81 pages • 2 hours read
Jenny HanThe Summer I Turned Pretty
Fiction | Novel | YA | Published in 2009A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.
Chapters 31-40Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapters 31-32 Summary
Belly and Cam spend the day swimming and having a picnic. Belly asks Cam if he will go to the house and get her some Kool-Aid. He agrees to water and promises to return soon. When Cam does not return after 45 minutes, Belly finds Cam inside playing video games with Jeremiah and Conrad. Belly, feeling left out and annoyed, goes to the kitchen for a drink.
Conrad follows Belly to the kitchen and asks why she is mad at him. Belly is unsure of how to respond, only knowing that Conrad makes her feel confused and distracted in her relationship with Cam. She tells Conrad to go smoke a cigarette, and he retorts, “Why don’t you go look at yourself in the mirror some more?” (199). Angry and hurt, Belly storms off to the living room and calls the next turn at the game, thinking about how her crush on Conrad is dead.
Cam comes over again the next night and stays late. At midnight, Belly asks if he wants to go for a walk on the beach. Staring out at the ocean, Belly gets the idea to skinny-dip. She feels that skinny-dipping will be proof that she has grown up. When she asks, Cam agrees but begins to worry that someone will be able to see them from the house and suggests they try another time.
Feeling rejected, Belly grabs her sweatshirt and stomps back to the house. It is not until she is inside that she realizes Cam has not followed her. She waits for Cam, but he never appears, and Belly hears his car start as he leaves. That night in bed, Belly thinks about how her relationship with Cam must be over, but the next morning she finds a note from Cam in a water bottle that reads, “IOU one skinny-dip” (205).
Chapters 33-34 Summary
Jeremiah invites Belly to go to the pool at the country club where he lifeguards. Jeremiah asks her about Cam, calling him “kind of a dork” (208). Belly says she likes him and how different he is, and Jeremiah asks if she means different from Conrad. Jeremiah asks if Belly is over Conrad, and even though Belly says yes, Jeremiah tells her he does not believe her.
Back at the house, Belly sits with Susannah and Laurel at the pool. She tells them that she and Cam are playing miniature golf that night. Laurel asks if Belly can come home early so they can all spend time together and watch a movie, and Belly begrudgingly agrees. She puts her headphones on but hears Laurel and Susannah talking. Laurel brings up Conrad’s attitude this summer. Susannah says she thinks he knows something must be up and that the news will be more challenging for him because he is sensitive. When Laurel suggests that Susannah should tell the boys soon, before summer is over, Susannah becomes frustrated and says she will tell them in her own time. Belly, still pretending to be asleep, has the urge to tell them that the boys already know about the divorce but stays quiet to help preserve Susannah’s dream of the perfect summer.
Chapters 35-36 Summary
Belly and Cam end up staying out later than she had planned. By the time they get home, all of the lights are off except for Conrad’s. Belly tells Cam she does not want to go inside yet, and he asks if he can kiss her. She tells him to just do it next time instead of asking, and Cam is embarrassed, saying, “Never mind [...]. Forget I asked” (216). Belly begins to apologize, but before she can finish, Cam kisses her. When they finish, they hug goodbye, and Belly wishes that Conrad was watching so that he could see how much she is over him.
As Belly’s 16th birthday approaches, she understands it means the end of summer draws near as well. Like every birthday of her life, she plans to celebrate with Susannah, Laurel, and the boys. Laurel suggests Belly invite Cam over for dinner, but Belly decides against it and does not tell Cam it is her birthday.
On the morning of her birthday, Belly wakes up to a cake Susannah made for her. Everyone sings “Happy Birthday,” and Susannah urges Belly to open her present first. Belly finds a strand of delicate pearls, which Susannah tells her were hers, a gift from her father on her 16th birthday. Susannah fastens the necklace around Belly’s neck and asks one of the boys to go next with their present. Conrad tells Belly that he forgot her birthday, something he has never done before, and Jeremiah interjects with his present. When Belly opens it, she sees a small silver key charm.
Chapters 37-38 Summary
The charm reminds Belly of her 11th birthday. In the memory, she blows out her birthday candles (wishing for Conrad, as always) and opens her presents. When Belly opens her gift from Susannah, she sees that it is a silver charm bracelet from Rheingold’s, an expensive store in town. On the bracelet is a series of charms: a conch shell, bathing suit, sandcastle, sunglasses, and a horseshoe. Belly loves the bracelet but feels guilty when she sees her mother’s stoic face, thinking Susannah has spent too much money on the gift.
In the present, Belly thanks Jeremiah for the charm and runs upstairs to get her charm bracelet. Jeremiah explains that the key represents the fact that Belly will be driving soon. Laurel starts cutting Belly’s cake, and Conrad suddenly stands up and says he has to get ready for work. He wishes Belly a happy birthday on his way out. Susannah also refuses a piece of cake, claiming she is not hungry.
Chapters 39-40 Summary
Conrad invites a girl, Nicole, over to the house. After attempting to ignore them for five minutes, Belly calls Cam and tells him to come over. As Belly and Cam try to decide on a movie to watch, Conrad and Nicole decide to join them. Halfway through the film, Nicole whispers something in Conrad’s ear, and they leave to go upstairs.
