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The Fishers’ beach house in Cousins symbolizes Belly’s youthful belief that nothing about her summers in Cousins are ever going to change. The beach house, in her mind, is exactly the same now as it was when Mom visited while pregnant with Belly 16 years ago. It still has the same rooms, the same furnishings, and even the same bath and pool towels it always has. Belly finds this immensely comforting. If she can dry herself with the same pool towel, cuddle the same stuffed animal, and listen to the exact same music as she does every other summer, it enables her to go on believing that nothing about her summers ever has to change.
This is, of course, not actually true, and so Belly’s conception of the beach house as a place essentially frozen in time reflects her naivety and innocence. It’s only when she shifts to seeing the beach house as a place where all her most precious childhood memories take place—but a place that she realistically might not visit again, given Susannah’s cancer diagnosis—that Belly comes to truly appreciate the house for what it is. Rather than sheltering her from change, the house becomes a safe place where Belly can experiment with telling the truth (such as telling Conrad that she loves him) and practice accepting that things inevitably change with time.
The Beach House Quotes in The Summer I Turned Pretty
The The Summer I Turned Pretty quotes below all refer to the symbol of The Beach House. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 1 Quotes
I’d sit next to the radiator in history class and wonder what they were doing, if they were warming their feet along the bottom of a radiator somewhere too. Counting the days until summer again. For me, it was almost like winter didn’t count. Summer was what mattered. My whole life was measured in summers. Like I don’t really begin living until June, until I’m at that beach, in that house.
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As Belly’s family approaches the beach house, she explains for readers how summer is a special time for her, in part because she doesn’t see Conrad and Jeremiah (the “they” in this quote) any other time of year. This passage lays out what summers mean to Belly, and it establishes the beach house’s symbolism. Summers at the beach house are essentially a separate time and space from the rest of Belly’s real life. Even as everything changes the rest of the year, Belly always has the summer to look forward to—it’s almost frozen in time. This gives the beach house Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusam
Chapter 26 Quotes
After she went to bed, early, Conrad said to me, conversationally, “They’re getting a divorce.”
“Who?” I said.
“My parents. It’s about time.”
Jeremiah glared at him. “Shut up, Conrad.”
Conrad shrugged. “Why? You know it’s true. Belly’s not surprised, are you, Belly?”
I was. I was really surprised. I said, to both of them, “I thought they seemed like they were really in love.”
Whatever love was, I was sure they had it. I thought they had it a million times over. The way they gazed at each other at the dinner table, how excited Susannah got when he came to the summer house. I didn’t think people like that got divorced. People like my parents got divorced. Not Susannah and Mr. Fisher.
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One night, Conrad reveals that Susannah and Mr. Fisher are getting a divorce, a revelation that shocks Belly. The fact that Conrad frames the divorce as inevitable, saying “It’s about time” and suggesting that Belly shouldn’t be surprised, gestures to the idea that Belly is shaping her view of the Fishers’ marriage based on three months out of the year. Conrad, meanwhile, lives with his parents the rest of the year—and so he certainly sees the situation between his parents differently, simply by virtue of seeing more of it. This builds on the idea that Belly views the summers at Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissi
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The Beach House Symbol Timeline in The Summer I Turned Pretty
The timeline below shows where the symbol The Beach House appears in The Summer I Turned Pretty. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 1
Belly’s family has been spending summers at Susannah’s beach house in Cousins Beach since before Belly was born. Belly loves the entire experience, but she...
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Finally, Steven pulls up to the house. Steven gets out immediately to greet Conrad and Jeremiah while Belly stays in the car...
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Chapter 2, Age 12
...a flashback, Belly describes how her heart breaks for the first time at the beach house when she’s 12. She’s in her room, hoping that Conrad will stop by and talk...
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...for Belly, and Belly names the bear Junior Mint and leaves him at the beach house.
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Chapter 5
Dinner, as usual on the first night at the beach house, is Susannah’s bouillabaisse. But this year, instead of making the kids drink Fanta, Susannah insists...
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...where he’s lifeguarding this summer. Conrad, meanwhile, is working at a seafood buffet. The beach house group used to eat at the buffet all the time, as they offered discounted meals...
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Chapter 7
...a while to realize how wealthy the Fishers are compared to her family. The beach house is furnished modestly, but it’s huge. Conrad, Steven, and Jeremiah used to share a room,...
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Chapter 10
...figures it’s his responsibility to call, and besides, the dads don’t “belong” to the beach house.
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Chapter 12
Traditionally, Mr. Fisher spends occasional weekends and the first week of August at the beach house. Belly is fine with this: Mr. Fisher is demanding and uptight. He always gives the...
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Chapter 14, Age 13
The next afternoon, Jeremiah and Belly get bored on the beach and return to the house for a snack. They can hear Mom and Susannah talking inside, and they sit down...
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Chapter 16, Age 14
...Jewel, is a mistake. Taylor has been begging Belly to bring her to the beach house for years, drawn in by Belly’s stories of Conrad and Jeremiah. Belly finally agrees to...
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When they get to the house, Belly wants to tell Conrad and Jeremiah that Taylor has dyed her hair and is...
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Chapter 19
...on the porch and feels sad. This might be the last summer at the beach house, as Conrad starts at Brown in the fall and Jeremiah might be at football camp...
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Chapter 22
...Cam’s hoodie and wears it all the next day. She realizes she gave him the house phone number, so she sits outside reading magazines all day waiting for it to ring....
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Chapter 32
The next day, Cam stays late at the beach house with Belly. They go for a walk on the beach around midnight, and when Cam...
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Chapter 39
Belly is shocked and a bit offended when Conrad invites Nicole to the beach house. They sit across the pool from Belly, and Belly thinks that compared to her, Nicole...
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Chapter 43
...him as it starts to rain, even though she’d like to go back to the house.
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Chapter 44
In a week, everyone will leave the beach house. Belly is both ready to go and never wants this time to end. She doesn’t...
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Chapter 45
...heart. When they’re done, Belly observes that this might be their last summer at the house. Conrad insists that they’ll always come back. Belly excitedly suggests they make a whirlpool, and...
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