Micah McKinney and the Boys of Summer

by Nina Chapman

With equal parts humor and heart, Micah McKinney and the Boys of Summer tells the story of twelve-year-old Micah as she embarks on the summer before middle school. More than anything, Micah hopes to undergo a miracle transformation. One that will bring with it new friends, a fresh start, and boobs . . . preferably the round kind. If that happens, then maybe she can finally forget about what happened in the past. About losing her mom, about losing her best friend, and about the disaster she became in sixth grade, when everything fell apart. She and her dad have just moved away from their old neighborhood, and Micah's childhood home, to put some space between themselves and the secret burden they both bear, one that's already changed their lives and has the power to do even more damage. On her first day in her new neighborhood, Micah is greeted by the Water twins, Luke and Megan. Micah is surprised to find herself caught between their two worlds. In one world, there's Luke and his band of neighborhood boys, who challenge Micah in feats of strength, crowning her The Big Kahuna at the local pool, and vying for her attention, even though she doesn't quite understand why. And then there's Megan, whose world is full of lip gloss and padded bras, where Micah dabbles in the fine art of being a girl. As Micah awkwardly navigates her way through crushes, friendship, and budding boobies, she discovers that the real transformation that needs to take place is in how she sees herself.

Genres: Middle Grade, Realistic Fiction, Grief, Childrens

320 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 2020

About the author

Nina Chapman spends her days teaching middle school, where she has discovered a talent for thriving in the awkward. When she’s not gathering feedback from her student test audience, she’s reading books or playing outside. Her favorite activities include hot-air balloon gazing, barefoot bike riding , and getting lost in the woods. Nina took the scenic route to teaching, first obtaining a bachelor’s degree in creative writing at University of Colorado Denver. A member of the Rocky Mountain Chapter of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, she currently resides in the Denver, Colorado, area with her husband, two daughters and pitbull pound puppy.

Reviews

[Shaye Miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

Twelve-year-old Micah McKinney and her father recently moved to the other side of town where she must start over with new friends, a quickly developing body, and without her beloved mom. She's just about to start seventh grade and, due to an unfortunate incident with her previous best friends, she will no longer be playing her favorite sport: soccer. In an adorable meet cute, Micah develops a bond with a group of three boys who all seem to vie for her attention. But what happens when her new life and old life collide just when Micah McKinney least expects it?

I especially appreciate the father/child relationship we see between Micah and her father. He's not perfect, nor completely healed from losing his wife, but he deeply cares about his daughter and attempts to interact in meaningful ways (where too many other fictional fathers fail). I also enjoyed the depth of character development with each of the boys in the group of friends. In the beginning there's one boy who is so unnerving and thoughtless, but we get to watch him mature and become one of Micah's greatest allies. Unfortunately, the "mean girls" Micah encounters are just that -- mean. But they're countered by a cast of kind, generous, down-to-earth female friendships that make middle school relationships worth finding and working on. There are also some encounters with older young adults and other parents that highlight the importance of developing adult/child relationships that meet needs which can't always be fulfilled by parents (especially if you only have one).

At the end, Chapman shares how this book began as a classroom writing exercise with her students, but eventually bloomed into a full-blown story that allowed her to use her personal experiences of losing her own mother. In this way, it's an important #ownvoices book that brings fresh understanding to such a devastating parental loss. But there's plenty of funny, lighthearted moments mixed into this story, making it a perfect upper-middle grade read.

My thanks to Netgalley and Capstone Editions for providing an e-ARC in exchange for my honest review. Unless I'm mistaken, this is Nina Chapman's debut middle grade novel. I'm very happy to recommend it and I'll look forward to following any of her future work.

