riellebks's review against another edition
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.5
oatieoats's review
2.0
Um what the heck did I just read?
I finished reading this book 5 minutes ago and I don't have words. Not in a good way.
Lets break it down.
Beatrice and her friends have been bullied all their school year, so Beatrice comes up with a formula (because this is normal, An Abundance of Katherines much?) to change their lives.
Then all of the sudden people automatically welcomes them as if nothing, because that's exactly what people do when you change the way you dress. Even though you've been bullied all your life, you change your outfit and TA-DA--because kids are that nice.
"The cool kids" as them to sit with them, suddenly everybody in school wants to be friends with them, etc etc.
this didn't bother me so much: the unlikeliness of it all, a change of clothes and you keep the bullies away.
What bothered me was the whole Manic Pixie Dream Girl thing. Like we've all seen these types of girls in books and movies but apparently everybody except Beatrice and Toiles actually understand how they work.
The point of these characters is that they are cool, unique, artistic, fresh, a bit indie BUT THEY DONT DRESS LIKE CRAZY!
AND THEY SURELY DONT TALK LIKE CRAZY!
rainbows, cotton candy, unicorns, rain and stuff. Not all of them have kindergarten ADHD.
This is what bothered me the most, these girls (Trixie and Toiles) were dressed like crazy and I wonder how no one made fun of them but actually just rolled with it.
Im pretty sure if someone dressed like that in my school, she would probably get bullied (which is not cool but you know how kids are).
Let's revisit the typical MPDG:
Zoey Deschanel in (500) days of summer, she dresses so cool. Her style is very Indiesh/hipsterish she doesnt wear mismatched shoes
-Elizabethtown, Kristen dresses simply: skirt, shirt and flip-flops. SHE DOESNT WEAR YELLOW SHORTS WITH BRIGHT TEAL LEGGINGS AND A PINK SWEATER.
Thats because she wasnt dress by a kindergartner.
-Roman Holiday/Breakfast at Tiffany's: Audrey dresses very classy and elegant. Certainly does not talk like this:
“Just say whatever pops into your head. It’ll sound more authentic that way.” Gabe morphed into character. “Bea, darling. I just love what you’ve done with your hair.”
Right. Whatever pops into my head. “Really? Thanks! I mean, I wasn’t really sure . . . The pink and all. It kinda looks like candy. Oh, have you ever thought about what’s in a Skittle? Think about it! Tasting the rainbow could mean a whole lot of different . . . Oh. My. GOD!” I turned to the window, pointing outside. “Check out those clouds! Doesn’t it look like a princess riding a pony jumping over the TARDIS?” I dropped the act. “What do you think?”
Besides the way Trixie dresses, talks and acts (with the swirling and hopping) I also disliked Beatrice. Her personality is awful.
-shes selfish
-shes arrogant
-she thinks she's superior than everybody just because shes good at math
-she thinks she's superior than everybody just because people aren't good at math/dont like math
-she's petulant
-she feels she's so mature, and she has to remind us all the time shes WAY more mature than her classmates and even her parents.
This book makes fun of the MPDG but Beatrice character is one I've seen often.
-control freak
-type A personality
-well behaved
-she gets good grades
-doesnt have many friends
-logical, never allows her emotions to show
-has OCD
anyhow 2.5 stars
I finished reading this book 5 minutes ago and I don't have words. Not in a good way.
Lets break it down.
Beatrice and her friends have been bullied all their school year, so Beatrice comes up with a formula (because this is normal, An Abundance of Katherines much?) to change their lives.
Then all of the sudden people automatically welcomes them as if nothing, because that's exactly what people do when you change the way you dress. Even though you've been bullied all your life, you change your outfit and TA-DA--because kids are that nice.
"The cool kids" as them to sit with them, suddenly everybody in school wants to be friends with them, etc etc.
this didn't bother me so much: the unlikeliness of it all, a change of clothes and you keep the bullies away.
What bothered me was the whole Manic Pixie Dream Girl thing. Like we've all seen these types of girls in books and movies but apparently everybody except Beatrice and Toiles actually understand how they work.
The point of these characters is that they are cool, unique, artistic, fresh, a bit indie BUT THEY DONT DRESS LIKE CRAZY!
AND THEY SURELY DONT TALK LIKE CRAZY!
rainbows, cotton candy, unicorns, rain and stuff. Not all of them have kindergarten ADHD.
This is what bothered me the most, these girls (Trixie and Toiles) were dressed like crazy and I wonder how no one made fun of them but actually just rolled with it.
Im pretty sure if someone dressed like that in my school, she would probably get bullied (which is not cool but you know how kids are).
Let's revisit the typical MPDG:
Zoey Deschanel in (500) days of summer, she dresses so cool. Her style is very Indiesh/hipsterish she doesnt wear mismatched shoes
-Elizabethtown, Kristen dresses simply: skirt, shirt and flip-flops. SHE DOESNT WEAR YELLOW SHORTS WITH BRIGHT TEAL LEGGINGS AND A PINK SWEATER.
Thats because she wasnt dress by a kindergartner.
-Roman Holiday/Breakfast at Tiffany's: Audrey dresses very classy and elegant. Certainly does not talk like this:
“Just say whatever pops into your head. It’ll sound more authentic that way.” Gabe morphed into character. “Bea, darling. I just love what you’ve done with your hair.”
