New York Times
 
“Fits like a favorite pair of pants.” —USA Today

“A great summer read.” —The Sacramento Bee

"The characters seem like old friends, and the author's sure ear for dialogue and her empathy for her protagonists' complicated emotions creates a story as comfortable as an old pair of jeans. A big, complex, satisfying sequel." --Kirkus Reviews, Starred

"Equally authentic and engaging." —Publishers Weekly 

"The Second Summer, while breezy and fun to read, deals seriously with love lost and found, death, and finding the courage to live honestly." —Amazon.com

"[A] big-hearted, complex tale of living, learning, and caring." —School Library Journal

"Brashares has done an outstanding job of showing the four teens growing up and giving readers a happy, ultimately hopeful book, easy to read and gentle in its important lessons." —Booklist

"It takes a really good book to leave you laughing one moment and crying the next. This book did just that. It is even better than the first book." —VOYA

"Although these teens deal with issues common to YA novels—identity, romance, parental conflict—Brashares' tale, with its lively characters, honest emotion, and wry wit, rises above the norm." —Children's Literature   

Gr 8 Up-Carmen, Lena, Tibby, and Bee are back in this long, engaging sequel to The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (Delacorte, 2001). The four best friends are beginning their 16th summer with new expectations for personal growth, romance, and deepening friendship, all enhanced by the magic of a shared pair of thrift-store jeans. Brashares has deftly interwoven the story's strands to convey the relaxed intimacy of the girls' friendships as well as the many parallels in their individual experiences. The dialogue is natural and helps build nuances of character; the use of metaphor and insightful language renders a narrative that is highly readable and marked by emotional truth. Bee, whose mother died when she was 11, heads to Alabama under an assumed name to visit her estranged maternal grandmother. Carmen and Lena both become entangled in emotional spats with their mothers, and Tibby makes an edgy documentary film about her mother for a screenwriting course. This is a summer for coming-of-age, and for people materializing out of the blue, but making an impact-Tibby's old friend Brian appears unbidden at her dorm; Lena's Greek boyfriend, Kostos, arrives suddenly; and Carmen's stepsister comes seeking sanctuary. Meanwhile, the traveling pants are circulated among the friends. It may just be the power of wonder, but the jeans undoubtedly play a role in the happy resolution of this big-hearted, complex tale of living, learning, and caring. Brashares's novel can be enjoyed by readers who have not yet discovered the previous book. It is certain to delight those readers who have.-Susan W. Hunter, Riverside Middle School, Springfield, VT Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

"Light and romantic." -The New York Times

"Fits like a favorite pair of pants." -USA Today

"A great summer read." -The Sacramento Bee

"The characters seem like old friends, and the author's sure ear for dialogue and her empathy for her protagonists' complicated emotions creates a story as comfortable as an old pair of jeans. A big, complex, satisfying sequel." --Kirkus Reviews, Starred

"Equally authentic and engaging." -Publishers Weekly

"The Second Summer, while breezy and fun to read, deals seriously with love lost and found, death, and finding the courage to live honestly." -Amazon.com

"[A] big-hearted, complex tale of living, learning, and caring." -School Library Journal

"Brashares has done an outstanding job of showing the four teens growing up and giving readers a happy, ultimately hopeful book, easy to read and gentle in its important lessons." -Booklist

"It takes a really good book to leave you laughing one moment and crying the next. This book did just that. It is even better than the first book." -VOYA

"Although these teens deal with issues common to YA novels-identity, romance, parental conflict-Brashares' tale, with its lively characters, honest emotion, and wry wit, rises above the norm." -Children's Literature