Three Summers: A Memoir of Sisterhood, Summer Crushes, and Growing Up on the Eve of War

Gr 3-7–Sabic-El-Rayess’s memoir captures the lives of five cousins and the adventures they encounter over the course of three summers in 1980s Bosnia. Suffering the loss of her older brother, Amra slips into a womb of depression only to be revived by these glorious summers with Zana her sister-cousin; after all, cousins make the best sisters, according to Amra’s mom. The turmoil of life in war-torn Bosnia is dismal enough compounded with memories of Amar, the brother who passed away from complications due to Marfan syndrome. Sabic-El-Rayess’s prose transforms teenage memories into a unique multisensory experience filled with the awkwardness of first love, beach wake-ups, breakups, family indifference, and all the comfort of Bosnian food. The text leads readers over hills and mountains filled with loss, joy, and haunting tragedies that sought to destroy but only prove the resilience of hope and family. The author’s note and time line of events documenting the history of war and genocide in Bosnia provide readers with background on the life and musings of a young girl.