The Summer I Turned Pretty

Belly is the novel protagonist. She is 15 at the beginning of the novel, and she believes that summers at Susannah’s beach house in Cousins are all that matter: the rest of the year… read analysis of Belly

Conrad is Susannah and Mr. Fisher’s older son. He’s dark and moody: he plays guitar, spends all his time holed up in his room, and has always withheld affection from Belly. This has… read analysis of Conrad

Jeremiah is Susannah and Mr. Fisher’s younger son. He’s a few months older than Belly and she’s always seen him as her friend, as he’s playful, carefree, kind, and supportive. But despite this, Jeremiah… read analysis of Jeremiah

Susannah is Mom’s best friend from college; Mom calls her Beck, which is Susannah’s maiden name. She has two teenaged sons, Conrad and Jeremiah, and Belly functions as a surrogate daughter. Susannah owns… read analysis of Susannah “Beck” Fisher

Cam is a summer resident in Cousins who becomes Belly’s first boyfriend. He’s tall, kind, and extremely nerdy—he’s studying whales in his free time, is conversational in several languages, and won a prize for… read analysis of Cam Cameron

Taylor is Belly’s best friend from home. She’s blond, thin, and conventionally beautiful—and she’s also ditzy and intensely focused on boys. After pressuring Belly for years to bring her to Cousins, Taylor finally gets… read analysis of Taylor Jewel

Mr. Fisher is Susannah’s husband and Conrad and Jeremiah’s father. He works in finance and usually spends a handful of weekends and the first week of August in Cousins with his family. However… read analysis of Mr. Fisher

Steven is Belly’s 17-year-old brother. He joins Mom, Belly, Susannah, Conrad, and Jeremiah in Cousins for part of the summer, but he then leaves the beach to go on a road… read analysis of Steven

Belly and Steven’s dad lives in an apartment in Boston. He’s a college professor, and he and Mom divorced soon after Belly discovered that he was having affairs with at least one of his… read analysis of Dad

Nicole—whom Belly initially refers to as Red Sox girl due to Nicole’s Red Sox hat—is an older girl in Cousins who briefly dates Conrad. Belly finds her impossibly mature, and she’s extremely jealous of… read analysis of Nicole/Red Sox Girl

Granna is Dad’s mom, Belly and Steven’s grandmother. She lives in Florida, and most years, Dad takes the kids to visit her in the fall. She adored Mom and continues to pester Dad… read analysis of Granna