One Grand Summer

When he fails his exams, 16-year-old Frieder is forced to stay with his grandparents for the summer, leading to an unforgettable and profound series of experiences that will change him forever. Ewald Arenz writes with gentle joy. A tender and profound coming-of-age story that's also a gripping page-turner. Gorgeously written ... an absolute tour de force. A summer of joys and sadness ... funny, touching, troubling.

German Independent Booksellers' Book of the Year. Tasting Sunlight is a BBC World Service World Book Club pick.

Sixteen-year-old Frieder's plans for the summer are shattered when he fails two subjects. In order to move up to the next school year in the autumn, he must resit his exams. So, instead of going on holiday with his family, he now faces the daunting and boring prospect of staying at his grandparents' house, studying with his strict and formal step-grandfather.

On the bright side, he'll spend time with his grandmother Nana, his sister Alma, and his best friend Johann. And he meets Beate, the girl in the beautiful green swimsuit. The next few weeks will bring friendship, fear, and first love - one grand summer that will change and shape his entire life.

Heartbreaking, poignant, and warmly funny, One Grand Summer is an unforgettable, tender novel that captures those exquisite and painful moments that make us who we are. For readers who loved Sarah Winman's When God Was a Rabbit.

Praise for Ewald Arenz: Profound in its simplicity ... a remarkable, exquisitely written debut. Hopeful and poignant and lyrically told. A truly compassionate and heartening book. Poetic in places and highly sensory ... a genuinely hopeful and open-hearted novel. This reminded me of reading Sally Rooney's Normal People. It takes a writer of immeasurable talent to make you feel that intensely.