readingwithwrin
"I shouldn't be complaining. I should be happy to help my family. I am happy to help my family. I'm just not so happy to be helping my family in Nebreska"
Anise is a surfer who hasn't spent a summer away from the ocean since she was a little kid. But when her aunt gets into a fatal car crash it's up to her and her dad to go to Nebraska to help take care of her cousins while her aunt heals. This is Anise worst nightmare it seems, not only will she have to go a whole summer without surfing, she'll also miss the last summer her and her friends all have together before they start going to college.
Once in Nebraska she starts wondering about her mom more who has always been in and out of her life, and what caused her to constantly just leave. Anise also realizes that helping take care of her cousins Emery, Parker, and Nash is going to be a lot harder than she thought it would be. Between going to the skate park every day, keeping up with her friends back home, trying to make sure her cousins are happy/safe, worrying about her mom, and making new friends in Nebraska; Anise has a lot to deal with this summer for a change.
"If I can't enjoy my summer, I'm damn sure going to help them enjoy theirs."
I really really liked Girl out of Water and it might just be my favorite Contemporary read of the year! I did struggle to like Anise at times, but she was a realistic character for a change. She wasn't used to having so much responsibility or having to take care of other people so she had a bit of a learning curve to deal with and because of that some of the decisions she made weren't always the best. But I loved this book even more because of that.
"Home isn't a place. It's people. And I've always been with my people."
Now let's talk about the skate park guys Lincoln and Austin, I was expecting the worst from them because of how Anise didn't really care for skateboarders. But they were some of my favorite people in the whole book, Lincoln especially. We all need a Lincoln in our lives. He was so fun and carefree despite the social struggles you know he had to face. Also, he was there for Anise even though he barely knew her and he was able to manage to handle Parker and Nash without much help which is was not any easy task. Austin was there for Emery when she needed a friend.
Overall I would say this is a must read before the end of summer!
Blog Twitter Instagram Facebook