The Summer Book

This book was given to me by an uncommon friend and I enjoyed it very much. It is about the friendship between a grandmother and her young grandaughter who live on a bit of an island in Finland (?). The beauty and treasures discovered in the quiet lives they lead, finding joy in simple things and loving each other besides those petty annoyances of personality (they are very much alike). There are many "huggable" humorous moments. I think of one in which they trade cats--their cat is indifferent to the grandaughter's overtures and the one traded was much more warm and cuddly, but then (and I quote from the book). "Hunt! Do something! Be like a cat!" And then she started to cry and ran to the guest room and banged on the door. "What's wrong now?" Grandmother said. "I want Moppy back!" Sophia screamed. "But you know how it will be," Grandmother said. "It'll be awful," said Sophia gravely. "But it's Moppy I love."

The connection between grandmother and granddaughter is a marrow-deep one in "Summer Book." Sophia and her grandmother spend their days exploring, talking about life, nature, everything but their feelings about Sophia's mother's death and their love for one another. And yet, underneath the offhand, and often strange conversations that take place between them, you feel their affection and the concern they feel for one another."Summer Book" is a strange and beautiful story. There's no false emotions here, no manipulation for the sake of effect. Just an account of a very real relationship between a child and her grandmother, during the last weeks of the grandmother's life. Very highly recommended.

This is a book about Sophia, whose mother has died. She lives with her father, who is a writer, and her grandmother, and they spend their summers on an island. Her father is preoccupied with his writing, and Sophia's grandmother is old and infirm. They do not know it, but this summer marks the last weeks, days, and finally hours of Grandmother's life.