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The Perfect Guy. by Ann Herrick. 2013. Books We Love, Ltd. ASIN: B00BB2E0U2The Perfect Guy is a new edition of a young adult romance novel previously published in 1989 and again in 2005. Like
Twisted Window by Lois Duncan and
Fog by Caroline Cooney, this book has apparently been modernized from its original form in the hopes of reaching a new, 21st century teen audience. The main character of the story is Rebecca, whose mother has just remarried to the father of Rebecca's crush, Pres. Rebecca is naively convinced that this new family dynamic is sure to cause Pres to finally in love with her. She keeps trying to make up reasons to spend more time with her stepbrother, but despite her best efforts, he always seems to respond in a brotherly way. What Rebecca doesn't realize, though, is that another guy in her life is ready to give her everything Pres won't.
I have to confess that I could tell right away that this was a not a brand-new contemporary novel. Even before I learned that it was originally published in the 1980s, I noticed that all the modern-day technology in the story felt out of place. I also thought the characters' names - Pres, Celeste, and Rebecca - sounded nothing like names that teens commonly have in 2013. This isn't necessarily a flaw, but for me, these things were slight distractions. I also questioned whether it was necessary for Rebecca to be in love with her stepbrother, as I don't know how common a problem that truly is for real teens.
That said, the story itself is easy to read, with straightforward writing, lots of dialogue, and short, fast-paced chapters. Herrick captures that sense of obsession some girls develop when they have crushes, and very realistically portrays how blind they can become to the reality of the boys' lack of interest in them. Middle school girls - and even some high schoolers - who are reluctant to read will enjoy the interpersonal drama that emerges as the story progresses, and they will be just as pleased with the happy ending, even if they will see it coming a long way off. The story also offers a lot of sympathy and comfort for girls adapting to new stepfamilies, which is always a relevant topic for this age group.
Learn more about Ann Herrick and her books
at her website.
I received a copy of The Perfect Guy from the author.For more about this book, visit Goodreads and Worldcat.
Hello... Wrong Number. by Marilyn Sachs. 1981. Scholastic. 97 pages. ISBN: 9780590327283 Hello... Wrong Number is a short and sweet paperback YA novel originally published in 1981. A teenage girl named Angie intends to call the object of her affection, a boy named Jim McCone, but when she dials the wrong number, she gets a different Jim. In a series of phone calls, Angie and the wrong Jim become quite close, sharing confidences and saying things to each other they’d never say to anyone else. But they have never met face to face. Will Angie, who can be quite shallow about boys, still like Jim if he doesn’t look as she imagines?
I chose to read this book because it reminded me of a book I loved as a kid,
Phone Calls by R.L. Stine. Like
Phone Calls,
Hello... Wrong Number is a story told almost exclusively in dialogue between the main characters. Though the story is very lighthearted and easily zipped through in one sitting, the dialogue is well-written, bringing the characters right off the page. Both characters’ voices are very strong, and I could almost hear the way they might speak to one another.
Most kids have cell phones now, and caller ID makes it pretty easy to avoid wrong numbers, so it’s hard to say if today’s teens would relate to the story or not. I certainly don’t think most
high schoolers in 2012 would name KC and the Sunshine Band as their favorite band, or compare a boy they like to Elton John, as Angie does. Still, Marilyn Sachs is a great author for fans of Paula Danziger, who also always wrote short, fun, romance novels for younger teens.
Hello... Wrong Number would work well in a lesson about writing dialogue, and I think it would be fun to hear kids talk about how phone calls have changed since their parents were kids. It's also just a great escapist read for anyone missing the 80s!
I purchased Hello... Wrong Number from my local used book store.
For more about this book, visit Goodreads and Worldcat.
Flirting in Italian. by Lauren Henderson. June 12, 2012. Random House. 336 pages. ISBN: 9780385741354Violet Routledge is shaken when she discovers that she strongly resembles the subject of a portrait hanging in Sir John Soane’s museum. When she learns that the painting was once located in the Castello di Vesperi in Tuscany, she makes the decision to study abroad for the summer, joining a small group of girls who have signed up to study art, culture, painting, dancing, and more under the tutelage of a local Italian woman. The fourteenth century villa where she will live turns out to be beautiful, and the other girls are different, but nice. There are only two things Violet isn’t really prepared for - her attraction to a gorgeous Italian boy named Luca, and the fact that her resemblance to that portrait will put her life in danger.
