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charms1976's review against another edition
4.0
Not That Kind of Girl is a book that most teens will be able to relate to. There are always the boys that goof around and talk about who is doing who, girls that are trying their best to get a boys attention, and kids that are always trying to be the respectful and good grade kind of teen. In this book we get to see sides to every different teen.
Natalie has always been the school smart and straight laced teen. She is always focusing on her studies and her senior year she runs for class president. Usually this is held by a boy, but that doesn't stop her from running. She is loyal to her friend Autumn to a point of reminding her of why they became friends in the first place all the time. I didn't care much for Natalie. She came off as better than everyone else, snotty and always had to remind everyone that she was better than they were. Her whole attitude was better-than-thou. I wanted to knock her off of that pedestal so many times throughout the entire book.
Conner was a great romantic lead for Natalie. He was the high school quarterback and had a good head on his shoulders. I loved how he was patient with all of Natalie's different attitudes. Autumn and Spencer were the most likable girls of the book. They did their own thing and felt empowered by their actions.
The first half of this book dragged due to it being more about the election and building up Natalie. After you get through the first half of the book, it starts to really pick up and the romance between Natalie and Conner starts to take off. It also delves deeper into the problems with the friendships between Natalie, Autumn and Spencer. Once I got into this part of the book, it was easy to be caught up into the whole teenage drama.
This book turned out to be a lot better than I first thought in the beginning chapters. I wanted to read more about the aftermath though and the story quickly came to an end before I knew it. I do hope the author considers doing a sequel to the book just so I can see how things affected the characters for life after high school! I need more of this story to quench my need for teen drama!
Natalie has always been the school smart and straight laced teen. She is always focusing on her studies and her senior year she runs for class president. Usually this is held by a boy, but that doesn't stop her from running. She is loyal to her friend Autumn to a point of reminding her of why they became friends in the first place all the time. I didn't care much for Natalie. She came off as better than everyone else, snotty and always had to remind everyone that she was better than they were. Her whole attitude was better-than-thou. I wanted to knock her off of that pedestal so many times throughout the entire book.
Conner was a great romantic lead for Natalie. He was the high school quarterback and had a good head on his shoulders. I loved how he was patient with all of Natalie's different attitudes. Autumn and Spencer were the most likable girls of the book. They did their own thing and felt empowered by their actions.
The first half of this book dragged due to it being more about the election and building up Natalie. After you get through the first half of the book, it starts to really pick up and the romance between Natalie and Conner starts to take off. It also delves deeper into the problems with the friendships between Natalie, Autumn and Spencer. Once I got into this part of the book, it was easy to be caught up into the whole teenage drama.
This book turned out to be a lot better than I first thought in the beginning chapters. I wanted to read more about the aftermath though and the story quickly came to an end before I knew it. I do hope the author considers doing a sequel to the book just so I can see how things affected the characters for life after high school! I need more of this story to quench my need for teen drama!
sandeeisreading's review against another edition
4.0
Not everything could be perfect.
That was a lesson Natalie Sterling had to learn.
Natalie Sterling was the picture of girl who could do nothing wrong.
She was smart.
She was the president of the student council.
She was ambitious.
She wanted everything in her high school life to be prefect so that she could get in her chosen university.
She was the kind of daughter any parent would want.
You think she's perfect?
Think again.
Beneath all of that there is an insecure girl who hides behind her books.
There is this girl was barely has friends because of her goals.
There is this girl who almost never has fun with any guy or her even her friends because of the fear that someone will call her a slut.
She was sad though she doesn’t want to admit it.
Then there's Connor.
Connor was a jock.
The type of guy every high school girl dreams of dating.
He was handsome.
He has a good body. *YUMM!*
He may seem like the type of guy who would talk about nothing but how to get girls to take their pants off but he was NOT!
There was more to him than meets the eye.
He was sweet.
He was a good son.
When he likes someone he'll do anything for her.
Natalie always wants her life to be perfect but no matter how much you want it to be perfect somewhere along the way there will always be something that will go wrong.
No matter what decisions you make some of them will not always be right.
I loved the story because it teaches us how we can all make mistakes but making those mistakes teaches us something.
Mistakes are not there to hold us down but to teach us a lesson so that we could grow.
A perfect example of this would be what happened to Natalie's friend Autumn.
All the characters did their part.
Autumn learned her lesson and learned it well.
It just took her a little bit of time before she goes out of her shell.
I admire Spencer for being who she is.
I may not have the spunk that she has but I admire her of not being afraid to tell everyone what she believes in or what she believes is right.
Then there's Mike.
