Changes in Haven's Life

The most important theme in That Summer is that of the changes in Haven's life and how she feels about them. The novel begins with Haven's father's second marriage to Lorna Queen during which Haven recalls the traumatic effects that his infidelity and the divorce have had on her family. Additionally, Haven thinks about the fact that her older sister, Ashley, is marrying Lewis at the end of summer, and this leads to her comparing Ashley as a wild teenager to Ashley as a twenty-one-year-old engaged to boring Lewis Warsher. As Dad and Lorna say their vows, Ashley cries because of the finality of this and the fact that things will never go back to the way they were. In contrast to the current instability of her family, Haven recalls the summer that Ashley dated Sumner and how happy her family had been during their...