Customer Reviews

Beautiful

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Beautiful is exactly the type of YA book that I adore. An entertaining storyline, engaging character, but more specifically, a social message that comes out loud and clear without being pushy or preachy.

Ellie is, to the world to see, perfect and happy. She basically has it all - according to the everyone around her. Yet, Ellie, although not unhappy is also missing something - that she can't quite put a finger on. In one moment, everything changes for her and it is a this point that Ellie really starts understanding herself and discvovering what is really important in her life.

This novel, although aimed at YA, could easily be read by people of all ages. Its basic messages are clear - never judge your insides with somebody else's outsides AND life will throw you lots of curve balls and it is up to you how you deal with them.

This novel is inspiring and true to life. Ellie is put in a situation where she needs to re-evaluate everything that she "thought" was important - and through a very harsh life lesson, she will find herself with the most important gift - the willingness to grow.

I loved the way the author tells her story - from riches to what may be perceived as "rags" and yet -you get the distinct impression that Ellie is actually richer in the end.

I loved, loved this novel.

Have you ever had a story touch your heart in a way that it actually made you rethink your own perspective on things? Beautiful by Cindy Martinusen-Coloma is a story that will do just that, or at least that's what it did for me.

Ellie Summerfield is Little Miss Perfect; at least that's how she appears to everyone else. Ellie has a 4.0 GPA, a list of extracurricular activities that would make any college beg for her, she's beautiful and has a gorgeous boyfriend that seems to actually love her, and everyone in school adores her. But that doesn't mean she's happy behind the almost permanent smile she has pasted onto her face.

But as always, there has to be a twist that knocks the seemingly perfect character off their feet and forces them to show their true selves to the world, right? Right. There is a twist in Beautiful, but I can guarantee you that you won't see it coming, and neither did Ellie; and it changes the course of Ellie's life and everyone else's.

It's been a long while since a book and a story has made me audibly gasp. I didn't realize when I started reading Beautiful that it's classified not just as YA, but as "Religious Fiction"; But don't let that shy you away from this story, it's one that needs to be heard, and I never would have realized it was classified as "religious fiction" if it hadn't been printed on the back. There is some mention of God and Ellie's faith and whatnot, but it's not really all that noticeable or excessive.

Mrs. Martinusen-Coloma has given us characters that are so realistic and relatable that you've got to remind yourself that they're characters on a page and not people you've already met (Megan is the most amusing thing, and so easy to relate to and adore). The writing itself is fantastic and I can't wait to read more from Mrs. Martinusen-Coloma, there's something to be said about an author that can make their characters and story jump off the page like Beautiful does.

It's not a story that you'll immediately forget or get out of your head. As someone who's generally opposed to all the happy endings that YA fiction tends to have, this is a story that begs for one and while it wasn't the ending I was hoping for, it was one that was satisfying enough that it made me smile.

I've not been affected by any story like this in a long time, but Beautiful touched me in a way that I don't think I will soon forget. It's happy, it's sad, it's...Beautiful.

Beautiful is a heartbreaking realistic young adult novel. The characters show growth, originality, personality and are easy to relate to.
Ellie is in a horrible accident and we see the transformation not only of her looks but of who she is. She fights for her life and to realize what true beauty is. She doesn't completely lose who she was before the accident, but she realizes a lot of things about herself, and her family and she makes it all into something better. I connected better with Megan though because of her personality type. She is funny, sarcastic and tells it like it is- she also is learning a lot about herself in this book, and walks away from a negative relationship because of it. She is a bit of an outcast, and I relate with that.
There are two quality guys in this book and they both support Ellie through it all. I like that Ellie tries to be selfless about them in her life, and how she handles things. It is not a love triangle persay, because even though it shows a glimmer of possibility for relationship with one of the guys, he is really just mostly a friend, and I like he keeps it that way to preserve their friendship, knowing that differences would probably tear them apart if they were more. So I really appreciate how that is written because it is not often that you see a quality friendship in YA with opposite sexes without him being gay or being romantically involved.
Beautiful is well paced, and has a wonderful driving plot, with supporting and interesting sub-plots. I didn't ever feel like there was too little, or too much going on, it is very well balanced. It explores hope, healing, friendship, and religion. Don't let that turn you off though, it flows very naturally and I never felt like it was preachy. It was brought up at appropriate times and it was always personal opinion and not saying what should be believed.
Though we are taken on Ellie's journey of healing, I really appreciate how nothing is magically fixed- it is planted in reality and there is no magical pill. There is lots of hope, and she grows, changes and heals, but nothing is overnight. It has a great ending but it is not all tied up and handed to her. I would recommend this to my readers who like contemps, realistic ya, or if you want an emotional read that will make you think.

I wasn't sure houw I would like this book, it being a YA novel and what not. But as I sat down and read it, I found alot about this book that I loved. I liked the plot and I loved all the characters. A story of a popular and beautiful high school girl who feels that she's missing something in her perfect world. like it's not quite so perfect. Then she faces tragedy and it forever changes her life. The author uses wonderful characters that blend together perfectly.

Reading this story, I felt like I could truly connect with these characters. I felt their pain and cried with them. I laughed with them, and the best of all, I prayed with them. This is a book that I think every young girl should read. Whether they are popular, in the "out" crowd, or just needing a boost of encouragement during the high school years of parties and homecomings and dances, this is the book for them. It is well written and life like, and they will understand God's love the THEM in the end and the TRUE meaning of being beautiful. A 4 star praise to this author and her Beautiful book!

