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![Summer of '69 by [Elin Hilderbrand]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/41bSmeE3haL._SY346_.jpg)
Summer of '69 Kindle Edition
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Welcome to the most tumultuous summer of the twentieth century. It's 1969, and for the Levin family, the times they are a-changing. Every year the children have looked forward to spending the summer at their grandmother's historic home in downtown Nantucket. But like so much else in America, nothing is the same: Blair, the oldest sister, is marooned in Boston, pregnant with twins and unable to travel. Middle sister Kirby, caught up in the thrilling vortex of civil rights protests and determined to be independent, takes a summer job on Martha's Vineyard. Only-son Tiger is an infantry soldier, recently deployed to Vietnam. And thirteen-year-old Jessie suddenly feels like an only child, marooned in the house with her out-of-touch grandmother and her worried mother, while each of them hides a troubling secret.
As the summer heats up, Ted Kennedy sinks a car in Chappaquiddick, man flies to the moon, and Jessie and her family experience their own dramatic upheavals along with the rest of the country. In her first historical novel, rich with the details of an era that shaped both a nation and an island thirty miles out to sea, Elin Hilderbrand once again earns her title as queen of the summer novel.
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherLittle, Brown and Company
- Publication dateJune 18, 2019
- File size2314 KB
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Editorial Reviews
Review
"An engrossing tale of an iconic American summer"―People Magazine
"Overall this novel is an entertaining bagatelle . . . There won't be a single transistor radio this summer on Singing Beach in Manchester-by-the-Sea, nor on Madaket Beach in Nantucket. But there almost certainly will be multiple copies of Summer of '69. It's this year's beach-reading cure for . . . the summertime blues."―The Boston Globe
"Superb...Hilderbrand hits all the right notes about life in a tightly knit family, and this crowd-pleaser is sure to satisfy both her fans and newcomers alike."―Publishers Weekly, starred review
"HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Hilderbrand's first foray into historical fiction will rouse curiosity in new readers as well as devotees of her annual summer smashes."―Susan Maguire, Booklist
"Hilderbrand's characters are utterly convincing and immediately draw us into their problems, from petty to grave...To use the parlance of the period, a highly relevant retrospective."
―Kirkus
"Misunderstandings, secrets, and wrong choices are revealed in this completely satisfying novel that is the beach read of the summer, sure to appeal to Hilderbrand's fans while earning her new readers. A must buy."―The Library Journal
"She presents another breezy yet gritty novel with Summer of '69... Simple, sassy, and continuously engaging, Summer of '69 fits neatly into the nostalgic reader's beach bag."―NPR
"Hilderbrand's books keep getting better and better."―Bookreporter
"With vivid descriptions of the songs, fashions and other details of the era woven throughout, it's a true nostalgia trip."―AARP --This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition.
Review
"An engrossing tale of an iconic American summer"―People Magazine
"Overall this novel is an entertaining bagatelle . . . There won't be a single transistor radio this summer on Singing Beach in Manchester-by-the-Sea, nor on Madaket Beach in Nantucket. But there almost certainly will be multiple copies of Summer of '69. It's this year's beach-reading cure for . . . the summertime blues."―The Boston Globe
"Superb...Hilderbrand hits all the right notes about life in a tightly knit family, and this crowd-pleaser is sure to satisfy both her fans and newcomers alike."―Publishers Weekly, starred review
"HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Hilderbrand's first foray into historical fiction will rouse curiosity in new readers as well as devotees of her annual summer smashes."―Susan Maguire, Booklist
"Hilderbrand's characters are utterly convincing and immediately draw us into their problems, from petty to grave...To use the parlance of the period, a highly relevant retrospective."
―Kirkus
"Misunderstandings, secrets, and wrong choices are revealed in this completely satisfying novel that is the beach read of the summer, sure to appeal to Hilderbrand's fans while earning her new readers. A must buy."―The Library Journal
"She presents another breezy yet gritty novel with Summer of '69... Simple, sassy, and continuously engaging, Summer of '69 fits neatly into the nostalgic reader's beach bag."―NPR
"Hilderbrand's books keep getting better and better."―Bookreporter
"With vivid descriptions of the songs, fashions and other details of the era woven throughout, it's a true nostalgia trip."―AARP --This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition.
