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A review by jennygoodier
The Summer that Melted Everything by Tiffany McDaniel
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
One word: Incredible.
I read Betty last summer and it's one of the best books I've ever read. I wanted to try another by McDaniel and I'm not disappointed. She has such a powerful way of writing and to come up with such an immense story of familial love and injustice and all the strong emotions of hatred, fear, jealousy, love, is a real gift. I didn't know where it was going in the beginning with the idea of a boy pretending to be the devil but my god stick with it because it's potent.
I think I called Betty a beautiful book. Sad but beautiful. I would not call this beautiful not because of its story/writing, which is excellent, but because it's so full of grief and hurt and pain, I think my ending feeling is that it's a painful book. It so perfectly captures the feelings of emotional pain that I too was left feeling pained.
I simply cannot recommend it enough.
Some of my favourite quotes:
"those laces are everything, and when everything gets untied, you don't stop tripping just because the shoes are off"
"The devil was put on trial, though there were no horns, no pitchforks either...They came not from underground lairs but from homes with flowers in vases and cookies in the oven."
I read Betty last summer and it's one of the best books I've ever read. I wanted to try another by McDaniel and I'm not disappointed. She has such a powerful way of writing and to come up with such an immense story of familial love and injustice and all the strong emotions of hatred, fear, jealousy, love, is a real gift. I didn't know where it was going in the beginning with the idea of a boy pretending to be the devil but my god stick with it because it's potent.
I think I called Betty a beautiful book. Sad but beautiful. I would not call this beautiful not because of its story/writing, which is excellent, but because it's so full of grief and hurt and pain, I think my ending feeling is that it's a painful book. It so perfectly captures the feelings of emotional pain that I too was left feeling pained.
I simply cannot recommend it enough.
Some of my favourite quotes:
"those laces are everything, and when everything gets untied, you don't stop tripping just because the shoes are off"
"The devil was put on trial, though there were no horns, no pitchforks either...They came not from underground lairs but from homes with flowers in vases and cookies in the oven."
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death