For more children's literature, middle grade literature, and YA literature reviews, feel free to visit my personal blog at The Miller Memo! <3

[Darla · Rating 4 out of 5]

Micah McKinney has one summer to prepare for her thirteenth birthday and the first day at her new school. It is hard to be twelve and in a new neighborhood with just your dad. Who will take her bra shopping? For that matter, will she ever have boobs and need one? The first new neighbors she meets are some boys who have great fun teasing Micah. Once they realize she can keep up with them, they include her in their circle. That causes difficulties with some of the other girls. Sometimes Micah feels like she is in a tug of war between the two groups. She also has the death of her mother and the reason she left her former soccer team lurking in her past. As the summer advances, it becomes more and more clear that those are some pretty heavy burdens and though her dad clearly loves her he has not been able to directly confront the issues in their family. There is a lot to love about this book, but the cover strikes me as being out of sync with the content. I was expecting more humor and less heartbreak when opening the book.

Thank you to Capstone and NetGalley for a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the sort of story that sneaks up on you, and sucks you in. It begins with a girl moving to a new home, and meeting the local boys. From there, we go to the mystery of why the girl, Micah, is in the new home, and how something happened in her old home, having to do with the death of her mother, soccer, and mean girls.

And her plan.

Micah's plan is to reinvent her self at her new school.

Her voice is right for the story. The other kids are too.

I really wanted everything to turn out right for Micah and for the mean-girls to get caught being mean.

The author said she started it just writing the scene where she gets a weggie in her bathing suit, and is embarrassed, but her students asked her to keep going, and so she did, and what a fun time we got out of that.

Great middle-grade book about friendship and mean girls, and nice boys, and all the fun of summer.

Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.

[Andria Sedig · Rating 4 out of 5]

Micah is heading into a new school year and she is determined to be a new person (and have boobs, round ones). When she moves into a new neighborhood and falls into friendship with a group of boys, Micah isn't quite sure what to expect. But she quickly falls into a routine of soccer training, days at the pool, and skateboarding around the neighborhood. But Micah is still trying to figure out how to navigate being a girl, and her dad isn't the best of help. Dealing with loss, grief, and growing up, this book is definitely a must read.

---

I genuinely could not stop smiling while reading this book (except for the part where I was tearing up) This book was so light and well written, but also equally unafraid of going into darker themes. I laughed remembering my first period experience. I cheered for Micah as she started to stand up for herself. I loved the first crushes and first kisses. This was just a genuinely fun read that I could not put down!

[Katherine Hayward Pérez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Micah McKinney is twelve and has just finished 6th grade, She has a long summer before her. One day she goes to the local pool and sees guys there.

The author gets into Micah's character: she's a typical girl her age who has hangups about boys, her appearance and what people think of her. She has friends but is not interested in talk of lipgloss.

Luke, one of the boys at the pool, sparks her interest and we see all facets of Micah's personality: she is cautious, polite yet when challenged is willing to take a risk.

Micah McKinney and the Boys of Summer is a sweet YA read that just harks back to being a teen and summer days. I love the vibrant cover and the writing in first person helped me get immersed in the story.

Thanks to author Nina Chapman and publisher for my eARC in exchange for an honest and voluntary review.

4 stars.

[Sandi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nina Chapman, through this beautifully written coming of age story, has eloquently captured the impact that parental mental illness can have on a family and a community. This book offers much needed language for tweens in Micah's situation who may not know how to articulate their pain, suffering or questions. But alas, mental illness is not the main story line... just a blip on Micah's radar as she navigates the innocence of first love, bonding with a single parent, and all the shenanigans that come with playtime during the summer! Readers of all ages will enjoy this first - of hopefully many - Chapman stories to come!

[Kirstin Dobson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked this book, even as a teen book. Yes, it's not overly literary, and yes, it has that silly getting your period and mean girl storyline, but it's supposed to. And truly, even that's done better and more personalized than usual. More importantly, it does deal with a deeper underlying current of suicide, depression, and "real" possible teen trauma in such an effective, truthful, and positive way, I was very impressed.

[Anubha (BooksFullOfLife, LifeFullOfBooks) · Rating 4 out of 5]

A middle age story that is funny, thoughtful, speaks a lot about a teenage growing up, deals with first crushes, new friendships, sports, self-discovery, and love. But also it has its dark topics covered as well like bullying, betrayals, suicide and its impact, self doubt, etc.

