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Sixty Summers
When Maggie, Fran and Rose met in their youth, they had dreams and ambitions. Forty years later, the three friends are turning 60, each of them restless and disenchanted with their lives. Fran works in a second-hand bookshop. Her lover, one of a long line of disappointing men, is drifting away and her future is uncertain. Maggie married into a volatile family. Her beautiful, indulged twin daughters are causing havoc and her elderly mother-in-law has moved in and is taking charge. Rose has been an off-sider for her hopelessly vague but academically brilliant husband and their two sons. Time is running out to find and fulfill her own ambitions. In an attempt to recapture the sense of freedom and purpose they once possessed, they decide to retrace the steps of their 1978 backpacking trip through Europe, an odyssey that will test their friendships and redefine the third age of their lives.
- GenresContemporaryChick Lit
288 pages, Paperback
Published October 1, 2020
57 people are currently reading
251 people want to read
About the author
Amanda Hampson
12 books216 followersMelbourne-based author, Amanda Hampson has been writing professionally for more than 30 years and is the award-winning author of nine novels: The Olive Sisters, Two for the Road, The French Perfumer, The Yellow Villa, Sixty Summers, Lovebirds, The Tea Ladies, The Cryptic Clue and The Deadly Dispute.
A runaway bestseller, The Tea Ladies won the 2024 Danger Awards for Best Crime Fiction and was Shortlisted for 2024 Davitt Awards Best Adult Crime & 2024 Ned Kelly Awards Best Fiction.
A runaway bestseller, The Tea Ladies won the 2024 Danger Awards for Best Crime Fiction and was Shortlisted for 2024 Davitt Awards Best Adult Crime & 2024 Ned Kelly Awards Best Fiction.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 69 reviews
July 30, 2019
Maggie, Fran and Rose all met when they were younger. Forty years on and they are all turning sixty and after quite a lot of discussion they decide it’s time to recapture their early days. Looking back on their lives they feel they need to get away and they decide the best way to do that is to revisit Europe a place they went when they were younger.
Maggie, Fran and Rose are all hoping that this holiday will help them to regroup and retrace their footsteps of their youth. But these women are more mature now and have lived a good portion of their lives, so will this holiday turn out to be what they wanted or will they return home dissatisfied?
This was a very enjoyable read one in which explored the lives and friendships of three friends. Recommended. With thanks to the very generous Theresa Smith for my copy of this book.
Maggie, Fran and Rose are all hoping that this holiday will help them to regroup and retrace their footsteps of their youth. But these women are more mature now and have lived a good portion of their lives, so will this holiday turn out to be what they wanted or will they return home dissatisfied?
This was a very enjoyable read one in which explored the lives and friendships of three friends. Recommended. With thanks to the very generous Theresa Smith for my copy of this book.
May 12, 2019
*https://mrsbbookreviews.wordpress.com
‘It’s not just about the places and memories. It’s about the three of us making that journey together again, rediscovering ourselves.’
Sixty Summers, the title has a beautiful ring to it, along with a meaningful message, life is too short for compromise. I have to agree completely! Sixty Summers is a travel infused novel, full of valuable life lessons, along with a stunning exploration into the many shades of an enduring female friendship circle. I inhaled this novel over the course of a weekend, the pages seemed to turn themselves as I completely surrendered myself to the lives of Maggie, Fran and Rose.
Friends since they were young women with their whole lives ahead of them, Maggie, Fran and Rose have travelled, dreamed and aspired together. Forty years since their first trek across the corners of the world, the trio are looking down the barrel at celebrating their sixtieth birthdays. We come to learn that each is somewhat dissatisfied with the direction of their life. The three friends decide to seize the day and together they make plans to retrace the steps of their youth. Hoping to capture the essence of their carefree days as young women, the trio follow the same path they travelled in 1978, during their backpacking trip across Europe. The women are now older, wiser, but less satisfied with their lives and this trip proves to be a big wake up call. The trip does not turn out how they had planned, but it is a welcome opportunity to recoup and think of a way forward.
This marks the third novel I have read by author Amanda Hampson. I feel like Amanda Hampson has really found her niche, her books are wonderful travel odes, set beyond our shores, exploring the idea of travel as an impetus for life changes. In the case of Sixty Summers, Hampson takes a solid friendship between three friends, she issues them with the ultimate test to their relationship with one another and their view of themselves. This is life lit with a difference and I really enjoyed the challenge Hampson issues her character set.
