Too young for the Summer of Love … not radical enough for protest riots. Caught in a decade of turbulence, Carensa Holt looked for something to hang on to, trying to find herself.
A novel by Claes Jonasson
Carensa Holt was born and raised in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Going to college meant a trek to neighboring Berks County and Kutztown State College.
There she met the love of her life.
But now the coed faced a summer between college semesters.
With a boyfriend with whom she didn’t connect anymore.
Or she could take a cheap flight on Icelandair to Luxembourg, get a 2-month Eurail pass, bring her big orange backpack, and explore Europe.
In the process she just might find what she was looking for.
Note from the author:
In the 1970s I spent many months train hiking around the European continent. With one inexpensive pass you could board almost any train. Take a short ride to the next station or a long one, across half of Europe. I loved that freedom. As did many other young people.
It was a cheap and very popular way to visit many countries. To see and experience different cultures.
Every day I met new people, from around the world. Americans, Australians, Pakistanis, Canadians. Of course also other Europeans. Including other fellow Swedes. All of us traveling and exploring. It was a wonderful mixture of ideas and experiences.
All that provided the inspiration for Summer of ’76 — Carensa Holt: a coming of age story. I wasn’t even traveling looking for a story to write. But at some train station along the way, Carensa just popped into my head and then never really left. One initial scene grew into a storyline.
It’s a work in progress
That means, among other things, there’s no final title yet. This book takes place in the summer of 1976. It’s about Carensa Holt, a 21 year old college coed traveling Europe with her backpack.
The working title is “Summer of ’76” with the sub-heading “Carensa Holt — a coming of age story”.
Here are a few “sneak peeks”:
“Right. … Mom, dad. Look, this is my chance to do something I’ve always wanted to do. This is my fricking summer.” Carensa threw her hands out. “I’ve worked like crazy all year to save up enough that I can go and do this and still be okay in fall. Next year I’ll graduate and go out and get a job. Wow … It won’t happen then.”