Flirting in Italian is the first installment in a new trilogy by Lauren Henderson. (She also wrote the Scarlett Wakefield mysteries, which ended in 2011 with
Kiss of Death.) I had trouble getting into the Scarlett Wakefield books, possibly because the series begins with a death, but found no such trouble here. I knew from hearing Henderson read a few years ago, that her prose was very poetic, and her kissing scenes extremely original, with not a cliche to be found, but this book really brought those aspects of her talent to the forefront.
The story really bridges two genres. About half the time, it’s a mystery, complete with secret passages and unexpected evildoers. The other half of the time, it’s a romance novel, where Violet tries to reconcile her logical and rational side with the side that desperately wants Luca all to herself. I wouldn’t go so far as to label it romantic suspense, since the mystery and love story aren’t 100 percent intertwined, but the book has that same tone and atmosphere.
For the most part, Henderson does a great job of handling the various cultures and languages that are such a big part of her story. Violet and one her housemates are both English, as is Henderson, so I think their dialogue seemed the most natural and the least forced. The two American characters in the story did seem somewhat stereotypical at certain points, but their accents, too, seemed mostly on point, except for one moment where one of them used the word clever in a decidedly British way. The way Henderson infuses the Italian language into the story, mostly without translating, is also a really nice addition to the atmosphere of the novel. I felt completely immersed in the Tuscan way of life. I think my only issue was the way in which the characters were sometimes compartmentalized according to their country of origin. I wasn’t sure how much of the Italian culture was authentic, and how much was just a stereotype.
This book will delight Henderson’s established fans, but will also appeal to readers who have loved Maureen Johnson’s
13 Little Blue Envelopes, and Stephanie Perkins’s
Anna and the French Kiss. It’s also a nice read-alike for some of Sarah Dessen’s books, but only for readers who also like a bit of mystery and suspense.
Flirting in Italian ends on a bit of a cliffhanger, since it is only the first of three planned books, but the end of the ARC already lists the title of the second book as
Following In Love i
Scary Beautiful. by Niki Burnham. 2006. Simon & Schuster. 264 pages. ISBN: 9780689876196“Scary beautiful” is how people describe Chloe Rand, the heroine of this 2006 romance by Niki Burnham. Until recently, her relationship with her boyfriend has kept the other boys in her class at bay, but when he unceremoniously dumps her and moves across the country, she finds herself being treated very differently by her classmates. Being an attractive single girl invites all kinds of rumors and insults. The only plus side of Chloe’s newly single status, aside from lots of free time to spend with her friends, is that it frees her up to flirt with Billy, the cute geeky boy working at the pizza shop. There’s just one catch - one of Chloe’s best friends is already interested in Billy. Will she understand Chloe’s feelings, or will Chloe lose her friends along with her boyfriend?
I can’t get enough of Niki Burnham! There is just something about her writing style that makes me want to devour her books in one sitting. This one is especially refreshing because it characterizes a beautiful girl as more than a mere Barbie doll, or popular mean girl. While I think most girls are annoyed by beautiful women who lament their good looks, Chloe is not annoying, and the reader comes to sympathize with her particular set of issues. Billy is also my kind of romantic hero - the nice boy who blends in the background until you notice how cute he really is.
I noticed some commonalities with the
Royally Crushed trilogy I read a while ago. The biggest one is that the protagonists in both stories have a core group of supportive friends from whom they keep secrets for fear of being misunderstood. I also noticed that both girls are torn between love interests, and that each one seems to prefer the boy who is less likely to return her feelings. These are themes I enjoy in YA fiction, and I think Niki Burnham has a real knack for presenting them with just the right amount of drama to engage tween and young teen readers.
Scary Beautiful is great for pleasure reading, and is sure to appeal to middle school girls who also like Lauren Barnholdt, Lauren Myracle, and Rachel Vail.
Looking for more teen and tween romance recommendations? Click
here to browse my past romance reviews.
I borrowed Scary Beautiful from my local public library.
