designergirl9's review against another edition
4.0
I thought this book was hilarious and had some great lines and references. The only issue I can see with why the book hasn't gotten better ratings and reviews is that some of the humor and parts that make the book so brilliant the average young adult might not get or appreciate fully. The book has a good message, it's interesting, easy to follow, and its really funny. I look forward to seeing more from Caprice Crane.
michelle_pink_polka_dot's review against another edition
2.0
Hailey's life at school is not exactly fun. She's been humiliated and bullied on more than one occasion by girls who've decided she doesn't fit in. Then her family decides to move to L.A. and she's dreading what she's going to be in for as "the new girl". But while packing she finds her older, cooler sister's diary which is entitled "How to be a Hater". It's basically a guide on how to act in high school... full of tips about clothes, boys, attitude, and so much more. Hailey knows this is her chance to change the way her life has been going.... this is her chance to be popular!! But of course things don't really go as planned. After a brief popularity stint, Hailey finds her place among a group of girls that refer to themselves as "The Invisibles". Using the diary and their array of unique talents, these girls decide to take on the hierarchy of West Hollywood High.
My Thoughts:
This book started off so stinking cute! Hailey was so observant and funny and just had interesting/witty things to say. I was really thinking I had found the next Kelsey Finkelstein or Ruby Oliver (from [b:Freshman Year & Other Unnatural Disasters|11699323|Freshman Year & Other Unnatural Disasters|Meredith Zeitlin|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1314883523s/11699323.jpg|16646431] and [b:The Boyfriend List: 15 Guys, 11 Shrink Appointments, 4 Ceramic Frogs and Me, Ruby Oliver|301022|The Boyfriend List 15 Guys, 11 Shrink Appointments, 4 Ceramic Frogs and Me, Ruby Oliver (Ruby Oliver, #1)|E. Lockhart|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1342343845s/301022.jpg|292089]). BUT (you knew there was going to be a but here right??)... but then everything went downhill for me.
I'm going to go ahead and put this book in the classification of books I'm too old to read. Maybe if I was an actual high school-er who didn't read as much as I do, I would've enjoyed the entertainment of this book.... because it was entertaining. My eyes just started hurting from rolling so hard in the sockets, that I found the book hard to finish.
Ok so you have this girl who is pretty darn snarky and makes these really cute life observations that you can't help but smile at... and what was wrong with her? Nothing!! She was clearly a really talented artist and a good daughter and friend... so why did she have to have the dreaded makeover?? It was the whole "if I get contacts, lose 10 pounds, wear my older sister's clothes, and get a haircut I'm suddenly a brand new person". Straight out of that Freddie Prinze Jr. movie She's All That. Then she goes to her new high school and takes a disliking to the popular clique (this is after they immediately embrace her as one of their own) and forms her own clique.... only to start acting EXACTLY like the popular clique. Putting people down, being insanely cruel, being judgmental, and obsessing over completely vain and petty things.
I totally should have liked this book because I generally love books about popularity... but I just couldn't with this one. There were too many completely unbelievable situations like: of course the hottest most popular guy in school immediately wants to get with Hailey and when she decides she wants to hook up with him her friend helps her "practice" on a frozen banana! ICK!!!!! And then when she actually tries what she practiced on him, I was forced to read the most ridiculous, embarrassing, awkward, and unnecessary hook-up of all-time.
As the book wore on even the cute little observations started feeling forced. And that's when I realized this book was pretty much just a notebook full of anecdotes and teen-talk strung together. It pisses me off because this book had SO much potential. It could have been so cute and had a really good message. Instead it was full of stereotypes and unrealistic situations.
I won't tell you the ending, but as unbelievable as most of the plot was, the ending was even more unlikely to EVER happen... to anyone EVER. I know it's a small world, but it's not that freaking small! It also ended super abruptly, but as you can probably guess, if there's a sequel, I won't be reading it.
OVERALL: A book that I wanted to love, but just couldn't. It was entertaining and even had some laugh out loud moments, but it was too full of stereotypes and unrealistic situations for me to recommend. If you are looking to read a book about pranks and popularity wars, this is so your book. But if you want a message or a real story, I'd say try something else.
My Blog:
My Thoughts:
This book started off so stinking cute! Hailey was so observant and funny and just had interesting/witty things to say. I was really thinking I had found the next Kelsey Finkelstein or Ruby Oliver (from [b:Freshman Year & Other Unnatural Disasters|11699323|Freshman Year & Other Unnatural Disasters|Meredith Zeitlin|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1314883523s/11699323.jpg|16646431] and [b:The Boyfriend List: 15 Guys, 11 Shrink Appointments, 4 Ceramic Frogs and Me, Ruby Oliver|301022|The Boyfriend List 15 Guys, 11 Shrink Appointments, 4 Ceramic Frogs and Me, Ruby Oliver (Ruby Oliver, #1)|E. Lockhart|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1342343845s/301022.jpg|292089]). BUT (you knew there was going to be a but here right??)... but then everything went downhill for me.
I'm going to go ahead and put this book in the classification of books I'm too old to read. Maybe if I was an actual high school-er who didn't read as much as I do, I would've enjoyed the entertainment of this book.... because it was entertaining. My eyes just started hurting from rolling so hard in the sockets, that I found the book hard to finish.
