Name: becky oh's review of Chocolate Box Girls: Summer's Dream by Cathy Cassidy
Item: Chocolate Box Girls: Summer's Dream
Rating: 3
Author: becky oh

Cathy Cassidy

The next scrumptious story in Cathy Cassidy's Chocolate Box Girls series.Summer has always dreamed of dancing, and when a place at ballet school comes up, she wants it so badly it hurts.Middle school ends and the holidays begin, but unlike her sisters, Summer has no time for lazy days and sunny beach parties. The audition becomes her obsession, and things start spiralling out of control . . .The more Summer tries to find perfection, the more lost she becomes. Will she realise - with the help of the boy who wants more than friendship - that dreams come in all shapes and sizes?Third must-have title in this gorgeous series from one of the UK's best-loved girls' authors, Cathy Cassidy.Each sister has a different story to tell, which one will be your favourite?Cathy Cassidy was recently voted Queen of Teen - beating Jacqueline Wilson and Louise Rennison to the throne.Praise for Cathy's books: 'Touching, tender and unforgettable.' GuardianCathy Cassidy wrote her first picture book for her little brother when she was eight or nine and has been writing fabulous stories ever since. The Chocolate Box Girls is a sumptuous series starring sassy sisters, super-cool boys and one of Cathy's biggest loves - chocolate. Cathy lives in Scotland with her family.

Chocolate Box Girls: Summer's Dream

becky oh

I love this book sm, dare I say one of my favorite books from the series so far

I've related to each girl from this series, but I never thought Summer would be the one I related the most to, but I really do

The sadness of losing yourself, knowing you were once the brightest star, looking back at it and now just seeing wasted potentional.. 

Always trying yet no one ever notices, never being enough, the hope you lose as you get older and experience the harsh reality, slowly but gradually you lose hope in all of it, romances, happy families, your dreams.. and you just can't understand how others can even have such faith in life when all it did to you was beating it out of you

Just missing those days when life was so much easier and you were actually happy.. the pain of missing who you used to be

Throughout the book Summer slowly lets go of her lifelong dream, but Alfie reminds her that there can always be other things that can make her happy, when plan A fails go to plan B, and if there isn't one, make one

I really loved how Alfie always cared for Summer and not just care but he genuinely had a way of understanding her that the others didn't have, he knew how to help her without triggering her

In the end Summer also mends a part of her broken connection with Honey, she sees that they aren't so different anymore, I really loved how Summer and Honey are similar just like Cherry and Skye are, but their all unique and pretty in their own way

Lulu Evensen

I love this book sm, dare I say one of my favorite books from the series so far

I've related to each girl from this series, but I never thought Summer would be the one I related the most to, but I really do

The sadness of losing yourself, knowing you were once the brightest star, looking back at it and now just seeing wasted potentional.. 

Always trying yet no one ever notices, never being enough, the hope you lose as you get older and experience the harsh reality, slowly but gradually you lose hope in all of it, romances, happy families, your dreams.. and you just can't understand how others can even have such faith in life when all it did to you was beating it out of you

Just missing those days when life was so much easier and you were actually happy.. the pain of missing who you used to be

Throughout the book Summer slowly lets go of her lifelong dream, but Alfie reminds her that there can always be other things that can make her happy, when plan A fails go to plan B, and if there isn't one, make one

I really loved how Alfie always cared for Summer and not just care but he genuinely had a way of understanding her that the others didn't have, he knew how to help her without triggering her

In the end Summer also mends a part of her broken connection with Honey, she sees that they aren't so different anymore, I really loved how Summer and Honey are similar just like Cherry and Skye are, but their all unique and pretty in their own way

Grace O'Callaghan

** spoiler alert **
           Summer has one dream, and only one dream. To become a ballet dancer, and when a once in a lifetime opportunity to go to a ballet boarding school presents itself, she takes it with both hands. She spends all her time dancing in the school holidays while her friends go to the beach and have fun. But is her passion for dance turning into an obsession? 

I found Summer’s Dream to be a pretty enjoyable read. I thought it was a little different to the two previous books where it was mostly about romance and trying to fit in, it dealt with some more serious topics such as anorexia.
I can’t really say how accurate the portrayal of having an eating disorder is in this book but I’d suggest you go and read reviews of people who have experienced a similar thing to Summer.

I thought Summer was a very interesting character to read about. She was quite a closed off character and didn’t really know how to express her feelings. I thought that Alfie was such a good friend too her. He suggested that she seek help for her eating disorder and was overall very supportive.

There wasn’t really too much plot. It was mostly Summer practicing for her audition. I did feel a little bored and disconnected at times but I think that’s because I may have grown out of this series a bit. 

Overall I would recommend this book. Again, I don’t know how accurately anorexia is portrayed, but if you enjoyed the first two in the series you’ll probably enjoy this one.

The next scrumptious story in Cathy Cassidy's Chocolate Box Girls series, following Cherry Crush and Marshmallow Skye. Perfect for fans of Jacqueline Wilson. Summer has always dreamed of dancing, and when a place at ballet school comes up, she wants it so badly it hurts. Middle school ends and the holidays begin, but unlike her sisters, Summer has no time for lazy days and sunny beach parties. The audition becomes her obsession, and things start spiralling out of control . . . The more Summer tries to find perfection, the more lost she becomes. Will she realise - with the help of the boy who wants more than friendship - that dreams come in all shapes and sizes? Third must-have title in this gorgeous series from one of the UK's best-loved girls' authors, Cathy Cassidy. Each sister has a different story to tell, which one will be your favourite? Cathy Cassidy was voted Queen of Teen in 2010 - beating Jacqueline Wilson and Louise Rennison to the throne. Praise for Cathy's books: 'Touching, tender and unforgettable.' Guardian Cathy Cassidy wrote her first picture book for her little brother when she was eight or nine and has been writing fabulous stories ever since. The Chocolate Box Girls is a sumptuous series starring sassy sisters, super-cool boys and one of Cathy's biggest loves - chocolate. Cathy lives in Scotland with her family.

Summer's Dream

Emma Taylor

This book explains the life of a beautiful young ballerina that unfortunately has anorexia. It also has links and ways to get help if necessary.

The next scrumptious story in Cathy Cassidy's Chocolate Box Girls series. Summer has always dreamed of dancing, and when a place at ballet school comes up, she wants it so badly it hurts. Middle school ends and the holidays begin, but unlike her sisters, Summer has no time for lazy days and sunny beach parties. The audition becomes her obsession, and things start spiralling out of control . . . The more Summer tries to find perfection, the more lost she becomes. Will she realise - with the help of the boy who wants more than friendship - that dreams come in all shapes and sizes? Third must-have title in this gorgeous series from one of the UK's best-loved girls' authors, Cathy Cassidy. Each sister has a different story to tell, which one will be your favourite? Cathy Cassidy was recently voted Queen of Teen - beating Jacqueline Wilson and Louise Rennison to the throne. Praise for Cathy's books: 'Touching, tender and unforgettable.' Guardian

Tania Kalsi

This has been one of my fav books of the Chocolate Box Girls series! I absolutely love Summer's bright and determined personality, and I love how this book realistically deals with the subject of anorexia from a teenager's perspective and cleverly solves this typical issue. This book keeps you grasped to the very end, and the ending is the best part.

becky oh &
Chocolate Box Girls: Summer's Dream by Cathy Cassidy

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Chocolate Box Girls: Summer's Dream by Cathy Cassidy