The debut YA novel from 2024 Hawkeye Prize Winner Holly Cardamone is an emotional rollercoaster through the summer between years 11 and 12 for Cat, a girl with a plan that’s about to be derailed.
Cat lives in a ‘crappy little town’ (she declares on page one) but travels to private school with ambitions for high marks, getting into uni, then leaving town and never looking back. Her three closest friends are MIA all summer, either on holiday or working long hours, and all she wants is to bury her nose in schoolwork and ignore her chaotic family – noisy little brothers, overbearing Nonna, too-chill Mum and chippy Dad, who’s insisted on doing a renovation during the holidays. When Cat finds out Paul, aka the hottest of the hot local surfer gods, is working for her dad – at her house – on the reno, it seems like the bottom has completely fallen out. So why does it seem Paul is the one falling instead? Is he flirting with her? And does she really like it? And is her mum really encouraging this? And why does Cat suddenly notice so many problematic patriarchal-driven nuances amid the surfers trickling into her own life?
Filled with hormonal highs and lows, Summer, In Between is a roadmap through a 17-year-old girl’s mind – confusing, turbulent, full of unmarked dead-ends, and ultimately useless when it comes to finding her way. The turmoil around self-acceptance, self-degradation, self-discovery and boys is accurate, if not a little over the top. The meet-cute is on point, the tension is sharp, and the banter is witty. Cat and Paul seem destined to get together – then destined to hate each other – then destined to fall head over heels – then … well, you get the idea. Mixing summer-fling vibes with a heavy dose of revolting against the patriarchy, the story rides like a solid surf break – the smaller waves keep building to bigger ones until you finally catch that one barrel that takes you all the way in.
Recommended for readers 14-years and over (there is a fair bit of language, but nothing over-the-top) looking for a quick, easy, comfortable read. Summer, In Between would be a great read for boys and girls, keeping the cutsie-romantic moments to a minimum and normalising conversations around some uncomfortable topics.
The debut YA novel from 2024 Hawkeye Prize Winner Holly Cardamone is an emotional rollercoaster through the summer between years 11 and 12 for Cat, a girl with a plan that’s about to be derailed.
