A review by hickeypicks
Summer and the City by Candace Bushnell

4.0

Carrie is now a high school graduate and is spending the summer in New York City taking a writing course. At the end of The Carrie Diaries, Carrie was mugged and in desperation, called her friend Donna LaDonna’s cousin, Samantha Jones. Summer and the City takes off when Samantha brings Carrie to her apartment and takes her to a party. There she meets Barnard Singer, acclaimed playwright. With dreams of being a writer, she embarks on a relationship with him. Carrie is still a virgin so dating a divorced man in his 30s comes with complications. Carrie ends up staying with Samantha after getting kicked out of her summer apartment with a wacky landlady. Samantha is getting married and fans will see a different side to her. Carrie discovers thrift shops and starts taking fashion risks complete with scrubs and something called a hostess gown. A young passionate and opinionated Miranda joins the cast and it is fun to watch their friendship grow. Carrie meets an interesting group of characters from her writing class, especially the snooty Capote Duncan from the South. I enjoyed this book even more than the first. Seeing New York City through Carrie’s eyes in the 1980s is fun.