How to Ruin a Summer Vacation (How to Ruin, #1) by Simone Elkeles

Jan 07, 2012 Morgan F rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, series, romance, realistic, 2000s, goodreads-author, otis-library, contemporary, haha, jewish, family, summer, its-a-girl, multicultural, read-2011, small-sized

Damn, I haven't written a review in forever. Seriously, I am like 13 books behind or something. So, I am going backwards, reviewing the freshest ones first. Here goes.

This is my second Simone Elkeles book. I read Perfect Chemistry, and enjoyed it, but for some reason it took me two years to pick up another Elkeles.

I'm not sure if How to Ruin a Summer Vacation was the right one for me. Young Adult books are supposedly marketed for teenagers, but I'm not so sure about that one. Just looking at m...more Damn, I haven't written a review in forever. Seriously, I am like 13 books behind or something. So, I am going backwards, reviewing the freshest ones first. Here goes.

This is my second Simone Elkeles book. I read Perfect Chemistry, and enjoyed it, but for some reason it took me two years to pick up another Elkeles.

I'm not sure if How to Ruin a Summer Vacation was the right one for me. Young Adult books are supposedly marketed for teenagers, but I'm not so sure about that one. Just looking at my friends here on Goodreads, most of them are women who love YA just for the escape it provides from life. Even as an honest-to-goodness teenager, I know very few of my peers actually read YA for fun. I am truly an anomaly. Maybe not here on a book site for nerds, but in real life, definitely. Anyway, what was my point?.....oh, yes. To me, Amy was annoying and stereotypical as a shallow, overdramatic American teen girl. Mehbe to "older" readers of YA (I'm not calling you guys old...just more matured), Amy provides a sense of humorous nostalgia. "Ah yes, I remember those days when I would freak out on people for absolutely no reason and cause people to cry for my own twisted sense of self-satisfaction!" But, gah, Amy was annoying She was almost a caricature, her emotions and reactions were so exaggerated. My God, my mother has my permission to beat me down with a hose if I ever acted that way. Don't get me wrong, I am pretty over-dramatic, but I don't assume I am getting drafted into the Israeli Army just because my father is taking me there on vacation. And she was so bitchy and moody and selfish and self-absorbed and lots of other whiney bad things!

Anyway, besides my intense dislike of Amy, I will grudgingly admit, there were some funny parts, and I was grinning through a lot of it. The romance was pretty heated towards the end, even though I cannot see the reason why anyone would want to kiss Amy apart from finally getting her to shut up.

It wasn't a bad book. I learned a little bit about Israeli culture (my public education failed me in that regard). The star reduction was entirely because of Amy. If you can stand her, there is a good chance you will love this book. (less)

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Nov 09, 2012 Jennifer Wardrip rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: trt-posted-reviews

Reviewed by Randstostipher "tallnlankyrn" Nguyen for TeensReadToo.com

All Amy Nelson wanted was to have a regular summer. To spend time with her best friend, Jessica, and her new boyfriend. But that won't happen for Amy by a long shot. It seems that her estranged father wants her to go back to Israel with him to visit her grandmother. Sure, going to Israel may seem exciting to most people, but not for Amy. Not when there are wars going on and the fact that she has to go with a man that she hardly...more Reviewed by Randstostipher "tallnlankyrn" Nguyen for TeensReadToo.com

All Amy Nelson wanted was to have a regular summer. To spend time with her best friend, Jessica, and her new boyfriend. But that won't happen for Amy by a long shot. It seems that her estranged father wants her to go back to Israel with him to visit her grandmother. Sure, going to Israel may seem exciting to most people, but not for Amy. Not when there are wars going on and the fact that she has to go with a man that she hardly knows. The one good thing that may come from this is the coolest fashions that her best friend is always telling her about.

Before she knows it, Amy's mother makes her go and she's on the next plane to Israel. Things couldn't get any worse for Amy at this point; well, actually they can. When she arrives, Amy sees something totally different then what she would see at home in Chicago. There seems to be soldiers and guards at every corner. Not only that, but Amy just discovered that she isn't sleeping in a fancy hotel, but more like an old house, with one bathroom and seven other people that she's never met. Then there's her cousin Snotty, I mean Osnat, who seems to hate Amy the moment she sees her, and the no-shirt cute-jerk, Avi, who Amy happens to see everywhere she turns. If only she could just get him out of her mind. There's also her aba, or grandmother, that for someone she hardly knows, Amy discovers there's a deep connection between the two of them.

With an entirely new family and obnoxious people in a totally different country, it seems like this might be the craziest summer yet for Amy.

HOW TO RUIN A SUMMER VACATION, no doubt, was the greatest book I've read in a long time. Not only does the basis of the book pull you in, but the cast of characters all charm their way into your heart. Even though Amy may be a little bratty at times, every obstacle she goes through and every awkward situation for her makes reading the book worthwhile. Simone Elkeles eliminates all the myths we had about Israel and introduces a completely new culture that I, for one, hardly knew anything about. Not only will you begin to appreciate Amy's new culture, but you'll also think about your own culture and how unique it is. The sequel to this book, HOW TO RUIN MY TEENAGE LIFE, will release on June 1, 2007. (less)

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May 15, 2010 ~Tina~ rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult, lib

This book was awesome! Simone Elkeles completely rocks!

How To Ruin a Summer Vacation is about a girl named Amy who doesn't want to believe she even as a father and she sure as hell doesn't want to go away with him back to country where war very much exists, for her summer vacation. Needless to say Amy is going to have an awful three months.
Or will she?

I have to say, this book took me by surprise, I guess I didn't know what I was expecting, but I guess it's like that with ever Elkeles book I read...more

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Jun 13, 2010 kari rated it 3 of 5 stars

3 1/2 stars
While I liked this book, I'd have liked there to be more of some things in it and less of others.
I'd have liked to read more about Amy's talks with her Safta. She seems to immediately connect with her, worries about her health, but why? Because the older woman has her eyes? This is the basis of her beginning to change, I'd have liked to be in on more of their conversations.
I'd have liked more of the Jewish traditions, the Seder, keeping Kosher, their beliefs.
I'd have liked more of h...more 3 1/2 stars
While I liked this book, I'd have liked there to be more of some things in it and less of others.
I'd have liked to read more about Amy's talks with her Safta. She seems to immediately connect with her, worries about her health, but why? Because the older woman has her eyes? This is the basis of her beginning to change, I'd have liked to be in on more of their conversations.
I'd have liked more of the Jewish traditions, the Seder, keeping Kosher, their beliefs.
I'd have liked more of her Israeli family whom we barely got to know, exept for the cousin Amy refers to as Snotty and the toddler, Matan. I'd have liked some sense of her father's relationship with the family. He's lived away for many years, is he close with them? Is there tension because he brought home this daughter no one even knew existed?
I'd have liked there to be more interaction with her father, whom she treated like dirt as she did almost everyone in the book. She didn't seem to be at all happy until the hot boy kissed her and that changed everything.
Now for the less. I'd have liked to have a little less about her boobs bouncing around. The first chapter told me she has some big ones so I got it, they bounce, they're in the way. More than enough about them, like they were characters in their own right.
Less of her being a total brat to everyone. Why did Avi fall for her? Does he enjoy bratty girls? Maybe he liked her big boobs, since he'd seen her naked. And how exactly did that even happen, in a small house, no one noticed a very large teenage boy going into a girl's bedroom?
But I liked Avi and once I knew some of his backstory, I understood their attraction a bit more. He has pushed his feelings away in much the same way that Amy has pushed people away to protect her feelings. I think in some way he recognized that in her from the first. I liked how irritated she was by him, constantly telling herself that she wasn't interested in how gorgeous he was, etc.
All in all, I did like the story. It's a fun quick read and I'll continue on with the series. Hopefully, Amy really has grown up some and the next book she'll be a little more likeable.(less)