I hate Mike.
He's the reason why I would never want to go back to high school.
He's the exact opposite of Connor.
I don’t know how they became best friends in the first place.
I liked this book but not really love it.
The moral lesson of the story was clear and well executed.
I think everyone who will read the book will get a clear idea as to what the message of the author is trying to convey.
Though I don't really like Natalie that much but I love Connor!
Connor. *sigh*
Dear Connor,
If Natalie dumps you when she goes to college, I’ll be here.
Love
Sandee
I rate this 3.5!
I love the cover by the way.
Totally Connor out there. :D
That was a lesson Natalie Sterling had to learn.
Natalie Sterling was the picture of girl who could do nothing wrong.
She was smart.
She was the president of the student council.
She was ambitious.
She wanted everything in her high school life to be prefect so that she could get in her chosen university.
She was the kind of daughter any parent would want.
You think she's perfect?
Think again.
Beneath all of that there is an insecure girl who hides behind her books.
There is this girl was barely has friends because of her goals.
There is this girl who almost never has fun with any guy or her even her friends because of the fear that someone will call her a slut.
She was sad though she doesn’t want to admit it.
Then there's Connor.
Connor was a jock.
The type of guy every high school girl dreams of dating.
He was handsome.
He has a good body. *YUMM!*
He may seem like the type of guy who would talk about nothing but how to get girls to take their pants off but he was NOT!
There was more to him than meets the eye.
He was sweet.
He was a good son.
When he likes someone he'll do anything for her.
Natalie always wants her life to be perfect but no matter how much you want it to be perfect somewhere along the way there will always be something that will go wrong.
No matter what decisions you make some of them will not always be right.
I loved the story because it teaches us how we can all make mistakes but making those mistakes teaches us something.
Mistakes are not there to hold us down but to teach us a lesson so that we could grow.
A perfect example of this would be what happened to Natalie's friend Autumn.
All the characters did their part.
Autumn learned her lesson and learned it well.
It just took her a little bit of time before she goes out of her shell.
I admire Spencer for being who she is.
I may not have the spunk that she has but I admire her of not being afraid to tell everyone what she believes in or what she believes is right.
Then there's Mike.
I hate Mike.
He's the reason why I would never want to go back to high school.
He's the exact opposite of Connor.
I don’t know how they became best friends in the first place.
I liked this book but not really love it.
The moral lesson of the story was clear and well executed.
I think everyone who will read the book will get a clear idea as to what the message of the author is trying to convey.
Though I don't really like Natalie that much but I love Connor!
Connor. *sigh*
Dear Connor,
If Natalie dumps you when she goes to college, I’ll be here.
Love
Sandee
I rate this 3.5!
I love the cover by the way.
Totally Connor out there. :D
janina_reads's review against another edition
3.0
Well. I just flew through Not That Kind of Girl in a couple of hours this afternoon. If you are wondering, yes, I actually would have had other, more important things to do. Such as studying, for example. But after exhausting myself pointlessly on a 6x6 matrix for about an hour, I decided to throw in the towel and reward myself with some quality book time. Which is something the main character here, Natalie, probably would not approve of.
Natalie has big goals in life. She is more intelligent than most other people at her school and she knows it. She wants to be someone. So she works hard for it and won’t let herself be distracted by anything. Especially not by boys. But with this ambition also comes a certain aloofness and a self-imposed isolation that may be viewed as pride and arrogance. Natalie most definitely is not as wise and knowing as she thinks she is, and she has to learn that in a sometimes painful way.
I can definitely see people thinking of her as an arrogant and annoying character, but I grew to like her. She is flawed, and she desperately needs to learn a lesson (or two), yet you can see that she is not being a snob on purpose. She wants to shelter the one person she truly cares for, her friend Autumn (even if she is carrying it to excess sometimes), and she wants to meet the expectations of those around her – and especially the expectations she has for herself.
I enjoyed seeing her grow throughout the novel, and see her realise that being with a guy you like does not imply that you are dependent on him. That is does not make you any less strong as a woman. That it does not necessarily mean he is only using you. And that sleeping with him does not automatically make you a slut.
I really liked to see the girls' totally different ways of dealing with their problems in this book. Natalie is the one to close up, push people away and snap at them. Autumn has retreated into the shadow of her friend. And Spencer just tries to hold her head high and live with it. Which sometimes works and other times doesn’t. Yet all three of them grow and find their own way.
