One Grand Summer by Ewald Arenz (translated by Rachel Ward)

Today I'm visiting  early 80s Germany with my blog tour book review! Welcome to my stop on the tour for One Grand Summer by Ewald Arenz, translated into English by Rachel Ward. My thanks to Anne Cater for inviting me and to the publisher for my review copy. 

The Blurb

Sixteen-year-old Frieder’s plans for the summer are shattered when he fails two subjects. To be able to move up to the next year in the autumn, he needs to resit his exams.

So, instead of going on holiday with his family, he now faces the daunting and boring prospect of staying at his grandparents’ house, studying with his strict and formal step-grandfather.

On the bright side, he’ll spend time with his grandmother Nana, his sister Alma and his best friend Johann. And he meets Beate, the girl in the beautiful green swimsuit…

The next few weeks will bring friendship, fear and first love - one grand summer that will change and shape his entire life.

My Review

We all know I read mainly crime fiction but things would become very boring if I didn't switch them up occasionally. Two years ago I read Ewald Arenz's debut novel, Tasting Sunlight, the gorgeous story of the friendship between two very different women. I loved it, and it made my top three reads of 2022 so I was delighted to have the opportunity to read this new novel from Arenz.

This novel takes us back to a time before mobile phones, texting and social media and to that magical, scary age of 16. Maths and Latin are not strong subjects for Friedrich (Frieder) Büchner and as a result he is facing resits at the end of the summer - resits that he must pass. Whilst this means he will have to spend the summer with his beloved grandmother it also means his super strict step-grandfather will be supervising his revision. Frieder is dreading it but at least he will see one of his sisters sometimes, as she is also missing the family holiday, and hopefully his best friend Johann and Beate, the young woman he meets at the swimming pool just before term ends. Things are looking up.  

This novel is populated with characters you will take to your heart. Frieder is a lovely young man, close to his parents and siblings, has a wonderful relationship with his grandmother and a strong bond with his best friend. The few weeks described in the book see Frieder develop, grow up and gain a deeper understanding of those close to him. It was moving to see him learn about, and sometimes grapple to understand, some of his recent family history. But also we see him just being a 16 year old lad, mucking about with his friends, making mistakes, and learning the consequences. His relationship with Johann is great - The two boys have very different family backgrounds but have bonded none the less. And when Johann faces some difficult moments, Frieder is there for him - in fact, he has to make a very tough decision for such a young man. 

I loved the women in the story. Nana is warm, welcoming, loving and understanding, for the most part, and it was interesting to learn about her past, and see the obvious affection she has for Frieder, and the wider family. Alma is full of fun, Beate more shy as she joins this established group of friends, but it was beautiful to read her growing friendship with them all but particularly the developing feelings between her and Frieder. 

But I think my favourite thing in this book was Frieder's changing relationship with, and opinion of, his step-grandfather. It's subtle, but we see a  greater understanding and a grudging respect develop, so much so that Frieder knows who he must turn to in a time of crisis - it was beautiful to read. 

The prose in this is lush and full of descriptions, making it easy to conjure up a picture - it almost felt like I was there, hanging out with these kids - very vivid. My thanks to Rachel Ward for her seamless translation, enabling me to enjoy this lovely book, and to the author himself, of course.. One Grand Summer is a coming of age story, and the author beautifully handles some of the larger subjects delicately - family, friendship, love, grief and mental health. It shows the importance of having good people in our lives from an early age, and how those people can sometimes be transformative for us. And it reminded me of special summers when I was young - I'm sure many of us will have similar memories. Not my usual kind of read but a very welcome change - really enjoyed it. 

The Author

Ewald Arenz was born in Nuremberg in 1965, studied English, American literature and history, and now works as a teacher at a grammar school. His novels and plays have received numerous awards. Tasting Sunlight was longlisted for the Waterstones Debut Fiction Prize, shortlisted for the German Booksellers Best Novel Award, and featured on the Spiegel bestseller lists in both hardback and paperback for months. One Grand Summer won the German Booksellers Prize in 2021, and was a number-one bestseller in Germany. Ewald lives with his family near Fürth.