There is a wonderful cosmopolitan feel to Sixty Summers. It inspires the reader to pack their suitcase, throw caution into the wind, get right out there and explore the world! If only we didn’t have all those life responsibilities! For those who are in the third chapter of their lives, the empty nesters and the baby boomers, the three women in this book and their connected experiences will draw plenty of appeal, as well as understanding. Amanda Hampson does an excellent job of drawing our attention to the direct feelings experienced by those aged over sixty. The regret, the life choices and the yearning for a different life. In Maggie, Fran and Rose’s case there was a strong desire to recapture the carefree attitude and wanderlust of youth. I did admire how these women were able to leave their current existence and trek across the world, in search of their lost past.
Within a strong exploration of the different women, their personalities and life issues that they must contend with both individually and as a set, Sixty Summers is an involving novel that connects directly to the reader. I found pieces of all three women reflected in those around me. The highly relative nature of the characters is thanks to the work of author Amanda Hampson, who has strived to deliver a cast of characters that are entertaining, honest and likeable. I loved how these women were tested to their very limits, but they managed to hold each other up and cross that bridge! With some very important themes thrown in the mix, this is the ultimate female road trip story.
I must mention how much I absolutely adored the travel sequences in Sixty Summers before I wrap up this review. My heart belongs to France and Amanda Hampson made me one delighted reader with all the picturesque references of my happy place. There are also some stunning scenes set in a number of other European locales that were both very familiar and unfamiliar to me. Here is a touch of one of the observations made by the character of Rose during the Paris leg of the journey.
‘The cool snap was unfortunate but Paris was still Paris. Rose loved its grand and generous buildings and narrow cobblestone streets, and thrilled at the sheer ambition of its Napoleonic boulevards. To see the thread of lights swooping up the Champs-Elysees to the Arc de Triomphe and the golden light pouring through the arch at sunset made her heart flutter.’
On that stellar parting note, Sixty Summers is a book that I hold in high regard, it should be enjoyed, and shared with a wide variety of readers. There are plenty of high talking points in this novel, which are highlighted in the ‘Book Club Discussion’ segment at the close of the novel. Pass this one on to your close friends, mothers, grandmothers, aunts, cousins, colleagues and the like. Sixty Summers will encourage the reader to find a new opening in their life, may it be a passion for travel, a new relationship, to take up a different hobby, or to make a career change. Sixty Summers offers plenty of mental nourishment.
*I wish to thank Penguin Books Australia for providing me with a free copy of this book for review purposes.
Sixty Summers is book #63 of the 2019 Australian Women Writers Challenge
‘It’s not just about the places and memories. It’s about the three of us making that journey together again, rediscovering ourselves.’
Sixty Summers, the title has a beautiful ring to it, along with a meaningful message, life is too short for compromise. I have to agree completely! Sixty Summers is a travel infused novel, full of valuable life lessons, along with a stunning exploration into the many shades of an enduring female friendship circle. I inhaled this novel over the course of a weekend, the pages seemed to turn themselves as I completely surrendered myself to the lives of Maggie, Fran and Rose.
Friends since they were young women with their whole lives ahead of them, Maggie, Fran and Rose have travelled, dreamed and aspired together. Forty years since their first trek across the corners of the world, the trio are looking down the barrel at celebrating their sixtieth birthdays. We come to learn that each is somewhat dissatisfied with the direction of their life. The three friends decide to seize the day and together they make plans to retrace the steps of their youth. Hoping to capture the essence of their carefree days as young women, the trio follow the same path they travelled in 1978, during their backpacking trip across Europe. The women are now older, wiser, but less satisfied with their lives and this trip proves to be a big wake up call. The trip does not turn out how they had planned, but it is a welcome opportunity to recoup and think of a way forward.
This marks the third novel I have read by author Amanda Hampson. I feel like Amanda Hampson has really found her niche, her books are wonderful travel odes, set beyond our shores, exploring the idea of travel as an impetus for life changes. In the case of Sixty Summers, Hampson takes a solid friendship between three friends, she issues them with the ultimate test to their relationship with one another and their view of themselves. This is life lit with a difference and I really enjoyed the challenge Hampson issues her character set.
There is a wonderful cosmopolitan feel to Sixty Summers. It inspires the reader to pack their suitcase, throw caution into the wind, get right out there and explore the world! If only we didn’t have all those life responsibilities! For those who are in the third chapter of their lives, the empty nesters and the baby boomers, the three women in this book and their connected experiences will draw plenty of appeal, as well as understanding. Amanda Hampson does an excellent job of drawing our attention to the direct feelings experienced by those aged over sixty. The regret, the life choices and the yearning for a different life. In Maggie, Fran and Rose’s case there was a strong desire to recapture the carefree attitude and wanderlust of youth. I did admire how these women were able to leave their current existence and trek across the world, in search of their lost past.
