LoveReading4Kids Says
LoveReading4Kids Says
Compelling, surprising and complex, this will not disappoint the many fans of best-selling Emily Barr, who has become renowned for her twisty, psychological page turners ever since her Carnegie nominated debut, The One Memory of Flora Banks.
Set in a beautifully evocative Cornwall and across three different decades: the 1940's, the 1980's and the present day, with each time frame covering a generation of the family living at the grand, isolated Cliff House, which has come to symbolise wealth, privilege and absentee owners for the present-day local teens.
One character spans the whole time period, and it is really Martha’s story that our heroine Senara gradually discovers. She came to Cliff House as an evacuee in 1940 and now in her nineties remains as the sole inhabitant unless the family decide to visit for the summer. But it was the 1980’s generation that included Senara’s mother which had the most to hide and the most to lose and the ramifications of their regrettable decisions split families and sundered friendships and lovers.
The multiple narrators and time frames are skilfully handled and the reader becomes entirely engrossed in the lives of these characters and kept guessing about what secrets are to be revealed. The underlying elements of class conflict and privilege versus poverty adds subtlety and nuance to the relationships in every generation and a definite flavour of authenticity to the Cornish setting.
Joy Court
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About
This Summer's Secrets Synopsis
Penguin Readers is an ELT graded reader series for learners of English as a foreign language. With carefully adapted text, new illustrations and language learning exercises, the print edition also includes instructions to access supporting material online.
Titles include popular classics, exciting contemporary fiction, and thought-provoking non-fiction, introducing language learners to bestselling authors and compelling content.
The eight levels of Penguin Readers follow the Common European Framework of Reference for language learning (CEFR). Exercises at the back of each Reader help language learners to practise grammar, vocabulary, and key exam skills. Before, during and after-reading questions test readers' story comprehension and develop vocabulary.
This Summer's Secrets, a Level 5 Reader, is B1 in the CEFR framework. The text is made up of sentences with up to four clauses, introducing present perfect continuous, past perfect, reported speech and second conditional. It is well supported by illustrations, which appear regularly.
It's a hot summer in Cornwall. When 16-year-old Senara Jenkins and her friends lose their drone in the garden of Cliff House, they discover that it is full of secrets. As Senara meets a world of beautiful rich people, her life changes. But should some secrets stay secret?
Visit the Penguin Readers website
Exclusively with the print edition, readers can unlock online resources including a digital book, audio edition, lesson plans and answer keys.
About This Edition
| ISBN: |
9780241700600 |
| Publication date: |
27th February 2025 |
| Author: |
Emily Barr |
| Publisher: |
Penguin Books an imprint of Penguin Random House Children's UK |
| Format: |
Paperback |
| Pagination: |
96 pages |
| Series: |
Penguin Readers |
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Press Reviews
Emily Barr Press Reviews
Praise for The One Memory of Flora Banks;
Original plot and charming protagonist . . . Her [Emily's] page-turning talents are put to good use as the reader accompanies a brave teenager on a journey to discover who she really is. - Irish Times on
Mesmerizing, electric, and achingly lovely . . . One of the best YA novels I've read in a very long time - Jennifer Niven
Praise for The Truth and Lies of Ella Black;
If you like dark fiction you'll devour it - Heat
Author
About Emily Barr
Emily Barr worked as a journalist in London but always hankered after a quiet room and a book to write. She went travelling for a year, which gave her an idea for a novel set in the world of backpackers in Asia. This became Backpack, an adult thriller which won the WH Smith New Talent Award, and she has since written eleven more adult novels published in the UK and around the world.
The One Memory of Flora Banks is her first novel for young adults. She lives in Cornwall with her partner and their children.
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