Connor is definitely a swoon-worthy crush, and I appreciated how [a:Siobhan Vivian|800187|Siobhan Vivian|http://www.goodreads.com/images/nophoto/nophoto-F-50x66.jpg] succeeded in portraying him a bit like the stereotype footballer on the outside, but as a totally different person on the inside as you get to know him better. I would have wished for the interactions between him and Natalie to have a bit more depth, though.
So don't let yourself be fooled by the cover. Although this book clearly features the romance I expected it to, it is also a novel about friendship, about finding out who you want to be and about accepting that being any kind of girl can be totally fine – if it is what you want and what makes you happy.
Natalie has big goals in life. She is more intelligent than most other people at her school and she knows it. She wants to be someone. So she works hard for it and won’t let herself be distracted by anything. Especially not by boys. But with this ambition also comes a certain aloofness and a self-imposed isolation that may be viewed as pride and arrogance. Natalie most definitely is not as wise and knowing as she thinks she is, and she has to learn that in a sometimes painful way.
I can definitely see people thinking of her as an arrogant and annoying character, but I grew to like her. She is flawed, and she desperately needs to learn a lesson (or two), yet you can see that she is not being a snob on purpose. She wants to shelter the one person she truly cares for, her friend Autumn (even if she is carrying it to excess sometimes), and she wants to meet the expectations of those around her – and especially the expectations she has for herself.
I enjoyed seeing her grow throughout the novel, and see her realise that being with a guy you like does not imply that you are dependent on him. That is does not make you any less strong as a woman. That it does not necessarily mean he is only using you. And that sleeping with him does not automatically make you a slut.
I really liked to see the girls' totally different ways of dealing with their problems in this book. Natalie is the one to close up, push people away and snap at them. Autumn has retreated into the shadow of her friend. And Spencer just tries to hold her head high and live with it. Which sometimes works and other times doesn’t. Yet all three of them grow and find their own way.
Connor is definitely a swoon-worthy crush, and I appreciated how [a:Siobhan Vivian|800187|Siobhan Vivian|http://www.goodreads.com/images/nophoto/nophoto-F-50x66.jpg] succeeded in portraying him a bit like the stereotype footballer on the outside, but as a totally different person on the inside as you get to know him better. I would have wished for the interactions between him and Natalie to have a bit more depth, though.
So don't let yourself be fooled by the cover. Although this book clearly features the romance I expected it to, it is also a novel about friendship, about finding out who you want to be and about accepting that being any kind of girl can be totally fine – if it is what you want and what makes you happy.
mlejmeyer's review against another edition
3.0
3.5? I think my high school girls would have loved, loved, loved this book and others by Vivian. As an adult reader, I had issues with some of the feminist themes/contradictions in the book, but I think it would get girls talking and thinking (and reading)!
laurenpiersol's review against another edition
1.0
So I just finished reading Not that Kind of Girl and it was a good book. It really laid into the ideas of feminism and really having self respect rather than letting other people judge you.
It was a little lacking in the romance parts, because when I saw the cover that Is what I expected. Also a few of the female characters literally drove me insane. They seemed to have no selfrespect at all and it did go along with the plot of the story, howver I felt it a little overdone at certain parts.
Overall it was a good book and I enjoyed the messages it portrayed to teenage girls that it's not all about what other people think of you and you need to put yourself first.
It was a little lacking in the romance parts, because when I saw the cover that Is what I expected. Also a few of the female characters literally drove me insane. They seemed to have no selfrespect at all and it did go along with the plot of the story, howver I felt it a little overdone at certain parts.
Overall it was a good book and I enjoyed the messages it portrayed to teenage girls that it's not all about what other people think of you and you need to put yourself first.
kelleemoye's review against another edition
3.0
*Some minor middle book spoilers*
This book was a very quick read for me and I went back and forth between giving it 3, 4 or 5 stars depending on where I was in the book. You meet Natalie who is such a strong young lady. At the beginning of the book, she was so in control- she controlled everything in her life including her friends. The control was what ultimately made everything fall apart. She falls apart in front of your eyes and it just happens so quickly. I wish that Natalie could have just had more emotions throughout. She was so detached (although maybe her detachment and just plain unlikeability [is that even a word?!] was the point). I understand high school love- I went through it, but Natalie seemed to just not have any emotions then all of a sudden had too many. For a senior in high school, to go from a self-proclaimed boy hater to wanting to have sex with a person she hardly knew just seemed unrealistic to me. Afterwards, the started to become more of a human to me, but it took a while.
I do think the book dealt with some important issues like objectifying oneself and I think that all young ladies will find someone in this book to relate to. It could be the perfect student Natalie, the sexually charged Spencer, or the beat down Autumn. They all represent different types of girls in high school and throughout this story, all 3 of them grow.
