Samurajsommar

by Åke Edwardson

”Lita aldrig på de stora!” Det är självklar regel för tolvårige Kenny och hans vänner på kollot. Sommarlägret skulle kunna vara en idyll, men för Kenny är det ingenting annat än ett fångläger, vakat av den diktatoriska Kärringen.
Tillsammans men sin samurajtrupp av vänner har dock Kenny en huset i skogen som en dag ska bli ett riktigt samurajslott. Här finns Lennart som inte har någon morsa och Janne som ska flytta till fosterhem när sommaren är slut. Här finns också tjocke Korven som drömmer om att få visa sitt mod, och Micke, som kanske inte går att lita på. De är alla bra krigare, utom Korven, som är bra på annat sätt. Den här sommaren upptäcker Kenny även Kerstin, som är lång och snabb och lätt att prata med. Men kan hon invigas i hemligheten ...?

“Never trust the grown-ups!” That’s a self-evident rule for twelve-year old Kenny and his friends at camp. Summer camp should be idyllic, but for Kenny it’s nothing more than a jail, guarded by the dictatorial Witch.
Together with his samurai troupe, Kenny has a the building in the woods will one day become a real samurai castle. There’s Lennart who doesn’t have a mother and Janne who’s moving to a foster home when summer is over. There’s also heavy-set Korven who dreams of showing his courage, and Micke who might not be trustworthy. They’re all great warriors, except Korven who’s great in other ways. This summer, Kenny also discovers Kerstin, who’s tall and swift and easy to talk to. But can she be confided in ...?

Genres: Mystery, Childrens, Sweden, Young Adult

216 pages

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

Åke Edwardson is a Swedish author of detective fiction, and a professor at Gothenburg University, the city where many of his Inspector Winter novels are set. Edwardson has had many jobs, including a journalist and press officer for the United Nations, and his crime novels have made him a three-time winner of the Swedish Crime Writers' Award for best crime novel. His first novel to be translated into English, in 2005, was Sun and Shadow. The second, Never End, followed in 2006.

Series:
* Inspector Winter

Reviews

[MacWithBooksonMountains Marcus · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ake Edwardson evokes childhood memories of roaming in the woods, building treehouses and other twiggy-branchy contraptions, going to town for ice cream and making up tall stories of brave warriors and adventure - at least it does so in me. Clearly, not all grownups will take to Samurai Summer the way I did and this shows by cross-section sampling of other reviews. But we should keep in mind this is a story for adolescents and as such the mature reader should pass judgement.
This in mind, Samurai Summer is a masterpiece of light-hearted storytelling that may or me not be able to fascinate a post-pubescent reader but certainly should engross its pre-pubescent target group. Plot and characters are very believable, the prose is perfectly suitable for this story well-told. The isolated setting, a summer camp in Sweden run by an evil martinet of a dame conveys the escapist feeling of 12 year old Protagonist Kenny with heart and personality.
All in all, a very recommendable read and in my humble opinion also suitable for readers that have already passed that magical time and age of simplicity when ice cream, chocolate, and perhaps a wooden sword were the most glorious aspirations life had to offer.

[atmatos · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received this book from Netgalley for an honest review.

In reading, and discussing this book I have had a life lesson. I will now wait a few minutes before hitting the request button on new and shiny books on Netgalley. I have been burned a few too many times of late due to my overzealous trigger finger.

When I requested this book my brain was doing the happy dance, not only was this book somewhat about Japanese culture it was written by a Swedish author.

Color me excited.

Now after finishing the book after much skimming, not so much.

This book filled me with ennui, which is great cause then I can use the word, but not so great cause it means terribly boring.

Samurai Summer is about a twelve year old boy who has grasped onto the samurai code to help him with his anger issues, coming to terms with his father’s death, and the abandonment of his mother. This is Kenny’s last year at summer camp, and him and some of the other boys are building a castle in the woods while playing samurais.

Now I probably could have really read the whole book, if not for one integral part that happened about twenty percent in. There is one instance where Kenny is cruel to another camper, one of his friends, and that just ruined it for me. I seriously hate when people are cruel, its one of my anger buttons. So in an instant I didn’t like Kenny anymore, and there went any possibly for me enjoying this book.