Within a strong exploration of the different women, their personalities and life issues that they must contend with both individually and as a set, Sixty Summers is an involving novel that connects directly to the reader. I found pieces of all three women reflected in those around me. The highly relative nature of the characters is thanks to the work of author Amanda Hampson, who has strived to deliver a cast of characters that are entertaining, honest and likeable. I loved how these women were tested to their very limits, but they managed to hold each other up and cross that bridge! With some very important themes thrown in the mix, this is the ultimate female road trip story.
I must mention how much I absolutely adored the travel sequences in Sixty Summers before I wrap up this review. My heart belongs to France and Amanda Hampson made me one delighted reader with all the picturesque references of my happy place. There are also some stunning scenes set in a number of other European locales that were both very familiar and unfamiliar to me. Here is a touch of one of the observations made by the character of Rose during the Paris leg of the journey.
‘The cool snap was unfortunate but Paris was still Paris. Rose loved its grand and generous buildings and narrow cobblestone streets, and thrilled at the sheer ambition of its Napoleonic boulevards. To see the thread of lights swooping up the Champs-Elysees to the Arc de Triomphe and the golden light pouring through the arch at sunset made her heart flutter.’
On that stellar parting note, Sixty Summers is a book that I hold in high regard, it should be enjoyed, and shared with a wide variety of readers. There are plenty of high talking points in this novel, which are highlighted in the ‘Book Club Discussion’ segment at the close of the novel. Pass this one on to your close friends, mothers, grandmothers, aunts, cousins, colleagues and the like. Sixty Summers will encourage the reader to find a new opening in their life, may it be a passion for travel, a new relationship, to take up a different hobby, or to make a career change. Sixty Summers offers plenty of mental nourishment.
*I wish to thank Penguin Books Australia for providing me with a free copy of this book for review purposes.
Sixty Summers is book #63 of the 2019 Australian Women Writers Challenge
May 8, 2019
Sixty Summers is a charming, astute and moving novel about friendship, love, and being true to yourself, no matter your age.
In their youth, Maggie, Rose, and Fran imagined bright futures filled with love, adventure, and success. Now, approaching their sixtieth birthdays, the three friends wonder what happened to those dreams. Maggie is overworked and under appreciated by her large family, Rose is bored, and frustrated by her needy husband, and Fran is disappointed with both her lacklustre career and love life.
Hoping to revive the spirit of joie de vivre they have lost, Maggie, Rose and Fran decide to relive a European tour they took in their early twenties. It’s a journey that will challenge and ultimately redefine who they are, and what they want.
“And here they were, forty years later. They had changed beyond recognition. And not changed at all.”
Hampson’s characterisation in Sixty Summers is thoughtful and feels authentic. Each of Hampson’s characters are unsatisfied with their lives at the outset of the trip. Fran perhaps only mildly, Rose a little more so, but Maggie is emotionally exhausted and near her breaking point. These women are closer to my mothers age than mine, yet I can empathise with each of them in some manner.
“She was struck by the horrible thought that this well-intentioned adventure could end up costing the three of them their friendship”
Despite retracing the route they took as young women, inspiring some joyful reminisces, it becomes clear that the lack of spontaneity in their comfortable itinerary is stifling the experience they hoped for, and Hampson thoughtfully portrays the women’s increasing frustration with the situation, and each other.
“So the upshot of this disaster is that it’s cheered us all up..”
An impulsive purchase, a theft, a near death experience, and a long held secret one of the women is keeping, all eventually conspire to throw their carefully planned schedule off track. Circumstances finally allows Maggie and Rose some freedom from their family’s transatlantic interruptions, so when they reach the Grecian Coast they are all ready to take a risk and be honest with each other, and themselves.
“Anyone who saw them would assume they were three old hens on a cosy holiday, never suspecting that they had met their younger selves, witnessed their lives from a different angle, and changed in ways even they couldn’t yet know.”
While I enjoyed the vicarious tour of Europe, visiting Paris, Berlin, Prague, Vienna, through Italy and over to Greece, richly described by the author, (and whose real life tour I will be featuring on the blog later this week), it’s really the emotional journey’s of Hampson’s characters that kept me engrossed in this novel.
In Sixty Summers, Hampson reminds us that the ‘third act’ need not be the final act, change is still possible, though it will take honesty and courage.
In their youth, Maggie, Rose, and Fran imagined bright futures filled with love, adventure, and success. Now, approaching their sixtieth birthdays, the three friends wonder what happened to those dreams. Maggie is overworked and under appreciated by her large family, Rose is bored, and frustrated by her needy husband, and Fran is disappointed with both her lacklustre career and love life.
Hoping to revive the spirit of joie de vivre they have lost, Maggie, Rose and Fran decide to relive a European tour they took in their early twenties. It’s a journey that will challenge and ultimately redefine who they are, and what they want.
