The Gypsy Moth Summer by Julia Fierro

Gypsy Moth Summer

Julia Fierro weaves a story in The Gypsy Moth Summer between the residents of East Coast Avalon Island during the summer of 1992 when the island is invaded by Gypsy Moths. The novel is told from the point of view of several islanders and covers a spectrum of ages from teenagers to those on the brink of retirement. Julia Fierro draws the reader in quickly and each voice helps the reader to see the events from a different point of view. I was a little surprised at how much explicit sex was peppered throughout the novel, but regardless, I'll be adding to my favorite reads for this year.

From the cover:
Gypsy moth caterpillars have invaded Avalon Island, an islet off the East Coast. Leslie Day Marshall, only daughter of Avalon's most prominent family, has returned to live in "The Castle", the island's grandest estate. Leslie's husband, Jules, is African American, and her children biracial, and islanders from both sides of the tracks form fast and dangerous opinions about the new arrivals.
Maddie LaRosa straddles those tracks: a teen queen with roots in the tony precinct of East Avalon as well as the crowded working-class quarter of West Avalon - home to Grudder Aviation's factory, the lifeblood and bread and butter of the community. . .  Gypsy Moth Summer is about love, gaps in understanding, and the struggle to connect: within families, among friends, and between neighbors and entire generations.