So I skimmed to the ending, one that was just as boring as the rest of the book.

Just there.

So yes, the writing was well done. I just has issues with the plot.

Two stars.

[Charles · Rating 3 out of 5]

First Reads Review - Samurai Summer by Ake Edwardson

So I think I signed up for this book thinking it would be something like the ninja movies from the Nineties (Three Ninjas, Surf Ninjas, some of the Karate Kids). I guess that's more on me for not looking closer at the description, but that was not what I got. This is actually a quite serious story about a group of kids at an abusive camp in Sweden who sort of share in this delusion of being samurai in order to escape mentally from their real surroundings. Not that the book was bad, but I was battling some expectations going in and the rather dark tone of the book, while effective, didn't make it the funnest book to get through.

This book takes on some very serious themes, after all, from abandonment to abuse to maturation to a slew of other things. With Kenny(/Tommy) we have a character that doesn't really fit in, who has been largely abandoned by his mom at this camp and who takes what comfort he can in the fantasy of being a samurai. That becomes his way of coping, his way of making sense of what happens to him. Throughout the book he is singled out for the heaviest punishments, and it is he who rises to a leadership position among the young people in order to actually get things done and save people.

That said, the darkness of the book was actually what made it more interesting to me. Not that I wanted bad things to happen to the kids, because the author does a find job in making them likable, but that the ending of the book doesn't really capitalize on the darkness, on the suspense and tone that had been building up to that point. The ending is a little too happy, though there is a lingering question of what happened to his mom. Either way, that nothing truly terrible happens is almost a strike against it because it would have made the rest of the book a little more meaningful.

In some ways this book shares themes with the Lord of the Flies, because it's about kids forming groups and sharing in fantasies, only here they have some adults to interact with. And while that could open the door for even more darkness (like with what almost happens to Kerstin), the ending comes without the promised battle. There is no standoff, not beyond a single confrontation, and that doesn't have the weight that it could have had. Instead things get tidily wrapped up and resolved, and everyone lives happily ever after. It just seemed too neat, too bright in a work that was dominated by darkness.

And maybe that's just me as an adult criticizing a book that's more for young adults, but that's how I see it. I wanted more darkness, more punch at the end. Not that it was bad, but it did fall short of what I think it could have been. While I enjoyed the book, it did end up being a little lacking. While I can recommend it to fans of the genre, I'm going to have to give it three stars out of five.

[Online Eccentric Librarian · Rating 3 out of 5]

More reviews (and no fluff) on the blog http://surrealtalvi.wordpress.com/

Samurai Summer is a book that has big ideas yet somehow comes across as being a bit cold and too shortsighted to make the story stick. Characters that should have been believable somehow weren't and the book left me somewhat disaffected. I think the author was trying for the same dark tone as Let The Right One In but just didn't have a compelling enough story to make it work.

At a Summer camp in the 1960s, Tommy is once again dealing with the terrible reality of what he goes through every year. There is the mean camp owner, her 'son with serious issues', and a cast of very downtrodden low income family campers. Tommy is a bit of loner, a deeply flawed and somewhat broken boy, who deals with life by trying to live up to Samurai ideals. When one of his friends goes missing, Tommy will use those values to try to save her.

Tommy was a tough nut to crack. On the one hand, his dogged determination to live by the Samurai code made him somewhat of an unlikeable and tragically pathetic type of character. But as the story progresses and we learn his history, the fantasy world he has created around himself makes sense. I only wish it made him more interesting and intriguing.

Ironically, while the premise makes this sounds like it has a supernatural twist, the only fantastical elements in the book are Tommy's Samurai slavishness. The reality of the campers' situation is clearly dark and each of the kids at the low cost camp are there to be 'gotten rid of' by the parents. Where you have parents that don't care, the kids too often end up as victims.

I wish the book had made more of an impression on me but honestly by the time it finished, I was rather relieved and quickly forgot it. I was never engaged by Tommy or the other characters as I should have been; their tragic histories should have made them far more complex. But everyone at the camp just felt like sheep going to the slaughter while bleating occasionally.