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Aug 14, 2011 BlebeTanja rated it 4 of 5 stars

After reading the blurb for this book I imagined this is a story about some spoiled brat who is going to complain about everything and everyone throughout the whole book and so I dismissed it. But since Simone Elkeles proves to me over and over again to be an excellent writer (Perfect Chemistry, Rules of Attraction anyone??) I decided to give it another chance. And I'm glad I did. Even though the heroine was a little too young for my taste and the writing style was kind of high-schoolish, I real...more

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Feb 14, 2011 Jess rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011-gelesen

Well, after reading the Paradise and the Perfect Chemistry books by Simone I definitely can say I´m a fan of her writing.
She has this unique and very fun way to tell a story and I really like it.

So, I had to start this series of hers as well. Just out of curiousity and pure excitement and... hmm, I´m not too impressed.

It sure is a fun little read. With a lot of humour and drama and politics. But it just was not as great as her other novels. By far not. :(

I really liked the way Simone describes I...more

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May 23, 2013 Taylor Wise rated it 5 of 5 stars

"How to ruin a summer vacation", by Simone Elkeles, was a fun book to read. I love reading all of Simone's books. This book was not an upset. Little does Amy know that her summer plans have been changed. Instead of shopping, hanging out with her friends, or gossiping, she is being forced to travel to Israel. Not only does Amy know nothing about Israel, she is going with is going with her dad. Amy and her dad haven't seen each other for two years. He abandoned her mother, and never cared to call....more

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Apr 26, 2013 Ziv rated it 4 of 5 stars

Ok, before I start reviewing the book I have to say a couple of things a bout Israel. I live in Israel. My mom lived in the US for 20 years and moved to Israel because of my dad, therefore I read only english books and speak english better then I speak hebrew.. Sad I know. I started reading this book knowing it will be fun reading about a book that is about Israel and America. About Israeli's and American's being together. While I was reading this book I understood that the author didn't really...more Ok, before I start reviewing the book I have to say a couple of things a bout Israel. I live in Israel. My mom lived in the US for 20 years and moved to Israel because of my dad, therefore I read only english books and speak english better then I speak hebrew.. Sad I know. I started reading this book knowing it will be fun reading about a book that is about Israel and America. About Israeli's and American's being together. While I was reading this book I understood that the author didn't really know many things about Israel. Understandable. But when you write a book you need to make sure you have all the right facts. So before I tell you what I thought about the book I have to clarify somethings that bothered me throughout the book.

first of all, in the twenty first century teenagers name's aren't usually Osnat, Ofra. It's more like: Maya, Mia, Noa, Dana, Natalie...

2. I am 19, which means that I am a soldier.We, soldires, are not, I repeat, are NOT bodyguards or work in any security company. We do not stand in airports with guns, outside of clubs (which we don't call disco- number three of the list that bothered me) checking I.D's and being called when there's a fight- That is for the police to take care of.
What we REALLY do is: guard our country. Not the clubs or hotels, but the country itself! So reading about soldiers being like bodyguards just had me wanting to explain to you all that it's not true.

3. We don't say disco anymore. My dad didn't even say disco when he was a teen. Just wanted to clarify things.

4. People don't lick one another at clubs. Sorry to burst you guys' bubble...

Now about the book:
I, actually, really liked it. When I started reading it I thought it will be horrible, but I instantly liked it and read it in one sitting. Amy was, sometimes, annoying and too much to handle. I liked that she grew throughout the book.
I LOVED the cute relationship between Avi (a typical guy name, even now lol) and Amy. It took some time but I'm happy it happened.
I can't wait to read the second book and see what happens to Amy when she's in the US. I hope Avi will be involved.
Overall it was a fun read. I found myself laughing and smiling to myself most of the time. I really recommend this book. But again, I had to explain some stuff. (less)

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Apr 10, 2013 Maddy rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Dies ist ein Auftakt von einer neuen Trilogie der Autorin und diesmal wird es in 3 Bänden um ein und dieselben Protagonisten gehen, nicht wie in ihrer anderen Trilogie, wo es ja um drei Brüder geht, die ihre Liebe finden.

Allein optisch spricht mich das Buch sehr an, obwohl es überwiegend schwarz ist, ruft des durch den Schriftzug und den Titel den Sommer hervor und auch die nächsten Teile werden optisch sehr gut zusammen passen.

Die Kulisse in diesem Roman ist diesmal etwas ganz anderes und ich m...more

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Feb 08, 2013 Isadora rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: four-stars, romance

4.2(?)

Sí, estuvo bastante bien. Ya había leído a Simone Elkeles en Perfect Chemistry, como hace un par de años, y lo amé amé amé, amé, améeeeeeeeeeeee ajaajajaj. Los dos gustaron por la redacción ágil, los diálogos cortos, la lengua afilada de sus protagonistas y el contenido cómico.

Lo más positivo de este libro es que toca la cultura israelí. Ya, ni siquiera he visto sinopsis de libros románticos juveniles que estuvieran fuera de U.S.A. o Francia... Así que ¡good! le da una cuota de originalida...more

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Feb 08, 2013 Tina rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: on-kindle, 2013

I'm sorry, is it just me or this book actually feels broken and incomplete?

Ok, let's start from the beginning. The protagonist Amy is one of the most annoying characters I've ever encountered in a book. And I mean it. Her head is a hollow space filled with crazy thoughts, constantly triggered by what appears to be ADD on the loose, and a boobs fixation that's just about over the roof. And her emotions? Don't even get me started there, 'coz there's nothing positive I can say about that. People, s...more

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Jan 27, 2013 Makii rated it 4 of 5 stars

Mi nombre es Amy Nelson Barak y fui a Israel para mis vacaciones de verano. Yo aprendí de mi familia, mi herencia, una hermosa tierra llena de rica historia, y el amor. Tú no lo sabes, pero las arruinadas vacaciones de verano resultaron ser los mejores tres meses de mi vida.

Un libro bastante entretenido, que muestra una sociedad que para muchos(como yo) es bastante distante y desconocida. Me encanta conocer de otras culturas, y me avergüenza confesar que yo no se mucho sobre la sociedad Israelí,...more

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Aug 12, 2012 Deepika rated it 2 of 5 stars

This book wasnt for me!
This is my second book by Simone... First being perfect chemistry of course...
I love her writing style of course.. Its funny... The character of Avi was nice...
This book was hilarious.. But this book is for 12-16 year olds...

The love story of Amy and Avi wasnt one of the bests!
I thought at the starting of the book that it will be sit together on the hilltop.. holding hands seeing the sunset kind of thing... A kiss in the kayak didnt have that emotional feeling.

She came...more

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May 31, 2012 Max Cio rated it 3 of 5 stars

Have you actually read a book outside of the typical American setting this month? If not, then for a new cultural immersion you can read How to Ruin a Summer Vacation by Simone Elkeles, a light, funny novel set in Israel.

