Summer Brother

LONGLISTED FOR THE INTERNATIONAL BOOKER PRIZE 2021

Summer Brother is an honest, tender account of brotherly love between a disabled boy and his abled brother, which will resonate with readers of Rain Man.

"Dutch author Jaap Robben's second novel shows us the shedding of innocence. Summer Brother, translated by David Doherty, shakes out over a hot summer, during that potent lull when characters so splendidly boil, burst and bloom...Summer Brother grapples with the consequences of carelessness and the abuse of power and trust, even if the violation is unintentional...Robben is wonderful at drawing characters with just a few deliberate strokes...Like a photographer shooting a portrait, Robben captures his subjects in Summer Brother in a focused close-up." --New York Times

Thirteen-year-old Brian lives in a trailer on a forgotten patch of land with his divorced and uncaring father. His older brother Lucien, physically and mentally disabled, has been institutionalized for years. While Lucien's home is undergoing renovations, he is sent to live with his father and younger brother for the summer. Their detached father leaves Brian to care for Lucien's special needs. But how do you look after someone when you don't know what they need? How do you make the right choices when you still have so much to discover? Summer Brother is an honest, tender account of brotherly love, which will resonate with readers of Rain Man.

Author: Jaap Robben
Publisher: World Editions
Published: 02/09/2021
Pages: 288
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.85lbs
Size: 8.40h x 5.50w x 1.00d
ISBN: 9781642860702

Review Citation(s):
Publishers Weekly 12/07/2020
Kirkus Reviews 01/01/2021
Foreword 12/26/2020

About the Author
Jaap Robben is a poet, playwright, performer, and acclaimed children's author. You Have Me to Love, his first novel for adults, won the 2014 Dutch Booksellers Award, the Dioraphte Prize, and the ANV Award for best Dutch debut. Robben was chosen as one of the featured debut authors at the 2018 Brooklyn Book Festival. Summer Brother, a bestseller in the Netherlands, is his second novel.