Ashley Hanlon

Ashley Hanlon
Beach Blondes: August
Katherine Applegate
Realistic Fiction
Just Right
701

1. Right now I'm reading Beach Blondes: August, by Katherine Applegate.  In the book now, Summer is trying to make amends with her friends and family.  She starts with her cousin Diana.  Diana has been very mean and rude to Summer, but over the last couple of weeks she is starting to realize that Summer isn't really that bad.  So now Summer is trying to also be friends with Diana.  Seth now has an advantage towards getting Summer because he was there when she needed to be comforted when of all people, Adam hurt her.  Adam needs to try to fix everything as well.  He had hurt Summer by telling her to forget about what happened "that night" and that he has to side with Ross against her because he doesn't want his dad to be disappointed with him or Ross.  But, Summer knows that although Ross is his brother, doing the right thing would be to turn Ross in to the police.  It might be hard for Adam to turn his own brother in, espicially when it could jeopardize his father's place as the governor of New Hampshire.  So, he wouldn't be only betraying Ross, he would be hurting his dad too.  Summer tries to tell him that she doesn't want to hurt the Merrick family and that she isn't trying to turn Ross in because he only hurt her and she wants revenge.  But, becuase this is also the second time Ross has assaulted someone, and that she knows everyone, not just herself and Diana would be better off and safer if Ross is getting help.  She also tries to explain that it wouldn't just be good for everyone else but also for Ross himself.  Ross could clean himself up and get help, go to rehab and suffer the consequences that he deserves for his actions.  Overall, Ross needs to return back to his rehab center.  Adam is trying to ignore the topic though, and just pretend that the whole thing didn't happen.  But, at the same time Adam is trying to win Summer back.  But, Summer isn't sure if she should trust him ever again.

2.  So far I really love this book.  If I were to rate this book out of ten I would give it a nine and a half.  I enjoyed the first two books out of the entire three book series.  So, this last book kind of wraps everything up and puts it all together for me and explains everything.  It may be because I love to read realistic fiction, espicially when I can relate to one of the characters.  Or, it could be because I love Katherine Applegate's writing style.  She writes similar to Sara Dessen but I would definetly prefer to read something written by Applegate rather than Dessen.  Sara Dessen extends details for far too long whereas, Katherine Applegate builds up anticipation just long enough that you are hooked on the book but aren't getting too frustrated by not being given any answers.  Applegate also puts you in the shoes of the main character, so it really keeps you intrigued in the book.  I love this book and its one of those books that you just can't put down.

3. A theme in this book would be betrayal.  Betrayal is used all throughout each character and is shown in the book.  One example of betrayal is when Adam betrays Summer by taking Ross's side when Ross almost rapes Summer.  Ross has had two very simialer instinces of this happening.  One with Diana, and now one with Summer.  Adam also betrayed Diana when he took Ross's side and created an alibi against Diana so that the famous Merrick family didn't look bad.  Adam only did this so that his father wouldn't be diappointed in his older brother Ross, and then also disappointed in Adam for not protecting his big brother.  Also, an insidence like this would make Adam's father, Governor Merrick of New Hampshire look bad and could possibly ruin his chances of being re-elected in the fall.  So, Adam did what he thought would be best for his family, protect Ross and cover up all of his mistakes.  On the other hand though, he had completely betrayed Summer and Diana when they really needed his help and support.  Of course they both wanted to press charges against Ross and put him in jail or at least a rehab facility where he could get help with his drug and alcohol problems, and so they would both feel safer with him being supervised so that this doesn't happen again.  But, in order to do that they would both need Adam to testify against Ross at a court.  And because Adam refuses to testify against his brother they would have no case and Ross would end up getting out free of charges so it wouldn't really be worth it.  Summer and Diana both feel completely betrayed with Adam, espicially with the history they have with him.  I dont think they will be able to forgive after this.

4.  My favorite character in this book is no longer Diana, but Seth.  I feel like Diana still has her bubbly personality and is different from all of the other characters.  I still enjoy reading about her and her life but Seth has been very interesting and fun to read about.  One thing to know about Seth is that he is a very impulsive person but no matter what deep down Seth is a very good person.  Recently he has done so much in the book, which is one of the reasons why I am so interested in this book and he's my favorite character.  For example, when Seth gets mad at Summer's rejection he decides the best thing to do is to completely sabotage Summer's house so that it is no longer livable.  But, once Summer is in need of help and needs a shoulder to cry on, Seth is there for her and apologizes for everything he has ever done to hurt her.  I like Seth because he is a nice person but isn't boring.  He likes to do fun, adventurous things that spice up the story and he is a very comical character.

5.  On the other hand, my least favorite character is Adam.  Adam Merrick in my opinion is a two faced person who needs to make his own decision and should learn how to not be persuaded by other people, like his father and Ross.  He really hurt both Summer and Diana and also let Marquez and Seth down when he made the wrong decision by sticking up for Ross.  Adam not only is a follower of his dad and brother but his overall personality is very boring.  The way he is described and how he acts in the book towards other characters makes it seem like he is the voice of reason and kills the fun.  I also think that if Adam's character wasn't in the story it wouldn't make the book better or worse, because Adam didn't really make an impact on the story.  Although he does throw parties and has some fun, its the other characters that make the book more interesting.

6.  My prediction for the ending of this book will be that Diana and Summer become friends but when Aunt Mallory returns home they will just pretend like they are still the same cousins that don't like each other at all.  I also think that Summer won't take Adam back and her and Diana will get revenge on Adam and Ross with the help of Marquez and Seth.  They will get the justice they deserve and feel like the problem they had with Ross is resolved.  When Aunt Mallory does return home I predict that she will assume that Summer is in her hut and decides to surprise her.  But, I think instead of finding Summer there she will run into Diver and Frank.  (Frank is a pelican bird that her and Diver talk to.)  Knowing Aunt Mallory's personality she will most likely call the police and Summer will end up trying to protect Diver because Diver has no one.  No family or friends, he just likes to meditate and talk to Frank and sometimes Summer.  As the summer ends, Summer will have chosen her 'dream guy' and it will either be Diver, Seth, or Adam.  Also, Summer and Diana will become friends and Marquez's and Diana's friendship will be revived.  I also think the Diana's depression will be gone and Summer will plan to return back to Crab Claw Key next summer.