The story centers on Amy Nelson, a sixteen-year-old American with her Israelite father, who she doesn’t get along with due to him not being there for her. Unfortunately, this summer, she is forced to go on a vacation with him back to his homeland when her grandmother is struck w...more Have you actually read a book outside of the typical American setting this month? If not, then for a new cultural immersion you can read How to Ruin a Summer Vacation by Simone Elkeles, a light, funny novel set in Israel.

The story centers on Amy Nelson, a sixteen-year-old American with her Israelite father, who she doesn’t get along with due to him not being there for her. Unfortunately, this summer, she is forced to go on a vacation with him back to his homeland when her grandmother is struck with cancer. The problem? The Barak’s—her father’s family—doesn’t know she exists. With cousins that give her the evil eye and a jerk that weirdly enjoys rescuing her in damsel-in-distress moments, Amy isn’t exactly having fun this summer.

The book reads like a chick flick: it can bring laughs, it’s cliché, but somehow it works. Although there isn’t a cultural overdose, I could imagine most of the places that Amy went to and the things she did. My experience with Israel is admittedly very short, so it was nice to learn about a different country.

However, my biggest issue was with the narrator herself. Although she could get herself into situations downright hilarious, she overreacted way too much with things, and I couldn’t really see why the love interest liked her that much. Inside, she seemed like a nice person, but she was just annoying. I even found myself chuckling in agreement when Avi called her a ‘spoiled American bitch’. That kind of describes her personality.

One thing that irked me was the way the size of her breasts was repeatedly mentioned throughout the storyline. Yes, I know, her boobs jiggle up and down always. Yeah, you have a big butt. No, it isn’t necessary to tell me that ten times throughout the story. (view spoiler)

Despite the end being predictable, it was an okay book for me. I didn’t hate it, but I won’t be jumping up and either. I think it would be translated into a movie better, due to the length and the original storyline. However, if you like short novels with humor, you may enjoy this better than I did.

In a Nutshell
How to Ruin a Summer Vacation might be a perfect fit for someone to read on their own vacation, although the main character made the reading less enjoyable. Humorous and fast, I’ll give in three stars.

For more reviews and . . . um, virtual cookies, you can visit Max's blog, ThePaperFortUpstairs. To, um, read reviews and get cookies. Yeah.(less)

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May 24, 2012 Sophia rated it 5 of 5 stars

Ohmygoodness. Okay. Gosh, get your stuff together girl. You're writing a review.
Okay, first or all, I loved it, in case it wasn't obvious from the first line. It was just too cute. I am just a total sucker for books that start off with characters totally hating each other at first and then falling in love (I know, I know, it's an overused plot, but come on. It's Simone Elkeles, how can you go wrong?).
Yeah, so, this was the second book I read by Simone Elkeles; i remember reading Perfect Chemist...more Ohmygoodness. Okay. Gosh, get your stuff together girl. You're writing a review.
Okay, first or all, I loved it, in case it wasn't obvious from the first line. It was just too cute. I am just a total sucker for books that start off with characters totally hating each other at first and then falling in love (I know, I know, it's an overused plot, but come on. It's Simone Elkeles, how can you go wrong?).
Yeah, so, this was the second book I read by Simone Elkeles; i remember reading Perfect Chemistry and really liking it, but not picking up another one of her's in a really long time...I'm not really sure why. I kept on telling myself that I would but I guess I just forgot, then I entered Goodreads and they gave this to me as a recommendation. So here I am :).
Okay wow, I went on kind of a tangent there, but I digress. BACK TO THE REVIEW GIRL. Calm down. (Ahaha sorry, had a little chick lit fangirl moment :$).
FIRST OF ALL, that whole Jewish/Israeli culture background thing was really new to me. I don't think I've ever read something like that-just books with hot All-American dudes (not that I have anything against All-American dudes, that is...).But yeah, I was kind of getting tired of them and looking for something fresh and BAM. Good old Goodreads here drops this recommendation on me like it was fate or something. And I LOVED Goodreads for that, just saying.
Okay, I'll admit, before reading this book, I read a teeny little review by someone else. And I don't remember who it was but I do remember saying that they didn't really like Amy. Something about her being super dramatic and whatnot. And while I was reading, I couldn't really shake off that feeling because, you know, once you hear someone else's opinion about something, it can kind of stick with you. But not for long. Yes, I did find her kind of dramatic, but she's the kind of character that grows on you. Honestly, after a while, I just found her little fits hilarious. She's such a drama queen that it's funny and there were a lot of funny moments in there. OH. Okay, I just remembered why I didn't pick up one of Simone's books til now. If any of you guys read Perfect Chemistry, you'll know that it isn't the lightest book. It does contain some sketchy stuff like gangs and whatnot and it does get serious (especially near the end). So I guess after, I just wanted a bunch of light, beach reads and when I saw another one of her books, I was a bit hesitant to pick it up after the heaviness of Perfect Chemistry (well, heavy for me. I'm just a really...'light' girl. Like, I like cute, bubbly, overly romantic books. Basically-don't hate-I'm a Twilight fan, lol). But then I decided, you know, why not, I haven't read those kinds of books in forever, so yeah. I went for it like the big girl I decided to be :)
YEAH ANYWAYS. (Oh gosh, I'm so bad at focusing, I swear, I have ADD or something -_-). Another thing about the book-the guys, were sooooooooo adorable, starting with (don't take this the wrong way) Ron. At first, I was like, yeah...he seems like a jerk but later, he just comes out as such a normal, loving dad and I was like AWWWWWWW the whole time ahahaha. And not to mention...AVI (sigggghhhh). Talk about dreamy. This guy just represents foreign sexiness. Scratch that, he IS the very epitome of foreign sexy. And for him, too, at first, I thought that the accent would be kind of a turn-off (for some reason, not to be offensive to anyone, but I just kept on thinking of Indian accents because I didn't know what Israeli accents sounded like). But then it just added to his sexiness and by the end i was just like OH TAKE ME NOW <3. Lol. But seriously.
Okay, this review is getting super long so I'll try to end it soon. Basically, I loved the book. It was so fresh and new-what with the whole Jewish thing going on. And the characters were just downright loveable. Amy may seem like a 'spoiled American bitch' but come ON. She has her moments. She can be brave, sexy, and damned competitive if she wants to. So yeah. I loved her and I worshipped Simone Elkeles for writing such an amazing story. So, thanks girlfriend, you totally won me over and I am SO going to Chapters RIGHT NOW, right after I finish this review, and getting the next one :D So yeah. Aha. I guess that'd be now...yeah...I think I'll just...awkwardly exit now...:) Bye :) (wait, do you normally say bye after a review? it just feels kind of asks....) Okay! Whatever! I'm done! (less)

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Mar 10, 2012 Nick rated it 4 of 5 stars

I read this book in mid-2011 and I hadn't written a review for it. Since, I didn't get much reading this week, I decided to write a review for this book. I remember looking at the cover and thinking how I knew this was going to be a boring read, but fortunately I was delightfully surprised.

The book stars Amy Nelson, a sixteen year old half American, half Israeli girl living with her mother in Chicago. Her father, who is mostly absent from Amy's life, calls to inform her that he is taking her to...more I read this book in mid-2011 and I hadn't written a review for it. Since, I didn't get much reading this week, I decided to write a review for this book. I remember looking at the cover and thinking how I knew this was going to be a boring read, but fortunately I was delightfully surprised.

