Realistic Fiction: This One Summer by Mariko Tamaki and Jillian Tamaki

Bibliographic Data

Tamaki, Mariko, and Jillian Tamaki. This One Summer. New York: First Second, 2014. Print.

Summary

Rose goes to Awago Beach every summer with her family, and this summer is no different. However, with her parents fighting more and more, Rose and her friend Windy try to find ways to pass the time. That’s when they get wrapped up in the drama surrounding two of the local teenagers.

Critical Analysis

This modern take on a realistic fiction novel is written in graphic novel form. It’s a quick and fun read for those that are more hesitant readers. It has humor, along with some heavy moments. Rose’s mom is depressed after having a miscarriage, her parents are fighting a lot, and one of the local teenagers gets pregnant. The pictures help move readers along with the story, and add to the telling of the story. It also won the Caldecott Honor award in 2015.

Although the story is well told, I feel the characters could have been developed a bit more. The story moves along without much depth to the main characters. We seem to learn more about her friend Windy and her parents and we do about Rose. I wish we knew more about her and what makes her tick.

Creative Activity

Students can create their own graphic novel about their life, or about a specific part of their life. If students don’t want to draw, they can create their graphic novels online using different websites like Powtoon.

Related Resources

About halfway through the story we find out Jenny, one of the local teenage girls, gets pregnant. Students can learn more about pregnancy, how to prevent it, and statistics on teen pregnancy while visiting It’s Your Sex Life. It is associated with MTV and a popular tv show called 16 and Pregnant. Because of this link to a well known tv show and a network teenagers watch might help bridge that gap.

"Pregnancy." It's Your Sex Life. MTV, n.d. Web. 06 July 2016.

Rose’s mom is depressed throughout the book, so students can learn more about depression and its effects by visiting the National Institute for Mental Health website.

"Depression." NIMH RSS. National Institute for Mental Health, n.d. Web. 06 July 2016.

Published Review

"This One Summer." Kirkus Reviews 82.9 (2014): 110. Library, Information Science & Technology Abstracts with Full Text. Web. 5 July 2016.