Four siblings experience the drama, intrigue, and upheaval of the ’60s summer when everything changed in Elin Hilderbrand’s #1 New York Times bestselling historical novel. Welcome to the most tumultuous summer of the twentieth century. It’s 1969, and for the Levin family, the times they are a-changing. Every year the children have looked forward to spending the summer at their grandmother’s … to spending the summer at their grandmother’s historic home in downtown Nantucket. But like so much else in America, nothing is the same: Blair, the oldest sister, is marooned in Boston, pregnant with twins and unable to travel. Middle sister Kirby, caught up in the thrilling vortex of civil rights protests and determined to be independent, takes a summer job on Martha’s Vineyard. Only-son Tiger is an infantry soldier, recently deployed to Vietnam. And thirteen-year-old Jessie suddenly feels like an only child, marooned in the house with her out-of-touch grandmother and her worried mother, while each of them hides a troubling secret.
Summer Of ‘69
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This novel is the story about how one tumultuous summer and its historic events impacted a family of young women. If you lived during the 1960s, this will be a walk down memory lane. If you weren’t born yet, The Summer of ’69 will give you an accurate picture of what it was like back then.
This book touches on it it all (to varying degrees): the Vietnam war, civil rights, women’s liberation and changing roles and aspirations, the Kennedys, the sexual revolution, Chappaquiddick, the moon walk, interracial dating, Woodstock, recreational drug use, sexual harassment, domestic violence, infidelity, and suicide.
It’s also a story about coming of age, young love, family secrets, and guilt. (BTW, it ends well, so no worries!)
I really enjoyed seeing the story unfold. I’m looking forward to reading more by this author.
Reading the latest Elin Hilderbrand novel is a big part of the start to my summer, it is like a sun-drenched treat. Summer of’69 is a story rich and full of detail, with realistic characters, emotional dilemmas and resolutions, she always delivers a beach hit by describing life on the island of Nantucket.
Summer of ‘69 by Elin Hilderbrand was her first historical fiction and in my opinion, she did a great job. Without giving away any spoilers, this is the story of four siblings and their parents that takes place during the tumultuous times during the summer of 1969. The author did a great job creating these characters who were likable and relatable. It’s a quick, easy to read summer beach story that encompasses growing up in uncertain, changing times. I rated it a four.
Hilderbrand never disappoints. Her characters are deep and nuanced, her settings perfectly detailed, and in this instance, informational for me (someone who was born long after the summer of 1969). I’d heard of the Kennedy scandal on Martha’s Vineyard, and the way she intertwined it was fun and interesting. I’ll start her Winter Street series soon!
From page one I immersed myself in the summer of ’69–its music and clothes, the politics, the space mission, and the ever-present shadow of VietNam. Hilderbrand nailed it all, and the multi-generational issues of a perfectly normal family, as well. Wonderful characters and many touching moments will stay with me for a long time.
(4.5 stars)
I was 11 the Summer of 69, and Hilderbrand did a great job of taking me back to my childhood. I have a hard time believing that this is considered Historical Fiction due to the fact that I can’t be that old to have my memories considered Historical, but Hilderbrand takes me back to the era of Vietnam, watching the nightly news of war and body counts with my dad, the fashion (or lack thereof), and vinyl records. I thought she did an excellent job of capturing the feeling of the time; space exploration, protests, feminism, racism to name a few. I hoped for more out of some of these storylines. This was a slower read for me, not sure if it was due to reading a physical book vs my kindle addiction, or the writing/storyline.
The Levin Children is set to summer once again at their grandmother’s Nantucket home. This year Blair the oldest is stuck in Boston and can’t travel due to a summer delivery date. Kirby, middle, has taken a job on Martha’s Vineyard toforge her independence. Tiger, the only son, has recently been deployed to Vietnam, leaving Kate, their Mom, in a state of anxiety. Jessie, the baby at 13, is stuck with her uppity grandmother and mentally absent mother. What entails is an eye opening summer for all.
I enjoyed this book, and the time period. I just wanted more depth and development out of the characters and certain situations. With the 50th anniversary of the moon walk this week, I enjoyed reading the book during the same timing. I’ve read so many EH books that I feel like I’ve been to her beloved Nantucket. Her love for this island comes shining thru. A definite getaway read!
1969 was an important year in the United States. The Vietnam War was still strong and there were lots of protests against the war, people were concerned with civil rights and rights for women. On the other side of the coin, there was the Moon Landing and Woodstock.