About the Author
Elin Hilderbrand is the New York Times bestselling author of numerous novels, including the Nantucket series, the Winter series, and over a dozen stand-alone novels, as well as two novellas. Her book Barefoot won the 2008 Romantic Novel of the Year Award.
Erin Bennett is an Earphones Award-winning narrator and a stage actress who played Carlie Roberts in the BBC radio drama Torchwood: Submission. She can be heard on several video games. Regional theater appearances include the Intiman, Pasadena Playhouse, Arizona Theatre Company, A Noise Within, Laguna Playhouse, and the Getty Villa. She trained at Boston University and the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art.
--This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition.Product details
- ASIN : B07J564ZHD
- Publisher : Little, Brown and Company (June 18, 2019)
- Publication date : June 18, 2019
- Language : English
- File size : 2314 KB
- Text-to-Speech : Enabled
- Screen Reader : Supported
- Enhanced typesetting : Enabled
- X-Ray : Enabled
- Word Wise : Enabled
- Sticky notes : On Kindle Scribe
- Print length : 450 pages
- Best Sellers Rank: #33,277 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #38 in Sibling Fiction
- #158 in Women's New Adult & College Fiction
- #166 in Mothers & Children Fiction
- Customer Reviews:
About the author

Elin Hilderbrand first discovered the magic of Nantucket in July 1993. Her recipe for a happy island life includes running, writing at the beach, picnics at Eel Point with her three children, and singing "Home, Sweet Home" at the Club Car piano bar. Here's to Us is her seventeenth novel.
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Reviewed in the United States on December 13, 2022
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The story centers in one family: The Levins/Nichols (Although, Kate was a Foley at some point. She was married to Wilder Foley).
Kate Levin is the mother. Kate is devastated that her only son, Tiger has been drafted to Vietnam. She's terrified he is going to die during this terrible war. She believes this is life paying her back for a secret she has been carrying for a long time. Kate knows she's drinking too much while her marriage and her relationship with her daughters are deteriorating.
The oldest daughter, Blair is married and pregnant. She is unhappy with her husband, Angus who's a physicist who doesn't want her to pursue her career. Instead, he wants her to stay at home barefoot and pregnant which is terribly lonely since he doesn't get home until very late every day. Furthermore, her husband also has some spells where he doesn't want to go out of the house at all and wants to seclude himself instead.
Kirby is the middle sister. She is all about fighting for civil rights, love not war, getting high and living free. Although, recently after she got in trouble with a man, she wants to heal and spend the summer at Martha's Vineyard. She's offered a job working the graveyard shift which she takes. She wants to prove she can be self-sufficient. In regards to her heart, She's not ready to date again until she meets Darren.
Lastly, there is Jessie, the half-sister. She just turned thirteen and the last thing she wants to do is to stay with her mother Kate and her grandmother, Exalta in Nantucket for the summer. It's implicit that she would need to start taking tennis lessons even though it is not a sport she wants to learn. It doesn't help that her first class in nothing but a nightmare.
***
Going back to Nantucket through Elin Hilderbrand's vision is always fun. But this time, it was not only Nantucket that was relevant but instead she decided to transport us to 1969. A year which was important for America and the world for so many reasons. Some awe-inspiring moments but also some terrible tragedies occurred during this time.
Summer of '69 had relatable characters. I liked them all except maybe I never really warm up to the Exalta.
I can't wait for Mrs. Hilderbrand's next Nantucket beach read.
Cliffhanger: No
4/5 Fangs
First, I loved the musical references and inserts. I downloaded several songs as a result of this.