The book stars Amy Nelson, a sixteen year old half American, half Israeli girl living with her mother in Chicago. Her father, who is mostly absent from Amy's life, calls to inform her that he is taking her to Israel for vacations to visit Amy's ailing grandmother. Amy is super mad at this since she never even knew she had a grandmother and she is somewhat angry at her dad for being such an absentee from her life. Amy's mother forces her to go and she begrudgingly agrees. She is confident that this trip will be a disaster, but Amy's going to be really surprised.
Amy, the main character of the book, is pretty much annoying, stubborn and confident. Nevertheless, I found her to be likable. That's because I found her to be very much real. In fact, she reminded me a lot of myself when I was sixteen. She was sarcastic, witty and funny. She was the kind of person who stood up for herself and didn't let other people control her. She was,in a way, independent and I loved her for that. At the beginning of the book, she goes to Israel with plenty of stereotypes indoctrinated inside of her, but throughout the vacation she comes to realize about how wrong she was about certain things. That's yet another characteristic I admired in Amy. She might seem narrow-minded, but in fact she's not. I especially liked how she took an instant liking to her grandmother.
Throughout the book, the reader sees Amy mature a lot. She goes from disliking Israel to eventually falling in love with the country and realizing that it was in fact her heritage. I also liked Amy's slowly growing relationship with her father. It was really sweet and I was pretty much like "Awwwww" when it finally dawns on her how much her dad meant to her.
Some of the things she did were hilarious. Reading about Amy's adventures was so enjoyable! Overall, Amy was a very likable character.

How To Ruin A Summer Vacation has a great set of equally likable secondary characters. I'll admit that I have a soft spot for Avi, Amy's dad and her grandmother.
Avi is the love interest of Amy in this book. He initially starts out as being rude, annoying and a downright jerk to Amy. He really did frustrate me at times with his behavior, but sometimes he shows his softer side. Although, he tries to show that he hates Amy, he constantly helps her out whenever she's in need. I liked that about him. Towards the end of the book, we learn why Avi acts so despicable at times and I completely understood his position. Around that same time, he accepts that he has feelings for Amy and admits them. He becomes a very different person and his attitude towards Amy changes. They begin to share their stories, their fears, their hopes and their insecurities.
In a way, he helps Amy realize that a lot of Amy'sviews on Israel and Israelis are quite wrong . I found their romance to be completely adorable and I found that they made a perfect couple.

As I mentioned above, I also really liked Amy's dad. He was the father who cared so much for his daughter that he refused to leave America and return to him hometown that he loved. The primary goal of Ron, Amy's dad, in bringing his feisty daughter home was strengthening their relationship. The poor guy tries really hard to do so. I loved seeing their relationship grow.
Amy's grandmother was such a sweet character. I loved how accepting of Amy she was and I loved all the useful advice she gave Amy.
Oh and I loved Mutt, the dog with the speech impairment who annoys the heck out of Amy.

When I started this book, I thought it would be just a light fluffy read, but I was wrong because I learned so much about Israel and the people of Israel. Simone Elkeles makes me want to visit Israel so much! The culture, the heritage and the way of life of Israelis is described beautifully in this book and in a way it helped to clear up some stereotypes I had about Israel. Overall, this book is about family, culture, friendship, love and finding one's identity.

Simone Elkeles writing is simple and addictive. I finished reading this book really fast and I wanted the book to never end.

Overall, this book was a fantastic read that made Simone Elkeles one of my favorite YA author! If you haven't read this book yet, then go buy it now!(less)

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Oct 17, 2011 Little Me rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

My sister chose this book for me, haven't been making my own choices lately.
Anyways to my review, Elkeles has managed to redeem some of my lost opinon of her (although reading some of rules of attraction helped too) after reading chain reaction.
One that I had to comment on, and yes I have to. OMG was there a hot guy in this book? No way Elkeles. A tanned, musculy,masculine ,extremely good looking, closed off guy who has a lost a family member, hmmmmm let me think where have I read this before?...more

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Sep 20, 2011 Vivian rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011-2012

I decided to read more of Simone Elkeles books because the Chain Reaction series was so ... AWESOME. This author didn't disappoint me with this book either but i didnt fall in love with it like i did the the chain reaction books. i like the author's humor and sense of character that she gives to her characters in her books. This book was just a really light reading and only took me a night to read.
The main character was honestly to me a very .... one of those people you just want to smack some...more

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Aug 22, 2011 Annie rated it 4 of 5 stars

Synopsis

Amy Nelson’s world is turned upside down when out of the blue her father calls. The ‘Sperm Donor’, her mom’s one night stand, who usually only calls Amy on her birthdays, now wants her to visit her sick Grandmother - in Israel.

The summer that follows sees a hardened city-ite dumped in a rural farming community, with family who it turns out hadn’t even heard of her before her arrival. She shears goats, starts a riot in an eighties style disco and gets chased by large dogs into the arms o...more Synopsis

Amy Nelson’s world is turned upside down when out of the blue her father calls. The ‘Sperm Donor’, her mom’s one night stand, who usually only calls Amy on her birthdays, now wants her to visit her sick Grandmother - in Israel.

The summer that follows sees a hardened city-ite dumped in a rural farming community, with family who it turns out hadn’t even heard of her before her arrival. She shears goats, starts a riot in an eighties style disco and gets chased by large dogs into the arms of Avi - a standoffish Israeli hunk who at 18 is just about to go into the army to do his mandatory 2 year military service.

Amy’s summer is about connecting: with her new found family, with Avi, with her religious heritage, and with one half of herself which was previously unexplored - the Jewish half. It’s about love and forgiveness, and entering other people’s lives.

My Review

I always enjoy Simone Elkeles’ books, but I hadn’t read this one before now because I worried that the ‘American girl goes to Israel’ storyline would be too political. At my high school four years ago, an Israeli man spoke at Assembly about the Middle East and the map he showed DID NOT HAVE PALESTINE ON IT. Like it didn’t even exist. Thankfully although this book does show the positive side of Israeli life, it also at least acknowledges the troubles in the region from a non-partisan viewpoint which was actually very enlightening. I enjoyed the setting of the novel but most of all I enjoyed the scenes which occurred in them - some had me laughing out loud, others wishing I was in Amy’s shoes. I was moved by this book.

At the start of the novel I was a little slow to engage - Amy likes ‘Lucky’ jeans and label sandals, she’s not really like me - and yet soon enough I could understand her point of view and I started to like her. She’s ballsy and determined, a little self-interested perhaps, but she has a good heart. Her voice throughout the novel is very consistent, although obviously her viewpoint changes as the novel progresses. I appreciated the names of the people Amy encounters in Israel - O’Snot (Snotty), O’Dead, Moron etc. It’s these little details that can really make a book. I felt that the novel passed perhaps too quickly, I would have liked to know more about each character - good thing this is the first book in a series I suppose!

I love Perfect Chemistry and Rules of Attraction more, but I do think this book has a lot to offer. (Mainly Avi!) I’m planning on picking up the next two books in the series soon.

How Was The Romance?

