To everyone at Graydon House—I’m honored to be part of your launch. Thank you to Kathleen Carter, Lisa Wray, and Pamela Osti for working so hard to spread the word, and to Mary Luna and Gigi Lau for the beautiful cover.
Mike and Miranda, I love you beyond words. Mike, I don’t know how you put up with all the angst and forced reads (consider this your second plaque). As Neil would say, you have a heart of gold.
Miranda, you fill our house with music and knock us over daily with your creativity and passion. Always follow your dreams.
To my sweet mom, Kay Doan, who’s nothing like Ingrid (except for a few recipes). You’re my ideal reader. Someday I’ll write a book about our train trip.
To Dad. I miss you. E.T.
Carrie Higgins, the best big sister in the world, sent me a card saying, Never, Never, Never Give Up when I really wanted to. Sorry I called you “hisspiffy” when I was nine. Erin Higgins, you have so much soul; I’m proud to be your aunt.
To my aunt, Ann Kyle, whose spirit never wavered when her muscles gave. You taught me that life is too short for if-onlys; you are on every page of this book. You’re my favorite teacher.
To my grandma, Alice Parker Wilson. Thanks for sending me to the library with a dollar for the used-book sale. You always said I’d be a writer. To my grandpa, Robert Storey Wilson. I’ll always cherish your 1942 edition of Jane Eyre. You handled dining room walker battles with grace.
Love and gratitude to my Toronto family—Kelsey Mason, Wesley Mason, Tiffany Mason, David Mason, Natalie and Luke. Let’s kayak at PKL soon.
Thank you, Linda Haderer, Paul Haderer, and Michael Kyle.
Mark Cunningham at Atelier26, your critique improved these pages immensely. David Biespiel, Jennifer Lauck, and everyone at The Attic took me seriously when I first shared my secret fiction habit.
Thank you, Judy Blume, Willamette Writers, Literary Arts, the Sterling Room for Writers, Broadway Books, Powell’s, Tin House, A Children’s Place, Rakestraw Books, the Multnomah County Library, Breitenbush Hot Springs, Grace Asuncion, Molly Steinblatt, Suzannah Bentley, Zuzana Sakova, Penny Lewis, Stacy Thomas, Gabriella Fiore, Sarah Shine, Leeann Lewis, Gail Caldwell, Jamie Pacton, Erin Gordon, Virginia La Forte, Jim Breithaupt, Erin Ferrell, Alisha Gorder, Pearl Griffin, Jennifer S. Brown, Meg Donohue, Polly Dugan, Lynda Cohen Loigman, Meg Mitchell Moore, Brian Jacobson, Theresa Griffin Kennedy, Kimberly Melton, Fletcher Reveley, Jessica Starr, Don Westlight, Cynthia Whitcomb, William Rader, Helen McDevitt, Lisa Towne, the TJ’s Book Club, Pom-pom & Sparkle of the CCS, and my intrepid coworker, Leah Lilikoi McGonagall.
To everyone affected by amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: I’m in awe of your strength.
My family is so grateful to The ALS Association (alsa.org), the UCSF ALS Center, and the Stanford Neuromuscular Program for their work toward a cure.
The
Summer List
Amy Mason Doan
Reader’s Guide
Discussion Questions
What are your most cherished summer memories? Where did they take place? Have you been back to visit these spots? If so, what felt different or the same?
In The Summer List, the scavenger hunt leads Laura and Casey to the physical locations of their teenage summer memories. In what way does the scavenger hunt take on greater meaning in the novel?
Discuss these relationships: between Laura and Casey; Laura and Alex; Katherine and Alexandra; Katherine and Daniel. How are they similar or different?
Who is the Casey in your life? Are there friends you haven’t spoken with in a long time with whom you’d like to reconnect? Is it ever best to leave a friendship in the past?
Why does Laura keep the music box in her pocket? What secrets did you keep from your family when you were a teenager? Why?
Did you understand Laura’s decision to run away and attend school in Georgia, rather than in Los Angeles with Casey, following her father’s death?
Did you agree with Alex’s decision to keep the ALS gene a secret from Casey and Laura? If not, how would you have approached the situation differently? Would you have wanted to know if it were you, or would you have preferred not to know, like Casey?
How did the dream-like quality of Katherine’s chapters affect your reading experience and your understanding of Katherine’s fate?
How did your feelings toward Ingrid Christie, Laura’s mother, evolve throughout the novel, if at all?
Was the ending of the book uplifting or sad? What does the last scene suggest about the bonds between mothers and daughters?
Who was your favorite character in the novel? Who did you identify with most?
What was your favorite clue in the scavenger hunt?
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ISBN: 9781489266880
TITLE: THE SUMMER LIST
First Australian Publication 2018
Copyright © 2018 Amy Mason Doan
All rights reserved. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of publisher, Harlequin Enterprises (Australia) Pty Ltd, Level 13, 201 Elizabeth Street, Sydney, N.S.W., Australia 2000.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
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The Summer List Page 33