“And here they were, forty years later. They had changed beyond recognition. And not changed at all.”
Hampson’s characterisation in Sixty Summers is thoughtful and feels authentic. Each of Hampson’s characters are unsatisfied with their lives at the outset of the trip. Fran perhaps only mildly, Rose a little more so, but Maggie is emotionally exhausted and near her breaking point. These women are closer to my mothers age than mine, yet I can empathise with each of them in some manner.
“She was struck by the horrible thought that this well-intentioned adventure could end up costing the three of them their friendship”
Despite retracing the route they took as young women, inspiring some joyful reminisces, it becomes clear that the lack of spontaneity in their comfortable itinerary is stifling the experience they hoped for, and Hampson thoughtfully portrays the women’s increasing frustration with the situation, and each other.
“So the upshot of this disaster is that it’s cheered us all up..”
An impulsive purchase, a theft, a near death experience, and a long held secret one of the women is keeping, all eventually conspire to throw their carefully planned schedule off track. Circumstances finally allows Maggie and Rose some freedom from their family’s transatlantic interruptions, so when they reach the Grecian Coast they are all ready to take a risk and be honest with each other, and themselves.
“Anyone who saw them would assume they were three old hens on a cosy holiday, never suspecting that they had met their younger selves, witnessed their lives from a different angle, and changed in ways even they couldn’t yet know.”
While I enjoyed the vicarious tour of Europe, visiting Paris, Berlin, Prague, Vienna, through Italy and over to Greece, richly described by the author, (and whose real life tour I will be featuring on the blog later this week), it’s really the emotional journey’s of Hampson’s characters that kept me engrossed in this novel.
In Sixty Summers, Hampson reminds us that the ‘third act’ need not be the final act, change is still possible, though it will take honesty and courage.
June 24, 2019
I had read the Yellow Villa which i really liked, so was very surprised about the writing style of this novel. different style completely
I am the same age as the characters in the book. I found them to be 3 very disappointing ladies and could not relate to any of them
I am the same age as the characters in the book. I found them to be 3 very disappointing ladies and could not relate to any of them
January 24, 2020
I loved the travel aspect of this book. Bookmarked so many descriptions of places, but I didn't really like any of the three main characters. I appreciated the issues that the author was trying to explore but didn't like them
May 8, 2019
‘She would give anything to feel, even for a brief moment, that charge of the energy, optimism and lightness she had felt back then, a time when she believed that her life had finally begun. She’d felt free and brave and strong. This flat was her stronghold, Maggie and Rose were her family – the centre of everything. It was as if she had been trying to replicate that experience ever since; trying to find a relationship that would be everything they had been to her. How could she have known that that time would always remain the happiest, least complicated era of her life?’
I do enjoy Amanda Hampson’s novels, with their crisp and engaging prose. Sixty Summers was a bit of a challenge for me though. Overall, this is a good novel, and many readers will love it, but I just couldn’t bond with any of the characters. The generation gap was too vast, preventing me from properly becoming invested in their lives, problems, and new beginnings.
‘It’s a bit like being in a Beckett play. We’re trapped in the same conversations and, sometimes, the same conflicts we had forty years ago, with only slightly different subjects.’
I did however really enjoy the travel aspect of this story, particularly the then and now comparisons. Forty years is a long time, places change a lot. I really liked the idea of retracing a path travelled long ago, noting the changes, both for the better and the worse.
‘Anyone who saw them would assume they were three old hens on a cosy holiday, never suspecting that they had met their younger selves, witnessed their lives from a different angle, and were changed in ways even they couldn’t yet know.’
Sixty Summers is an ideal read for the armchair traveller and for those who enjoy the perspective of an older protagonist. It’s a novel that ends very well and demonstrates that you are never too old to rediscover who you are and pursue what you want.
Thanks is extended to Penguin Random House Australia for providing me with a copy of Sixty Summers for review.
I do enjoy Amanda Hampson’s novels, with their crisp and engaging prose. Sixty Summers was a bit of a challenge for me though. Overall, this is a good novel, and many readers will love it, but I just couldn’t bond with any of the characters. The generation gap was too vast, preventing me from properly becoming invested in their lives, problems, and new beginnings.
‘It’s a bit like being in a Beckett play. We’re trapped in the same conversations and, sometimes, the same conflicts we had forty years ago, with only slightly different subjects.’
I did however really enjoy the travel aspect of this story, particularly the then and now comparisons. Forty years is a long time, places change a lot. I really liked the idea of retracing a path travelled long ago, noting the changes, both for the better and the worse.