I listened to the Audible version of the book and found the narration to be decent.

[Arja-täti · Rating 2 out of 5]

Luin tuttuun tyyliin väärässä järjestyksessä eli toisen osan Lohikäärmekuu ja sitten tämän ensimmäisen. Toinen oli toistoa, kyllä eka on aina eka. Ensimmäisessä ahdistus, pelko ja tuo kaikki oli todella läsnä. Toisessa kaikki lässähti.

Mutta edelleen kyselen, kenelle tämä on kirjoitettu. Retroaika, 12-vuotias päähenkilö, ahdistava tarina, samuraijutut... 12-vuotiaalle vielä liian ahdistavaa. ..ehkä aikuistenkirja..

[Nadine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I didn't realize this was YA when I picked it up but I still listened to the audiobook and I'm glad I did. Well-written and doesn't feel dated, despite a plot that doesn't revolve around teens and technology. Would be great for a tween going on teen - some adult situations but no profanity or graphic violence/sexuality. Great book to spark discussion between parent and child. Boys may like it better but don't underestimate its appeal to girls as well. The audiobook was well done.

[Tessel · Rating 2 out of 5]

Samurajsommar is about a boy, Kenny, with psychological problems that spends the summer in a very strictly run summer camp. Kenny thinks of it as a prison and copes with his problems by inventing a fantasy world in which he and his friends are samuraj. The reader is left to figure out what's reality and what's imagination. It is a good concept that could've made for a compelling story. Unfortunately, the first half of the book is very slow and doesn't do a good job of making Kenny likeable. The second half gets up to speed and Kenny gets more character, but the behaviour of the camp leaders is not written in a convincing way, making the plot feel somewhat unbelievable.

Overall I would say the book has a promising concept that is executed poorly.

I read this book in its original language (Swedish) and that was good practice. Besides that, I wouldn't recommend it.

[Elo Maria · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Aga nad ei tahtnud mitte ainult otsustada. Nad tahtsid meid omada, kuna sellega, mis on sinu oma, võid sa teha, mida tahad. Võid selle isegi puruks lüüa."

"Oleneb sellest, millises suunas sõita," lausus too sulgedega.
"Ei, muuseas, ega ei olene ikka küll. Maakera on ümmargune. Inimene jõuab alati sinna, kuhu teel on, kui piisavalt kaua teel on."

[Ritva · Rating 1 out of 5]

Jostain syystä ei ollut minun mieleeni. Ei ehkä tuntunut uskottavalta tarinalta? Eikä samurai-ideologiakaan kiehdo minua. Mutta joku nuori tästä varmasti tykkää.

[Gillis · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't think this book about child abuse was what my mom expected when she bought it to listen to in the car with her weeb sons.

[Kristoffer Elisson Snygg · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 ⭐️

[Unclemaner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Samurai Summer

A wonderful take on Lord of the Flies...and a little of Catcher in the Rye...perfect depiction of kids under stress...and redemption!

[Deneé · Rating 3 out of 5]

Originally posted at Novel Reveries

“Those were the truest words ever spoken. Never trust a grown-up.” (loc. 1510)

It’s a bit hard to do a review on a book that felt weird from the beginning. First I had to get used to the writing style, which is told through the eyes of a troubled child. Second I had to sort through what was imaginary and what wasn’t, which became harder and harder as the book went on. I’m not all too sure what specific genre this book is intended for, but I wouldn’t say it’s for children; it’s not all that exciting, it’s a bit confusing and some of the subject matter probably isn’t appropriate for children. I give this book three stars because the ending did interest me, and some of Tommy/Kenny’s insights were quite philosophical. I understand what part of the message was– that some grown-ups as seen through a child’s eye, really are as evil as the child thinks– but the choppy plot, and the whole Samurai thing, sort of complicated the understanding.

“It was morning again. The sun rose on good evil alike. This morning, the evil had cooked up something new.” (loc. 1096)

In all, I wasn’t too hooked on the plot, nor was I ever really sure where it was leading to. I found the ending interesting, but that’s about it. I wouldn’t be too sure who I could recommend this book to, because I’m not too sure they’d find the book interesting or understand the complete meaning of Samurai Summer.