This book was a very quick read for me and I went back and forth between giving it 3, 4 or 5 stars depending on where I was in the book. You meet Natalie who is such a strong young lady. At the beginning of the book, she was so in control- she controlled everything in her life including her friends. The control was what ultimately made everything fall apart. She falls apart in front of your eyes and it just happens so quickly. I wish that Natalie could have just had more emotions throughout. She was so detached (although maybe her detachment and just plain unlikeability [is that even a word?!] was the point). I understand high school love- I went through it, but Natalie seemed to just not have any emotions then all of a sudden had too many. For a senior in high school, to go from a self-proclaimed boy hater to wanting to have sex with a person she hardly knew just seemed unrealistic to me. Afterwards, the started to become more of a human to me, but it took a while.
I do think the book dealt with some important issues like objectifying oneself and I think that all young ladies will find someone in this book to relate to. It could be the perfect student Natalie, the sexually charged Spencer, or the beat down Autumn. They all represent different types of girls in high school and throughout this story, all 3 of them grow.
nagam's review against another edition
4.0
Probably my favorite of Siobhan's books I've read so far. The MC, Natalie, has a lot of flaws and is judgmental, but that allows for a lot of growth and lessons to be learned. Siobhan's writing is so intellectual and I think could be analyzed a lot further - loved the hints of feminism and discussions about sexuality and how you portray yourself.
heyjudy's review against another edition
3.0
~3-3.5/5
I think maybe I had too high of expectations for this book. I was expecting a very good book, with a very impressive girl-power message. That’s not how it seemed to me.
On the bright side, the writing was good. And the characters were fleshed out, at least mostly. The storyline wasn’t too bad.
First of all, I did not like the main character. Natalie drove me crazy. At first, I was looking forward to her learning her lesson, but about halfway through the book, she was just getting on my nerves. She’s cocky, too confident, very what-I-think-is-right, thinking that everyone should make the “right” decision, and no matter what, what she thinks it right. I just wanted to smack her.
Then there’s the girl message. And I do think that Natalie learned that women shouldn’t be put down for sex, but I don’t really think the message was driven home as much as it could have. She really only seemed to think about it like she should, after she met a guy and fooled around and people looked at her differently. I don’t think it was pushed enough that it doesn’t matter what you’re doing—if you’re having sex, married or not, pregnant young, or a virgin—because all of it is okay. None of it shameful or “wrong”. Natalie thought about it only after having sex and being bullied because of it; then there’s Spencer, who thinks that manipulating men is the right way to go, and I don’t think she fully learned anything either. Autumn, I think, had the right idea, though; she’d smarted up in the right way. There’s also Natalie’s teacher, who is so prejudiced, and yet nothing really came of her opinion but frustration.
Mostly, I think the message was good, I just don’t think it reached the full-fleshed direction it was going.
Then there was the romance. Natalie and Connor start fooling around, and Natalie is the one who’s making it hard. But I think they jumped into it too quickly—I mean, they made eye-contact and seemed to just feel a strong attraction, when I didn’t really feel that. And everything that Natalie does with Connor, changing her mind and having sex with him, just didn’t seem to make sense to me. I just didn’t feel very much chemistry between them, so it didn’t work for me. I wanted it to, but it didn’t.
I wanted to love this book. I really, really did. But instead I’m a little disappointed. I do want to pick up another of Vivian's books, though. I think maybe a different character, at least, could have made this story better, so I hope to see what else she does.
[Read more at my blog, Geeky Reading!]
I think maybe I had too high of expectations for this book. I was expecting a very good book, with a very impressive girl-power message. That’s not how it seemed to me.
On the bright side, the writing was good. And the characters were fleshed out, at least mostly. The storyline wasn’t too bad.
First of all, I did not like the main character. Natalie drove me crazy. At first, I was looking forward to her learning her lesson, but about halfway through the book, she was just getting on my nerves. She’s cocky, too confident, very what-I-think-is-right, thinking that everyone should make the “right” decision, and no matter what, what she thinks it right. I just wanted to smack her.
Then there’s the girl message. And I do think that Natalie learned that women shouldn’t be put down for sex, but I don’t really think the message was driven home as much as it could have. She really only seemed to think about it like she should, after she met a guy and fooled around and people looked at her differently. I don’t think it was pushed enough that it doesn’t matter what you’re doing—if you’re having sex, married or not, pregnant young, or a virgin—because all of it is okay. None of it shameful or “wrong”. Natalie thought about it only after having sex and being bullied because of it; then there’s Spencer, who thinks that manipulating men is the right way to go, and I don’t think she fully learned anything either. Autumn, I think, had the right idea, though; she’d smarted up in the right way. There’s also Natalie’s teacher, who is so prejudiced, and yet nothing really came of her opinion but frustration.