Belly begins complaining about Nicole as soon as they leave until Cam interrupts her and asks, “Why are you so obsessed with her?” (232). Belly claims that she is not, in fact, obsessed with Nicole. They settle back in to watch the rest of the movie. Conrad and Nicole come downstairs. When they leave, Cam asks Belly if she only invited him over to make Conrad jealous and asks if she still likes him.
Flustered, Belly says no, but Cam does not believe her. Inside, Belly admits to herself that she still has feelings for Conrad, despite having a great guy like Cam. Cam asks if Belly wants to keep in touch after the summer ends as he does, but when Belly hesitates before saying, “Me too. I do too” (234), he checks the time and says he has to leave for the night.
A few days later, Susannah, Laurel, Jeremiah, and Belly have a movie night. Susannah falls asleep midway through the film, and Laurel asks if Jeremiah can carry her to bed. Belly says she will stay downstairs and clean up. Jeremiah returns and asks if she wants to watch TV. Jeremiah asks where Cam has been lately, and Belly says they have not spoken since the movie night and that she might not see him again before the summer ends. Jeremiah tells her that he does not think Cam is the guy for her, and Belly agrees.
Belly senses a shift in the room as Jeremiah prepares himself to speak. Jeremiah admits that he has feelings for her and sees her as more than a friend. Belly struggles to look at Jeremiah as he speaks, knowing that for her, “There was only one person. For me that person was Conrad” (237). As if reading her thoughts, Jeremiah says that he knows she has always had feelings for Conrad, but now that she is over Conrad, he wonders if he might have a chance.
When Belly responds, “I don’t know” (237), Jeremiah asks why she likes Conrad when he does not see her that way, and Jeremiah does. Belly begs Jeremiah not to be angry with her and begins to tear up, wishing she saw Jeremiah the same way he sees her. Jeremiah tells her that Conrad will cause her pain. He says he is not mad at her but only wonders why it “always has to be Conrad?” (238) and then leaves Belly alone in the room.
Chapters 31-40 Analysis
Belly has to confront uncomfortable truths in these chapters: Her feelings for Conrad have caused her to hurt others in her life. Belly’s relationship with Cam ends after he asks her if she only invited him over “to make [Conrad] jealous” (233). Belly denies this accusation, but her actions during chapter 39 indicate otherwise. Belly’s actions toward Cam in this chapter illustrate that she does view him, at least in part, as a means by which to make Conrad jealous: “I heard Conrad’s voice on the stairs, and without even thinking I snuggled closer to Cam. I rested my head on his shoulder” (233). Belly does not mean to hurt Cam, but “without even thinking,” she shows him physical affection only when Conrad is within proximity, implying that Belly wants to make Conrad jealous.
When Cam confronts Belly about this, she finally admits to herself:
The truth was, when I looked at Conrad, all I felt was a yearning that never went away. It was the same as it had always been. Here I had this really great guy who actually liked me, and deep down inside I was still hung up on Conrad. There, that was the real truth. I had never really let go (233).
Belly recognizes that Cam genuinely likes her, shows her affection, and tells her the things she wants to hear, yet these sentiments are not enough to stir true feelings of love for him. Belly remains “hung up” on Conrad, despite his constant dismissal of her. Indeed, Conrad’s treatment of Belly throughout the summer has been condescending, dismissive, and sometimes cruel. Regardless, Belly’s feelings for him remain unchanged.
Jeremiah tries to make Belly see that her feelings for Conrad are ill-fated. When Jeremiah tells Belly that his feelings for her have grown beyond friendship, he tries to appeal to their shared past and enduring friendship: “You’ve always been my best friend. But now it’s more. I see you as more than that” (237). These scenes illustrate that, to Belly, love is more than a sense of shared interests, compatibility, or even the foundation of friendship. To Belly, love is a larger force: “There was only one person. For me that person was Conrad” (237). Belly’s unshakeable connection to Conrad through time, space, and even his treatment of her this summer echoes Susannah’s statements from when Belly was born that “she knew I was destined for one of her boys. She said it was fate’” (4). Here, Belly shows that she has internalized Susannah’s statements from years ago and that she has come to believe that her feelings for Conrad are a product of some force beyond herself.
Jeremiah tries to tell Belly that Conrad’s treatment of her is an indication of his true feelings: “He doesn’t see you that way. I do. [...] He’ll only end up hurting you” (238). Here, Jeremiah appeals to Belly’s logic, arguing that her feelings should naturally sway toward him because he sees her as more than a friend, while Conrad will only end up hurting her. Part of Belly even knows that Jeremiah is right: “Conrad didn’t see me that way. I only wished I could see Jeremiah the way he saw me” (238), but even this knowledge is not enough to change her feelings for Conrad. Belly is honest with Jeremiah and apologizes for not returning his feelings. While the conversation does not negatively impact her friendship with Jeremiah, it does act as a catalyst for Belly’s decision to finally confront Conrad and lay bare her soul to him in the last section of chapters.
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