By:
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on 4/2/2012
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source: public library,
genre: romance,
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author: niki burnham,
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Spin Control by Niki Burnham. December 28, 2004. Simon Pulse. 256 pages. ISBN: 9780689866692
Do Over by Niki Burnham. September 26, 2006. Simon Pulse. 240 pages. ISBN: 9780689866692
In these last two books in the trilogy now compiled as Royally Crushed, Valerie continues to experience the ups and downs of her relationship with Prince Georg. In Spin Control, she believes she has been dumped, so when she heads home to Virginia for Winter Break, she goes on a date with David Anderson, only to discover that she loves Georg more than ever. In Do Over, she returns to Schwerinborg to reconcile with Georg, and to work on gaining confidence in his feelings for her, even if they can’t always demonstrate their affections where the press can see. Before the end of the trilogy, Valerie also sees her dad start dating again, and finally finds a way to come clean with her friends about her mother’s newly revealed homosexuality.
I know this trilogy is not the best-written in the world, but I really loved reading it. The ultimate outcome was fairly predictable, but the emails between Val and her friends in Virginia, and her awkward uncertainty around Georg, as well as the cattiness of the girls in her Schweringborgian school, all made for great entertainment. I was distracted repeatedly by references to Heath Ledger, who has died since the publication of these books, but the Google books preview of the new edition shows that this problem has been corrected with several passing references to Ledger resting in peace. The only other thing that felt vaguely out of place was the fact that Val and her friends email rather than text or send Facebook messages, but I am sure there are teenagers out there somewhere for whom this is still the norm, so it doesn’t ruin the books by any means.
All in all, these are light reads, even at their most serious moments, and they provide insight into all the drama of first relationships without ever becoming too weepy, or losing hope that the ending would be happy. The series was definitely worth finishing, and I’ll be looking for more from Niki Burnham, starting with her latest book for teens, Shot Through the Heart.
Read my review of the first book in the Royally Crushed trilogy, Royally Jacked, here.
I borrowed Spin Control and Do Over from my local public library.
Royally Jacked. by Niki Burnham. December 23, 2003. Simon Pulse. 208 pages. ISBN: 9780689866685
Royally Jacked is the first book in a trilogy by Niki Burnham. It was originally released as part of the Simon Pulse Romantic Comedies series, and has recently been repackaged, along with its sequels,
Spin Cycle and
Do Over in a three-volume edition called
Royally Crushed. In this first installment, main character Valerie's world is turned upside down when her mother announces she is leaving her father to move in with another woman. Valerie has two choices - change schools and move in with her mom in the next town, or change schools and move to an obscure European country with her father. To everyone's surprise, she chooses to move to Schwerinborg, leaving behind her best friends and her long-time crush on David Anderson. Schwerinborg (which is totally fictitious, by the way) isn't quite what she expected, but there is one bright spot. Valerie and the Schwerinborgian prince, Georg, hit it off right away. At first they're just friends, but even though David Anderson at home has started to like Valerie, she just can't help but develop feelings for Prince Georg as well.
I'm really glad this story has now been released as one volume, because the entire first three quarters of this book reads like the set-up for a much longer novel. I really felt like the story was initially one manuscript and that this beginning portion was sort of arbitrarily cut off and released on its own. The real meat of the story doesn't begin until Valerie arrives in Schwerinborg and meets the prince, and that doesn't even happen until the second half of the book. The story also leaves a lot of things unresolved, especially when it comes to David Anderson and Valerie's relationship to her mom.
The writing is pretty basic, with no real frills. It's very easy to read, and would likely appeal to reluctant readers who like romantic comedy films. Fans of the Princess Diaries will also like the similar subject matter and will be pleased to fall in love with Georg right along with Valerie. The older cover from the 2003 edition is starting to look a bit dated, but the contemporary-looking new cover will definitely grab a new generation of teens' attention.
I borrowed Royally Jacked from my local public library.
Pilgrims Don't Wear Pink. Stephanie Kate Strohm. May 8, 2012. Graphia. 204 pages. ISBN: 9780547564593. Pilgrims Don’t Wear Pink is a young adult novel for older teens about one girl’s summer job as a camp counselor at a living history museum. Though it shares a very similar setting to Leila Sales’s
Past Perfect, this book takes the concept in an entirely different but equally enjoyable direction.
