The Perfect Summer
Luanne Rice, 2003
Bantam Press
464 pp.
ISBN-13: 9780553584042
Summary
Old friendships--and love--make all things new again.
The acclaimed author of Safe Harbor and other bestsellers returns to the seaside, delving into the heart of a once happy family facing troubled waters.
Bay McCabe relishes life’s simple pleasures, her children, her home by the sea. She has never forgotten the values of her Irish granny--the everyday happiness of family, good friends, and hard work. Bay and her husband, Sean, have weathered rough spells and moved on. Now a perfect summer, filled with the scent of beach roses, lies before them.
Charming and ambitious, Sean splits his energy between the town bank, his old fishing boat, and the family he seems to adore—until he leaves his young daughter stranded after school. As troubling memories resurface, a phone call confirms that Sean is missing.
So begins a season that will change everything. As the door to all Bay cherishes seems to close forever, another opens, and an old love steps through. Embraced by enduring friendships, Bay will discover the truth of who she is—what love is—and how life’s deepest mysteries are often those closest to home (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
• Birth—1955
• Where—New Britain, Connecticut, USA
• Education—N/A
• Awards—(see below)
• Currently—lives in New York City and Old Lyme, Connecticut
Luanne Rice is the New York Times bestselling American author of more than 30 novels that have been translated into 24 languages. She often writes about nature and the sea, and many of her novels deal with love and family.
Born in New Britain, Connecticut, Rice's first published poem appeared in the Hartford Courant when she was eleven, and her first short story was published in American Girl when she was fifteen. Her debut novel, Angels All Over Town, was published in 1985.
Rice is an avid environmentalist and advocate for families affected by domestic violence.
Several of Rice's novels have been adapted for television, including Crazy in Love for TNT, Blue Moon for CBS, Follow the Stars Home and Silver Bells for the Hallmark Hall of Fame, and Beach Girls for a Summer 2005 mini-series on Lifetime.
Rice contributed a monologue to Motherhood Out Loud a play that premiered at Hartford Stage Company and was performed Off-Broadway and at the Geffen Playhouse in Los Angeles.
Honors
In 2002, Connecticut College awarded Rice an honorary degree and invited her to donate her papers to the college's Special Collections Library. She has also received an honorary doctorate of humane letters from St. Joseph College in West Hartford, Conn. In June 2014, she received the 2014 Connecticut Governor’s Arts Award in the Literary Arts category for excellence and lifetime achievement as a literary artist.
Rice divides her time between New York City, Old Lyme, Connecticut, and Southern California. (From Wikipedia. Retrieved 7/12/2016.)
Read an interview with Luanne Rice.
Book Reviews
Heartwarming and assured, Rice's latest novel addresses timeless themes and will linger with readers long after the reading is done.... Rice's ability to evoke the lyricism of the seaside lifestyle without over-sentimentalizing contemporary issues... is just one of the many gifts that make this a perfect summer read.
Publishers Weekly
Rice revisits the small Connecticut town of Hubbard's Point, adding another family to the long list of residents from her previous books.... A loving look at family and the issues that must be faced when a crisis threatens its cohesion. —Patty Engelman
Booklist
Discussion Questions
These questions were created and generously offered to LitLovers by Rena DeBerry of Salem, Virginia. Thank you, Rena!
1. Did the book description meet your expectations?
2. Ms. Rice presents multiple, well developed characters. Which one(s) did you most relate too? Which did you least relate too?
3. Infidelity is a subtle character throughout The Perfect Summer. Bay and Augusta accept their husband’s infidelity, both handling it differently. Dan ignores it. What do you think of their reactions? How would you react?
4. Whether consciously or subconsciously Sean brings Dan and Bay together. Which do you think it was? Do you think this was his way of making amends to Bay for his affairs?
5. At first Augusta tries to be a better person and give Bay a job. On the first day, Augusta takes all her anger of Sean out of Bay. Was Augusta justified to do so? Should a family be held accountable for the illegal actions of one member? How would you have reacted?
6. On the way to the Pumpkin Ball, Tara teases Joe about a Yeats poem, "The Wild Swans of Coole." What are your thoughts on mating for life? Is it possible? Not? Can you find it, lose it, then find it again like Bay and Dan?
7. When did you realize the Boland’s were behind everything? What clues did Ms. Rice give to implicate them?
8. Joe discovers that the banking embezzlement was considered a game, with nothing but greed as a motivation. How (or did) looking at embezzlement as a game help ease the participants conscious? Does it make the crime and criminals seem more or less "evil"?
9. Sean writes Annie a confession letter that she finds in the model boat she made for her father. What symbolism is there in Sean putting the letter in a boat? By writing the note to Annie, he puts a lot of responsibility on a young adult. What do you think of Sean’s character for making Annie so responsible? Was it a copout on Sean’s part? What do you think was his motivation?
10. Bay insists that Charlie and Sean’s spirit helped her save Eliza. Do you believe in guardian angels? Was it possible for Charlie and Sean to help Bay?
11. When the story breaks, media surrounds the McCabe house. At one point they harass and scare Billy, Annie and Peg. Is it fair for the media to "attack" children for an adult crime just to get answers?
12. Tara and Bay. Eliza and Annie. How are the relationships similar? Different? Do you believe that BFF could stand the test of time like Tara and Bay?
13. On a scale of 1 to 5, how would you rate The Perfect Summer? Would you recommend The Perfect Summer? Why or why not?
(Questions courtesy of Rena DeBerry. Please feel free to use them, online or off, with attribution to Rena and LitLovers. Thanks.)