‘Anyone who saw them would assume they were three old hens on a cosy holiday, never suspecting that they had met their younger selves, witnessed their lives from a different angle, and were changed in ways even they couldn’t yet know.’
Sixty Summers is an ideal read for the armchair traveller and for those who enjoy the perspective of an older protagonist. It’s a novel that ends very well and demonstrates that you are never too old to rediscover who you are and pursue what you want.
Thanks is extended to Penguin Random House Australia for providing me with a copy of Sixty Summers for review.
August 21, 2021
I did love it, such gorgeous armchair travel; the scenery was absolutely spectacular….’the pale green light pouring into the..Hauptbahnhof’, ‘the countryside outside Paris..’, the moon rising over the lake’…it’s so so beautiful.I also absolutely loved the characters, I felt like I was amongst friends and love that friendship that spans decades. I was completely there for the storyline of their ‘well-intentioned adventure’; expecting to be ‘like eat, pray, love the trilogy and instead it’s been more like drink, fight, drown’…
It’s a great novel, I just wonder if the cover is misleading, for me it didn’t match the novel at all 😔
It’s a great novel, I just wonder if the cover is misleading, for me it didn’t match the novel at all 😔
June 25, 2020
This book was a good read. It was like talking to a
Old friend. The ladies all had problems but they worked them out. It opens your eyes to the fact we all need to take time for ourselves. A great story and great strong characters.
Old friend. The ladies all had problems but they worked them out. It opens your eyes to the fact we all need to take time for ourselves. A great story and great strong characters.
December 14, 2024
Can you ever get those past feeling back…..
Sixty Summers is a book that is quite deceptive. It has the appearance that it is a light-hearted, feel-good story of friends coming together, reliving their youthful travels, getting into some funny situations and reconnecting. Now don’t get me wrong, it is all that, but it is also so, so much more.
Maggie, Rose and Fran have been friends for decades and feel they know everything that there is to know about each other, there are no secrets, but what the story soon reveals is that each has their own secrets, regrets and feelings that the others are totally unaware of, and let me say, a few of the secrets are quite huge.
As I was reading, I will admit that I formed very strong feelings about each of the families and the impact they were having on the Maggie, Rose and Fran. I could feel myself wanting to step in and tell a few of them to back off. Having said that though, as I made my way through the journey with them, I could feel the emotional state shift and change for the three women.
There are some deep issues that are dealt with, and some funny situations that occur, and from the very beginning I realised that it was going to be a book that grabbed my attention and kept me entertained throughout.
There were quite a few moments that made me laugh, including early on when Maggie suggests “Let’s get pissed and talk shit and be young again for an hour or two.”
There are a lot of twist and turns in the story, with some major revelations, and it was quite a surprise to see what ended up happening when the three travellers returned to their everyday lives.
I found myself enjoying Sixty Summers and would recommend grabbing a copy for yourself and heading off on an adventure with Maggie, Rose and Fran. You never know where you might end up.
#sixtysummers
#amandahampson
#nostalgicmemories
#vikingbooks
#penguinbooksaustralia
Sixty Summers is a book that is quite deceptive. It has the appearance that it is a light-hearted, feel-good story of friends coming together, reliving their youthful travels, getting into some funny situations and reconnecting. Now don’t get me wrong, it is all that, but it is also so, so much more.
Maggie, Rose and Fran have been friends for decades and feel they know everything that there is to know about each other, there are no secrets, but what the story soon reveals is that each has their own secrets, regrets and feelings that the others are totally unaware of, and let me say, a few of the secrets are quite huge.
As I was reading, I will admit that I formed very strong feelings about each of the families and the impact they were having on the Maggie, Rose and Fran. I could feel myself wanting to step in and tell a few of them to back off. Having said that though, as I made my way through the journey with them, I could feel the emotional state shift and change for the three women.
There are some deep issues that are dealt with, and some funny situations that occur, and from the very beginning I realised that it was going to be a book that grabbed my attention and kept me entertained throughout.
There were quite a few moments that made me laugh, including early on when Maggie suggests “Let’s get pissed and talk shit and be young again for an hour or two.”
There are a lot of twist and turns in the story, with some major revelations, and it was quite a surprise to see what ended up happening when the three travellers returned to their everyday lives.
I found myself enjoying Sixty Summers and would recommend grabbing a copy for yourself and heading off on an adventure with Maggie, Rose and Fran. You never know where you might end up.
#sixtysummers
#amandahampson
#nostalgicmemories
#vikingbooks
#penguinbooksaustralia
August 27, 2023
If you’re looking for escapist Eat Pray and Love fantasies this book is not for you. If you’re looking for something real, part hilarious, part sober and depressing reality check - but all round inspiring, meaningful, relatable, reassurance that you’re not alone on this crazy journey called life - then read this book!
