Ethan, the son of a white father and black mother, is sent to his aunt's house in the deep south for the summer in the 1950s. Growing up in Arcadia, Washington, Ethan is unaware of the ways of the segregated south. He is unhappy to be in the small town where he receives stares, unkind words, and bullying due to his race. Enter Juniper Jones, the town misfit, who after taking one look at Ethan decides to befriend him. Juniper plans exciting summer adventures and won't take no for an answer. As the summer progresses, Ethan and Juniper become inseparable, much to the town's disliking. Will their friendship survive?

The Invincible Summer of Juniper Jones is a great book! I found it easy to read. I enjoyed Daven McQueen's writing style. This book would be a good companion to a history class discussing the Civil Rights Movement. The Invincible Summer of Juniper Jones would also be an excellent book to cover in a book talk for a middle school or high school.

Thank you to Net Galley, Daven McQueen, and Wattpad Books for allowing me to view this advanced copy.

This is a book that is SO needed during this time. This is a story of Ethan's personal account of racial discrimination and how one summer changed his life forever is a harsh reminder that people who are alive today dealt with such blatant and violent discrimination and that it was widely accepted.

This is a great book to open up the discussion on how pervasive discrimination still is in our society today as evidenced by current events.

I read this heartbreaking story in a day! Thank you Daven McQueen for this beautiful and tragic story of friendship.

Thank you to #NetGalley and Watt Pad Books for an advanced copy of #TheInvincibleSummerofJuniperJones in exchange for my honest opinion.

“When you trap people for hundreds of years, make their lives a living hell, they’re bound to get antsy. And furious. And so white folks think the harder they make it for us to live, the longer they’ll be able to put off a revolution.”


I started to read this book right before I saw all the news articles about George Floyd. It was so difficult for me to read this book while I had so many feelings about what was happening in the real world.


This is my first historical novel. But reading it during this time only showed me how little has changed. I cried so much this week. I took a couple days off from reading because it was getting to be too much.


This book takes place in 2015 with our main character Ethan, who takes us back in time to 1955. This book is about racism and friendship. It is devastating yet beautiful. Did I already mention I cried a river?


This is a YA novel but I believe anyone can enjoy this. It is such a fantastic story that will make you want to laugh, cry and scream. I recommend this to everyone. Please go preorder this right now!


I was lucky to get an eARC from @netgalley but I am most definitely gonna need a physical copy for my bookshelf.

I really loved the premise of this story. A boy being forced into a southern town that runs deep with racism. He’s then befriended by a free spirit who also doesn’t fit it. I would begin to get lost in the story and then it would happen... another grammatical error; Commas out of place, bad spacing, capital letters in the middle of a word, and the list continues. Every time it would snap me out of the story. This is a great story just needs a good editor to fix it up.

Outstanding read. Excellent story, characters, and writing. A full range of emotions for the reader. Hated for this coming of age story to end. Important themes include racism, closed-mindedness, divorced parent-child relationships, and north-south lifestyle differences. Don't question whether or not...just read it. Highly recommended.

The Invincible Summer of Juniper Jones is an absolutely beautiful read, It stomps all over your heart and makes you feel so many emotions that you don't actually know you feel by the end of the story. It's one that lingers with you long after you've read it.

What a special treat to read this book. This book is truly beautiful, it reached a spot in my heart and I'm still trying to recover from this story. The Author Daven McQueen wrote this story with such passion and love that you fall in love with this story from the very beginning.

In the summer of 1955, a young boy named Ethan Harper is sent to a small town in Alabama to stay with his Aunt Clara and Uncle Robert. Ethan who is a biracial kid was raised by his white father who sent him down to Alamba to teach him a lesson for misbehaving in his home town. Ethan is not welcome in this small town because of his skin color.

While Ethan is working at his Uncle's Malt shop he meets a young girl name Juniper Jones who instantly wants to be best friends. They spend the summer together doing fun activities around the small town and getting to know each other a bit better and having an understanding of each other.

This story will make you cry. I was not prepared for the ending and was shocked by it. I finished the book two days ago and I have yet to pick up another book, I can't stop thinking about the story and how it was written so beautifully.

Reading the story made me want a root beer float in my hand, also wanted me to go on a bike ride, and also wanted a best friend like Juniper Jones, truth is we all need a Juniper Jones in our lives.

This book is a perfect read for the summer and will leave you with your feelings once you finish the book. You get attached to the characters and the story. I was wondering what was going to happen in the end and I was not prepared for it.

The flow of the story was good where you feel like you are with the characters on their big summer journey. Just make sure you have your tissue box next to you, you will need it.