This book was about Amy’s self-discovery, so although scenes between Avi and Amy ran through the length of the novel it wasn’t a ‘romance’ novel (like the Fuentes brothers trilogy). Despite this there were lots of ‘spine tingling’ moments and I hope that the last book in this series will be a proper ‘romance’ book ending! (Although where this book ended was pretty satisfying.)(less)

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Jul 04, 2011 Valerie rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011-read

How to Ruin a Summer Vacation by Simone Elkeles

My Summary:

Amy is on her way to Israel to meet the Grandmother she never knew she had with the father that hasn’t been around. Her parents were never married and she feels like she never should have been born. Dad, Ron, has come by once a year for her birthday until she tells him to stop. Amy has a bad (probably worse than that) attitude about the whole thing. But out of the blue, Ron decides to take her to meet Grandma in her home country of Israel...more How to Ruin a Summer Vacation by Simone Elkeles

My Summary:

Amy is on her way to Israel to meet the Grandmother she never knew she had with the father that hasn’t been around. Her parents were never married and she feels like she never should have been born. Dad, Ron, has come by once a year for her birthday until she tells him to stop. Amy has a bad (probably worse than that) attitude about the whole thing. But out of the blue, Ron decides to take her to meet Grandma in her home country of Israel because Grandma is sick. Amy is stunned that her mom allows it. Now she is stuck in a small community 10 miles from Syria, a war zone. Afraid but without any options, Amy goes. She finds a Grandmother she immediately loves, a cousin who can’t stand the site of her, a culture she has no idea about, a language she can’t speak, and a boy that she can’t quit thinking about. Keeping her attitude bad, Amy tries to just survive. The trip will change her life not to mention her prideful attitude.

My thoughts:

3 stars – a good read

I hate the summary from goodreads on this book. I would never have picked it up except another blogger recommended it and even said to ignore the blurb about it. I don’t care for the cover either. I have to admit that Amy’s bad attitude got a little old for me too. She has surely been given a bad deal and she is sixteen but I wanted to shake her a few times. With that said, I read this book in an afternoon. Amy made me laugh, scream and sigh. Avi was also very interesting. It took a while to figure out his problems as a very angry young man. I liked how they had this hate then love attitude towards each other. I liked how they needed each other to overcome a problem in their life. I think that’s what good relationships are about – making each other better as a team. There was one scene in the development of their relationship that still confuses me but I accepted it and went on. I enjoyed this book.

If you like contemporary YA then this is good one to choose. Enjoy the read.
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Aug 05, 2010 Mariné Ponce rated it 5 of 5 stars

Ok, ok debo reconocer que este libro es como la coca-cola light, es burbujeante y sin azúcar.

Anuncio que mi reseña va a ser cortita como el libro.

Para destacar: tiene unos puntos muy cómico, que hicieron que la gente en el metro me mirara (por mis ataque de risas repentinos).

Recomiendo este libro a todas las personas que estén estudiando inglés, ya que está escrito de una forma muy clara y simple.

Amy, la protagonista, es obligada a irse con su padre (al cual llama "donante de esperma" porqué par...more

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May 24, 2010 Kricket rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2010, drama-rama, middle-east, not-impressed, parent-woes, teen-fiction, teen-romance, rom-com

amy is looking forward to a summer of tennis camp and hanging out with her new boyfriend. suddently, her parents change her plans for her. now she is going to israel with her estranged father to meet her grandmother, who is ill. israel is full of unexpected surprises: a sweet grandma, a jealous cousin, a cute but arrogant boy, an annoying dog.

i think i would have really enjoyed this book in 8th grade! unfortunately, i'm not in 8th grade anymore and it takes more than some steamy make-out scenes...more amy is looking forward to a summer of tennis camp and hanging out with her new boyfriend. suddently, her parents change her plans for her. now she is going to israel with her estranged father to meet her grandmother, who is ill. israel is full of unexpected surprises: a sweet grandma, a jealous cousin, a cute but arrogant boy, an annoying dog.

i think i would have really enjoyed this book in 8th grade! unfortunately, i'm not in 8th grade anymore and it takes more than some steamy make-out scenes to appease me. therefore, i present to you my list of beefs:

1. this book is so skimpy on setting research. simone elkeles is half israeli herself, so she really could have made the setting of this book pop. unless, like the main character, she had absolutely no interest in that half of her heritage prior to the book's events. there's a few half-assed references to israeli phrases and the conflict with palestine, but israel is basically used as an exotic location for amy's steamy romance- ie israel is hot & dangerous, and so is avi, amy's new israeli boyfriend. how convenient.

2. amy as a character is not likeable. i found it hard to believe that avi would find her so fun & feisty when she is actually just a bratty pain in the ass. amy does, however, frequently mention how enormous her breasts are. you do the math.

3.amy's cousin, osnat (who amy oh-so sensitively refers to as o'snot) hates amy at first sight (who can blame her?) and tries to make her look stupid whenever possible. but after amy steals her love interest, she sweetly fixes osnat up with another boy (avi: "that was so selfless of you!") and poof! instant besties! hmmm. i don't think so.

4. ditto for amy's relationship with her father, which is suddenly fixed after amy falls for avi. suddenly she wants to take her father's last name and move in with him. there are no problems in amy's life that can't be solved instantly by a steamy make-out session!

5. the most heinous of all: amy decides to convert to judaism after her summer in israel. there are no references to amy's family engaging in any jewish traditions whatsoever. basically amy's grandmother gives her a star of david necklace (oooh! sparkly jewelry!) and tells amy she's a jew. if i was a caring adult in amy's life, i might suggest she is converting purely for avi.

6. the last paragraph. just read the last paragraph. HOW ON EARTH DID THIS GET PUBLISHED?

ok. all done!
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Mar 01, 2010 Kate rated it 4 of 5 stars

This was a pretty great little book. On a recommendation from a fellow moderator on the Book of the Month club (thanks Maryanne!) I picked this book up and it definitly did not dissapoint. A fairly easy read, this book follows a familiar pattern, but Elkeles writing takes it above and beyond standard fare. Like many books that fit this genre- our main charecter must leave the city she loves and travel to Israel with the father she barely knows to live with a family who just found out she existed...more

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Sep 01, 2009 Winnie rated it 5 of 5 stars

This book is about a girl named Amy Nelson. Amy's from Chicago and shes all about shopping and having fun with her friends. Her parents are divorced, and technically they were never together. Her mother and father were never married but they had gotten together and because of the threatening of her grandfather, her father Ron, wasn't able to be with Amy for the majority of her life. Now this summer, while Amy has already planned to head to tennis camp, Ron decides to disrupts Amy's life by pulli...more This book is about a girl named Amy Nelson. Amy's from Chicago and shes all about shopping and having fun with her friends. Her parents are divorced, and technically they were never together. Her mother and father were never married but they had gotten together and because of the threatening of her grandfather, her father Ron, wasn't able to be with Amy for the majority of her life. Now this summer, while Amy has already planned to head to tennis camp, Ron decides to disrupts Amy's life by pulling her out of her city life and bring her to Isreal for the summer. Amy's terrified and mad. First of all Isreal is a warzone which is completely unsafe and she shouldn't have to risk her life for a side of the family she has never known. Second of all, she was hoping she'd have time for her best friend Jessica and her current boyfriend Mitch. When Amy arrives at Isreal, not only was she not used to there being tanks and military men everywhere, she finds out that she was never known to exist. She has to share a room with her cousin Osnot, which doesn't seem to like her because Amy apparently was trying to flirt with her not official boyfriend Avi. As the story progresses, Amy hangs out with Osnot and Avi more and they get to know each other better and slowly become friends. Avi and Amy agrees to a summer fling due to the fact that Amy leaves at the end of the summer back to Chicago and Avi has to leave to war in two months. I really like this book because theres so much family aspects involved and I really like how Amy has changed throughout this book. I think Amy is a really brave character, speaking and doing what thinks. I also think that Avi and Amy are a beautiful couple and it's sad that because of the country status that Amy might never see Avi again. My Favorite part in the book was when Avi and Amy were in the Kayak. Amy was about to get in the Kayak with another person but Avi pulled her in to his. Then without any notice, Avi kisses her. Later on in the book he explains the concealed feelings that he has for her. Because he was leaving for the military in two months, he didn't want to have any attachments. This book made me feel like Life is all about chances and its your option whether or not to take it. There are people out there with conditions worse than yourself and they're not given the choices that we take for granted. From this book, i realize its important to live life while we have the chance, because we only have one life to live and everything is worth is try.(less)

