khairun_atika's review against another edition
3.0
Quirky and fun, this is quite a delightful story about a shy wallflower who finds herself the centre of attention. Nattie is unwittingly thrown into the spotlight when she becomes the subject of her former crush's new hit single, Natalie. While everyone is determined to find out the identity of the girl who broke the heart of the handsome lead singer, Nattie is eager to keep out of the spotlight while fighting for her feelings for her best friend. With some insight of a Gay Alliance group in the school, and a very progressive attitude towards sexuality, this story reflects the millenials and youths of 2017 very clearly, in a quirky and fun but insightful way. It gets a little draggy at some parts, as Nattie tries to sort things out, but it has a wonderful ending.
aielylois's review
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
rosiethespy's review against another edition
3.0
I liked this book. Nattie has a distinct funny voice that sounded authentically teen without being annoying about it. I love the idea of calling your vegetarian, progressive friend "Zach the Anarchist"--it feels like exactly the kind of thing this group of smart, kind of nerdy kids would do.
thearosemary's review against another edition
2.0
Going into WHO'S THAT GIRL, I was expecting something similar to STARSTRUCK, or CAMP ROCK, or ANOTHER CINDERELLA STORY (bless these classics), but this story was far from those plot lines. This book was a little all over the place, with several scenes of chit chat and baking that didn't seem necessary. (But the treats sounded delicious and I feel very inspired to bake some cookies, haha.)
I suppose my greatest struggle with this story was Natalie. She was SO selfish, and she had these amazing, perfect friends who were willing to do anything for her. Plus for the synopsis saying she's in a gay-straight alliance club, I have to say she really didn't seem like an ally. There were countless times she could've stood up for her LBTQ alliance and she didn't, plus she hardly put any effort into their cause (not until the end).
There was certainly some redemption with Natalie by the last couple of chapters. I understand characters must be flawed – I love when they are – in order to show significant growth, but Natalie was just so hard to love.
The story was fun and easy to read, and the plot still fulfills that what if fantasy we all have tweens and teens. Thornburgh's writing flowed well, so it only took a few sittings to finish it. I loved Tess, Tall Zach and Zach the Anarchist. I wish there was more of them and the gay club, and less of Natalie and her Pixtagram convos with Sebastian (who, by the way, is barely in the book).
I suppose my greatest struggle with this story was Natalie. She was SO selfish, and she had these amazing, perfect friends who were willing to do anything for her. Plus for the synopsis saying she's in a gay-straight alliance club, I have to say she really didn't seem like an ally. There were countless times she could've stood up for her LBTQ alliance and she didn't, plus she hardly put any effort into their cause (not until the end).
There was certainly some redemption with Natalie by the last couple of chapters. I understand characters must be flawed – I love when they are – in order to show significant growth, but Natalie was just so hard to love.
The story was fun and easy to read, and the plot still fulfills that what if fantasy we all have tweens and teens. Thornburgh's writing flowed well, so it only took a few sittings to finish it. I loved Tess, Tall Zach and Zach the Anarchist. I wish there was more of them and the gay club, and less of Natalie and her Pixtagram convos with Sebastian (who, by the way, is barely in the book).
cakeroo's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I really loved Ordinary Girls so I had high hopes for this one. It was pretty disappointing. I think the characters are supposed to be eccentric but honestly they are just insufferable.
I liked the overall concept but relying so heavily on the hipster culture that was popular at the time of publishing already makes the book feel dated.
I liked the overall concept but relying so heavily on the hipster culture that was popular at the time of publishing already makes the book feel dated.
illbefinealone's review against another edition
3.0
A fun read overall. Here are the remarks from my notes:
-the lead's behavior was a little confusing at times
-the whole Tall Zach & Zach the Anarchist thing isn't pulled off properly, going back to reread happened a few times cause I had no idea which Zach was talking
-odd comments here and there that could've been worded better disrupted the flow ("“That’s how we’re going to turn a profit.” Zach narrowed his eyes at me as I chewed the cookie. It was, of course, really good." is the example that stuck with me, the 'of course' bothers me quite a lot.)
-some evident dialogue problems
-there were some unrealistic plot points here and there (mainly about how fast Sebastian's career was progressing)
-the writing was okay (although I would've loved more creative dialogue tags)
-the conclusion of the story might be the most anticlimactic one I have ever read
-the lead's behavior was a little confusing at times
-the whole Tall Zach & Zach the Anarchist thing isn't pulled off properly, going back to reread happened a few times cause I had no idea which Zach was talking
-odd comments here and there that could've been worded better disrupted the flow ("“That’s how we’re going to turn a profit.” Zach narrowed his eyes at me as I chewed the cookie. It was, of course, really good." is the example that stuck with me, the 'of course' bothers me quite a lot.)
-some evident dialogue problems
-there were some unrealistic plot points here and there (mainly about how fast Sebastian's career was progressing)
-the writing was okay (although I would've loved more creative dialogue tags)
-the conclusion of the story might be the most anticlimactic one I have ever read
millie_mcd's review
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
missprint_'s review against another edition
3.0
After the initially cute start I had a hard time with this one. I was nothing like Nattie as a teen and I had a really hard time getting inside her head--partly because we have such different personalities but also because it was never quite explained to my satisfaction on the page. Nattie is so keen on blending in that she has almost completely subsumed her personality while best friend Tess is almost all bravado. Meredith, a girl Nattie initially writes off, is unapologetically who she is (which was me in high school down to the rolling backpack). This is a great summer read but Nattie just got too frustrating for me to deal with.