Sixty Summers is about 3 Australian women on the verge of 60 who go off to recreate their European adventure from when they were 20 in 1978. Now I’m a generation younger than they are but fast approaching that milestone, so your mileage may vary. But also as an Australian woman of Greek ancestry I felt seen! Her descriptions of Maggies’s Greek-in-laws left me in hysterics and relieved that my family is not the only crazy one. It’s sooo real! Loved it, recommended immediately to all female members of my family before I’d even hit page 70. Now don’t worry it’s not all Greek, but it is distinctly Australian.
Maggie, Fran and Rose have created vastly different lives for themselves over the forty year period of their friendship - coming together just once a year to reminisce - before this adventure begins. Each of their stories past and present are explored as the narrative effortlessly unfolds. It’s about life, the choices we make and ultimately what truly matters. Or as Amanda Hampson herself says “She realised that the biggest resistance she had to starting a new life was the belief that she was too old to start afresh. The truth was, she was too old to wait”.
Totally fabulous read, highly recommend.
Sixty Summers is about 3 Australian women on the verge of 60 who go off to recreate their European adventure from when they were 20 in 1978. Now I’m a generation younger than they are but fast approaching that milestone, so your mileage may vary. But also as an Australian woman of Greek ancestry I felt seen! Her descriptions of Maggies’s Greek-in-laws left me in hysterics and relieved that my family is not the only crazy one. It’s sooo real! Loved it, recommended immediately to all female members of my family before I’d even hit page 70. Now don’t worry it’s not all Greek, but it is distinctly Australian.
Maggie, Fran and Rose have created vastly different lives for themselves over the forty year period of their friendship - coming together just once a year to reminisce - before this adventure begins. Each of their stories past and present are explored as the narrative effortlessly unfolds. It’s about life, the choices we make and ultimately what truly matters. Or as Amanda Hampson herself says “She realised that the biggest resistance she had to starting a new life was the belief that she was too old to start afresh. The truth was, she was too old to wait”.
Totally fabulous read, highly recommend.
June 17, 2020
The title says it all! Three friends, turning sixty, meet up in Europe to relive their trip from forty years ago. Two Australians, Maggie and Rose, met up with Fran in London all those years ago, went on holiday in a kombi van and kept in touch. This latest holiday gives them the time they need to step back from their busy lives and decide how they want to spend the Third Age. Great characters, complicated lives and not-so-easy to guess outcomes.
September 26, 2020
Amanda Hampson grew up in New Zealand then travelled and then settled in Sydney Australia. I found this book quite hard to get into at the beginning as it felt a little disjointed but when the women went on their trip it fell into place. A story of three women about to reach sixty who for different reasons were unhappy with the way their life was. Every year the two women who lived in Australia met and video called their friend in London, then this year they decided to meet up and retrace the trip they did together to Italy and Greece when they were young. Which is summed up by the sentence "It's not just about the places and memories. It's about the three of us making that journey together again, rediscovering ourselves". There were tears and heartache and wonderful experiences and laughter which gave them the strength to either change their life totally or to be honest with their loved ones.
November 19, 2024
As part of my Willoughby book reading challenge I had to select a book with my eyes closed- this was the title I pulled from a library shelf.
On reading the synopsis I thought it had potential; sadly it didn’t. The three main characters did little but moan, squabble and cry. Ultimately they made some resolutions but I really didn’t care.
On reading the synopsis I thought it had potential; sadly it didn’t. The three main characters did little but moan, squabble and cry. Ultimately they made some resolutions but I really didn’t care.
June 4, 2019
An enjoyable read.
March 5, 2024
What a great story, so many facets - family, travel, belonging...wonderful!
June 30, 2019
A story about three 60 year old women trying to recapture their youth by recreating the trip they did around Europe together when they were 18. I just happened to be reading this for with my book club as I was also travelling around Europe. Sadly I found much of the book slow, depressing and lacking in excitement and joy. Yes I acknowledge that each of the women had their individual priblems, but while i was in Paris, Italy and then Greece, loving every minute of it, these ladies spent most of their time being miserable. Life is too short, move on!!
September 2, 2019
I did enjoy this book, as it bought back memories of a trip l took in my twenties touring around Europe in a camper van. l am now in my sixties, so the thought of a trip to Europe does come up frequently. This book discusses the complexities of relationships and also the problems that arise in rearing children of all ages. It addresses how true we are to ourselves and our needs, and compares the difference that sixty year olds face with many having put their lives on hold for their families and children due to the influence of what was expected by our generation growing up, when woman's role was more often not in the home and our parents finding time for their own needs was not often a consideration. The baby boomers grew up with the hippie generation and a strong change in styles of music which influenced the culture greatly. It discusses how making a change in life re travel or job can bring about change in how we view our lives and whether their is room to make more permanent changes to the lifestyle we are living.
