I will rate The Invincible Summer of Juniper Jones a 3/5 stars and the rating is only because of the subject matter. I usually love these types of books which focus on racism during the 50s and 60s. I have even written two books centered around this area and subject matter, so I was really excited to read this book. Unfortunately, this story just didn't grasp my attention as I hoped it would. It seems to be lacking excitement and solid character development. The author is well written, but I just couldn't find their passion in their writing. The story left me wanting more from it. I will not be able to recommend this read. Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Couldn’t put this book down. It’s a story about a biracial kid named Ethan who is sent to Ellison, AL in the summer of 1955. There he meets Juniper, who is an eccentric white girl who has big ambitions and an even bigger sense of adventure as well as being open, kind, and accepting of Ethan for who he is. The two of them have the summer of a lifetime, all while dealing with the racism of the town. This story shook me to my core and reminded me that this was less than 65 years ago and to this day, we’re still dealing with racism the book covers. I legit cried at the end of the book and absolutely loved it. This book was a joy to read and thoroughly enjoyed Juniper and Ethan’s adventures. Highly, highly recommend this book.

I was utterly speechless when this book ended. I just had to sit with it for a few minutes to take it all in. It was a powerful, piercing and bittersweet tale of life, friendship and race.
I can't recommend this book enough to anyone at any age. A few pages in and i knew this would be one of those books that would stick in my mind for a good few years if not forever. The characters were absolutely lovely and vivid, beaming with joy of living while suffering deeply at what the society chose to offer them. The pace was perfect, and also i did not notice any unevenness or a stray paragraph that was unrelated to the whole body of the story, just like a puzzle everything fell into place and made this book unforgettable.
And as good books are meant to be, The Invincible Summer Of Juniper Jones, left me with a giant question mark:
Has our world truly changed into a better place to live (through these many decades of injustice) for people who stand out from the rest?

This book is an amazing read. The uniqueness of the plot is enthralling with the beautiful play of words.
The characters are written with remarkable accuracy and beauty. The pacing and the flow are great throughout the book.
It was a great read that everyone should add to their collection.

I wasn't easy to start reading this book - the first pages had drawings on them, and somehow that made my e-reader crash, so I had to read it on my laptop. My arm is broken near the shoulder, and sinse I had to lean in a bit to read on my laptop, it would hurt a bit to read. This book was totally worth that hassle, I would do it all over again.

'The Invincible Summer of Juniper Jones' is bittersweet. It tells, no, shows how much racism hurts, especially the kind of racism that we white people hardly notice, or tend to rugsweep. It also shows true friendship and how important it is to care and to stick up for each other and ourselves.

I also want to say sorry tp POC, for all those times I probably have missed racism right under my nose and/or swept it under a rug. You didn't deserve any of it, ever.

At once joyful and heartbreaking, bittersweet and poignant, “The Invincible Summer of Juniper Jones” is a beautiful story that immerses the reader completely from the very first page and will leave you thinking about the characters long after it ends. It tells the story of Ethan Harper, the son of a white father and black mother, who is sent to spend the summer of 1955 in Ellison, Alabama with his aunt and uncle. He is quickly and painfully confronted with the realities of racism in the American south, while at the same time he is taken under the wing of a kind, free spirited girl named Juniper. Juniper is the opposite of most people in town- friendly, accepting and loving- and she immediately enlists Ethan to help them both have the most amazing summer ever. Juniper and Ethan’s fun summer is juxtaposed with the increasing racial tensions in their town, forcing them both to reconsider what they know and believe about race and equality. As the book raced to its emotional conclusion, I could hardly put it down. “The Invincible Summer of Juniper Jones” made me laugh, cry, smile and gasp out loud. The characters were so well developed, and the descriptions made me feel like I was right there with them. I highly recommend this book and think it would be especially good reading for a middle school English class, although I think people of all ages with enjoy the story of Juniper and Ethan and the best summer ever.

(Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read this book in exchange for an honest review. This is no way affected my rating, and all opinions are my own)

Four stars

The novel begins in the relatively recent past with Ethan, who receives a phone call that reminds him of a traumatic summer from his childhood. For the bulk of the novel, readers are then transported to that summer of 1955. To put it mildly, this summer houses events that are painful for Ethan, for most of the characters in the novel, and for the reader, too.

One character rescues Ethan during this terrible summer: Juniper Jones. She is an incredibly endearing and quirky individual who manages to transcend her environment and possess an organic sense of humanity. I'm going to keep this spoiler-free, but her impact on Ethan - and I suspect on most readers - does not end in that summer (as per the title); it lasts a lifetime.

Though there are parts of this novel that feel a bit lengthier than necessary, its messaging and final scenes are unquestionably compelling and challenging. I love the author's note and find the combination of this addition and the overall construction of the work to be especially meaningful for a teen audience who may be new to historical fiction and who may not have had previous access to the realities of this time.

I'll be recommending this one to students as both a well devised example of YA historical fiction and a challenging but moving depiction of the period it represents.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

“The Invincible Summer of Juniper Jones,” tells the story of Ethan Harper. He is a mixed-race boy who is sent to live with this aunt and uncle for the summer in Alabama, 1955. While working at his uncle’s malt shop, he meets Juniper Jones, a girl who is a free spirit. Juniper plans to have the best summer and ropes, Ethan, into helping her.

In this small town, Ethan starts to realize the racial tensions and discrimination that he is experiencing. He learns about the injustices of racism. He has to deal with being the only black person in this small town and how to cope with the discrimination he is facing.

This is a beautiful book about friendship, racial tensions, heartbreak, and having the best summer imaginable. It is a coming of age story. Ethan is stripped of the childlike innocence when he realizes how deeply rooted racism is in people despite him doing them no wrong.

“The Invincible Summer of Juniper Jones” is the perfect read. It was joyful, hard-hitting, and heartbreaking all tied in one. I think this is an essential book for Young Adults (and anyone) to read. It weaves together issues of racism and discrimination set in a beautiful story about friendship and having the best summer ever.

The invincible summer of Juniper Jones tells the story if Ethan Harper. In the summer of 1955 Ethan has to live with his aunt and uncle. There he meets Juniper Jones, a very excited kind girl who has made it her goal to have the best summer ever.

When I started reading this story it immediately grabbed my attention and didn't let go. This is mostly because of the characters. Ethan is a very nice character to follow. During the story he becomes more and more aware that the world is not fair and that some people are treated poorly only because of the color of his skin. It is easy to connect with him as we see him trying to deal with his situation.

Even more likable is the second main character of this story, Juniper Jones (aka Starfish). Juniper is as likeable as it gets. Everything she does and says is filled with a passion and determination. She is different from all the other people in town. She is filled with love for Ethan and everyone she meets. They both just feel very genuine and like real children.

What really stuck out to me is how this story is very happy and relatable, while at the same time dealing with heavy topics such as racism and bullying. You get to see a lot of summer adventures, where the pair climbs trees, drinks milkshake and makes paintings. But there always is this threat in the background of people who really don't like Ethan being in town. You get to see some big and some smaller signs of how much everyone seems to dislike Ethan for the color of his skin. The fact that the characters are so flashed out makes it easy to understand the horrible topics even better. All I wanted was for these two kids to just be able to have the best summer ever without having to think about any big world problems.

The way this story is written made it very easy for me to picture everything in my head. I loved the descriptions of the town.

This book has made me laugh several times, it has made my cry and it has made me want to scream in frustration.

This was a really great read! I really enjoyed reading this book, would definitely recommend. This is a good book for all ages.