Sunday, June 14, 2015

Book Review: Once Upon a Summertime

Anyone who knows me knows that I have had a love of reading since I first learned how to read. I think that my mom really fostered this love by taking my brothers and I to the county library regularly. I remember walking into the giant building and heading immediately to the left into the kids section. Once there I was in heaven because I could look for hours at the titles of books lined up in rows. I would go back and forth with books trying to decide which one to read. As an adult I still LOVE going to the library. I still spend much time in deliberation over which book to check out. I want to read a story that will be just right. I found that I got older and began to make my own money became a book collector. Not fancy collectible books but any book that I found intriguing. I loved owning my own library. A few years ago I experienced a drastic decrease in income so my days of book buying were over. I was so excited to discover that my love of books and reading didn't have to end. That is when I signed up to be a book reviewer for Baker Publishing Group. The following review is for a recent fictional book that I read for review.

Enjoy!

Once Upon a Summertime by Melody Carlson was an enjoyable book to read. I initially chose it because of the setting and the fact that Melody chose to have the main character be a single career woman. As a single woman, I appreciated the light-heartedness that she brought to this book. This book was centered around the life of a young woman named Anna. She has recently finished college and goes to her hometown to work at the Value Lodge as a manager. While working there she encounters struggles as she attempts to bring productivity to her employment. This book was an easy to read novel with characters that were developed. I felt that the book was a bit slow in the beginning but became more interesting as the story developed. I felt like I could relate with Anna as a career woman trying to find her way in the world after completing her college education and entering the workforce. What I liked about this story is that Anna takes a chance and makes a big change in her life by moving to NYC to attempt to gain new employment in her dream profession. One thing that I loved about this story is the inclusion of Anna's friend Marley. Her job as a flight attendant based out of NYC lends excitement to the story. I wish there would've been more development in this direction of the story. The romance between Anna and Sean was sweet although a bit unrealistic. Overall, I conclude that this was an enjoyable, light-hearted summer read!

*I was provided a copy of this book for my honest review*