I feel this book is a great page turner, it was light and easy read and observed various points, topics and themes and the depiction of what a teenage goes through, specially a teenage girl during her puberty, her reactions, her perspectives, her fear and shame and how she has to overcome it all. It was just a lovely story that reminds one of how tough their own teenage years were, how scary and new everything was, and how one tried to fit in so bad in their own different ways.

This book was provided to me by the publisher through net galley in exchange for an honest review.

[~Reading Rambler~ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this book in exchange for an honest review courtesy of Netgalley.

Micah McKinney and the Boys of Summer is a fun read that was VERY hard to put down! I loved just about everything in it ;)

Micah was very relatable, and she faced a lot of problems that girls have. So it was very nice to see her overcome some the struggles that we girls faced/face all the time.

In the beginning of the story, Micah and her father moved to a new house not far from where they lived in previously. The local neighborhood boys weren’t very nice to her at first. They weren’t *mean* per se. (they were pretty much acting like boys) It wasn’t until they saw who she was, (yuh know, when she was being herself) that they all became fast friends.

The books has cute crushes, some reciprocated, and others not. You get to see how mean some girls can be, and it hit me on a personal level. She found a haven of sorts hanging out with the boys, something I can relate to.

This book has some heavy themes. A suicide is mentioned a few times, and how it was committed. Not to mention the mean things people were saying about said suicide. And the trauma the suicide induced on the family.

A character gets her first period. (I wouldn’t consider this a “heavy” topic)

Micah starts off wishing her body was different, she wished she had bigger boobs, or just have them in general. She felt like looking like the “other” girls would help her with how she feels, but she learns to be proud of who she is, and how she looks. And that it doesn’t matter what she looks like, it’s who she is as a person, which is what matters.

I really liked *Micah McKinney and the Boys of Summer* and I wish I could follow her journey more. When I finished reading, I sat there wishing I could follow Micah and her friends a little bit longer. Okay a lot longer. This cast of characters seemed like the perfect set to have a whole series that followed through they childhood up into high school. Am I having a problem letting go?

All in all, I adored this book. I loved the story, loved the characters, and loved the growth. I will be convincing my sister to read it when it is officially on the shelves!

I will be posting this review on my blog, Reading Rambler, on 11/8/19. I will be posting my review on Amazon on 4/1/2020. I will also be posting this review on Goodreads effective immediately.

[Hannah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you publishers and Net galley for an ARC of this book.


A wonderful Middle grade novel about a girl named Micah who finds herself alone in a new neighbourhood before starting school. Will she be able to have a new start or will her past moves itself I to the neighborhood as well?

This was such a fun read. I loved the characters and the story line!!

[Elke · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. There is no other way to describe it and five stars isn't even enough!

This book follows the story of Micah, who just moved and has 81 days to make friends before school starts. The book is written as a kind of diary from Micahs point of view, so the readers knows that every chapter Micah gets closer to going to school again. It was extremely well written, easy to read and it made me want to continue through the night.

The writing isn't what made me love this book so much though, Nina has a way of making sure you fall in love with each and every one of the characters (except you know, the ''bad'' ones). All the boys and girls are different and all of them are great. Apart from the fact that Micah wants to make friends, you also get to know her and learn why she and her dad moved. Why she doesn't have any friends and why she really wants some, even though thats hard. I saw some of the stuff coming, but for the intended audience I think this is a wake-up call. There is some real life stuff in there that can be hard to talk about, so I think it's a good thing to include it in a book where children/teens can learn that life isn't always great. All in all, I definitely want to read more from Nina and I encourage everybody to do the same!

Thank you so much Capstone, Nina and NetGalley for granting me an early copy in return for an honest review!

[Meghan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was received as an ARC from Capstone in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.

Everyone knows the struggles of moving to a new place and not only trying to fit in but understand the complications in life such as being a girl and transforming into a woman. With a scene in the community pool turns into a nightmare of adolescence Micah tries to piece the puzzle together and understand the complications of womanhood having it all make sense in her mind. In the meantime, she makes a new friend and might even have a boyfriend all at 12 years old. A book that is fit for the young adult and even some parents to learn what it is like growing up adolescent.

