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A review by brooke_review
Permanent Record by Mary H.K. Choi
4.0
Permanent Record serves as my introduction to the witty and engaging writing and storytelling of Mary H.K. Choi. Halfway through Permanent Record, I stopped reading and browsed her backlist, putting last year's release, Emergency Contact, on my immediate to-be-read list. I can't wait to jump into more of her stories!
So what is it exactly that I like about Choi's writing? First of all, she has a way of pulling you in to descriptive and imaginative worlds with compelling storytelling. Her characters are fully-fleshed and leap off the page. It is not difficult to get a clear and accurate image in your head of what her leads are like. She also has a way of tapping into the world of the modern young adult - Choi is up on cultural references and writes in a way that today's youth can easily relate to and see themselves in.
Choi's newest novel Permanent Record follows twenty year old NYU dropout Pablo as he works at his neighborhood bodega - although he insists it is not a bodega - maintains an Instagram page where he posts creative pairings of snacks with shoes, and dodges calls from the student loan office and credit card companies. His life changes, however, when Leanna Smart walks into his store one early morning in search of sustenance and perhaps some anonymous human contact. See Leanna is an uber-celebrity. She got her start as a Disney TV star and later became a teenage pop sensation, a la Britney Spears. However, she feels disconnected from the world and her life because everyone wants a piece of her. Who is the real Leanna and what does she really want out of life?
When Pablo and Leanna meet-cute, it is insta-love of the most unimaginable kind - at least to Pablo. Could a mega-celebrity really fall in love with an ordinary guy? As Pablo is introduced to the sleek, sexy, and highly-controlled and publicized life of Leanna Smart, he finds himself falling more and more in love with this girl who is nothing like how she appears to the rest of the world. Tied to a non-disclosure agreement, Pablo can't speak about his relationship with Leanna, and he finds himself unable to explain his erratic and mysterious actions to his family and friends - disappearing for days at a time as he and Leanna jet off to foreign countries, dodging bill collectors, and not showing up for work. Pablo feels this is all too good to be true, and he is afraid his relationship with Leanna won't last. Furthermore, he can't continue to ignore his "real life" forever. Should he follow his head or should he follow his heart?
Readers who enjoy pop culture stories, intense relationships, and glimpses at the life of the rich and famous will enjoy Permanent Record. Furthermore, this isn't just a glitzy, celebrity-fueled novel. These characters have heart and are all working through realistic and relatable problems of their own. There are as many takeaways from this book as there are hours of entertaining reading. Enjoy!
Thank you to Simon and Schuster and NetGalley for an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.
So what is it exactly that I like about Choi's writing? First of all, she has a way of pulling you in to descriptive and imaginative worlds with compelling storytelling. Her characters are fully-fleshed and leap off the page. It is not difficult to get a clear and accurate image in your head of what her leads are like. She also has a way of tapping into the world of the modern young adult - Choi is up on cultural references and writes in a way that today's youth can easily relate to and see themselves in.
Choi's newest novel Permanent Record follows twenty year old NYU dropout Pablo as he works at his neighborhood bodega - although he insists it is not a bodega - maintains an Instagram page where he posts creative pairings of snacks with shoes, and dodges calls from the student loan office and credit card companies. His life changes, however, when Leanna Smart walks into his store one early morning in search of sustenance and perhaps some anonymous human contact. See Leanna is an uber-celebrity. She got her start as a Disney TV star and later became a teenage pop sensation, a la Britney Spears. However, she feels disconnected from the world and her life because everyone wants a piece of her. Who is the real Leanna and what does she really want out of life?
When Pablo and Leanna meet-cute, it is insta-love of the most unimaginable kind - at least to Pablo. Could a mega-celebrity really fall in love with an ordinary guy? As Pablo is introduced to the sleek, sexy, and highly-controlled and publicized life of Leanna Smart, he finds himself falling more and more in love with this girl who is nothing like how she appears to the rest of the world. Tied to a non-disclosure agreement, Pablo can't speak about his relationship with Leanna, and he finds himself unable to explain his erratic and mysterious actions to his family and friends - disappearing for days at a time as he and Leanna jet off to foreign countries, dodging bill collectors, and not showing up for work. Pablo feels this is all too good to be true, and he is afraid his relationship with Leanna won't last. Furthermore, he can't continue to ignore his "real life" forever. Should he follow his head or should he follow his heart?
Readers who enjoy pop culture stories, intense relationships, and glimpses at the life of the rich and famous will enjoy Permanent Record. Furthermore, this isn't just a glitzy, celebrity-fueled novel. These characters have heart and are all working through realistic and relatable problems of their own. There are as many takeaways from this book as there are hours of entertaining reading. Enjoy!
Thank you to Simon and Schuster and NetGalley for an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.