Customer Reviews

Anatomy of a Boyfriend

5 star:		(25)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

At the beginning of ANATOMY OF A BOYFRIEND, 17-year-old Dominique Baylor hardly has time for boys. She's engrossed in her studies and college applications, and is polishing up on her GRAY'S ANATOMY (the textbook, not the TV show). Dom wants to be a doctor, and while she's not competing on her school's science quiz team, she's spending time playing the board game Operation with her parents.

Dom's best friend is Amy, who goes to a large public school. Dom is a student at the small private school where her mom teaches, allowing her to get free tuition. Amy dates and has more experience with boys. As Dom recounts, "My best friend, Amy, wants to wait until college to 'do it,' but until then she'll do 'everything but' with boys she thinks are cute and have good bodies."

At one of Amy's track meets, Dom meets a mystery boy who helps her when she has an accident. Mustering her courage and with Amy's help, Dom finds out that the mystery boy is a track star hottie named Wes and emails him. Instantly, a bond is formed, and Wes, who is quiet, shy and sweet, eventually becomes Dom's boyfriend. As high school seniors they experience many firsts, including spending the night together on prom night. When they both go away to college, however, they have to determine whether or not their relationship can survive long-distance dating.

Snadowsky's writing is sharp, and Dominique's voice is clever, funny and extremely authentic. While the book discusses sex --- in almost clinical detail --- it is done so through the eyes of a girl who is insecure, curious and deeply in love. Like Judy Blume's groundbreaking novel, FOREVER, which was the first to explore the topic of a girl having sex, ANATOMY OF A BOYFRIEND puts a modern twist on the same type of tale. Curious teen girls might find answers to questions in this book that they were afraid to ask.

--- Reviewed by Kristi Olson

I haven't been a "starry-eyed teen-ager in love" in years, but reading this novel about a seventeen-year-old girl who goes head over heels for a boy was just like reliving all those obsessive feelings I mistook for love way back when. Snadowsky really captures that emotional turmoil perfectly, and I wish I could have read this when I was a teen (minus the e-mails and internet chats, as back in my day we still used the phone--imagine that!).
This is a marvelously and tightly written book. It's fast-moving, but there's just enough detail and local color to make it vivid. The characters were believable, and I especially fell in love with the main girl character's parents--how frustrating it is to see your own child suffer through the turmoil of first love and be unable to help them feel better. May I also mention how impressed I was by the love scenes? Snadowsky manages to convey all the awkwardness and humor concomitant with a young couple's first times. (And yes parents, the characters practice safe sex. Well, most of the time. The one time they don't is meant to demonstrate I think how being in love can sometimes cause us to take enormous risks that we wouldn't if we were thinking straight.)
I strongly recommend this story for any person who's ever been deeply in love and deeply heartbroken. I would also strongly recommend this book to parents and other family members to help them understand (or to remember, more likely) what their teen-ager is going through.

It's the day after Christmas, Senior Year. Dominique is at a football game with her best friend, Amy at Amy's high school. Dominique has her eyes set on college and becoming a doctor. She heads over to use the bathroom and takes a dive right into the grass. She's helped up by a cute boy, Wes. This encounter evolves into a relationship between the two of them. It starts innocently, trying to figure out who Wes is in the yearbook. Shooting him an email and instant messaging. Then they are hanging out in a group and then hanging out alone, soon enough they are in a physical relationship and they are about to go off to college....

I absolutely loved this book. I was reading another book, having a hard time zooming through it (I'm still reading it) and I thought I'd pick this up and read a chapter or two to see what I was in for. I read it straight through, well straight through for me. Started it on a Sunday and had it done by the time I was off the bus Monday morning.

The story line is simple but I love that. It's the exploration between this first relationship for two people. It explores what happens when kids leave home and start college, how things are bound to change no matter if you want them to or not. I love the progression of their relationship, nothing happens for months and the bam, it's really serious all of a sudden.

I liked the use of instant messaging and emails. It's very true to the times of how people start friendships and relationships. It's a innocent non-threatening way to get to know someone.
I've yet to read Forever by Judy Blume but definitely need to get to it soon. If it's anything like this book I'm in for another treat.

I think high school kids and parents should read this one along with A Bad Boy Can Be Good For A Girl. They touch on different aspects of teen relationships and I think they make a great pair. I cannot wait to see what Snadowsky comes up with next! And I cannot say enough good things about this book, it was an absolute pleasure to read!

I really enjoyed reading Anatomy of a boyfriend. Anatomy of a Boyfriend is about a girl named Dominique and her boyfriend Wes. Throughout the book Dominique and Wes experiment with their intimacy. Dominique had to make a big decision of whether she wanted to have sex with Wes or not. I loved the plot of this book because it really speaks out to all of us teenage girls who are going through these life changes and decisions. Another character in the book was Dominique's best friend, Amy. Amy was a unique character because lets just say she had already made her rounds with the boys at school. One day Dominique meets Wes and they start to chat online through e-mail. They become closer and closer. I'm not going to tell u what happens after that because you need to read it to find out.

