GIRLS OF JULY by Alex Flinn

When Alicia "Spider" Webster posts an ad for teen housemates to join her in her family's cabin in the Adirondacks, she never expected it to be a life-changing experience. Spider's grandmother Ruthie was concerned about the reclusive nature of her granddaughter's lifestyle. Suffering from chronic joint pain, Spider spent most of her time at the cabin immersed in her dreams of movie making. Ruthie hoped that inviting a few girls to spend the month of July might inspire Spider to expand her adventures beyond her camera and computer.

Britta, Meredith, and Kate answer the ad, and after sending payment, embark on their July adventure. Britta and Meredith are from Florida. They are acquaintances at best. Britta, into drama and parties, is the complete opposite of Meredith who has taken the SAT multiple times, taken every possible AP class, and plans to spend the summer writing college application essays. 

Kate is from a small town near Atlanta. She is escaping a scandal involving her politician father. The trip to the backwoods might also help her forget her breakup with Colin.

The four girls are as different as night and day which creates stressful moments that threaten to derail Ruthie's hopes that Spider will overcome her hermitlike behavior. Britta's constant chattering, Kate's worry about family issues and lost love, and Meredith's passion to write the perfect essay don't make for much fun. 

It isn't until the girls each find an interest out of the ordinary for each of them that their summer begins to offer promises they never expected. Kate befriends a precious little boy whose family is going through hard times that make her problems seem insignificant. Meredith develops a relationship with a local boy named Harmon who has her questioning whether all her dreams about an Ivy League education are hers or what she thinks her parents expect. Britta's dramatic flair surprisingly combines with Spider's movie making talents to uncover a secret about Spider's grandmother that shocks everyone.

In this reviewer's opinion, GIRLS OF JULY by Alex Flinn is the perfect read. I'm a total fan of alternating voices, and Flinn handles it to perfection. Each girl's personality sings brightly from the start. Flinn also deftly switches voices at just the right moment to create suspense making readers rush on to find out how each scene will evolve. GIRLS OF JULY is a great summer read or for that matter, any time of year.