Seventeen-year-old Libby Kelting loves history, so she is really excited for her summer job teaching colonial cooking to elementary school-aged girls. She’s a little upset that she can’t use her cell phone and is thus separated from her best friend, Dev, who is doing an internship with an apparently evil fashion magazine, and she’s not crazy about her roommate, who insists upon conducting all conversations as her colonial alter ago, Susannah Fennyweather. Libby is soon distracted from these annoyances, however, by not one, but two romantic prospects. Cam is a devastatingly handsome twenty-one-year-old “squaddie” - that is, member of the schooner demonstration squad - and Garrett is a geeky journalist stationed on board a supposedly haunted ship, with whom Libby ends up sharing sleeping quarters. It’s clear from the outset whose affections Libby would prefer to attract, but things aren’t always what they seem, and the romantic conclusion of the story is as fun as the setting and Libby’s wonderful sense of humor.
This is a true feel-good romance, and will make wonderful beach reading this summer. Libby’s voice is very contemporary and real, and her relationships with each of the boys are by turns emotional, embarrassing, exasperating, and exciting. Parts of the story are predictable, but no more than any other romance novel, and the setting and minor characters really make the world of this story stand out as compared with others of this genre, including
Past Perfect. The book does include more mature content than I was expecting - especially after reading another Graphia title,
My Misadventures as a Teenage Rock Star which suits a younger audience - but the sexual references and language definitely make it a novel most appropriate for the high school level.
Pilgrims Don’t Wear Pink is Stephanie Kate Strohm’s first novel, but I really hope it’s not her last. Her fresh and unique approach to contemporary YA is a great addition to the field, and I will be excited to see what she comes up with next.
Pilgrims Don’t Wear Pink will be published on May 8, 2012.
I received a digital ARC of Pilgrims Don't Wear Pink from Graphia via NetGalley. For more about this book, visit Goodreads and
0 Comments on Review: Pilgrims Don't Wear Pink by Stephanie Kate Strohm (ARC) as of 1/1/1900
2011 | 208 pages | Middle Grade
Avery really wants her new stepsister Blake to like her. Not only is she an only child, she also just recently lost her best friend, Sophie, who decided earlier in the school year that she was too cool to hang out with Avery anymore. Avery thinks a stepsister would make a perfect best friend, and she does her best to impress Blake at every opportunity. Unfortunately, things don't go exactly as Avery planned, and before long, Blake is hanging out with Sophie instead of her!
But Avery is determined not to lose anything else to Sophie, so when she is put in charge of the class charity project - a matchingmaking service - she vows to win Blake over again by matching her up with her crush Sam. Again, though, Avery's best laid plans go somewhat awry. Not only do the matches get mixed up, but the teacher in charge of the project can tell they've been tampered with. On top of that, Avery starts to have feelings for Sam, too - feelings which he just might reciprocate.
I have sort of an interesting relationship with Lauren Barnholdt's books. I have tried a couple of times to get into her YA books, and I've never been able to click with them, but I love the way she writes middle grade. Previously, I read
The Secret Identity of Devon Delaney, about a girl who lies in an attempt to reinvent herself, and then must find her way back to the truth. I noted some similar themes in this book, and recognized the same contemporary, lively, and original writing style. I felt connected to Avery from the very first page of the book, and her emotions became the driving force behind the plot. I felt myself getting butterflies during her first kiss, and worrying for her when she was on the verge of getting in trouble.
From what I've read, Barnholdt's YA books tend to include more mature themes that appeal mainly to high school kids. This book, by contrast, is very tame. Avery is new to the dating scene, and her interactions with Sam are very sweet and innocent. I think girls in late elementary and middle school would recognize themselves in Avery's character and in the things that happen in her day to day life, and would sympathize wholeheartedly with her desire for friendship and the frustration of sharing a crush with a close friend.
Fake Me a Match will be published tomorrow, October 4, 2011.
I received a digital ARC of Fake Me a Match from Simon & Schuster's Galley Grab.
by Amanda Brice
2011 | Young Adult
Codename: Dancer is set at a performing arts boarding school, where Daniela "Dani" Spevak has just enrolled in the dance program. Though she is new to the school and somewhat self-conscious, she is thrilled to be cast in the reality TV show,
Teen Celebrity Dance Off, which will film on campus during the semester. She is even more excited when she learns her partner will be heartthrob Nick Galliano. Excitement aside, though, the show is plagued from the outset by strange and dangerous mishaps. Bomb threats, arson, attempted poisoning - it seems like someone is maliciously targeting Dani, but she has no idea who, or why. She and her friends are determined to find out, though, before Dani is seriously injured - or worse.
