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Jan 05, 2011

Dustin rated it:

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0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Jan 19, 2008

Cheryl S. rated it:

I think I bought this book because the cover looked appealing to me in the middle of a Minnesota winter. Big mistake. It's taking me forever to read it because the story just isn't very interesting and the main character (male) seems to be a cross between a whimp and a dip. Finally finished this book. Basically there was not much of a story and the characters were very blah. Only finished because I didn't have anything else with me to read on breaks at work.

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Dec 25, 2007

Sarah rated it:

I have finally figured out what this book was about. I read it about two weeks ago and I had already written one review but then, today while I was cooking (maybe I should cook more often), I figured it out and this epiphany explained why I liked it but didn't like it at the same time. This book is about a guy who is out of his depth.

He is out of his depth socially in this exclusive Maine, summer community. He's out of depth intellectually with the woman he wants to date. He's ta More...

4 comments like (2 people liked it)

Sep 17, 2008

Beverly rated it:

Eh- this book started off pretty slow, then it started to pick up. Sometimes I felt uncomfortable reading this because the main character Nathan is just so pathetic and gets himself into the worst situations. He doesn't do anything to help himself be better either. He is unemployed and his only friend is this old lady he just started taking care of. I don't even know if she likes him all that much! The book came to a climax when Nathan started to be happy and start to have direction in his More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Dec 28, 2008

Tara rated it:

Books like this one are why I joined "goodreads" in the first place. Guess I need to start logging on and checking out reviews before I buy books.

This book was AWFUL! The main character makes you want to shake him really hard and tell him to get a life. The same goes for the depressed priest's wife, the f*bomb dropping priest, the rich old dude that cannot choose between his 2nd wife and Ellen, and the bratty rich kid Thayer.

I could not bring myself to waste t More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Dec 22, 2010

Alicia rated it:

Reminiscent of F. Scott Fitzgerald, I love the writing style, the snappy dialogue and the character development. Definitely a great read for the thinking person! Plus, I love how everything and everyone in this book is in transition - from one point of life to another, whether it's the young or the old, or even the ones struggling to bunk depression and mediocrity. The characters are so well developed, especially Nathan, that I can't help but think I got to know him and others on a very personal More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

May 09, 2011

Stephen rated it:

I'd go along with another reviewer on this site who said every character in this novel is out of his depth. Everyone, from Nathan, the profoundly confused main character, to his offstage father, is in a situation he doesn't know how to handle.

I do not agree with all the low ratings others are giving it. Yes, poor choices are made throughout. A few times I put down the book and closed my eyes in exasperation with things Nathan had just said. But I attribute that to an honest depictio More...

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Jun 21, 2009

E rated it:

Judging books by their covers is, indeed, a reckless activity. I kept being drawn to the cover of this book, with its simple, asymmetrical arrangement of shiny wooden oars of different hues. I liked the write-up on the back - a young man goes to serve as a companion to an elderly woman near the sea. This sounds different. Although I mildly enjoyed this book, I felt it could have been so, so much more than it was. It turns out to be about a less-than-mature young man falling in and out of love an More...

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May 08, 2010

Carolyn rated it:

I read a lot of the reviews before I started as it has a pretty low rating. So, I wasn't expecting much, which is a good thing. This is one of the most bland books I've read in a long time. You've got this shlump for a main character. He has no character, no interests, and just seems to float through life. I was questioning the point of this book - is it him finding himself over the summer? Is it him deciding whether to stay in Cleveland or move to NYC? Is it him deciding to try and have More...

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Oct 26, 2008

Andrea rated it:

This was pure emo drivel. I could not empathize with the main character because he was so whiny and oblivious to the obvious signs that his love interest was totally not into him. And why would she be with him being an emotional leach?

I do have to give the author credit for good use of the thesaurus (spell?).

It took me a month to read this book. I have issues with stopping a book mid-read, even if I don't like it.

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Feb 10, 2010

Tory rated it:

It's a different perspective on the whole "coming of age" novel. While the narrator/main character isn't necessarily in the age bracket that I would assume a "coming of age" novel should be... he is rather immature and going through the whole self reflecting. He's experimenting with love, experiencing changing roles within his family and discovering his own personal limits.

There wasn't a tangible story arc, very little conclusion... but all the same. I liked i More...

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Aug 19, 2009

Sheri rated it:

Summer People is a fantastic read. Nathan Empson is College drop out, with part-time job at a local library, and has hopes of becoming an artist. With the recent break up of his long time girl friend, and dead end job he needs a break from reality. When offered a summer job as caretaker of Ellen Broderick, a wealthy eccentric widow, he feels this is the break he needs.

The job appears to be simple, but he soon finds out it won't be as easy as he thought. He finds Ellen is not of soun More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

May 06, 2009

Katy rated it:

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Jul 15, 2008

Bvnichols rated it:

This is the author's first book. It started out well, but by the time I was done reading, I was sick of the characters and the story. The story lacked depth. It resembled an essay we've all written entitled, "How I Spent my Summer Vacation". The characters were not fully developed. I just didn't care about them. I am not anxious to read anything else by this author.

