Heather Vogel Frederick

Emma, Jess, Megan, Becca, and Cassidy go to Camp Lovejoy in New Hampshire to serve as counselors and when some of the young campers are stricken with homesickness, the friends decide to start a summer camp book club.

Mother-Daughter Book Camp

Jaclyn Graybill

Well, we finally made it.
This book ended up being the perfect send off for our book club girls. I must admit, at first I was a little worried about the setting. Summer camp? What about Concord!? What about the settings I had known and come to love as my own!? Needless to say, it paid off.
I was excited to realize that the last book took place a couple years later, right as the girls are about to start college. It gave me all (well, most. I wish I had their life stories ready for me.) of the answers that I had been hoping for. On top of that, I could really tell that they had grown and evolved during those few years. It was incredibly satisfying to see them grow into the mentoring roles that their mothers had been preparing them for all those years. I think they handled the responsibility perfectly, without their humorous short comings along the way. What better way to evolve than by passing on the torch to a new generation of readers and dreamers?
Just like with any great series, I wasn't ready for it to be over. A lot of time was spent with these girls, and even at my age I found myself learning a great deal from them. That's my favorite thing about books, and The Mother Daughter Book Club illustrates this a lot- we take the best bits with us into our own lives, and we learn from the stories that they tell us.
In this book, Jess's cousin Felicia makes a comeback, and spends a lot of time trying to talk about the "theme of transformation". A less than subtle nod to our heroines, but a poignant matter nonetheless. These girls really have transformed over the course of the series, and Heather Vogel Frederick takes careful note to demonstrate that. It made me think of how much I've grown since I was a little girl first reading these books to now. The Mother Daughter Book Club grew up with me just as I did with them, and being able to finally wrap up this series has been a dream. 
The best part about reading is when you see yourself between the lines. I took a leap of faith across the country like Emma, found my creativity like Megan, found my self-worth like Jess, adapted and came to like change like Cassidy, and even learned to put myself out there like Becca. 
If I ever have a daughter, I'll have her read these books, especially its finale. What a perfect and fun way to learn about life, through the lens of girls just like you. I can only hope it brings her the same zest about life and learning that it did for me.
Like Emma says, "The world is waiting". I can't wait for when it brings me back to Concord again.

Mother-Daughter Book Camp

Reviews