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Apr 10, 2013 Maddy rated it 3 of 5 stars

Dies ist ein Auftakt von einer neuen Trilogie der Autorin und diesmal wird es in 3 Bänden um ein und dieselben Protagonisten gehen, nicht wie in ihrer anderen Trilogie, wo es ja um drei Brüder geht, die ihre Liebe finden.

Allein optisch spricht mich das Buch sehr an, obwohl es überwiegend schwarz ist, ruft des durch den Schriftzug und den Titel den Sommer hervor und auch die nächsten Teile werden optisch sehr gut zusammen passen.

Die Kulisse in diesem Roman ist diesmal etwas ganz anderes und ich m...more

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Apr 07, 2013 Marcia rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Der erste Satz
Wie kann es sein, dass ein relativ intelligentes sechzehnjähriges Mädchen in eine beschissene Situation gerät, aus der es nicht mehr herauskommt?

Meine Meinung
Ich habe wirklich schon eine halbe Ewigkeit sehnsüchtig auf dieses Buch gewartet. Zumindest kam mir die Zeit bis ich das Buch endlich in den Händen gehalten habe vor wie eine Ewigkeit, denn ich habe das Buch auf Amazon entdeckt, als es gerade zum Vorbestellen zu Verfügung stand und seit diesem Tag habe ich wirklich angefangen...more Der erste Satz
Wie kann es sein, dass ein relativ intelligentes sechzehnjähriges Mädchen in eine beschissene Situation gerät, aus der es nicht mehr herauskommt?

Meine Meinung
Ich habe wirklich schon eine halbe Ewigkeit sehnsüchtig auf dieses Buch gewartet. Zumindest kam mir die Zeit bis ich das Buch endlich in den Händen gehalten habe vor wie eine Ewigkeit, denn ich habe das Buch auf Amazon entdeckt, als es gerade zum Vorbestellen zu Verfügung stand und seit diesem Tag habe ich wirklich angefangen zu hibbeln, dass doch bitte endlich der 9. April auf meinem Kalender stehen soll. Deswegen war ich gestern umso überraschter, als Post vom cbt Verlag kam. In dem Paket war dann tatsächlich das Buch und ich habe mich so sehr gefreut. Das erste was mir aufgefallen ist nachdem ich mich erst mal wieder beruhigt hatte, war, dass das Buch wirklich ziemlich schmal ist. Die Bücher von Simone Elkeles haben eigentlich alle über 300 Seiten und da habe ich mich echt gewundert, dass dieses Buch "nur" 280 aufweist. Aber für mich war gleich klar, dass ich dieses Buch sofort anfangen muss.

Die Geschichte hat für mich schon total interessant geklungen, als ich mir das erste mal den Klappentext auf Amazon durchgelesen habe. Allerdings wird dort in dem Klappentext gar nicht preisgegeben wohin die Reise für Amy eigentlich genau geht und meiner Meinung nach ist genau dieser Fakt so mit das Interessanteste an der ganzen Geschichte. Amy erfährt aus heiterem Himmel, dass sie mit ihrem biologischen Erzeuger Ron, der sie sonst immer nur einmal im Jahr besucht und mit dem sie eigentlich auch gar nichts mehr zu tun haben will, zu ihrer Familie nach Israel fliegen, weil ihre Großmutter, die sie überhaupt nicht kennt, krank ist. Das geht ihr natürlich gehörig gegen den Strich, denn sie hatte eigentlich auch schon andere Pläne für ihre Sommerferien und möchte definitiv nicht mit einem Vater, der ihr völlig fremd ist zu einer Familie, die ihr völlig fremd ist in ein Land reisen, das ein Kriegsgebiet ist. Amy probiert mit aller Kraft zu verhindern, dass sie nach Israel mit fliegen muss, aber dieser Schuss geht leider nach hinten los und so befindet sie sich in Israel weit weg von Shopping Centern und einer Stadt. Umgeben von Schafen und von echten Schlangen und von einer Cousine, die sich wie eine Schlange verhält, hat sie nur einen Wunsch und zwar von dort schnellstmöglich wegzukommen. Und dann ist da ja auch noch Avi, der ihr den letzten Nerv raubt, weil er sich eigentlich immer über sie lustig macht oder sie von der Seite anpflaumt, aber leider sieht er unheimlich gut aus und ist wirklich total sexy. Außerdem wartet zu Hause auf sie auch noch ihr Freund, Mitch. So könnte man die Geschichte im groben beschreiben. Wie gesagt finde ich es total interessant, dass die Geschichte in Israel spielt, da ich noch nie ein Buch gelesen habe, in dem dieses Land thematisiert wird und Israel wahrscheinlich auch nicht unbedingt das Traumziel der Amerikaner ist. Es hat mich wirklich total gefesselt, zu sehen wie man in einem Land lebt, das mir persönlich total fremd ist und wie Amy sich dort schlägt. Die Geschichte selbst ist natürlich romantisch, aber was anderes erwartet man und möchte man auch gar nicht in einem Buch von Simone Elkeles, weil sie einfach die Queen der romantischen Jugendbücher ist. Aber die Geschichte handelt nicht nur von der Liebe, nein sie handelt auch von Familie, von einem Land, das viele nur auf der Landkarte kennen und wo die Menschen ganz anders leben als bei uns, von Freundschaft und davon seine eigenen Ängste zu überwinden und einfach nur zu leben. Ich war von der Geschichte vom ersten Augenblick an begeistert und konnte das Buch nicht mehr aus der Hand legen bis ich es durch hatte. Ich musste halt einfach wissen wie Amy sich in Israel zu recht findet und ob sie doch noch eine Bindung zu ihrem Vater, Ron und ihrer Familie dort aufbaut und natürlich was aus Amy und Avi wird. Ich bin nun mal eine hoffnungslose Romantikerin und habe mir die ganze Zeit gewünscht, dass die beiden sich einen Ruck geben, weil ich natürlich wusste, dass die beiden für einander bestimmt sind. Ich habe wirklich das Gefühl, dass die Geschichte von Buchreihe zu Buchreihe bei den Büchern von Simone Elkeles besser und interessanter werden und ich kann schon gar nicht mehr erwarten den zweiten Teil dieser Trilogie zu lesen. Leider erscheint "Zwischen uns die halbe Welt" "erst" am 10. Juni. Also muss ich wieder mal ziemlich lange hibbeln.