I really like the concept for this book. I am not usually a fan of books about dancing, with the possible exception of
Ballet Shoes, but the combination of dance and crime-fighting is really appealing, and brought a new, interesting layer to the mystery genre. The story reminded me a lot of Ally Carter's Gallagher Girls books, both in style and substance. Brice and Carter both have very breezy, easy-to-read writing styles, as well as a strong flair for combining suspense and romance. The reality show thread of the story also made it feel fresh and contemporary, as did the many teen-friendly pop culture references.
There were a few very minor editing issues I picked up on throughout the book, which occasionally caused me to stumble over a sentence or passage, but didn't really take away from my enjoyment of the story. I also wondered if maybe the eating disorder aspect of the story was tied up too neatly. I think it's great that Dani took ownership of it and took steps to help correct the problem, but it seemed way too easy, possibly sending the message that anorexic urges can be turned on and off at will. The Big Reveal of Dani's roommate's secret reason for disliking dancers also felt rushed, and came out of nowhere for me. I liked that it was such a surprise, but I wanted it to be better developed.
The ending of the story is quite satisfying, though, and the saboteur and that person's motive were definitely unexpected and unique. This is the perfect type of book to recommend to young teens, or even tweens, who want some mystery and romance, but without much violence or sex. It will also appeal to fans of
Dancing With the Stars, aspiring dancers, budding actors, and aspiring detectives.
Learn more about Amanda Brice on her
website, and watch for the second Dani Spevak mystery,
Pointe of No Return, to be released this November.
I received Codename: Dancer in ebook format from the author.
by Beverly Cleary
1956, 1959, 1967, 1977, 1980, 1991, 1996, 2008
190 pages | Young Adult
This is my last post in my series of reviews about Beverly Cleary's Young Adult novels. This book was actually the first one published out of all of them, and it even seems to be the most popular, but I had the hardest time getting a copy! Thankfully, a local used book shop had several copies, and I snatched one up for less than three dollars.
The heroine this time around is average fifteen-year-old Jane Purdy. Like Shelley in The Luckiest Girl, she is an only child, and like Jean in Jean and Johnny, she dreams of romance, but has yet to experience it herself. Jane plays silly games with herself, though, promising she'll meet a boy after skipping a certain number of cracks in the sidewalk, or if a new boy miraculously moves to town, but she doesn't really believe it will happen. She figures boys are only interested in popular girls like Marcy Stokes, who get rides in convertibles and wear fancy, expensive clothes. No one wants a plain old ordinary girl who babysits and only has one cashmere sweater.
This is why it takes her by utter surprise when Stan Crandall arrives one afternoon at the home where she is babysitting, to deliver horse meat for the family dog. Not only does Stan help her out with a sticky sitting situation, he also calls her up and asks for a date! Nervous and inexperienced, Jane struggles with her confusion over Stan's behavior, and her own insecurities about whether or not she is attractive enough, or good enough to really be Stan's girlfriend.
I found this book absolutely excruciating to read, but not because it's not well-written. There is one thing Beverly Cleary knows, and that is the emotions of kids during the most difficult parts of growing up. Her portrayal of a fifteen year old with a crush, though written over 50 years ago, matches exactly what I went through at that age, and what so many girls put themselves through - sitting by the phone, analyzing a boy's every move, wanting, and waiting, and wishing. This portrait of being fifteen years old is so realistic, it reminded me exactly why I am glad not to be a teenager anymore. Jane's constant worrying over Stan's opinion made me cringe, and there were moments where I wanted to reach into the book and shake her a little! I had to laugh at the tag line on the cover of my copy of the book (the first book in the second row above) - "Having a boyfriend isn't the answer" - because the message of this book was mostly the complete opposite.
Fear not, though, for Jane does eventually come into her own, and it is comfort in her own skin, and her willingness to be herself, even if not everyone understands her, that finally wins her the boy of her dreams. But oh, the heart-wrenching drama we have to endure before w
by Beverly Cleary
1963; 1969; 1981; 1992; 1996; 2003; 2008
268 pages | Young Adult
Barbara Maclane is sixteen years old, and has barely begun to have an interest in boys. She sometimes walks home with Tootie Bodger, a trombone player in the school band, but her kindness toward him is more sympathetic than romantic, and her thirteen-year-old brother's disgusting eating habits and poor manners don't exactly do anything to improve her opinion of the opposite sex. Still, when her older sister Rosemary, who is only 18, comes home from college to announce she is marrying a 24-year-old graduate student named Greg, Barbara is enamored of the prospect of this wedding. Suddenly, she's considering not just Tootie, but another boy, Bill Cunningham, who gives her rides on his Vespa and enjoys the cookies she bakes for him. But Barbara has a lot to learn about true love, and as the wedding plans unfold, she gains important knowledge from her sister, from her mother's social club, The Amys, and from her own life experiences doing favors for a boy who doesn't appreciate them.
