Perennials

April 10, 2017
Berman entices readers with this coming-of-age tale of two girls. Rachel Rivkin and Fiona Larkin have been friends ever since they met at Camp Marigold, a summer camp in Connecticut. They come from very different backgrounds: Rachel, the product of her mother’s affair with a married man, lives in New York City, while Fiona and her siblings live a life of plenty in Westchester—though their parents seem to be drifting apart. But Camp Marigold is the one place that never seems to change as the girls enjoy freedom from their everyday lives and the ability to make their own decisions. When they return to the camp as counselors during their college years, Rachel keeps secrets from Fiona, something she has not done before. Rachel’s reluctance to share those secrets with Fiona is a blow to their friendship, especially when Fiona’s family suffers a devastating loss. This story of facing life’s difficulties is most memorable because of Berman’s excellently crafted, multifaceted characters.

April 15, 2017
Stormy emotional weather and unforeseen events rock a summer camp in the Berkshires.In a pair of chapters set in 2000 that form a prelude to this novel, we meet Rachel and Fiona at 13. Rachel is the daughter of a struggling single mom, born as the result of her mother's longtime affair with a married man; summers at Camp Marigold are one of the few benefits her largely absent father offers to his secret second family. Fiona, from a much wealthier background (her parents met at Marigold when they were 9), has been Rachel's best friend since she started there. The rest of the book takes place in 2006, and its 12 chapters rotate among these characters and other counselors and campers. First up is Fiona's younger sister, Helen, who makes and loses a good friend in the latter part of seventh grade. Fortunately, she has camp to look forward to. Fiona, now at college in Connecticut and miserable about gaining the freshman 15, and Rachel, who goes to the University of Michigan and looks better than ever, are both back as counselors. Yonatan from Israel and Chad from the U.K. are among those who go to a Super-8 motel to party with them on their day off. Sheera, one of the only nonwhite campers, is at camp on scholarship and will never quite blend in...and then a shocking accident causes her to go home before summer's end. The fallout from that event casts a shadow over the rest of the summer, deeply affecting British counselors Mo and Nell as well as Rachel and Fiona. Meanwhile, the camp director, Jack, divorced and lonely, will find that partying with the counselors isn't such a great idea. Despite the escalating problems, neither the characters nor the reader will be prepared for what happens on the last day of the season. Berman's debut recalls the beloved teen and adult novels of Judy Blume, both in topic and prose style: simple, powerful, unafraid to confront serious issues.

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October 1, 2017

Rachel and Fiona are as different as friends can be. Rachel, the result of an affair, is a city girl, scrappy, self-possessed, and confident. Fiona struggles in her suburban life, unsure of her place in her family and among her friends. Yet when the two spend summers at Camp Marigold, they fall into an easy rhythm. Several years later, the young women return to Marigold as counselors. Rachel and Fiona grow apart as the rest of the camp changes around them. But when tragedy strikes, they are thrown together once more. This coming-of-age narrative touches on themes of body image and fitting in. The book is rich with detail, bringing to life the daily rhythms of the camp from lakeside to stable, all the way to the lurid after-hours activities of the staff. Debut author Berman successfully incorporates a varied supporting cast that includes the protagonists' parents and siblings as well as camp directors, horseback instructors, and others. VERDICT This compelling, immersive look at summer camp life will appeal to anyone who appreciates tales of friendship.-Erinn Black Salge, Morristown-Beard School, Morristown, NJ

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