Girl, (Nearly) 16: Absolute Torture

December 1, 2005
Gr 7-10 -A thoroughly welcome, laugh-out-loud addition to British chick lit told in Jess's comedienne-to-be voice. At the end of "Girl, 15, Charming but Insane" (Delacorte, 2004), the teen realized that she was crazy about her clever pal, Fred, and that he shared her affection. As they're about to settle into a perfect summer, Jess's mom announces a two-week vacation visiting historical and literary landmarks -just what a teen relishes most -that will end with a trip to the beach where her artist dad lives. Along the way, her grandmother plans to scatter her grandfather's ashes in the sea near their honeymoon village. Although Jess longs to visit her dad, she despairs at the timing, especially since Fred has bought tickets to a music fest. As in its predecessor, this story relies on Jess's misconceptions, emotional dips and heights, and on characters and situations that are both sweet and wacky. In a fit of spontaneity, she boards a bus to her father's a day early and learns that he broke up with her mother because he's gay. She meets his partner, a boutique-owner and boatsman, who offers to take Granny out to sea for a private ash-scattering ceremony. Although readers will savor this novel on its own, reading "Girl, 15" first makes it even funnier." -Tina Zubak, Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, PA"

Copyright 2005 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 1, 2005
Gr. 7-10. In the on-going tradition of Louise Rennison and her heroine, Georgia Nicholson, comes the story of Jess, who is in the first throes of love with her boyfriend Fred. Then her mother has to go and ruin it all by planning a vacation--just Jess, Mum, and Gran, motoring down to Cornwall to visit Jess' long-absent dad and throw Grandpa's ashes in the sea. Readers will have to have an affinity for the English countryside because this is as much travelogue as it is romance. Between haunted castles and quaint B & Bs, Jess spends much of her time on her "mobile" trying to find out if Fred is spending time with her friend Flora. Fred turns out to be true blue, and Jess' dad turns out to be gay, which is fine with Jess, but alters her plan to have her parents remarry. Fewer Briticisms than in other books of this sort help speed this light romance on to its happy ending.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2005, American Library Association.)

January 1, 2006
Jess ( "Girl, 15, Charming but Insane" ) can't wait to spend summer break with her new boyfriend--until her mum decides on an extended tour of England, culminating in a visit with Jess's father. Hilarious over-the-top character interactions add spice to the formula, and Jess's teenage insecurities dovetail nicely with her developing understanding of her parents' and grandparents' varied experiences of love.

(Copyright 2006 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)