“Things happen, sometimes because they have to, sometimes even though they don’t have to. Sometimes it’s horrible. And the most horrible things are the most difficult to explain.” (loc. 3542)

First Line: “I wish this was a secret story.” (loc. 58)
Last Line: “From Japan maybe.” (loc.3548)
--------------------

Quotes:

“This story is about the lake and the forest.” (loc. 74)

“If I swear sometimes, it’s because my should hasn’t yet evolved into the perfect state: satori. That’s when the soul and the sword become one.” (loc. 91)

“Sometimes all the summers flow together like different streams flowing into the spring when the water’s high.” (loc. 116)

“When you were a kid you didn’t get to decide anything. At least not about yourself.” (loc. 304)

“Just like always around here, I thought. Nothing that happened ever actually happened. Not even when the worst happened did they every say that anything had happened.” (loc. 3417)
-----------------------

Galley provided by NetGalley via Amazon Children's Publishing

*Quotes are from uncorrected advanced galleys and may change before going to press. Please refer to the final printed book for official quotes.

[Christopher · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was really impressed by this book. I think if I had read more books like this as a 10-12 year-old, I probably would have started reading more regularly a lot sooner. It's a story about a group of friends at a summer camp for disadvantaged kids who use their fantasy of being samurai warriors as a means of coping with/escaping from their hardships. From that description, you might think it sounds boring and overly-contemplative, but it read more like a page-turner than a children's novel.

I found it really interesting how the main character is not very likable in the beginning, but at the same time you sympathize immensely with him. By the end, you realize that his major faults are mostly a product of his flawed upbringing and despite all his hatred, hardheadedness and loner-attitude, he knows right from wrong and always acts accordingly.

It's also important to mention that characters were very realistic - I think one reason why I didn't read much as a kid was because every book I read about kids my age seemed unrealistic to me. When I was young, I was only exposed to two kinds of books about kids: 1.) the overly preachy books like "Maniac Magee" where the lessons were so blatant that it took away from the book and made the story and characters difficult to relate to or 2.) the overly idealized books where there was no bullying, everyone had a dog and a paper route and no real problems. Of course kids shouldn't have real problems, but they usually do.

In this book, we have 11 and 12 year-olds who have dead-beat parents or no parents, are bullied by their peers and abused by adults who are supposed to be taking care of them and who react like a real kid would when confronted with such abuse. The only lesson to be found here is to do the right thing, and it's not made with significant non-events (à la Maniac Magee's biting off a piece of a Mars bar from the same end that the black kid ate from - GASP!) but just by observing how the characters choose to act: with more loyalty and morality than the adults (and all this despite their harsh upbringing). This is also the first book for kids I've ever read that deals with sexual abuse - and it handles it remarkably well, in a manner that's also appropriate for kids.

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Samurai Summer is a YA novel by Ake Edwardson, three-time winner of the Swedish Crime Writers Academy for his Inspector Winter series for adults ( I recently read and reviewed Room No. 10). This is Edwardson's first YA novel; translator Per Carlsson also translates the Inspector Winter series.

The setting is Sweden in the 1960's. The novel doesn't state the time and place initially, so I was curious and a bit confused, but the hints eventually materialize.

Book Description: Looked at from the outside, the annual summer camp in the countryside might seem idyllic. But for Kenny, a boy with a Samurai's soul, it is no more than a prison camp, guarded by a sadistic woman who is sometimes helped by her terrifying adult son, Christian. Kenny and his "samurai" friends sneak out to the forest to build a secret castle that proves to be a needed compensation for the emotional deprivation each teen experiences at home. But when Kenny returns to camp, he befriends a female camper named Kerstin. She is a tall, fast-moving girl who is easy to talk to and begs to see the castle. But then suddenly she disappears, and Kenny realizes something terrible must have happened to her. Something that points to the old woman who runs the camp but even more so to her aberrant son.