Mostly, I think the message was good, I just don’t think it reached the full-fleshed direction it was going.
Then there was the romance. Natalie and Connor start fooling around, and Natalie is the one who’s making it hard. But I think they jumped into it too quickly—I mean, they made eye-contact and seemed to just feel a strong attraction, when I didn’t really feel that. And everything that Natalie does with Connor, changing her mind and having sex with him, just didn’t seem to make sense to me. I just didn’t feel very much chemistry between them, so it didn’t work for me. I wanted it to, but it didn’t.
I wanted to love this book. I really, really did. But instead I’m a little disappointed. I do want to pick up another of Vivian's books, though. I think maybe a different character, at least, could have made this story better, so I hope to see what else she does.
[Read more at my blog, Geeky Reading!]
papalbina's review against another edition
4.0
It's not all passionate like other books of this kind I have read lately, but I like the moral in it.
The only thing that annoyed me, especially in the middle, when Connor and Natalie begin to be an item, was that because of the lack of physical description I ended up imagining Natalie as Rachel and Connor as Finn from "Glee". Even when I knew they were totally different...
My favourite character was Connor, he was very upright for a teenage boy and ssooooo cute *____* And I like Spencer's character, although it was a little bit unbelievable coming from a 14-year-old fO.o
Anyway it was different, but worth reading it :)
The only thing that annoyed me, especially in the middle, when Connor and Natalie begin to be an item, was that because of the lack of physical description I ended up imagining Natalie as Rachel and Connor as Finn from "Glee". Even when I knew they were totally different...
My favourite character was Connor, he was very upright for a teenage boy and ssooooo cute *____* And I like Spencer's character, although it was a little bit unbelievable coming from a 14-year-old fO.o
Anyway it was different, but worth reading it :)
kristid's review against another edition
4.0
You're either 'that kind of girl' or your not..... right?
What a fantastic novel. I've been reading some exceptionally well written and meaningful novels lately and Not That Kind of Girl is one of them. Vivian has made a fan out of me! Looking forward to her future titles and may have to get her two previous titles to devour as well.
Struggling with who you are... and how you want people to see you, is something that I don't ever think you grow out of. I know I still struggle with it as an adult and I couldn't help remembering how much more I struggled with that in high school just like Natalie did. I envied her, I hated her... I pitied her.
She was such a remarkably well written character, and unlike any character I've read about in YA. She's obviously intelligent... she's stubborn and opinionated without being annoying. I couldn't decide if I loved her or if I hated her. Somewhere along the course of the novel I pitied her and in the end, I loved her. Despite her air of control and perfection... you know that Natalie has a few lessons to learn.
And Spencer was the perfect ying to Natalie's yang. Their way of thinking may be totally different (pertaining to how a young woman should act and be), but it's hard to say if one girl is more correct than the other. It was an interesting take on two different versions of feminism.
I can't fail to mention my favorite aspect of any novel... there may be a little love story that develops as well. A realistically portrayed relationship!
Great characterization... awesome plot.. sensational writing! This is one simply fantastic contemporary novel. Can't wait for more!
What a fantastic novel. I've been reading some exceptionally well written and meaningful novels lately and Not That Kind of Girl is one of them. Vivian has made a fan out of me! Looking forward to her future titles and may have to get her two previous titles to devour as well.
Struggling with who you are... and how you want people to see you, is something that I don't ever think you grow out of. I know I still struggle with it as an adult and I couldn't help remembering how much more I struggled with that in high school just like Natalie did. I envied her, I hated her... I pitied her.
She was such a remarkably well written character, and unlike any character I've read about in YA. She's obviously intelligent... she's stubborn and opinionated without being annoying. I couldn't decide if I loved her or if I hated her. Somewhere along the course of the novel I pitied her and in the end, I loved her. Despite her air of control and perfection... you know that Natalie has a few lessons to learn.
And Spencer was the perfect ying to Natalie's yang. Their way of thinking may be totally different (pertaining to how a young woman should act and be), but it's hard to say if one girl is more correct than the other. It was an interesting take on two different versions of feminism.
I can't fail to mention my favorite aspect of any novel... there may be a little love story that develops as well. A realistically portrayed relationship!
Great characterization... awesome plot.. sensational writing! This is one simply fantastic contemporary novel. Can't wait for more!