Author: Caela Carter
Series: Stand Alone
Published By: Bloomsbury Children's (Feb. 26, 2013)
Source: ARC Copy Provided by the Publisher (in exchange for an honest review)
Genre: YA Contemporary
My Rating: 4.5 Stars!
Book Description:
When Evelyn decided to piss off her parents with a bad reputation, she wasn't planning to ruin her valedictorian status. She also wasn't planning to fall for Todd-the guy she was just using for sex. And she definitely wasn't planning on getting pregnant. When Todd turns his back on her, Evelyn's not sure where to go. Can a distant mother, a cheating father, an angry best friend, and a (thankfully) loving aunt with adopted daughters of her own help Evelyn make the heart-wrenching decisions that follow? With the popularity of Juno, Teen Mom, and The Secret Life of the American Teenager, this novel has a built-in audience. Gripping, heartfelt, and responsible, Me, Him, Them, and It is not to be missed!
Caela Carter has managed to take a very
real and very personal issues that some teenagers are facing today
and make it into an emotional yet beautiful struggle about one girl
and the decisions she must face that will change the rest of her
life, for better or worse.
I felt for Evelyn from the get go.
Yeah, she was a teenager and asmart one at that, but a smart one that
made some very bad decisions for some very wrong reasons. But the
choices she made because of those reasons? Those were what killed me
more than anything. How sad I felt for her. For one girl's struggle
to be noticed and loved by her parents. To lash out in the only way
she thought she could, by screwing up her whole life. It kind of
broke my heart. Not just because of the circumstances surrounding
Evelyn but because I know this happens, more often than what I care
to think about. Girl's just crying out for the attention and love
they so desperately need from the two people in their lives that
should always been there for. For those two people that above anyone
else, we should always be able to count on and depend on.
Yeah, it broke my heart.
This wasn't just a story about Evelyn's
pregnancy though. It was a story about family too. About what love
means and how to express it. Learning that love comes in many
different shapes and forms and about finding yourself along the way,
without or without that love. \
I didn't always agree with Evelyn's
decisions or with the way she handled herself but overall I think
this was a great coming of age story that covered a lot of hard real
life issues for a lot of young people out there today.
I fell in love with a lot of the
characters, more so than I thought. Her Aunt Linda was amazing. Her
Aunt Nora too. Her Dad, Lizzie, so many great people. I would like to
say I got through this one withut crying but that wouldn't be true. I
cried, I did. Not necessarily because it was sad, because it was sad,
but because it was happy to, in a melancholy kind of way.
Very well done Ms. Carter.
Sounds like a very emotional read with a lot of difficult decisions. So sad to see or hear of someone acting out so desperately for love and ruining their future. Hopefully the love of her aunt and friend can help her. And what a loser Todd is for ditching her!
ReplyDeleteI saw this book and have been really wondering about it. I am so glad to read your review, which is awesome by the way. This sounds intense and definitely like something I will want to read.
ReplyDeleteI got this one at ALA but I haven't seen many reviews. Your review has me excited to pick it up! I have to say that I love the font of the print on the cover. :)
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like a wonderful, satisfying read, despite the tears. I confess, before reading your review, I had no desire to read this book, but now I'm definitely intrigued. Fantastic review!
ReplyDeleteThis touches on a tough subject..so glad you enjoyed it.
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