We will consider adding this title to our JFiction collection at the library. That is why we give this book 5 stars.

[S Tondra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh being 12 is hard. Finding yourself and not letting others dictate who you are is so difficult and Micah had a summer to try and find who she was after some tragic things happened to her. I really enjoyed this book, the characters were well written and coming from a mother of a current 12 year old girl its about dead on with bullies, mean girls, and just trying to be yourself through it all.

I was provided with an electronic ARC through NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

**update- I had my 12 yr old read this book and she LOVED it. She said it was so relatable to what she is living and seeing and it was just a great book (I had to pry her away from it to eat and go to school she don’t want to put it down).

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow, this book was way deeper than I expected given the title, synopsis, and cover. It was a powerful story about friendship, forgiving yourself and others, family, and discovering who you are. Micah has been through a lot in her 12 years and she is now dealing with a new neighborhood and the goal of making new friends before summer ends. She slowly becomes one of the guys, while secretly wanting to be one of the girls. There is humor throughout, with the antics of the guys. Please note that there is bullying and talk of suicide. I would hand this to someone looking for a character-driven middle grade novel that is deep but has humor. #Netgalley

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cute story that follows the life Micah Mckinney and her adventures in her new neighborhood where's she just moved in with her dad. The book reads like her personal diary as Micah counts down to the day she is due to start seventh grade and she's got 81 days to re-create herself before that.

An entertaining read with relatable characters. Would recommend to children and young adults.

Many thanks to Nina Chapman, NetGalley, and Capstone Editions for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Jalise · Rating 5 out of 5]

Micah McKinney shows the way and how awkward middle school can be , im a student at falcon bluffs middle school and ive heard some parts of the book and it sound like a great book , i am a student of nina chapman shes a teacher who follows her goals and never gives up . this book shows a lot and i cant wait to read it , i love reading books and just exploring new things and this book will have a great affect on childrens life .

[Paula · Rating 5 out of 5]

Micah McKinney and the Boys of Summer is such a true depiction of summer and middle school and friends--with the right amount of deeply moving seriousness and burst-out-laughing humor. The incredibly delightful characters are so real that you feel like you've seen them in person. Readers can totally relate to and deeply sympathize with Micah's experiences.

[Aisyah Umaira · Rating 4 out of 5]

LOVE LOVE LOVE IT! It's such a cozy fun read for me. The setting are very understandable and there's a lot of things we ( girls ) can relate to. In the childhood time, obviously.

I like the cute childish romance and friendship crisis the characters experience and it made the story soo funny and adorable

[C.j. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book to be a cute read. Micah was very relatable to me. A cute story about wanting to grow up but to also do it at your own pace and that it's okay to be who you are no matter what has happened in the past.

A nice story about that awkward summer where you're not quite sure what you'll be like at the end of it.

