Jemma Hartman, Camper Extraordinaire
By Brenda A. Ferber
(Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR), Hardcover, 9780374336721, 224pp.)
Publication Date: April 27, 2009
Other Editions of This Title: Google eBook
Categories: Social Issues - Friendship, Social Issues - New Experience, Sports & Recreation - Water Sports
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Jemma Hartman knows that her first summer at beautiful Camp Star Lake is going to be amazing. There will be swimming, sailing, and overnight trips – not to mention her best friend, Tammy, who moved away a year ago. But when Tammy’s cousin, Brooke, decides to come to camp as well, Jemma’s perfect summer starts to crumble. Brooke never laughs at Jemma’s jokes, and she thinks she rules the cabin. She even convinces Tammy to be her sailing partner, sticking Jemma with the camp weirdo. Jemma just can’t understand why Tammy wants to spend all her time with Brooke. And is it really possible to make new friends but keep the old, like the song says, or does Jemma simply need to let go?
Recalling the camp she attended as a child, Brenda A. Ferber offers an endearing look at friendships lost and found.BRENDA A. FERBER’s first novel, Julia’s Kitchen, won the Sydney Taylor Book Award for Older Readers and was praised by Kirkus Reviews in a starred review that raved, “Family bonds, Jewish traditions and overcoming grief . . . are deftly braided in this poignant story.” She lives in Deerfield, Illinois.
“What's so well conveyed here is the ordinariness of Jemma's feelings. She's not noble and grand . . . she's jealous. Ferber renders the ordinary delights of days at camp as well.” —Chicago Tribune
“Ferber has a fine ear for preteen dialogue and concerns, and her descriptions of overnight camp activities (especially sailing and waterskiing) will strike a chord with readers.” —Booklist
“Ferber has drawn a realistic main character . . . . The plot moves along swiftly, and Jemma’s first-person narrative rings true, as do the issues and the camp experience.” —School Library Journal
“This will make a sunny summertime outing for readers.” —Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
“For all the tweens who believe in BFF but find out, to their great disappointment, that it isn’t for everyone, this is the book for them.” —Kirkus Reviews
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