June 30, 2019
I really enjoyed this book and having heard the author talk about it recently it was interesting to have her background on it.
Many passages in it took me back to my own youth and wonder ‘what if...’
Had I made different choices I would not have my wonderful children or grandchildren, but certain other things could have been better. My choices then were the best I could make at the time.
Amanda’s description of living in a Greek (or Italian or many other ethnic )family was spot on. Each of the characters had differing problems within their lives but by the end had been able to come to a satisfactory conclusion.
Her descriptions of where the characters were, whether Australia, London or parts of Europe evoked clear visions.
I read it in a day - couldn’t put it down, which shows how much I liked it
Many passages in it took me back to my own youth and wonder ‘what if...’
Had I made different choices I would not have my wonderful children or grandchildren, but certain other things could have been better. My choices then were the best I could make at the time.
Amanda’s description of living in a Greek (or Italian or many other ethnic )family was spot on. Each of the characters had differing problems within their lives but by the end had been able to come to a satisfactory conclusion.
Her descriptions of where the characters were, whether Australia, London or parts of Europe evoked clear visions.
I read it in a day - couldn’t put it down, which shows how much I liked it
December 26, 2019
I enjoyed this as much as The Yellow Villa, maybe more so even though I suppose there's a little less drama in this and more sightseeing. It was a nice read about 3 women who have been friends 40 years, who are all at the stage of wondering what to do with the rest of their lives. Asking themselves questions like 'what would I have done differently?' and 'is it too late to start over?'. I particularly felt for Maggie being trapped in such a toxic situation and feeling like she had nobody to turn to. All three women are stuck where they are and feeling lost and restless. By the end of the book they all must face up to the choices they've made, and face up to the people in their lives who are taking them for granted.
It's hard to find good books about older women so if this is what you're looking for check out Sixty Summers, it's worth the trip.
It's hard to find good books about older women so if this is what you're looking for check out Sixty Summers, it's worth the trip.
January 1, 2020
I wasn't sure when I started Sixty Summers, but within a couple of chapters I was hooked. I suspected Hampson may have painted herself into a corner, but she proved me wrong as she filled in back story, created tension between characters and worked characters into resolving their issues in unique and often unexpected ways, but remained true to the innate character of each character. She made you feel their pain and desperation. I cried, laughed and was happy to see my friend work through their issues. I'm recommending this book to members of my writers group. We have much to learn from Amanda Hampson. She has a reader who will search out her other works.
May 12, 2021
I tried so hard to finish this book, but half way through I just thought "this is so boring, I can't read another page!"
I have read other Amanda Hampson books and enjoyed them but Sixty Summers was drudgery.
I kept thinking, it will pick up, but alas it didn't.
3 women turning 60, travelling together through Europe trying to recapture their first OE, doing the same journey as in their youth after being friends for over 40 years - well it should have been a good read (at least I thought so).
It was a boring whinge fest.
With so many books in the world, and a limited amout of lifetime, I had to put this one down.
Big thumbs down from me👎👎
I have read other Amanda Hampson books and enjoyed them but Sixty Summers was drudgery.
I kept thinking, it will pick up, but alas it didn't.
3 women turning 60, travelling together through Europe trying to recapture their first OE, doing the same journey as in their youth after being friends for over 40 years - well it should have been a good read (at least I thought so).
It was a boring whinge fest.
With so many books in the world, and a limited amout of lifetime, I had to put this one down.
Big thumbs down from me👎👎
July 12, 2019
I loved this book! Being in my 60's myself ,I identified with all 3 characters and their struggles with their normal home lives. They NEEDED to get away and what a journey it became.
I laughed out loud a few times at their exploits and as a traveller loved the descriptions of the various places.
Strong characterisation and a believable plot. Great summer read (or in my case winter and sitting in the sunshine)
I laughed out loud a few times at their exploits and as a traveller loved the descriptions of the various places.
Strong characterisation and a believable plot. Great summer read (or in my case winter and sitting in the sunshine)
July 8, 2019
This was a DNF for me. I gave the audiobook a go, a risky proposition, as it's not really my kind of book. I was hoping that that Eiffel Tower on the cover would pull me through, but no.
I like the premise. Three women, friends for 30-40 years, are about to turn 60, and go on a rather spur of the moment trip to Europe to recreate a trip they did in their twenties. All well and good. But really ladies you hadn't given any thought to how to celebrate 60? The Big Zero birthdays above 40 need a lot of consideration. You're never guaranteed the next one.