The Levin family had been spending their summers in Nantucket at their grandmother’s beach house for many years. In the summer of 1969, Tiger (the only son) was in Vietnam as an infantry soldier, Blair was pregnant with twins and unable to join to make the trip from Boston to Nantucket, Kirby was in college and active in civil rights protests. She decided to spend the summer at another island working at a hotel away from her family. Jessie, the youngest, feels that she has been abandoned by her siblings for the summer. She’s only 13 and just learning who she is and needs her family there to help her find her way. The summer is full news – The Moon Landing and Chappaquiddick and the preparations for Woodstock. While all of this is taking place off the island, Jessie is struggling to understand her family and worrying about her brother at war.
I enjoyed the way that real events became part of the story and part of the lives of the Levin family. Against the background of chaos in America, this family came alive as they dealt with the same problems as many Americans at the time.
I love books featuring strong women, and this was a great one! Really loved meeting this family and being transported back to 1969. And of course the Nantucket setting was delightful as always, but even more interesting to get a glimpse of what it was like during that time.
Elin Hilderbrand has a way of mining the details from each year she writes about from songs, to popular foods, dress, events, even activities. This book is rich in details along with a great plot and a look at changing cultural norms that were in infancy then.
Her other strength is her characters. She takes an entire family and plucks the petals from the relationships until we see what’s at the core. We see similar events through the eyes of each main character, giving us insights into the whole as the story moves through the months of that summer.
I won’t synopsize the story. You can read the blurb for that. But I do recommend this book for a picture of a summer that for many had moments of heartbreak along with the triumph of landing a man on the moon.
This was the first book that I read by Elin Hilderbrand and I was fully engrossed by her story. She has a beautiful writing style and I loved the character development this book had to offer. I found myself wanting more when the book ended. The ending was a little abrupt and I had some unanswered questions when the book finally ended… for example what happened to the brother? Did he make it through Vietnam? I loved all the music references of the time period and hippies, smoking joints, etc. This was the perfect summer read and put me in the summer mood for sure. I wish I lived in this time period. I loved the family drama that this story had to offer. I was fully invested in each of the characters and their stories. Was close to being a five-star read if only the ending could have wrapped up more…
One of my favorite authors. I love her books.
I have loved every book Elin has written!
Love this book!
Summer of 69 is filled with wonderful characters that are each finding their own during the changing times of 1969.
This is an expertly woven tale about the secrets, lies, and love that bind a family together. There are multiple viewpoints and each are beautifully written. It was the perfect book to read at the beach for me.
Just okay
Summer of ’69 is the story of sisters Blair and Kirby and their half-sister, Jessie. Off-season, they live in Boston and in-season, they are on Nantucket. During the summer of 69, Kirby decides she’s going to get a job on Martha’s Vineyard rather than Nantucket, much to the dismay of her mom and her grandmother. Blair and Kirby’s brother, Tiger, has been shipped off to Vietnam. Blair is married and pregnant and stays in Boston. Jessie is forced to take tennis lessons at the “club” which she endures, she meets a 15 year old boy, Pick, who lives in the house behind the big house Jessie and her family live in.
This story touches on everything that was going on that summer – Chappaquidick, the space launch, Woodstock coming up and racial tension. I’ve always enjoyed Elin’s books and this one didn’t disappoint.
A fun beach read with the required family drama and HEA. I really enjoy Hilderbrand’s books— quick and easy –they leave me with “feel good” vibes.
Fabulous read!
I know many people really like Elin Hilderbrand, but I wasn’t a big fan of the one book I read before this one. It was a fluff beach read. However, I really enjoyed Summer of ’69. This book was a great exploration of a family at different stages in their life, in the very difficult summer of ’69, when so much was happening: Vietnam war, Woodstock, the moon landing, aftermath of assassinations of MLK and RFK, racial tensions, free love, Chappaquiddick, etc. I felt that Ms. Hilderbrand did a great job of weaving these events into the lives of the Foley/Levin family.
I enjoyed revisiting these major milestones in my life when I was a young girl.
The few criticisms I have are that some of the characters weren’t entirely likeable. I did like Jessie and Kirby. Tiger was too perfect, and Blair seemed a bit too easily swayed. Kate was a drunken mess.
There were some secrets which were so obvious to me, such as the paternity of Pick, especially due to the way Kate acted whenever he was mentioned.
I will have to give some of the author’s books a try, perhaps I will begin to enjoy them.
#Summerof69 #ElinHilderbrand