There is a lot in this book that contemporary readers will find fault with. The idea of an eighteen year old college freshman marrying a much older graduate student and becoming the landlady of a dingy apartment building didn't really sit well with me, and though Barbara's parents were briefly upset by it in the story, I felt like they should have been more upset and gone to greater lengths to prevent it. But I think this book - and the others in this series - are not intended to be how-to books for growing up female. They do teach some lessons about interacting with boys, but they also take a very rose-colored view of the world and indulge the fantasies that young tween and teen girls sometimes have about what it will be like to grow up, fall in love, and get married. And no, life isn't really like what we imagine at fourteen, but I don't think there's anymore harm in reading these books than in adults reading Harlequin romances. It's all in good fun.
This book is less of a romance novel than The Luckiest Girl or Jean and Johnny and seemed to focus more on family relationships - which is what Cleary wrote so brilliantly in the Ramona books. I loved Gordy, the younger brother, and thought Barbara's annoyance with him was very reminiscent of Beezus's behavior toward Ramona. I also liked Tootie, despite his ridiculous name, and thought Bill's brazen disregard for Barbara's feelings was very reminiscent of so many teenage boys who just don't know how to act around girls. And while Barbara's obsession with her sister's wedding did seem a bit strange to me, it did remind me of The Member of the Wedding by Carson McCullers as well as That Summer by Sarah Dessen. Barbara's behavior was more like that of a twelve-year-old than a sixteen-year-old, but I think changes in the world account for that, more than any fault in Bever
by Beverly Cleary
1959; 1969; 1980; 1987; 1991; 1996; 1999; 2003
284 pages | Young Adult
I read the 1991 edition of this book (the third cover in the top row of this post is the cover I had) when I was around 12 or 13, but all I could remember before sitting down to read it this time was that I really enjoyed it. Now that I've refreshed my memory and familiarized myself with the events of the story once again, I can see why it would have been a favorite.
Jean Jarrett is fifteen years old, and though her family doesn't have much money, she has a pretty decent life. She has a good friend named Elaine, and the two girls share a fascination with a young TV heartthrob named Kip Laddish. She also has a good relationship with her sister Sue, and the two sisters often daydream of nice things that might happen. Sue, especially, really wants to meet a nice boy and go on dates.
Surprisingly, though, it is Jean who has this opportunity. One night, she goes with Elaine and her mother to deliver some decorations to the local lodge, and while the girls sit on the sidelines watching a holiday dance, a handsome boy named Johnny Chessler asks her to dance. Jean is nervous, but when the dance ends, she finds that her mind is now constantly occupied with thoughts of this tall, good-looking boy.
Jean's crush does strange things to her, however. Kip Laddish suddenly isn't nearly as interesting, for one thing, and Jean begins to sense that her sister, Sue is jealous of her newfound romantic interest. She also stops spending as much time with Elaine and starts working really hard to pursue Johnny. But chasing a boy turns out to be much more tiring than Jean expects, and she slowly starts to realize that maybe Johnny isn't the boy she thought he was.
What I love about Beverly Cleary is how well her writing reflects the daily lives of everygirls. There's nothing particularly remarkable about Jean Jarrett, but that is precisely what is so great about her. The dated references to clothing styles, and other 1950's vocabulary date the book somewhat, but Jean's experiences trying to make sense of a crush and to win the attention of the object of her affection are universal across time. I felt exactly as Jean does during my first dance, and on my first dates, and I'm sure many other girls do as well.
I also think this book teaches an important lesson. It's a book about first love, but it is not a romance novel, and that is probably what I liked most about it as a kid. This story is about Jean, from beginning to end, not Johnny, or any of the other people in Jean's life. And though one message of the book does seem to be that girls shouldn't go after the boys they like, I think th
I love what the cover on the bottom left corner evokes. The earliest one, no doubt.