There were a number of things I liked about this novel, although there were a few things that remained vague and a little unsatisfying. Very different style from Edwardson's adult series--Room 10 deals extensively with Winter's thought process; yet, except for the confusing time/place at the beginning, Samurai Summer is a quick read with an interesting protagonist in Kenny. Kenny and his friends' interest in the history and lifestyle of Samurai warriors seems fitting for their age and circumstances. Their fantasy allows them a sense of power over situations beyond their control--as all of the campers come from less than ideal home lives, financially and emotionally.

Young readers will enjoy this story that proves that adolescent fantasy can go a long way in helping confront the realities of life.

A Net Galley ARC/Amazon Children's Publishing.

YA/Mystery. publ. date June 25, 2013. ISBN-10: 1477816542

[Shawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Samurai Summer is a coming of age story set in a Swedish Summer Camp in the 60s. Kenny is the main character, who is 12 years old and will be too old to return to the camp after this, his final summer. Kenny considers himself a samurai and is the leader of his group of friends who are his samurai in training. They are planning and building a "castle" in the woods that has become a home away from home for all of them.

There is a war raging between the kids and the adults who run the camp, and Kenny and his friends are determined to win. As the story transpires, tension builds along with foreshadowing, reeling the reader in for the grand finale.

A very enjoyable insightful! The reader is given a window into the mind of a 12-year-old who has very little trust for adults, but finds that kids find strength when they band together.

Adults will benefit from reading this book to be reminded what it was like to be a kid with little understanding of how the world works and very little power to defend against adults who want to control you and in some cases prey upon you. It will also benefit children, teaching them about the power of self discipline and also how cooperation with others, even those we may not otherwise like, can help us to reach our goals.

I received a free copy of this book through Goodreads First Reads.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Summary:
Kenny is attending a summer camp that seems to be for juvenile delinquents and is run by the government. While there, he is fascinated with samurais. He decides to spend his summer becoming one. As the book goes on, other children begin to follow Kenny and they make a "castle" in the woods to prepare for battle. They do have a battle with the adults, who are clearly abusing children. This "epic" battle ends and we hope the children's lives improve.

My thoughts:
Honestly, I found this extremely difficult to get into. It's confusing. I don't know if there is something lacking in the translation or if it is the book in general, but there is no clear development. The setting is not developed and it takes awhile to actually get what is going on. Kenny is not really developed. The reader has no background on him at all. It is really difficult to like him at all because everything is so depressing and dark. Plus, I had a hard time figuring out his motivation. Finally, there is barely any action at all. The only thing that makes this a redeemable is the general mood and tone of the story. You can really feel the novel even without the descriptions.

[Aidan M · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Samurai Summer, by Åke Edwardson, the main character Kenny spends the summer at a summer camp where he and a few friends try to become samurai warriors. The samurai really dislike the owner of the camp Matron and find out that her son Christian stalks a girl at the camp. The samurai realize they must save the rest of the children at the camp from Matron and Christian and try to escape.

[Rachelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

For a first time teen novel it is a good storyline. I enjoyed the story overall but it could have used a lot more detail about what was going on in the camp and more on why the kids were there in the first place. But I give the book 3 stars for a keeping me attentive to the story.

[Beth Chapple · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was halfway in before I realized this was really meant as a children's book. That meant the concerns of the protagonist were not really mine, but the author did construct a good story. It was an easy read considering it was in Swedish!

[Jamie]

I won this book in a goodreads giveaway. Very excited to read it!

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read the translated version, coming out this month. It's a very "guy" book- not the happiest book, but very well done! It was like Holes, but creepier? Scarier?

[Drucilla · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted this book to be a little more lighthearted and focus more on the samurai stuff. It seems like much of the just story happens and the characters are caught up in it.

[Mark Flowers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reviewing this for VOYA - I'm planning on rereading and thinking it over some more, but I'm pretty sure it is amazing.

[Omar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gets hard to understand at some points

[Willie Graham · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book with my 10-year-old. He really enjoyed it. I have to say, I was pretty entertained.

[Kristin Fletcher-spear · Rating 2 out of 5]

reviewed for library media connection.