[Latte Hyacinth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Note: this review contains spoilers for, not only this book, but also On The Fence by Kasie West.
This book actually reminded me a bit of On The Fence by Kasie West for MG. Okay, the romance storyline is ENTIRELY different, but the book does have some similarities. Micah, like Charlie (hey, I just realized that they both have names that could also be boys’ names!), is kind of a tomboy at first (not quite as much however), but soon discovers her girly side with her new friends who insist on giving her makeovers. Of course, being middle grade instead of YA, she’s also dealing with the, um, other kind of girly stuff for the first time, and she does have a close female friend to help. Both Micah’s mother and Charlie’s mother committed suicide, and the book is about dealing with life without their respective mothers. However, Micah always knew (even though she wasn’t supposed to), instead of finding out years later. And in this, Micah doesn’t necessarily want to be one of the boys all the time, she wants Luke to see her as a girl. There’s also not quite as much of a focus on sports, with Micah only playing soccer, and not literally every sport to ever exist like Charlie. And this doesn’t have the *wonderful* trope of ‘oh I wonder why I feel like this hmmmm absolutely no idea oh until the third act’, she actually always realized that she liked Luke.
Actually this has kind of an On The Fence+11 Before 12+Seagate Summers vibe. But also not? Idkkkkk. 11 Before 12 bc of the wanting to make a transformation before school and her birthday, all the time spent at the pool, the focus on friendship and first crushes, and also just the overall vibe; On The Fence bc of what I said above; Seagate Summers bc of just the overall vibe rlly.
Likes:
* The cover is so cute! Some people say they didn’t like it bc it’s at odds with the content, but I didn’t feel like it was too much.
* Andre and Charlie.
* Perfectly summery!
* Megan!
* Ava.
* This had some good lines (“Since I was now a part of the Being-A-Girl-Sucks club…”).
* Ryan.
* Micah liked sports, but it wasn’t the main plot.
Dislikes:
* Micah seemed a bit young at times, especially at the beginning. I mean, I know she was meant to be a little, but it was just…off. Idk.
* I hated that what she did was kept from me the whole book. That always annoys me.
* Trish, obviously. And also she kept saying “Oh My Gawd” which just got really annoying.
* Josh. Was I even supposed to like him?
* There were a lot of characters to keep track of, and a few guys that were only mentioned like twice. Like, why?
* I was never able to picture a lot of the characters super well (especially the guys). Like, the way the characters looked was mentioned like once or twice and I kept forgetting.
Random things/things I’m on the fence about:
* On the cover, Micah doesn’t look as flat chested as she was supposed to be. Oh, I guess she wasn’t though, once she got measured.
* As mentioned in the acknowledgments, the author’s agent is named Elizabeth Bennett.
* Did she never realize that he was making up challenges because he liked her?
* Her poor dad was trying.
* “Vwah lah”?
* Eleven year old me would have been so annoyed at how clueless she is (although she also would have really liked Luke and absolutely ADORED this book even more than I do now).
* What kind of light blue tank top would a black bra not have totally shown through?! She specifically says that it was suuuper thin!
* Luke. He was kind of annoying sometimes. But he could also be really sweet. I can’t decide whether I like him exactly, but he had his moments. Why did he wink so much, though?
* This kind of ties in with the small amount of physical description as I mentioned above, but for whatever reason, I kept forgetting that the twins were biracial. I mean, I guess it’s good that the author didn’t feel the need to constantly mention it, but I just kept forgetting!
* Micah did look in a mirror and describe herself at one point, but it wasn’t annoying? She wasn’t necessarily describing herself, I guess, more like pointing out what she didn’t like about herself.
* Um, a mascara that hadn’t been used for literal YEARS would be soooo gloopy and weird. I’ve had like five mascaras in the last year and a half because they got old and weird!
* And how did she get the makeup off anyway?
* It mentioned depression, but was the mother bipolar also?
* I wish we got more of Micah and Libby kind of making up.

[Rajiv · Rating 5 out of 5]

[BLOG]::[YOUTUBE]::[TWITTER]

A BIG Thank You to Netgalley and Capstone Books for providing me with an advanced reader’s copy of “Micah McKinney and the Boys of Summer” for my review.

I honestly could not put this book down! It was funny, quirky, ridiculous, charming, sweet and many more! In a nutshell, it is a very cute romantic comedy with a middle grade charm to it. Micah is a great protagonist. She is the awkward, silent, flawed yet talented. I loved her entire personality and how she always wanted to give people the benefit of the doubt. It was also interesting to see how she deals with growing up and puts herself out there through all her ups and downs before she reaches her teens. In addition, her friends, who are the supporting characters are wonderful as well. They also show what true friendship is to Micah. I loved Megan and Luke and Ryan and even Josh. He is hilarious! Of course, even the mean girls like Trish and Marissa were nicely written.

Also, in terms of the romance, I loved how innocent the author wrote the friendship and romance of the characters. As much as I liked Micah and Luke, I also like Ryan a lot. I also liked how the author added a serious topic like depression and suicide to make the characters more real. There are some pretty heavy scenes as they cover this topic, but I thought the author covered it really well with the plot.

