Team Jeremiah Forever: My Thoughts on The Summer I Turned Pretty

Hello friends!

This week I’ve been diving deep into my Hot Mom Summer book list. I read The Summer I Turned Pretty, watched both seasons of the show, started reading The Hotel Nantucket, listened to Remarkably Bright Creatures (a recent recommendation I saw as giving off good summery vibes), and just checked out Love & Gelato from the library.

I recognize that this sounds insane, but I’m really just trying to bring on summer!!! It just isn’t long enough in Utah.

This blog post (even with all the craziness and books I’ve been consuming) is going to focus on The Summer I Turned Pretty exclusively.

The Book

First, I want to chat about the book a bit. I gave it 2.5 stars out of 5. I enjoyed it enough to finish, and I absolutely love short chapters, which this book delivered. But overall, I felt like the content was dry, and not a lot happened.

I honestly can’t comprehend how anyone can be Team Conrad after reading that book. Like Belly??? Are you delusional or what??? This man may have been going through a lot, but Jeremiah also knew what was going on—and he wasn’t acting like a self-centered turd all summer long.

It’s a great quick read that does give all the summer lovin’ vibes, but I would definitely recommend it more for a younger audience that isn’t looking for deeper, more interesting characters.

Sad to say, I don’t plan on reading the other two books.

The Show

I’m shocked I’m about to say this… but I don’t think it’s necessary to read the books. You can honestly just watch the show. It has a much better plot and stronger character development. I loved the debutante ball storyline—it added a lot of really interesting characters that weren’t in the book.

I am a HUGE “books are better than the adaptation” girlie… but I was proven wrong with this show lol.

The characters were deeper and more compelling. I appreciated that Belly and Taylor were actually close friends in the show and were able to overcome the challenges they faced.

It’s also wild to me that the show gives Conrad so many redeeming moments that the book completely lacks. And that Jeremiah firework scene?? A little out of left field for his personality in either version, tbh.

I really liked how Belly’s brother, Steven, was an important part of the show. He’s such a great addition—it gave us a better, more rounded picture of what a Cousins summer would actually feel like.

I also finished Season 2 and I ATE. IT. UP. I LOVED it!

What can I say? Sometimes I’m a sucker for drama.

And the soundtrack??? SO GOOD. I don’t even like Taylor Swift, and it still felt perfect. It almost made me want to become a Swiftie.

That said, I would not recommend this show to younger viewers without parental consent. There’s a good amount of language (especially the F-word), and some mature sexual content. Nothing super graphic, but I definitely felt weird watching a couple of scenes on the treadmill at the gym lol.

Final Thoughts

So here’s where I’ll leave you—watch the show, skip the books (unless you’re a teenage girl looking for some cute summer romance). And I’m Team Jeremiah till the day I die. (Also, he is SO much cuter than Conrad in the show. Like… he’s beautiful.)

Please reach out with questions, book recommendations, or even your opinion on any of the books I’m reading and talking about. Email me at shelfobsessedbooks@gmail.com!

I’m happy you’re here :)