*A special thanks to the author and her pubisher for providing me with a review copy!*

Have you ever been so into a book that you gasp audibly when something phenomenal happens?
That was me two days ago while I was reading Beautiful. I didn't even try to play it off because I was completely entranced with the world of Ellie Summerfield.

The author does a marvelous job of weaving a page-turning story and a heartfelt message into this novel. In today's plastic, superficial world it is good to remind ourselves that beauty is fleeting and what's on the inside REALLY counts most of all.

Rating: 9/10

Plot: 9.5/10

Characters: 8.0 /10

Ending: 8.5/10

Enjoyment: 8.5/10

Cover: 9.5/10

Keleigh Crigler Hadley author of Christian fiction series -[...]

Review by Jill Williamson

Ellie is the perfect girl, to everyone except her sister, who is sick of competing with Miss Perfect. But Ellie's world crumbles when she is in an accident and is forever changed. Can Ellie find any beauty in her life now? Why should she even bother?

I heard mixed reviews about this book. But it was a Christy Award finalist, so I bought a copy to support the young adult finalists. Those mixed reviews caused the book to sit on the bottom of my To Read pile for a very long time. When I finally read it, I read it in a day. I don't know what the problem is, but I loved this story. And maybe this story has been told before in other ways. And maybe people could see where it was going. But that didn't make it any less powerful of a story for me. I thought the story itself was beautiful. I loved every bit of it. I highly recommend it for teen girls. It's a powerful story about loving yourself, which most of us could stand to do a little more. Highly recommended.

Gold Star Award Winner!

Let me start this review by saying that you need to read this book. Go, right now, and pick up a copy. I'll give you my personal guarantee that you'll absolutely love it as much as I did.

Ellie Summerfield is beautiful, popular, smart, and has a great, amazing boyfriend. Her social calendar is always full, she's President of this and in charge of that, and if you asked anyone at West Redding High School to describe her, they'd probably tell you that she's basically perfect.

To Ellie, perfect is the last word she'd use to describe her life, although she wouldn't be able to tell you exactly why. Why does she love her boyfriend, Ryan, and yet not feel in love with him? Why does her sister, Megan, always make her feel like she's doing something wrong? Why do her parents have all of these plans for her that don't mix with the ones she has for herself?

She may have been able to answer all of those questions on her own, before the accident. But the car crashed, then caught on fire. Her maybe-friend, Stasia, died. And Ellie, well, Ellie doesn't look quite as beautiful as she used to.

When your face is that of a monster, and your faith in God and family and friends and just about everything else has been tested, when the "perfect" of your life is gone, what else is left? As Ellie struggles - through physical pain, emotional distress, and self-pity - it's only by coming out the other side that she'll learn that being beautiful has a whole lot more to do with what's on the inside than what's on the outside.

Let me say again - I absolutely loved this book. The characters, the writing, the pitch, the tone; it's all amazing. There was not one misstep in BEAUTIFUL; every word was a joy to read, and I was sad when it was done. Cindy Martinusen-Coloma has a way of writing that lets you live right alongside Ellie, feeling her happiness and heartbreak, dealing with her pain (both physical and emotional), dreaming and hoping and wanting and living.

This is a great book, one that you'll love reading and will be sad to see come to an end. And if you're worried about the fact that it's Christian fiction, please don't be. The message is one of love and acceptance, not one of browbeating you into being a believer. BEAUTIFUL is a book for everyone - and everyone will love BEAUTIFUL.

Reviewed by: Jennifer Wardrip, aka "The Genius"

Although this book is written for the YA crowd, I really enjoyed it. Kept me turning the pages to find out what would happen next. A heartwarming read to be enjoyed by girls and women of all ages.

i loved this book, it spoke to my heart.
all i can say is, whoever has wished that they were more beautiful and more successful, or whoever has simply felt discouraged and unimportant, this book is for you.
it certainly was for me.

"Wow" is all I could say after finishing this book. Cindy Martinusen-Coloma has most definitely found her niche in writing YA fiction. This was an extremely profound and moving read yet at the same time really enjoyable to sit back and relax. It's thought that Ellie has the perfect life with everything going for her. Meanwhile her older sister Megan feels overshadowed and never noticed. Then a tragic accident happens which changes both sisters' attitudes, personalities and how they view life. I felt that I could understand why both girls acted the way they did. Everything they thought they knew had completely changed in a single incident. Even if I didn't agree with how they handled the situation, I knew and understood their actions. Their grandfather was utterly horrible. I'm appalled that even though their parents knew what was going on, nothing was done about the problem. It's really sad that Ellie had to have those words hanging over her throughout her life, it's something no child should ever have to face.

For readers wondering if you need to read Ruby Unscripted before reading this book, you do not need to. Other than the story taking place in the same school, I saw no other ties at all. This book can be completely read as a standalone. The only thing I would change about the book was the fact that nothing on the back cover hints that this is also a sister story. There's no mention of Megan anywhere on the cover therefore I was surprised that half of this book is about her. There's nothing really wrong with this other than I thought that Megan gets kinda shafted in terms of marketing for the book.

Other than this, I truly loved this book. It touches on so many levels and unlike a lot of fluff young adult books, it really makes a person think and ponder after finishing the story. Both sisters really got to me and I felt totally drawn into the story. Even though this book is categorized as Christian fiction, there is no preachiness in the story and nothing that will make a non-Christian uncomfortable. I really have enjoyed Cindy's YA books and I am totally looking forward to her next release. If you are looking for a new author in YA fiction, you MUST read these books. Simply put, Beautiful was a beautiful read. VERY HIGHLY recommended.