Die Charaktere waren wirklich ein interessanter Mix, die mir aber alle sympathisch waren, wenn auch nicht vom ersten Moment an. Sie passen einfach alle zu der Geschichte und machen die Geschichte zu dem, was sie ist. Amy ist die Proagonistin der Geschichte. Sie ist 16 Jahre alt und lebt mit ihrer Mutter zusammen in Chicago. Ihre Mutter hatte mit ihrem Vater nur ein One-Night-Stand und ihr Vater, Ron kommt immer nur an ihrem Geburtstag vorbei und das obwohl er selbst auch in Chicago lebt. Sie ist seit kurzem mit Mitch zusammen und ist in der Beziehung eigentlich auch ziemlich glücklich. Deswegen findet sie es natürlich auch total schrecklich, dass die beiden sich so lange nicht sehen werden, weil ihr "biologischer Erzeuger" auf die Idee gekommen ist sie mit nach Israel zu seiner und auch ihrer Familie. Sie hat nämlich Angst, dass Mitch sich in der Zeit, wo sie weg ist eine viel hübschere und überhaupt viel bessere Freundin sucht. Wenn man Amy, dass erste Mal "zu Gesicht bekommt", könnte man denken, dass sie eine verwöhnte Großstadttussi ist, die nichts zu schätzen weiß und eigentlich immer nur an allem rummeckert, aber das ist sie nicht. Sie wirkt zwar erst so und es stimmt, dass sie oft rummeckert, aber eigentlich ist das alles nur eine Fassade, denn sie hat ein riesiges Herz. Trotzdem habe ich mir manchmal echt gewünscht, dass sie den Mund hält, weil sie manchmal einfach nicht kontrollieren kann was aus ihrem Mund heraus kommt und dieses dann meistens ziemlich frech ist. Aber auch das macht sie zu dem Mensch, der sie ist. Sie ist trotzdem total liebenswert und ich mag ihren Charakter total gerne. Sie sagt eigentlich immer das was sie denkt, auch wenn sie damit manchmal die Menschen verletzt. Sie passt einfach super in die Geschichte rein und ich kann mir keine andere Protagonistin vorstellen. Avi ist der männliche Gegenpart. Er ist ein Freund von Amys israelischen Familie. Und hat irgendwie die zwanghafte Angewohnheit ohne Oberteil herum zu laufen. Was Amy und die anderen Mädchen natürlich nicht stört. Er wirkt öfter sehr traurig und ist zu Amy manchmal echt fies. Er zieht sie immer wieder auf und macht sie manchmal echt wahnsinnig, aber trotzdem merkt man, dass da was zwischen den beiden ist. Und man merkt auch, dass auch er ein total lieber Mensch, auch wenn er manchmal anders wirkt. Er hat ein großes Herz und ist total liebenswert. Man muss ihn einfach mögen und man sollte sich wirklich nicht immer auf den ersten Eindruck verlassen, den ein Mensch auf einen macht. O'snot ist die Cousine von Amy und sie fühlt sich irgendwie vom ersten Augenblick an von Amy bedroht und ist deswegen auch total biestig zu ihr. Das ging mir anfangs total auf die Nerven, aber ich habe trotzdem irgendwie gemerkt, dass sie einen guten Charakter hat und sich wirklich nur von Amy bedroht fühlt. Also war auch sie mir irgendwann sympathisch.

Der Schreibstil ist wie immer einfach nur genial. Und ich glaube, dass dieses das erste Buch der Autorin ist, das nicht aus zwei Perspektiven geschrieben wurde. Dieses Mal ist das Buch nämlich nur aus der Sicht von Amy geschrieben. Die Geschichte ist natürlich wie immer in den Büchern von Simone Elkeles in der Ich-Perspektive geschrieben. Außerdem ist der Schreibstil wirklich total angenehm zu lesen. Die Seiten sind nur so an mir vorbei geflogen und das wär definitiv nicht so gewesen wenn der Schreibstil nicht so gut gewesen wär. Außerdem passt der Schreibstil ja mal perfekt zu Amy. Er ist frech und manchmal zynisch. Genauso wie sie eben selbst ist. Und der Schreibstil ist auch jugendlich, aber es werden fast keine Kraftausdrücke benutzt.

Der Titel passt wirklich sehr gut ! Weil genau dieser Satz "Nur ein kleiner Sommerflirt" auch im Buch selbst vorkommt. Auch wenn ich mir ehrlich gesagt gewünscht hätte, dass hier der Originaltitel "How to ruin a Summer Vacation" benutzt werden würde, weil ich ihn irgendwie noch ein bisschen passender und einfach schöner finde. Aber das kann auch damit zusammen hängen, dass ich die englische Sprache so sehr liebe. Außerdem denkt Amy ja wirklich, dass ihr Vater ihr mit dieser Reise die Sommerferien ruiniert. Aber das ist ja mal wieder meckern auf höchstem Niveau, weil ich sonst nirgendwo was zu meckern habe.

Das Cover finde ich auch wie immer sehr gut gewählt. Es ist wieder im Stil der anderen Simone Elkeles Bücher. Die sehen einfach so schön aus wenn die im Regal neben einander stehen. Ich finde, dass hier die Personen auf dem Cover sehr gut gewählt sind und ich finde das Cover im allgemeinen wunderschön. Ich gewöhne mich langsam echt an Cover, auf denen man die Charaktere erkennt. Trotzdem finde ich die Pose der beiden Personen auf dem Originalcover irgendwie noch ein bisschen schöner, aber hier suche ich doch auch wieder nur eine Kleinigkeit zum Meckern.

Mein Fazit
"Nur ein kleiner Sommerflirt" von Simone Elkeles ist ein grandioser Auftakt zu der neuen Sommerflirt Trilogie der Autorin. Das Buch überzeugt mit einer total interessanten Geschichte, die in einem Land spielt, das die meisten nur auf der Landkarte kennen und die nicht nur total romantisch ist sondern auch total schön, weil sie auch viel von Familie und Freundschaft handelt, mit perfekt gewählten Charakteren, die einem alle total sympathisch sind, einem wunderschönen und total passenden Schreibstil, einem Titel, der einfach perfekt zu der Geschichte selbst passt und einem Cover, das einfach super gut gewählt wurde und zu den anderen Büchern der Autorin passt. Ich kann es nicht erwarten, dass auf meinem Kalender der 9. April steht damit ich das zweite Buch der Trilogie, "Zwischen uns die halbe Welt" endlich in den Händen halten kann.(less)

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Apr 02, 2013 Thoughts of a Book Addict rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: contemporary, realistic-fiction, romance, tessie, young-adult, humor, 5-of-5

Plot:
Amy Nelson had it all planned out for her summer vacation -- then her father that she barely knows has to ruin it for her. He calls her and says that he's bringing her to a war zone in Israel to visit her sick grandmother -- that she didn't even know she had. No tennis, no friends, no boyfriend, no cell phone or anything for the whole summer! How will she survive?

Review:
I can't believe I waited so long to read this book. Nathie recommended it to me last year if not earlier. She told me she...more Plot:
Amy Nelson had it all planned out for her summer vacation -- then her father that she barely knows has to ruin it for her. He calls her and says that he's bringing her to a war zone in Israel to visit her sick grandmother -- that she didn't even know she had. No tennis, no friends, no boyfriend, no cell phone or anything for the whole summer! How will she survive?