I only got as far as them arriving in London. I didn't make it to Paris. I started another audiobook which is always a bad sign. I found Maggie rather annoying and felt no sympathy for her whatsoever, but liked the other two characters more.
I like the premise. Three women, friends for 30-40 years, are about to turn 60, and go on a rather spur of the moment trip to Europe to recreate a trip they did in their twenties. All well and good. But really ladies you hadn't given any thought to how to celebrate 60? The Big Zero birthdays above 40 need a lot of consideration. You're never guaranteed the next one.
I only got as far as them arriving in London. I didn't make it to Paris. I started another audiobook which is always a bad sign. I found Maggie rather annoying and felt no sympathy for her whatsoever, but liked the other two characters more.
May 27, 2019
A solid 7/10 for me on a book I wasn't expecting I would read and enjoy. We had Amanda coming to visit for an author event so I thought I would read the first chapter to get a feel for the novel and to help in selling it, but I was sucked in by the characters and wanted to know where they were going and read the whole thing - even though I didn't really class myself as the target market. Stories of women, aging, fractured relationships and family are all pretty universal and once you added the trip to Europe I was there. A really enjoyable light read full of friendship and travel and coming into ourselves, no matter our age.
February 17, 2020
I gained one impression of the book from its cover and burb, which didn’t in my opinion quite relate to the book I was reading. I had anticipated a light, easy read and instead got a book that was far more insightful about the regrets of midlife than I had expected.
I suppose few of us reach middle age without regrets for what is, or what might have been. Can a return to the places from past change that? The three women, Maggie, Rose and Fran’s trip gets off to a bumpy start wondering if the friendship can be reignited. Unexpected events break down barriers and each women’s problems or secrets are revealed.
I suppose few of us reach middle age without regrets for what is, or what might have been. Can a return to the places from past change that? The three women, Maggie, Rose and Fran’s trip gets off to a bumpy start wondering if the friendship can be reignited. Unexpected events break down barriers and each women’s problems or secrets are revealed.
April 16, 2022
A beautiful story about three women that have been friends since they were little.
They are now coming up to their 60th birthday and want to travel the world again and retrace their footsteps of where they went in their younger days, backpacking over Europe. Only now with luxuries such as coaches, hotels, mobile phones and internet.
They go on their way only to find it is a lot harder these days then when they were younger.
Back home the troubles persist, so making the holiday that much harder.
A lovely read.
They are now coming up to their 60th birthday and want to travel the world again and retrace their footsteps of where they went in their younger days, backpacking over Europe. Only now with luxuries such as coaches, hotels, mobile phones and internet.
They go on their way only to find it is a lot harder these days then when they were younger.
Back home the troubles persist, so making the holiday that much harder.
A lovely read.
June 21, 2022
Amanda Hampson writes fabulous books about women ‘of a certain age’. They are are funny, insightful, moving and are always wrapped in a great yarn. Sixty Summers is no exception. I really enjoyed the melding of the three characters and their stories, both past and present. There is a little bit of intrigue, just enough to keep you guessing, and a lot of understanding of what it’s like to look back on our lives and the choices we make. Throw in some European adventures and you have a fantastic read. Thoroughly recommended!
December 13, 2023
This is a story about three ladies turning sixty and going on a road trip through Europe. Each of them has made a bad choice in the partner area, and lost the opportunity to pursue their own interests.
Through a succession of both serious and laughable tragedies they encounter along the way, they learn to re-establish their priorities and enjoy life again.
Of course it's written by a woman and there's an underlying assumption that it's usually the male's fault. But it is, nevertheless, a fascinating story. I found it hard to put down.
Through a succession of both serious and laughable tragedies they encounter along the way, they learn to re-establish their priorities and enjoy life again.
Of course it's written by a woman and there's an underlying assumption that it's usually the male's fault. But it is, nevertheless, a fascinating story. I found it hard to put down.
May 26, 2025
This book explores the opportunity of reliving the past when three friends revisit Europe to recapture the trip they did 40 years previously, when around 20 years of age. At first, Maggie, Rose and Fran start off excitedly but, as their trip continues, the relationships are tested and many hurtful and surprising truths are exposed. I enjoyed this book, mostly, but felt for the ladies as their personal lives unravelled and threatened their friendship. Thanks to their commitment to each other, they each went home with a new awareness of themselves and the others.
August 24, 2019
This was a bit of a tedious read for me. It’s not as good as the authors other books. By the time I came to the conclusion that none of the characters were very likeable I’d invested too much time in the book and decided to stick it out until the end. The traumatic episode involving the daughter of one of the main characters was just weird. If you had nothing else to read this book is just ok but I can’t really recommend it.
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