Right. Whatever pops into my head. “Really? Thanks! I mean, I wasn’t really sure . . . The pink and all. It kinda looks like candy. Oh, have you ever thought about what’s in a Skittle? Think about it! Tasting the rainbow could mean a whole lot of different . . . Oh. My. GOD!” I turned to the window, pointing outside. “Check out those clouds! Doesn’t it look like a princess riding a pony jumping over the TARDIS?” I dropped the act. “What do you think?”
Besides the way Trixie dresses, talks and acts (with the swirling and hopping) I also disliked Beatrice. Her personality is awful.
-shes selfish
-shes arrogant
-she thinks she's superior than everybody just because shes good at math
-she thinks she's superior than everybody just because people aren't good at math/dont like math
-she's petulant
-she feels she's so mature, and she has to remind us all the time shes WAY more mature than her classmates and even her parents.
This book makes fun of the MPDG but Beatrice character is one I've seen often.
-control freak
-type A personality
-well behaved
-she gets good grades
-doesnt have many friends
-logical, never allows her emotions to show
-has OCD
anyhow 2.5 stars
notlikethebeer's review
2.0
This was okay, largely forgettable. I thought the main character was a bit of a dick, I know that was the point at times, but also she just really annoyed me in a way that put me off the whole book haha. She treated her friends pretty badly and just seemed to get away with it. I really liked the examining of the 'manic pixie dream girl' trope though, as well as the quasi examining of homosexual stereotypes. A fun read.
storytimed's review
2.0
ALSO A BAD BOOK
The concept is that a math genius uses math to improve the social lives of her & her friends except the math is NONSENSE
I had it on my list bc 1) social engineering 2) half-Filipino protagonist but like........ the social engineering could have honestly been better??
The one gay character's popularity transformation is him doing the gay best friend stereotype but then novel slightly treats him like he actually is that stereotype
There was some gay energy between the protagonist and the manic pixie dream girl who steals her boyfriend bc then she's like. I must become a manic pixie dream girl to defeat her & it's v clearly not about the boy at all
The concept is that a math genius uses math to improve the social lives of her & her friends except the math is NONSENSE
I had it on my list bc 1) social engineering 2) half-Filipino protagonist but like........ the social engineering could have honestly been better??
The one gay character's popularity transformation is him doing the gay best friend stereotype but then novel slightly treats him like he actually is that stereotype
There was some gay energy between the protagonist and the manic pixie dream girl who steals her boyfriend bc then she's like. I must become a manic pixie dream girl to defeat her & it's v clearly not about the boy at all
pikasqueaks's review
4.0
This book was cute and fun. From the first few pages it creates an ABC Family movie feel to it. If you've seen the 90s Teen Movies, the newer Degrassi, and Gay Best Friend, you can probably predict everything that happens. But that's one of the best parts: you know what you're getting. It's an easy, light read.
I wasn't expecting the way that the Manic Pixie Dream Girl trope was handled would be okay. A lot of people make "MPDG" mean the twee Zooey Deschanel cutesy type, rather than acknowledging that the trope is all about the male fantasy and creation of it. But the fact that Trixie is for Jesse's enjoyment and nothing else is prominent in the book.
Interesting enough, our main character, Beatrice, has Other Deschanel Sister Syndrome. If you are like me and cannot handle over-the-top "nerdy" characters, especially those who cannot relate to *whispers* normies (and have some serious control issues re: people not liking math), she's going to grate on your nerves. She starts off like the insufferable main character from "Love and other Foreign Words" but it settles down once the author realizes she doesn't have to punch us in the face repeatedly with how nerrrrrrrdy she is. It approached John Green levels of "people do not talk like this," but that was the point, and it stops eventually.
The ending is satisfying, but I would have taken it a step further.
Cute book overall!
I wasn't expecting the way that the Manic Pixie Dream Girl trope was handled would be okay. A lot of people make "MPDG" mean the twee Zooey Deschanel cutesy type, rather than acknowledging that the trope is all about the male fantasy and creation of it. But the fact that Trixie is for Jesse's enjoyment and nothing else is prominent in the book.
Interesting enough, our main character, Beatrice, has Other Deschanel Sister Syndrome. If you are like me and cannot handle over-the-top "nerdy" characters, especially those who cannot relate to *whispers* normies (and have some serious control issues re: people not liking math), she's going to grate on your nerves. She starts off like the insufferable main character from "Love and other Foreign Words" but it settles down once the author realizes she doesn't have to punch us in the face repeatedly with how nerrrrrrrdy she is. It approached John Green levels of "people do not talk like this," but that was the point, and it stops eventually.
The ending is satisfying, but I would have taken it a step further.
Cute book overall!
cupcates's review
2.0
If you ask me anything about this book, I probably won't be able to answer because I was just so damn bored. The plot was all over the place, without a clear direction of where it started and where it was meant to go, and I simply could not get into it.
kimberleylynn74's review
4.0
I quite enjoyed this YA novel - did a binge-read 2 nights ago, all 343 pages in one go.
Diversity of characters, including ethnicity and sexual orientation. Anyone who wasn't in the popular crowd in high school can probably relate to the main characters, and their struggled through the end of summer and first months of senior year.
Diversity of characters, including ethnicity and sexual orientation. Anyone who wasn't in the popular crowd in high school can probably relate to the main characters, and their struggled through the end of summer and first months of senior year.