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Aug 26, 2011

Mom Taxi Julie rated it:

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Jul 23, 2011

Highland-dreamer rated it:

Do not bother with this book. It's the same pointless, silly happenings at the end of the book that is at the beginning of the book- nothing is resolved, nobody changes, and it's just... well, pointless!! The only character I even liked was the main character, Nathan, but even he got on my nerves. He was always lying to everyone and he never did anything. It seemed like he just walked through life, and even though he had no job and no future, he didn't even have any fun! Even the stuff that More...

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Jul 01, 2011

Pattiwan rated it:

Do not bother with this book. It's the same pointless, silly happenings at the end of the book that is at the beginning of the book- nothing is resolved, nobody changes, and it's just... well, pointless!! The only character I even liked was the main character, Nathan, but even he got on my nerves. He was always lying to everyone and he never did anything. It seemed like he just walked through life, and even though he had no job and no future, he didn't even have any fun! Even the stuff that More...

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Mar 18, 2009

Corie rated it:

Interesting story. Did not have a real "climax" point to the book. Just people are superficial and mean to this guy who, basically is trying to do the right thing, and just make a living for the summer (though he is slightly messed up on his own anyway). But in the end, no one really ever changes, him or otherwise. He just changes locations and stays with the people that are not nice to him. I don't know. It keeps you thinking that something better is just about to happen, so you More...

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Aug 15, 2010

Amy rated it:

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Jun 03, 2010

Irene rated it:

Brian Groh's debut novel is a must read. "Summer People," has all the ingredients for a splendid read.

Nathan, a young man unhappy and unsure of his future plans, blindly accepts a financially-rewarding respite from his mundane life.

After a mysterious car accident on the beach the previous year, Ellen requires a caregiver so that she could stay at her summer cottage. Within a private Maine coastal enclave, the summer people seemingly appear to welcome one of thei More...

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Mar 01, 2009

Beth rated it:

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Jan 29, 2010

Sarah rated it:

This first-time author needs to blame his publisher for a misguided cover. The title and the picture on the cover makes you think you�re getting an easy chick lit read, but that definitely isn�t what this is. Nathan is a college dropout and takes what he thinks is an easy job as a caretaker for 8 weeks on the east coast for a 72-year-old lady. He thinks he is to be her escort, but he ends up having to watch her more closely than he thinks he will because she is suffering from dementia.[return][r More...

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Oct 07, 2007

Silver rated it:

Interesting premise, strong characters, disarmingly honest and emotional prose. So what went wrong in the story? I was really engaged in the first half, and then found myself picking it up less and less. The plot had momentum for a while, seeming to build up to a good climax, and then sort of fell apart. I was left wondering why nothing changed for the main character, why he never got conclusion or revenge or satisfaction on ANY front, other than being glad he was still alive at the end of the b More...

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Feb 16, 2010

Valerie rated it:

I thought this book was just fair. I had to make myself read it, as I got it as a gift and thought it would get better as I went along. Some parts were boring and some parts were juvenile. It takes place in Maine, which is one of my favorite places, which was another reason I kept reading this book. Many things happen in the book, but it just wasn't happening for me!

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Jul 26, 2011

Diane16 rated it:

This was good for a beach book, but nothing more. I've never liked romantic men, and Nathan, the main character, was the worst kind - unrealistic and immature. The book was full of unnecessary, boring details. I only kept reading because I was on vacation & had nothing else to read. It was interesting to take a peek into the lives of the old rich folks vacationing in Maine.

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Jul 18, 2011

Joe rated it:

Great cover. Annoying characters. It was the canoe paddles on the cover that drew me to the book, but be warned: there are no canoes in the story. There is, however, a rowboat which sinks beneath the main character. He tries to swim to shore but has to be rescued. Which pretty much sums up the problem with the whole structure of the book.

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Jul 14, 2010

Susan rated it:

I didn't care that much about aimless confused horny self-centered twenty-something men when I was a twenty-something woman. (Okay, that's not completely true but still.) Now that I'm a forty-something woman, I really don't care about about them. Just never cared that much about him even though he had moments of sweetness.

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Jul 18, 2009

Jennifer rated it:

A good book, but one of those frustrating ones where you want the main character to do something different and they just can't make you happy. Its like hind sight being 20/20, in the main character you see yourself floundering through a problem making the 'wrong' choice but you can only see so clearly because you are removed, just reading rather than trying to flounder through yourself. The ending was satisfying, probably the beginning of some changes for the main character.

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Jul 26, 2011

Sophie rated it:

The kind of book you read just to finish. Stick-figure characters and a pretty dull plot. The dialogue was so awkward it often took me outside of the story, reminding of a writer who's just figuring out how to put a story together.

On the positive side, there were a few beautiful lines, and it was easy to read.

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Dec 20, 2011

Lucas rated it:

Overall this was a good book. I initially got it from the library because I inadvertently thought it was Elin Hilderbrands "Summer People." However the synopsis sounded good so I read it. Interestingly enough, one of the main reasons I love Elin Hilderbrands books is the setting - they all take place on Nantucket. This book by Brian Groh takes place in coastal Maine, so I was attracted to that. The actual story of the book is only so-so. I wanted to like it, but it didn't really More...

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