Ok so you have this girl who is pretty darn snarky and makes these really cute life observations that you can't help but smile at... and what was wrong with her? Nothing!! She was clearly a really talented artist and a good daughter and friend... so why did she have to have the dreaded makeover?? It was the whole "if I get contacts, lose 10 pounds, wear my older sister's clothes, and get a haircut I'm suddenly a brand new person". Straight out of that Freddie Prinze Jr. movie She's All That. Then she goes to her new high school and takes a disliking to the popular clique (this is after they immediately embrace her as one of their own) and forms her own clique.... only to start acting EXACTLY like the popular clique. Putting people down, being insanely cruel, being judgmental, and obsessing over completely vain and petty things.
I totally should have liked this book because I generally love books about popularity... but I just couldn't with this one. There were too many completely unbelievable situations like: of course the hottest most popular guy in school immediately wants to get with Hailey and when she decides she wants to hook up with him her friend helps her "practice" on a frozen banana! ICK!!!!! And then when she actually tries what she practiced on him, I was forced to read the most ridiculous, embarrassing, awkward, and unnecessary hook-up of all-time.
As the book wore on even the cute little observations started feeling forced. And that's when I realized this book was pretty much just a notebook full of anecdotes and teen-talk strung together. It pisses me off because this book had SO much potential. It could have been so cute and had a really good message. Instead it was full of stereotypes and unrealistic situations.
I won't tell you the ending, but as unbelievable as most of the plot was, the ending was even more unlikely to EVER happen... to anyone EVER. I know it's a small world, but it's not that freaking small! It also ended super abruptly, but as you can probably guess, if there's a sequel, I won't be reading it.
OVERALL: A book that I wanted to love, but just couldn't. It was entertaining and even had some laugh out loud moments, but it was too full of stereotypes and unrealistic situations for me to recommend. If you are looking to read a book about pranks and popularity wars, this is so your book. But if you want a message or a real story, I'd say try something else.
My Blog:
skinnygetout's review against another edition
3.0
A pretty fun read. The plot of this book reminded me so much of Mean Girls, that I kept saying, "On Wednesdays we wear pink" in my head I read. There is the requisite amount of cattiness going to far, a revelatory moment of regret, and promises of better behavior in the future. Pretty typical in that regard, but there are enough plot hooks to keep it interesting.
usef's review against another edition
3.0
i know a lot of people hate this book for being very cliche and having the mean girls trope but i kind of enjoy that trope for some weird reason, yet i didnt really like how it was portrayed in this book ?
this book is a relic of its time, it was published in 2013 if im not wrong and that is very painfully obvious with all of the references, i chuckled at some but a lot where really cringey :/
its supposed to be written in like the pov of the main charachter, who is a teenager, and i think the author pulled that off kind of well, but sometimes it felt weird
i cant say anything good about this book without adding a but.
this book is a relic of its time, it was published in 2013 if im not wrong and that is very painfully obvious with all of the references, i chuckled at some but a lot where really cringey :/
its supposed to be written in like the pov of the main charachter, who is a teenager, and i think the author pulled that off kind of well, but sometimes it felt weird
i cant say anything good about this book without adding a but.
book_nut's review against another edition
2.0
It's basically Mean Girls in print form (and yes, I rewatched the movie to make sure). I wanted something unique, something different. And all I got was a semi-graphic blow job. (Yeah, I know it was supposed to be funny.) Disappointing.
operasara's review against another edition
4.0
Confessions of a Hater by Caprice Crane is a fantastic book that follows former nerd Hailey as she moves across the country. In her new town Hailey decides to reinvent herself following the rules she found in her sister's diary. She bands together with the invisible kids at school to take down the popular kids.
This is a fun book that will be enjoyed by readers who loved the movie Mean Girls. Hailey is a fun character who gets in a lot of hijinks that are fun to read about. I flew through the book enjoying every juicy and fluffy moment. It wasn't the most original story but it was fun.
Approrpiateness: This book is full of adult content that is fine for teen readers but not really anything that parents would want their middle school readers reading. It's got sex (including a couple fairly graphic oral sex moments), drugs and drinking. I recommend this book to readers 14+
Review copy provided by Amazon Prime
This is a fun book that will be enjoyed by readers who loved the movie Mean Girls. Hailey is a fun character who gets in a lot of hijinks that are fun to read about. I flew through the book enjoying every juicy and fluffy moment. It wasn't the most original story but it was fun.
Approrpiateness: This book is full of adult content that is fine for teen readers but not really anything that parents would want their middle school readers reading. It's got sex (including a couple fairly graphic oral sex moments), drugs and drinking. I recommend this book to readers 14+
Review copy provided by Amazon Prime
zaicaner's review against another edition
3.0
The story behind it was okay. I wasn't too crazy for this main characters. She really did annoy me. i am also not really sure I like the other characters as well. I know that there is a ship in this book and sadly I did not ship the ship.
mkschoen's review against another edition
3.0
I did like this book. I liked it better when it was the movie "Mean Girls," though. Seriously, if you've seen Mean Girls you know the entire plot. Still, the writing was funny and the plot moved quickly, and definitely worth it for a teen.
wackyykacky's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
i accept this book for what it is- a product of society in the 2010s! that said, this was so hard to get through and all of the diet talk (with no acknowledgement of the weirdness of the diet talk) made me CRINGE!