I absolutely LOVED this book. It's everything I could want in a book and more. The author talks about racism, and calls it like it is. Also, there are some trigger warnings. But the author notes them in the beginning of the book. Juniper is a character that we can all learn from. And this book is one that I'll be revisiting. This quote pretty much sums up Ethan's summer experience.
~"She had forest-fire hair and hurricane eyes, and when he met her it was as if his world had been set aflame. She hit him in the best way, like a rainstorm after five years of drought, healing the parched earth with a gentle touch; and in the worst way ,like an unexpected earthquake, leaving dust and debris in her wake. She was , in equal parts, a gift and a natural disaster." ~

This is an amazing historical fiction novel about friendship, family and racism in the 1950s. Ethan and Juniper move through their "invincible" summer, creating the friendship of a life time through a series of adventures. This book was a quick, but emotional, read with relatable characters and events that wouldn't be out of place in today's society as well.

Thank you, NetGalley, for the ARC.

Taking place in 1955, a biracial boy is sent to spend the summer with white relatives in a small town in Alabama. There
he is forced to contend with being black in the South.

There he is befriended by the town weirdo, Juniper Jones, with a big imagination and a bigger heart. She vows that together they will have an "intrepid" summer.

The author pulls you into the South at a time when the equal rights movement is just beginning. She touches on many issues of race, family and belonging

It is a bittersweet and touching book. I look forward to reading more from this author.

I received a free copy of this book. I am leaving my honest review.

In this book we follow teenage Ethan Harper as he navigates the summer of 1855 in a small town in Alabama. The tricky part of this is that Ethan is biracial and spending time in this racially intolerant town is not only uncomfortable, but also dangerous. Thankfully, quirky Juniper Jones comes to his rescue and not only becomes his best friend, but makes his summer full of fun and adventure.

What I like about this book is that it speaks about the struggles of being black in a racist world, but in a way that is palatable for a younger audience. I loved Juniper Jones and I loved that while she was considered an outsider in her own town, she was the best person in the whole story. There were smiles and tears with this one.

Thank you NetGalley and Wattpad Books for an ARC for my honest opinion!

I got this book on Netgalley in return for an honest review:

I just finished this book last night and I was SOBBING! This book ripped out my heart and stomped on it repeatedly, and when I didn't think it would get any sadder: it did. Tbh I don't feel like anything I write could ever do this book justice! It is sad, heartbreaking, scary, but also beautiful, hopeful, and cute. The way the story is written is done brilliantly, and Juniper and Ethan's friendship and adventures was nice to read about. This focused on the racial issues of America but also does not let this overpower the story, but rather lets it become intertwined in it.

I have already recommended this book to several of my friends, my Literature and Culture University teachers and talked to bookstagram friends about it, and I have pre-ordered it so that I can have my own copy because holy shit.

Thank you Netgalley and the publusher for gifting me a n egalley in exchange of my review!

This is one of the most beautiful books I have ever read! IT was an emotional ride, withc such eye-opening thoughts on race, culture and life back in the 50ies. I loved the history part of the book, which made the novel feel like a historical fiction, but not a basic one.
It evolves around issues of racism and discrimination set in a beautiful story about friendship and having the best summer ever, enjoying it to the last bit as much as you can!
Definitely worth reading!!

In the author's notes, Daven McQueen mentions that this book is hard to handle. She's absolutely right. Thats why everyone should read it! it will make your heart swell and your heart break. I truly couldn't put this book down, not only because it's well written but because the message, though set in the 1950s, still holds true today. It has been one of my favorite books this year and will leave lasting memories for years to come.

Thank you NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

“Armed with two bikes and an unlimited supply of root beer floats, Ethan and Juniper set out to find their place in a town that’s bent on rejecting them.”

"The Hate U Give" meets "Bridge to Terabithia"

This book makes you think differently about the world that you live in today. Set in 1950’s Alabama a young mixed boy is thrown into a new atmosphere of race and prejudice. The only person he has is Juniper Jones the town oddball who is ready to have the best summer of her life. These two are an unlikely pair but they become incredible friends who share their whole world with one another. I loved the vulnerability that we experienced from both Juniper and Ethan. It was also a reminder that you never know what is going on in other people’s lives. Even though Ethan was struggling with being in a new town where nobody wanted to get to know him Juniper had to go home everyday with her own burden. I see this book being a staple in classrooms it is a much-needed update to what grow

Still sobbing My mother grew up in the 1950's in Mississippi! This story rings true with so many memories (bad and good), she and my aunts shared with me. Their mother was a person of color, that easily crossed color lines (when needed to feed her family and survive). Ethan doesn't know what to expect when he visits his aunt and uncle in Alabama. The blatant racism and the degrading name calling he encounters is shocking to say the least. Enter Juniper Jones! A force to be reckoned with! She is an amazing character. Kids see what is inside, not what is always on the outside. I don't see this book as historical fiction, but I do see it as an important piece of work that should be in school libraries. The topic of racism will always remain current as long as there are those who carry the torch of racism.