Review:
I can't believe I waited so long to read this book. Nathie recommended it to me last year if not earlier. She told me she loved it and I was just "Okay, cool." I bought the book and it's been on my bookshelf since. I did absolutely not expect to love this book as much as I did, nor did I expect it to become one of my favorite books!

What's so good with it? Everything! The book was easy, funny and had realistic characters. I absolutely adored Amy and that it was set in a new place for me. I know close to nothing about Israel nor about the Jewish culture, so it was new and fresh for me.

Amy might seem like a bitch and to be very rude, but it's really not her fault. She says things before she actually thinks and it's always the truth. She's very unsure about herself and feels like she doesn't belong. She's not really close to her family, especially not her dad. She feels like her dad didn't even try to be a family and she despised him for it. Also that he was ruining her life bringing her to a war zone, living with a family she doesn't even know.

Her way of thinking and her actions are hilarious, it was impossible to not laugh out loud when I read the book. You can't really be bored if your friends with Amy, that's all I can say.

The only bad thing I can come up with is that I still wonder why Avi was watching her when she changed clothes. His character wasn't a perv, but that action was. There was something with "snotty" that was very suspicious but I didn't really get why. Maybe if I reread it later I will.

Actually I know something else that was bad. It's so short! It didn't go too fast or anything, but now I have to buy the other two books as soon as possible. I really want to know what happens next. This book is forcing me to spend all my money on more books. It should have come with a warning, just saying.

5/5: ♥♥♥♥♥

Posted on book blog.(less)

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Sep 21, 2011 Nadine rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-in-2011, what-a-waste-of-time-and-paper, 1st-parts

This review contains some spoilers but although I usually am very careful with spoilers in this case I simply don't care enough about the book to hold back any crucial details. So consider courselves warned!

Amy barely knows her father Ron (she refers to him as SD, Sperm Doner) as she grew up with her single mom but is forced to spend the summer with him in his homeland Israel as his mother is seriously sick. Amy starts out childish and silly (wandering off into the bank for half an hour to get m...more This review contains some spoilers but although I usually am very careful with spoilers in this case I simply don't care enough about the book to hold back any crucial details. So consider courselves warned!

Amy barely knows her father Ron (she refers to him as SD, Sperm Doner) as she grew up with her single mom but is forced to spend the summer with him in his homeland Israel as his mother is seriously sick. Amy starts out childish and silly (wandering off into the bank for half an hour to get money for the coca cola machine after she realized she can't pay with American Dollars at the Tel Aviv airport while her father is worried sick) and grows into a slightly less silly and self absorbed person. Amy decides to become a Jew at one point to cherish the heritage of her father but mostly as it seems because the David Star is sooo decorative on a necklace. Amy is supposed to be 16, but she feels WAY younger to me, especially in the first half of the novel.

I was thrilled about the idea of the book, an American teenager discovering Israel sounded like an interesting and not so shallow read. It was however one of the most shallow books I ever read. It feels like it was written by a 14 year old boy, obsessed with big boobs (Amy's breasts are mentioned at least every 5 pages:
"My boobs are too big for this thing." (when trying to put of a life jacket) )

There are some hints to the political situation in Israel, especially in the end, but it stays on a rather simple level. The relationships turn and grow fast and in a less than convincing way.

The writing style is entertaining and light, which is fun for about 50 pages, then it is purely annoying. The "young tone" seems forced and a bit unnatural.

Let me finish this rather negative review by saying that I read 2 books of the author's Perfect Chemistry trilogy (so far, waiting for part 3 to make it into my mailbox) and enjoyed them very much. She knows how to write, she knows how to create likeable characters, my theory is, she hired a 14 year old ghostwriter for this book ;-).(less)

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Oct 02, 2012 Suzanne rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult

How to Ruin a Summer Vacation is one great romance. I love Amy's typical teenage attitude. Simone Elkeles really knows how to tell romance. I loved this book in a sit down and read it all just for fun sort of way.

Amy's summer is ruined when she finds she is forced to accompany her biological father to Israel to meet his family. She is the product of a romance he and her mother had in college and though he takes her for birthday dinners, she does not know him and has acted like she does not want...more

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Dec 27, 2011 Charlotte Black rated it 4 of 5 stars

Synopsis:
Moshav? What’s a moshav? Is it “shopping mall” in Hebrew? I mean, from what Jessica was telling me, Israeli stores have the latest fashions from Europe. That black dress Jessica has is really awesome. I know I’d be selling out if I go with the Sperm Donor to a mall, but I keep thinking about all the great stuff I could bring back home.

Unfortunately for 16-year-old Amy Nelson, “moshav” is not Hebrew for “shopping mall.” Not even close. Think goats, not Gucci.

Going to Israel with her es...more Synopsis:
Moshav? What’s a moshav? Is it “shopping mall” in Hebrew? I mean, from what Jessica was telling me, Israeli stores have the latest fashions from Europe. That black dress Jessica has is really awesome. I know I’d be selling out if I go with the Sperm Donor to a mall, but I keep thinking about all the great stuff I could bring back home.

Unfortunately for 16-year-old Amy Nelson, “moshav” is not Hebrew for “shopping mall.” Not even close. Think goats, not Gucci.

Going to Israel with her estranged Israeli father is the last thing Amy wants to do this summer. She’s got a serious grudge against her dad, a.k.a. “Sperm Donor,” for showing up so rarely in her life. Now he’s dragging her to a war zone to meet a family she’s never known, where she’ll probably be drafted into the army. At the very least, she’ll be stuck in a house with no AC and only one bathroom for seven people all summer—no best friend, no boyfriend, no shopping, no cell phone…

Review:
After reading Perfect Chemistry and loving it I simply had to try some of Elkeles' other books. I chose this one to start as it had sequels already published. And I was not disappointed!

If you want a great summer read then this is perfect. It tells the story of Amy, an 'accident' of birth, an opinionated but thoroughly fun sixteen year old. She attends a posh school, her mother buys her designer clothes and she doesn't go anywhere without her cell phone. Enter her almost non-existent father, who's Israeli, and soon she's whisked away to Israel to meet her sick grandmother she's never met.

From the minute you pick up this book you get sucked into the story. Amy is fun, girly and speaks her mind. She's witty and intelligent. When she meets Avi, a sheep herder, on the communal farm her thoughts and emotions take an unsteady, unwanted turn. She hates him, he hates her. The other teenagers don't give her a break either and she's pretty much hating everything about her summer. But she soon learns to love her grandmother who is the only person to speak to her like a grown up.

The writing is fast paced, Amy is hilarious, Avi is gorgeous and the romance is gradual but effective.

A great read.

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topics	posts	views	last activity
Ya books where the main character goes to another country?	2	7	15 de Abr 02:52
I pictured Adam Levine as Avi	3	19	19 de Nov 15:54
Book!	1	23	6 de Jun 17:29

title link	preview: How to Ruin a Summer Vacation
avg rating	preview: How to Ruin a Summer Vacation Goodreads rating: 4.08 (4439 ratings)
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BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/491944.How_to_Ruin_a_Summer_Vacation?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1310371539l/491944.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/491944.How_to_Ruin_a_Summer_Vacation?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]How to Ruin a Summer Vacation by Simone Elkeles[/url]

How to Ruin a Summer Vacation (How to Ruin #1)

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