I think this is the author’s debut novel and she has done a terrific job! Moreover, this is one of those books that I feel people of ANY age group would enjoy if they like these kind of charming stories. Can we have a part two to this book please? A continuation with what happens between Luke and Micah and Ryan in her teen years? I really want to read more about all of them! Overall, this book is a complete feel good entertainer!

[R.L.S. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun read that reminded me of all the intense emotion of going into middle school.

Micah may have more serious issues in her life than most young teens, but most will relate to her difficulties adjusting to the way her body, her life, and her relationships are changing.

I liked the realism of this piece, and the young voice. It reminded me a bit of Judy Blume, in good, modern ways. Micah has some heavy stuff to deal with, including her mother’s death, but I feel like she’s handling these things in a healthier way at the end of her summer than at the beginning. And the friendships she develops–with kids her own age and with older teens–are one of the highlights of this story.

[Denai Piscopo · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great little read this book was. It was a lot deeper and dealt with a lot more topics/choices/changes than what I expected it too. Micah is a complex character and I love that she can pull all the neigbourhood together, like a "haus". For a 12 year old to have to deal with everything that she has would be challenging.
I would highly recommend this to anyone with pre-teens to read through. Cant wait to go and buy it for my niece.
Thank you to Nina Chapman, NetGalley and Capstone publishing for allowing me to read this.

[Kirsten · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reviewed for Netgalley:

This book was pure bliss. It follows the Micah, a middle school girl who has just moved to a new neighborhood. During the summer before middle school Micah meets a whole new group of friends. She must navigate between being a tomboy with a group of neighborhood boys and being a girly girl with the neighborhood girls. Not short of laughs or heart, this book is SURE to put a smile on your face.

[Connie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Relive preteen girl’s angst and awkwardness in this authentic telling of a transformational summer. The real story that drove the novel brought me to tears. Micah’s inner thoughts and self-talk, and her interactions with adults and peers (old and new) are honest as she gains confidence in friendships and in herself. I closed the last chapter wanting to be Micah’s friend.

[Quen Avakian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a wonderful middle grade book! It addresses some difficult topics, but overall it’s a fun story about making new friends and trying to become comfortable in your own skin at the awkward age of almost 13.

[Hoover Public Library Kids and Teens · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's the summer before seventh grade. It's hopefully the summer where everything changes for Micah. She's just moved, so that's one change. But the first people she meets are three neighborhood boys. And the changes they bring are not exactly what she was hoping for.

[Laura Roettiger · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book and could Not. Put. It. Down.
All the emotions of middle school done just right with excellent pacing and characters to love and characters to make you angry. Well done. I can’t wait to see what’s next from the author.

[Darby · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really liked it and was obsessed with this plot line but I would like more of these. I re-read it like 3 times because I loved it. I also really liked the 3 boy combo group (Lukes friends). I also felt a lot of emotions that Micah felt while reading this book. I NEED MOREEEEEE!!!!!!

[Samantha Cribbin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Micah just moved to a new town and she's hoping this move will change her life and make it all that she ever wanted it to be, especially when she starts seventh grade in just 81 days. In this coming-of-age story Micah is dealing with a lot, the loss of her mother to suicide, getting her first period without her mother's guidance, a move, and trying to make new friends, just to name a few. I feel like while her dad really loved her, he should have done WAY more to help her deal with her grief. Micah had so many emotions after the sudden suicide of her mother and she was struggling with it all alone. This was a simple story and very realistic filled with the typical tween-age middle school angst- mild cursing, who likes who, bras, make up, and first kisses, mean girls, etc. I didn't love it or hate it, and honestly felt very indifferent towards it and the characters for the most part. I also found it incredibly frustrating that the publisher only released it as a protected PDF so I could only read it on my computer instead of cuddling up with my kindle to read it. I had been expecting to read something more lighthearted based on the cover, I feel like the two were kind of out of sync with regard to this.