Well, That Was Awkward

One of my daughter's favourite books of the last year - she's 11 and loves contemporary realistic fiction, the more friends-drama, the better. Got this for Christmas and had devoured it by early January. Main character Gracie sees herself as nothing but a sidekick to her best friend...and also privately suspects she's second-fiddle to her parents, too, who lost a 7-year-old daughter in a road accident before Gracie was born. It's fantastically and authentically written for the young teen reader who knows how it feels when everything that's old and reliable - friendships, family dynamics - starts to change, and there's no stopping it.

Another fantastic book from Rachel Vail! I'm a longtime fan who started reading her when I was 11 or 12, and who finds her books just as funny, charming, and compellingly honest about life in middle and high school as I did then. This story's riff on Cyrano de Bergerac is so clever—and I love that a girl gets to take on his part—but the unfamiliar will be equally smitten and enchanted. As always, Vail's dialogue is spot-on, and the ending had me in happy tears. Extra fun if you're a New Yorker who's spent any time around Morningside Heights—you'll know every spot this book visits, right down the the pizza place!

Outstanding! I absolutely adored the main character, Gracie. As a kid, this would have been the sort of book I would have read over and over again. Even as an adult, I remember what it was like to be in middle school and I identify with Gracie. When I finished the book, I couldn't stop hugging it. This is one I will keep and read again. Highly recommend to upper elementary/middle school and even some teen readers.

Arrived quickly and as described. Would buy again.

Perfect book for teen girl!