The Summer I Turned Pretty Book Trilogy – A Complete Series
There are very few coming of age novels that depict the feeling of growing up as beautifully and truthfully as the The Summer I Turned Pretty Book trilogy written by Jenny Han. It depicts the coming of age journey of Isabel “Belly” Conklin, as she experiences her summers full of friendship, family drama, love and heartbreak, as well as struggles with becoming an adult.
If you have watched “the summer i turned pretty series” on the TV and are now interested in learning where the story started, how many books there are, and should you read them in a certain order.
The answer is obvious: there are only three books in the original trilogy and reading them consecutively will give you the most accurate understanding of the relationships between Belly, Conrad and Jeremiah Fisher, as well as the changing dynamics within the families.
This guide will help you learn everything about all three novels in the trilogy, will introduce you to the main characters, will show you the themes of the trilogy and will highlight some differences between them.
Table of Content
The Summer I Turned Pretty Book Trilogy in Order
The original trilogy consists of three novels:
1. The Summer I Turned Pretty
The first book introduces Belly Conklin and the annual summer tradition that has shaped her childhood.
Every summer, Belly travels with her mother, Laurel, and her older brother, Steven, to Cousins Beach. There, they stay with her mother’s best friend, Susannah Fisher, and Susannah’s two sons, Conrad and Jeremiah.
Belly has spent years feeling like the younger girl in the group. But this particular summer feels different.
She is growing up, and the people around her are beginning to notice.
The novel explores Belly’s changing feelings toward Conrad, whom she has loved for years, while also establishing her close friendship with Jeremiah. What once seemed like a carefree childhood ritual becomes much more complicated as romance enters the picture.
At the heart of the novel is Belly’s realization that growing up means relationships cannot remain frozen in the way they were during childhood.
2. It’s Not Summer Without You
The second book of “the summer I turned pretty” series is an emotional continuation.
The carefree tone of the first book turns into grief, uncertainty, and emotions at bay. The relations between Belly and Conrad have changed, and the Fisher family has to face the situation that threatens their usual summer tradition.
The Cousins Beach house gains great importance because it means more than a place to go on vacation. This place is associated with childhood, family, memories, and home feeling for Belly and the Fisher brothers.
In their attempts to save the little they have left together, Belly is put in an awkward situation because she starts falling in love not only with Conrad but with Jeremiah too.
Thus, the second book goes much further from the usual love triangle story of the series. It raises the question of what can happen after childhood ends, and people you loved start changing without your ability to stop it.
3. We’ll Always Have Summer
Thirdly, it is in the third book that the original trilogy comes to an end.
In the third book, the character of Belly has matured much since her appearance in the previous book.
Conrad and Jeremiah, too, are different people now.
As opposed to simply asking which guy she loves, this book poses a question of what sort of future she wants.
This involves themes such as commitment, maturity, independence, and dealing with the repercussions of decisions taken earlier in life.
Now, Belly has to realize the difference between being comfortable with a person and being compatible with him/her.
Her relationships are not only romantic but also have some future implication for the life she is building for herself outside Cousins Beach.
It is the third book in which the main romantic conflict will be resolved, while highlighting one of the major themes of the trilogy – growing up is about making your own decisions.
Who Is Belly Conklin?
Belly serves as the protagonist and narrator of the trilogy.
Her complete name is Isabel Conklin; however, everyone refers to her as Belly. At the start of the story, she is just beginning to understand herself and how others view her.
What is fascinating about Belly’s personality is that her development can be observed firsthand by readers.
When she starts out, she has an extremely romantic view of love, especially her love for Conrad. What she soon realizes is that having a relationship with someone and being in love with them are two entirely different things.
Her journey involves learning:
- Who she is outside her childhood relationships
- How to deal with disappointment
- What she expects from love
- How family influences romantic choices
- When to hold on and when to move forward
This makes the trilogy more than a romance story. It is also a coming-of-age narrative.
Conclusion
After all, The Summer I Turned Pretty Book series is not simply about picking one person over the other.
In The Summer I Turned Pretty, It’s Not Summer Without You, and We’ll Always Have Summer, Belly turns from a teen girl who falls in love for the very first time into a young woman having to make choices regarding her future.
The Summer I Turned Pretty Book series weaves the threads of romance, friendship, family, sorrow, reminiscence, coming of age, and many other aspects into a readable tale.
Even if you have only seen the adaptation, reading the novels will give you an opportunity to see the story through Belly’s eyes as it was initially written. And for those who have been already reading the novels, rereading the whole trilogy will show just how much characters have changed.
0 Comments