Summer Sisters

Book: Summer Sisters

By Judy Blume

Published by: Bantam Dell

A Division of Random House, Inc.

1998

1. Background Information:

Victoria Leonard is 12 years old in 1977 when the book starts and ends on her 30th birthday.  Victoria is a white American preadolescent moving into adolescence. Victoria has three younger siblings: a sister Lanie who is 10 years old, a brother Lewis who is 9 years old, and another brother Nathan, who is 7 years old and suffers from muscular dystrophy.

Parents Ed and Tawny: Ed is a quiet man who served in the Air force. Tawny is a very stern and hardworking woman, who left her hometown after she had graduated high school and boarded the first bus out of Tulsa, Oklahoma and travelled to Albuquerque. Tawny’s relationship with her mother Darlene was nonexistent. The children did not know anything about their grandmother until she was in her death bed. Once in Albuquerque Tawny started working for a lawyer with her typing skills, worked there for seven years and was engaged to Ed. They married when he left the service. The following five years were hard for Tawny and Ed, they had 3 premature babies and none of them were born alive. When all hope was lost, Victoria was born a healthy baby girl, and soon followed Lanie and Lewis.  They then moved to Santa Fe, New Mexico where Ed was selling insurance. Then, came Nathan the youngest boy, born with muscular dystrophy.  Ed lost his job and Tawny went to work and started working for the Countess. Ed then found a job managing an old hotel and Tawny kept her job because of money concerns, they had always had a hard time making ends meet.

To categorize the parenting style, Tawny would be the authoritative parent, placing a high value on obedience and conformity and Ed would be an indulgent parent. Though Ed was not one to show physical affection and love to his kids, he never demanded they behave in certain ways and their happiness is what was important to him. Ed was one to be on his kids side if something made them happy, such as in Victoria’s case the opportunity to go to Martha’s Vineyard in the summers, a private high school and attend Harvard. He wanted Victoria to have all the opportunities he did not have.  

In the family structure, Victoria was the oldest and was given many tasks to undertake at a young age. She was to help Tawny with the younger children, because Nathan was a child that needed a lot of attention because of his disability. Tawny expected Victoria to fulfill certain responsibilities and roles around the house.

Tawny’s views on people of wealth are that they are a different kind of people that they do not interact with unless you work for them. So when Victoria gets an opportunity to go and spend the summer away at Martha’s Vineyard with Caitlin Somers, she has her reservations and concerns. Most of her concerns revolve around Victoria not being the same person when she returns after spending a summer away with a wealthy family.