Colie expects the worst when she's sent to spend the summer with her eccentric aunt Mira while her mother, queen of the television infomercial, tours Europe. Always an outcast -- first for being fat and then for being "easy" -- Colie has no friends at home and doesn't expect to find any in Colby, North Carolina. But then she lands a job at the Last Chance Cafe and meets fellow waitresses Morgan and Isabel, best friends with a loving yet volatile relationship. Wacky yet wise, Morgan and Isabel help Colie see herself in a new way and realize the potential that has been there all along.
Hopefully there will be loads more of books.
Let me just say, I love Sarah Dessen. I've read all her books, this was the last one that I had to read. Now it's read!
First, it's present day in a town named Colby. Colie (Nicole) is the main character and her mom is off a world-tour-type thing, so Colie goes to her aunt Mira's house for the summer.
This is the background information you should know . . .
Colie* used to be fat. So now that she's skinny (thanks to her mom's super famous workouts) she's really self-conscious. Everywhere she's lived, girls and boys have made fun of her and she's never had any friends. Sad, innit? Well she temporarily moves to Colby and she meets two girls. Morgan and Isabel**. She also meets Norman; a boy around Colie's age that lives in Mira's basement.
In the beginning of the book, Colie's really a sad person. She just expects people to hate her so she's surprised when they don't (one of my favorite quotes from the book says this, I'll explain later). She's dark, too. Her hair is black, her clothes are black, her attitude . . . gosh. Colie's a nice enough person but she really needs to stand up for herself. Throughout the book, Isabel tells her this and convinces Colie that she really is beautiful and she needs to know it. Morgan is there for support whenever Isabel gets a little too blunt about things.
Mira, Colie's aunt, is eccentric. She wears purple high-tops everywhere, writes death cards, and nothing in her house works. She buys everything from yard sales although she inherited buckets of cash from her and Colie's mom's parents. Mira's a little overweight so obviously the people around town have noticed and some people gossip about her. That bothers Colie, but it never bothers Mira because she knows she's not perfect. She lets Norman live with her, and she named her cat after him, too. So there's Cat Norman and Norman Norman.
Norman Norman is a hippie-guy. Shoulder-length hair. Chill. Laid back. Collects sunglasses (something I want to start, by the way). Also, he paints. The reason he lives in Mira's basement is because his dad didn't want an artist for a son. So Norman's kind of a rebel. He's a really nice guy to Colie and everyone else in town.
Morgan and Isabel are best friends. They live together and work together at the Last Chance restaurant in Colby. Colie's jealous for a little while until she gets sucked into their friendship. They have girls' night and everything, making Colie feel like an actual girl. My favorite quote comes from Isabel. "You should never be surprised when people treat you with respect. You should expect it." The more you think about it, the worse it sounds. It sounds like she's saying that you should be cocky, but she's just telling Colie to be confident and know that she (Colie) is worth it.
Overall I'd give this book a bazillion out of ten stars. It was short at only 220-some pages, but it was sweet and it had a really important message that I think everyone should hear. If you think you're crap, you're going to be treated like it. If you know you're worth it, it will show and people will notice it.
I hope Dessen comes out with more books soon! I can't wait! I love every book by her! They all have hidden messages (some less hidden than others) and I think every girl should read them. They are so sweet.
*I think it's pronounced Cole-y. But I keep reading it as Collie; as in 'Border Collie'. The dog.
**My name, my name. Spelled the same, too!
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