A unique family dynamic – blended due to death and remarriage. Half sibling of a different religious origin. A high strung, self-important grandmother. And the Vietnam War. Those are just a few of things going on in one family during the Summer of ’69. But not everyone is going on the annual summer visit to Nantucket. Oldest sibling – pregnant with twins with a husband that may just be too smart for his own good- is having to stay put due to pregnancy. Kirby – the second born has a free spirit and instead of going to Nantucket with the rest of the family ventures off to Martha’s Vineyard. And Tiger - the only boy of the bunch has been drafted and sent to Vietnam. This leaves Kate and her mother – along with 13 year old Jesse -in Nantucket, but this summer proves nothing will ever the be same. As each walks their own path, there are lessons learned. Kate is not handling her son’s deployment well and has started excessively drinking – just like her mother who she swore she wouldn’t be. Jesse has her first crush among other firsts in her young life. We long to hear how Tiger is doing and await his letters with eagerness.
This book has all the feels. All of them. Happy. Sad. Patriotic. Broken. Hopeful. Fearful. I was all over the place when I read this book and couldn’t wait to see what happened. I kept tissues with me the whole time. I give this 4.5 stars and if you want a beach read and historical fiction. This book is for you.
While this is a wonderful novel for summer reading, it is really a magnificent, intelligent blend of historical fiction and a beach book. It's a beach book with brains!
This is the story of the (very) privileged Nichols-Foley-Levin family of Brookline, Massachusetts, who have spent their summers for generations on the tony Massachusetts island of Nantucket. The novel focuses on four of the women in what is a larger cast of characters: 48-year-old mother Kate Levin, 24-year-old daughter Blair Foley Whalen, 21-year-old daughter Kirby Foley, and 13-year-old daughter Jessica Levin. The story is told in alternating chapters from their four voices.
Kate is overtly distraught and drinking way too much due to excessive worry for her son Tiger, who was drafted and has just been deployed to Vietnam. Blair, who is pregnant and due any day with twins, is in a romantically complicated and unhappy marriage to Angus, an MIT professor who is working on the Apollo 11 mission to the moon. Kirby, a Simmons University junior, gets a summer job at an inn on Martha's Vineyard in Edgartown, while recovering from a romance with a married man and embarking on a new romance with a Black Harvard student. And Jessie, who turns 13 the day they arrive in Nantucket, is experiencing all those adolescent demons and joys as she, too, worries about her big brother fighting in Vietnam. Each of these four women mirror a major life event most women experience—from adolescence to college to marriage and motherhood to the nearly empty nest—but from a vantage of changing times for women's roles and expectations.
This is a book that grabbed me from the first paragraph. The plot simply buzzes and has enough surprises and small twists to keep the pages quickly turning. And, just as the title says, this is all taking place during that momentous summer of 1969—the first moon walk, the Vietnam War, race relations, Betty Friedan, and Teddy Kennedy and Chappaquiddick. Very cleverly, each chapter is titled with a song from the era, which gives just a whisper of a hint to the evolving plotline.
Read it! Take it to the beach or your own backyard. This is a summer novel that perfectly captures that tumultuous summer of '69.
Top reviews from other countries

The summer of '69 I was twenty one and living in the UK was only vaguely aware of the social and political aspects of the time although so much was in our news. We were glued to our black and white TVs back then,watching the space launch and astronauts walking on the moon The book made me feel very nostalgic, these were indeed amazing times of change and history. The 60s were so vibrant and exciting and it felt the young truly came into their own with the fashion, the music, the hope. This felt indeed like the dawning of the age of Aquarius. I thoroughly enjoyed the book and the feeling it imparted of how it was to live through those times. Not for us the tragedy of the 30s and 40s, the dismal 50s. It was great to be young and alive in the 60s. I loved the descriptions of food and the beaches and islands like Nantucket and Martha's vineyard. All in all, a very enjoyable read. Not all the ends are tied up neatly, but that's fine, they aren't in life, but I would read this writer again for the insight into a different time and world. Good book about relationships and a segment of social history.

'Summer of '69' is slightly different from this author's usual books, as it's set in a bygone era, but her research into the 1960s is impeccable, as is the atmosphere she invokes. There's casual sexism, racism and good descriptions of the new generational gap in the social norms that symbolized the end of the decade.
I cannot tell you how much I enjoyed this novel. If you haven't yet discovered Elin Hilderbrand, I envy you! You have a bunch of books to enjoy.