This is a strong YA book about racism in the South. The writing is fluid and clear, and the story progresses at a satisfactory pace. My only reservation has to do with the characters: they lacked nuance and relied on tropes, I'm thinking specifically of Juniper Jones who was the quintessential manic pixie dream girl. I would have liked to see more shades of her personality.

I was given an ARC copy of this book via Netgalley and Smith Publicity in exchange for an honest review.

This book is fantastic. As a child of mixed race (or half caste as some may still say) of Black Caribbean and White decent, I found this book an instant draw from the synopsis. I often wondered how I would have faired in the days where there were ‘colour coded’ facilities.

I have to say that I loved this story. The feelings it filled me with were ones of rage and disgust at the things Ethan endured. But also with love and joy for the way Juniper lifted his heart and made him feel as though the wrongs in the world could be righted with he brave and happy spirit.

I only gave it 4 stars due to feeling as though Ethan’s brushes with racist minds wouldn’t have been so few given the towns history.

Definitely one I shall be recommending to others

I was first interested in this book because of the synopsis given and because the title of the book sounded really interesting. I'm very interested in the Civil Rights Movement, so I thought a novel about a a black boy from the north being sent to Alabama in 1955 was interesting. Of course, we're all reminded of the story of Emmett Till, and there are definitely some connections to that historical event found in this story.
One thing I really loved about this story was the friendship between Ethan and Juniper Jones. Juniper from the beginning was an endearing character and I found refreshing and different from what I usually read in these types of books. Some of the events later in the book changed my opinion however, and I found her character less likable.
The biggest thing that I couldn't wrap my mind around in this book was what kind of father sends his biracial son to Alabama in 1955? That has to be categorized as child abuse. I found the resolution to this story arc very unsatisfying and wished it had been a bigger topic throughout the story.
What I think is the biggest flaw of this story though is the depiction of white people in it. When a novel focuses heavily on racism but has an almost entirely white cast of characters, it can easily become a story about "good white people" and that's what happened here. Many of the white characters were praised for doing the bare minimum when it came to racism and I think as a people we've grown past that. The "but they're trying" excuse isn't good enough anymore and it never really was.
Overall, I really liked the concept of this novel, but I felt it had too many missteps throughout and there were a lot of topics that could have been handled differently.

The Invincible Summer of Juniper Jones by Daven McQueen is a book that will break your heart.
Set in the American South in the summer of 1955, the book is narrated by Ethan Harper, a biracial kid who is being raised by his white father, who has sent him south to stay with his aunt and uncle as a punishment for fighting in school. Since Ethan has spent most of his life living in a part of the States where colour is less of an issue, life in small town Alabama comes as something of a shock, and the townsfolk are not shy in letting him know that he is not welcome. Even his aunt and uncle seem a little nonplussed and unsure how to handle his visit. It seems like a long and lonely summer looms ahead for Ethan until the day that Juniper Jones, or "Starfish" as she prefers to be called sweeps into his Uncle's soda shop, and decides to make him her pet project. Regarded as a little " strange" or "off" by the townsfolk , who largely ignore her, she is almost as lonely as Ethan and the two soon become fast friends and plan a list of summer adventures ranging from baking a cake that is taller than they are to teaching Juniper to swim. A friendship between a white teenage girl and a black teenage boy was never going to be without problems, and when the townsfolk are alerted to what is going on, they decide to take matters into their own hands , intimidating Ethan and scaring his father into realising that sending his son there was not just a mistake , but was dangerous.
This book is a beautiful account of friendship, the relationship between Juniper and Ethan is simply magical, and it is a huge credit to the author that it feels so real. I fell in love with both these characters, the eccentric, optimistic and kind- hearted Juniper, and the angry , frustrated Ethan. The only thing I could criticise is the seem much younger than their stated ages, even given the time period. I also found Ethan's relationships with his family, both his parents and his aunt and uncle were very well developed over the course of the book, and that all the characters grew and developed in a way that seemed very natural. There was one particular conversation between Ethan and his uncle that is heart- stopping in its simplicity, honesty and power.
The book does contain some language that people may find problematic , but the author includes a note at the beginning to explain her reasons for doing this , and I can completely understand it within the context of the book. There are also descriptions of violence, often with a racial basis, and I think this is main reason why the book is aimed at the older end of the Middle Grade and the Young Adult markets.
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.