The Summer Before deals with child sexual abuse in an unusual and somewhat oblique way. The story focuses on the family, specially the daughter, of the perpetrator of the abuse and the rippling effects of that abuse.
Madeline Plympton and Summer Starr are BFFs and have been since they were four or five. Summer’s mother is a hairdresser and has financial problems and housing problems. The Plymptons, a wealthy New England family, takes them in and helps arrange affordable housing for them. From then, the two girls grow close, becoming sisters as far as they are concerned.
For some unknown reason, Summer becomes depressed, develops an eating disorder, and begins seeing a therapist. But she doesn’t share the root cause of her unhappiness even with her therapist. When the truth comes out, it—and the trial that follows the revelation of the molestation—destroys her relationship with Madeline and, in turn, Madeline’s own mental health and her relationships with her parents. As Maddie tries to deal with the fallout, first escapes to New York where she eventually attempts suicide. Through her own lengthy therapy, she learns she must confront her family and others involved in the trial before she can climb out of her personal hell.
The prose here is quite understated. The sexual assault is alluded to more than described outright and is in no way glorified or used to titillate. An interesting read with an unusual approach to sexual abuse and its ramifications.
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The Summer Before (Koehler Books, October 15, 2024)is available through:
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You can read my review of Braley’s The Silence in the Sound here.
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