There isn't too much I would change about the book, but I would love for her to make a sequel or even a series about Dominique. I would really enjoy getting inside Dominique's head a little bit more.

I would recommend this book to any female student who is mature. Some of the content in this book may not be appropriate for some students because it provides many details about sexual endeavors. If you are curious about what to do when "the BIG question" comes up in your life you definitely need to read this book. It helped me to change me outlook on different situations. As a 14 year old girl I was taken back by Sndowsky's amazing writing and expression in this book. It was simply FABULOUS!

I read a lot of reviews for this book - both good and bad, which is pretty much what intrigued me enough to pick it up and read it. For all intents and purposes, I can see exactly why the reviews are so split in half. I can see why people would really like it, where others wouldn't like it at all.

The funny thing about this is that a lot of older (read: not teen) readers comment about the graphic sex in this book and the fact that this is a YA book with the two main characters having sex. Really, all I can say about that is that (1) the title of the book should have warned you right away, and (2) it's about time we stop trying to act like teens don't have sex. They do. Sorry to break it to you if you didn't know, but it just kind of happens.

Having said that, I can say that I personally had two things that irked me most about this book. The first being the main character, Dom. I understand that she's a teen experiencing her first love, but I can't say that I relate to her that much. Her whole character just screams desperate and clingy. The only thing I applaud her for is admitting up to these faults, but it still didn't make them any easier for me to digest. I think her mood swings also completely caught me off guard. One minute she'd be really hot with Wes and the next, snap!, suddenly he's the worse person on the face of the earth. She was selfish. She expected Wes to choose her over everything and blamed some bad [even tragic] events in both of their lives for him not completely doting on her 24/7 and them not getting more sexy time together. I wanted to smack her for not at least acknowledging some type of empathy and remorse for that. She also changed major things about herself because she wanted to feel closer to him, then completely changed back when things went awry. Altogether, Dom was a headache for me.

The other thing was that the actual love between the two felt a little distorted. What was described in the book was more like fascination and lust instead of real, true love between Dominique and Wes. The friendship felt real. The love? Not so much.

Despite those two major things, I did enjoy this read. Even though I couldn't relate to Dom, this did seem like a pretty accurate portrayal of first love for teens. Everything is so dramatic, yet vastly exciting because everything is so new. I don't think that the sex scenes were too bad. It's nothing worse than what I've heard described on TV for teens these days, so it shouldn't be so shocking. The ending of the book was a little unexpected. Really, I expected Dom's best friend's brother to play a bigger role in this book. I think it was because he was so hyped up through Dom's description. But you only see one scene with him that kind of leaves you scratching your head, wondering if you'll ever find out what the heck it was all about. A hint: you don't.

This book is rated a shaky 4 from me, though it's more like a solid 3.5. The writing was good and fit this story well. There wasn't too much overkill on description, rather it was more about character interactions and feelings. Overall, this book is worth at least giving a shot.

Dominique Baylor, a high school senior and an aspiring doctor, has never had a boyfriend. She attends a small private school in Florida, so even the prospects are low. Her best friend, Amy, attends a huge public high school. One day, both friends attend the school's annual Seniors vs. Faculty football game. At the game, Dominique meets a cute boy, while she is "sprawled facedown." Through Amy, Dom learns that the boy is Wesley, a cute track star. She then e-mails him, and they immediately have a connection. Before long, Dom experiences many firsts. However, with college decisions, Dom and Wes realize they are headed for two completely different paths. Will their relationship survive?

The Anatomy of a Boyfriend takes mature readers on the journey of Dominique's first love. Dominique's authentic voice was easy to relate to. She sounded like somebody I would like to be friends with. Her voice also made the novel a quick read. I finished this book within two days. Mature readers will also appreciate how Snadowsky incorporates sex into the novel, without idealizing it. Parts of the novel made me never want to do certain things. :-P I also think Snadowsky realistically describes a long distance relationship after high school.

I did not have any major complaints with Anatomy of a Boyfriend, but a few things could have been better. I wish Dominique had more of a basis for falling head-over-heels for Wes. Part of me thinks Snadowsky intentionally wrote the novel so Dom lacked a logical reason, but I'm not really sure. I mean so many girls' first loves are douches (from my observations at least). The lack of a basis hurt the resolution. Instead of the resolution seeming like the natural flow of things, it made Wes seem like a complete douche, when he was only partially a douche.

Overall, Anatomy of a Boyfriend is an accurate potrayal of first love that older teens will enjoy.

Anatomy of a Boyfriend is about Dom, who never really allowed herself to fall victim to love--that is, until she meets Wes at a football game. Immediately things change as they begin e-mailing each other and start up a little relationship. Which causes Dom to grow increasingly curious about trying something else with the handsome stud--sex. What follows is the journey of a girl and a guy experiencing many "firsts" together and seeing where it will take them when the time comes to leave for college.

