Keith Forbes, a veterinarian from the state Department of Agriculture on his first count, to collaborate. Longtime wild-horse advocate and former VRWPA president Olivia Fiamengo, who has done five helicopter counts, was joined by Dr. That question as well as a longstanding disagreement with the Nevada Department of Agriculture on just how many horses were on the range, and how many the range could support, led Gribbin and her organization to arrange for a helicopter horse count on Monday. “We don’t know, and we depend on the horses to keep down the fire fuels in Virginia City and the Virginia City Highlands.” BRAD HORN/Nevada Appeal-Wild horses run on the Virginia Range during a horse count conducted by the Virginia Range Wildlife Protection Association on Monday. “Is there a reason why they are not on their normal migration?” she asked. The horses usually spend the summer in the Highlands and move to lower elevations come wintertime, she said. That number presented a bit of a puzzle for Jeanne Gribbin of the Virginia Range Wildlife Protection Association, who said fewer horses seemed to be in the Virginia City Highlands this year, and they are sorely missed. MY OVERALL RATING ON GOODREADS: 3.By VIRGINIA WOODMANSEE | Staff Reporter | Nevada AppealĪ team of horse counters took a day-long helicopter trip around the Virginia Range to find out how many wild horses were there. If you are a teenager who is looking for an easygoing, romantic summer read, I would recommend this book for sure. But what it does provide is a lot of summer fun that causes you to laugh, then smile, then cringe, and then smile a whole lot more. Overall, no, this book was not outstanding or spectacular in any way. The bond between Jeremiah, Conrad, Steven, Belly, Susannah, and Belly’s mom was unlike any contemporary I have ever read. The familial vibe throughout the summer house was so special, and I couldn’t help but appreciate. By no means is this book sitting at the highest level of well written literature, but it was very enjoyable. I read it right before my summer break, so it got me hyped up for the days to come. It just has all those summery, feel-good vibes that make you long for days at the beach with a cute boy by your side. I couldn’t help but love this book despite all the annoying and unrealistic things that occur. She tries to tell herself that she is over him repeatedly throughout the book, but girl, even I could see through those lies. This whole book pretty much surrounds Belly as she pushes all the good things that she has AWAY just for Conrad. WHY?!!! Another thing that had me shaking my head was the scene when Belly was professing her love to Conrad, and she was FORCING Conrad to say something that he might not have felt. One distinct scene that explains this is when Belly LITERALLY only invites cute, lovable Cam over to make Con jealous. Don’t get me wrong, I really like Conrad but in a way he almost brought the worst out in Belly. I had to roll my eyes a few times.Īlso, Belly completely irritated me due to her obsession with Conrad. Now, I’m sure that Belly does “look better” this particular summer because she is growing up! But she seemed SO conceited when she was describing what was going on. First of all, every boy that Belly even engages with in this book seems to have an attraction towards her. THE LOVE TRIANGLE IS A THING.įinal Thoughts: This book was really unrealistic in different ways. Also, now that she is “pretty”, all the guys that used to ignore her now somehow like her and pay her more attention.Īnother IMPORTANT thing: Why is Belly so obsessed with Conrad when it is clear he doesn’t like her? Like come on, Cam is so cute and I could just see her completely passing him over because she likes Conrad too much. I also find it irritating that Belly makes it SO clear that she USED to be ugly, but now somehow she is super pretty. I love the whole idea of the beach house and the summer fun Belly has, but I can’t get over the fact that she is obsessed with TWO BROTHERS. Initial Reaction: I like the summery vibes that I get from this novel. But one summer, one terrible and wonderful summer, the more everything changes, the more it all ends up just the way it should have been all along. They are the boys that Belly has known since her very first summer–they have been her brother figures, her crushes, and everything in between. Winters are simply a time to count the weeks until the next summer, a place away from the beach house, away from Susannah, and most importantly, away from Jeremiah and Conrad. Everything good, everything magical happens between the months of June and August. Synopsis: Belly measures her life in summers.