This was a very cute read, that definitely packed a pretty powerful punch in some parts--for me, mostly with the sex scenes. First love, first kiss, first , first time having sex--It's a book of firsts for the main character. I must say that since this novel was told through the POV of Dom, I would have loved to have felt a little more alongside her. Maybe then, I would have felt why Wes was so special and why she felt the need to borderline obsess over him. (Which, is sometimes the case with many high school crushes. We've all had those feelings at one time or another, so in a way, I did end up understanding Dom about a little more than midway through the novel.) I really wanted to be able to understand her feelings and exactly what drew her to him and only him. At the beginning, I had a difficult time accepting she was 17 with the way she was acting. It was a little too middle-school-ish, rather than senior in high-school-ish.

I must say the author did a great job writing a very realistic curious and head-over-heels love-almost-instantly teen relationship. Let's face it, in high school, we ALL had that crush. The one we thought of constantly, and sometimes even fantasized about. The same person you'd hope would one day talk to you or just say your name, and then possibly--if your wishes/dreams came true--would sweep you off your feet. Or have them let you sweep them off their feet. ;D

Overall, this makes for a good realistic novel, with some pretty entertaining scenes here and there, that I'm sure will resonate better with other readers. You definitely have to be in the mood for a realistic novel. I'm sure there are tons of other readers who love this book a little more than I did. I'm sure Daria Snadowsky has great projects planned for the future, and I can't wait to see what they are!

I've heard this book described as being similar to Judy Blume's Forever. I haven't read Forever (although I did pick it up one time at a used bookstore), but if it's like Anatomy, or better, then I definitely want to read it. I had originally planned to read both and do a sort of comparison review, but that was back when I had more time. So I'm just another reviewer who can't truly comment on any parallels.

It is a more realistic portrayal of a teenage romance than you'd find in most YA. It's quick, interesting, and at times, laugh out loud funny. I don't really have much to say by way of traditional review, so I'll just respond to a couple of things I've seen in other reviewers' reviews.

One thing I've consistently come across is that everyone sees Wes as the bad guy or "douche" as one friend summed him up. I really didn't see any of this douche-y behavior. Sure he seemed a little jerky at times and the way he broke up with Dom was the ultimate douche-tacular display; however, Dom annoyed me more. She was obsessive, clingy, and downright bitchy at times. I have never been in a serious (or semi-serious as this relationship seemed) relationship, but please don't tell me this is normal behavior. While I disliked Wes' method of breaking up, I don't blame him. I think that was the strongest thing in the novel for me-I understood both sides of the relationship. I didn't blame one more than the other for the eventual demise of their relationship. I think Snadowsky struck this balance perfectly because let's face it, not all break ups are easy to pinpoint the blame on one person.

The second issue that I've seen in reviews is the graphic sexual content. I seriously thought that these other reviewers were just exaggerating. Come "Part II" though, I was like, "whoa!" I was really surprised at how graphic it was. I don't mind that stuff because I was reading Harlequin at 15/16. For a YA novel though, it was a little shocking. It struck me as bordering Harlequin graphic, only awkward. So if anyone is worried about the graphic sexual scenes, just know that it is more awkward than sensual. It's very realistic and not Hollywood's glamorized version of what sex is.

Daria Snadowsky's Anatomy of a Boyfriend's narrator is seventeen-year old Dominique, whose grasp of the male figure lies between the pages of Grey's Anatomy, which she reads religiously, aspiring to become a doctor. While attending a local football game at a neighboring high school with her boy-crazy friend, she meets Wes, track star, 6'1, blond hair, blue eyes, the epitome of the quintessential boy next door. Dom falls for Wes. Hard.

In a way she's never felt before. Soon their flirty IM exchanges escalate to more, and Dom finds herself becoming intimately acquainted with a living specimen of the male variety. Snadowsky writes a believable portrayal of a teen relationship, with both participants eager to explore, yet hesitant for their first time.

And then, as Dom puts it, "came the fall." As the weather changes, so too changes the relationship between the two as they part for college, and struggle with managing a relationship while so apart - both physically and emotionally.

Anatomy of a Boyfriend is the real deal. Here is the true anatomy, the heartbeat of teen fiction. This is teen love at its center: raw and wounding and surprising. Euphemisms are tossed aside, in favor of the correct terminology of the male body, sex is not a footnote to the story, a single moment shared by the characters. Love is portrayed in a daring way as Dom experiences her first genuine relationship. While smart academically, she's not so well-versed in in ways of the heart, and her agony over Wes comes through clearly. Snadowsky dedicates the novel to Judy Blume,and while in the beginning she follows in Blume's path with strong and realistic female characters, she breaks to forge her own path as Dom navigates her new world.

I liked this book a lot. Daria wasn't afraid of what people were going to say about her book - she wrote anyway. I've heard this book related to Judy Blume's Forever, which I haven't read, but from what I've read, they are similar, this is just a more modern version of it.

The writing was really nice. It wasn't forced, and it wasn't paced slow. It kept me wanting to read it at all times until I finished; it seemed to never have a lull moment.

The characters were written nicely, and you can tell by the end that the main character did grow, she didn't keep the same personality or the same outlook on life, she changed, and I really liked the character growth.

I really don't want to say anymore, because I'm afraid that I'm going to give out spoilers, but I really did enjoy this one.