Confessions of a Boyfriend Stealer [Paperback]

Robynn Clairday (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 13, 2005

MESSAGE BOARD
About Genesis Bell Queensheba at 1:02 a.m.
i’ve heard you’d better not leave your guy alone with her! not if you DON’T want to lose him >:p
It’s not her fault 007ugo at 1:45 a.m.
You got it all wrong! If anyone’s taught Genesis about stealing guys, it was her best friends, The Terribles–CJ and Tasha!
Re: It’s not her fault GenBell at 1:52 a.m.
You don’t know the real story. It’s not what you think. Just read my side of it, and then decide. Okay?

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 7 Up–In this story written as a blog, fictitious readers comment on the trials and tribulations of the book's protagonist, Genesis Bell. She and her two best friends are known as the Terribles. Her friends are shallow, promiscuous, and nasty. Gen's narcissistic mother and sister are over-the-top–as shallow and promiscuous as the Terribles, and perhaps more unbelievable, as they both fall for the same man, who is–a Bible thumper. As the story unfolds, Gen's friends' boyfriends come on to her. She is at first happy for the male attention, and then guilty about betraying her friends–even though they are busy betraying their boyfriends. When Gen confesses that she accidentally kissed one of the boys, the girls can't or won't believe her, and she is hurt. Gen wants to be a documentary filmmaker, and so she uses a wild teen party as her debut vehicle. At the party, one of the boyfriends drunkenly comes on to her again, which she accidentally records. In the end, she finally realizes that friendship with the Terribles isn't worth it. Gen has moved on, and is stronger for the insights she has gained. The book is filled with teen lingo and teen concerns handled in a sarcastic and shallow manner, and the characters are as flat as the author's attempts at humor.–Catherine Ensley, Latah County Free Library District, Moscow, ID
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

Gr. 8-11. The cross-fertilization of media forms reaches a weird new height in this airy novel straight from the blogosphere. In entries formatted like a real blog (complete with message-board posts and slightly irrelevant "links"), 16-year-old Gen tells of the sense of belonging she initially gained from her friendship with CJ and Tasha and how events have forced her to see how snotty and self-centered the two really are. Nudging her toward this revelation are advances from both her friends' boyfriends and a film project that earns the admiration of worthier peers. Some depictions, particularly of Gen's frivolous mother and sister, are unabashed caricatures, and the mentions of sex and alcohol seem out of place given the narrative's giddy, naive tone and cover art more typical of middle-grade fiction. Still, the book's unusual format will appeal to many readers, reluctant and otherwise, and the frothy plot will satisfy chick-lit fans. Try this on teens who enjoyed Lauren Myracle's ttyl (2004). Jennifer Mattson
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 12 and up
  
• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers (September 13, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385732422
• ISBN-13: 978-0385732420
• Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 0.6 x 8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,415,898 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Is it stealing if they want to be stolen?, February 4, 2006

By 

Kimberly Pauley "YA Author" (Grayslake, IL USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Confessions of a Boyfriend Stealer (Paperback)

So, did Genesis Bell really steal the boyfriends away from her best friends? Or is there another side to the story? Genesis wants to get out the truth, so she starts a blog and confesses all. See, she was part of the clique at school: The Terribles. Her best friends were CJ (the ring leader) and Tasha. But they never really treated her like a true Terrible. She felt more like the one that cleaned up after their messes; the one that never got the guy - she only got to console them when CJ or Tasha walked all over them.

All that starts to change when Nick, CJ's boyfriend and a total player, tries to make nice with Genesis. She's confused and flattered at first, but soon other emotions start to appear (like anger and betrayal) when she tries to come clean to CJ and gets laughed at (as if!) instead. She's had their backs for years and now the Terribles seem to be turning on her.

And then there's Chi, Tasha's very lovable and very cute boyfriend who turns to Genesis for comfort whenever Tasha cheats on him (which is all the time!). He's definitely not like Nick. And maybe, just maybe, he's starting to see the light.

Told through blog entries, the reader follows along on a wild ride. Given that the blog is supposedly started a few months after all the events, it does distance the reader some from the story. I think I would have enjoyed it even more if it hadn't been in blog format. The blog readers who leave comments at the end of each chapter are also a little distracting and don't add much to the story. But, other than those small things, this is a very fast and fun read.

While I'm not a fan of boyfriend stealers, I'm definitely a fan of Genesis. Shoot, I haven't even told you yet about some of the more interesting parts of the story - her family. The Bell family is....well, you'll just have to see for yourself. They defy description and the scenes in which they appear are some of the funniest in the book.

Recommended for ages 12 and up.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great book with sassy characters, September 29, 2005

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Confessions of a Boyfriend Stealer (Paperback)

This is such a great book! It has some great characters
that make you want to laugh out loud! Genesis Bell thinks
she's the Jan Brady of Jamaica Plains, because her best friends
CJ and Tasha are the most beautiful girls in the whole school- and also the snottiest. Read as Genesis struggles through her realationships with her best buds' boyfriends, and what going on
at her house with her encentric mom and sister. She also is does
a documentary on Fiesta Beach, the biggest party of the year!
Just to tell you, CJ was way more b**chy than Tasha was. Tasha
was just plain spoiled and stupid. This was a great book with amazing characters, and I read it twice. Read this book!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Confessions of a Boyfriend Stealer., September 24, 2005

By 

Michelle Churchman - See all my reviews

This review is from: Confessions of a Boyfriend Stealer (Paperback)

I LOVED this book! Ms Clairday has the wry wit to bring out the humorous side of teen angst that is compounded by a somewhat dysfunctional family. The primary character, Genesis Bell, suffers from the same problems that affect so many teens--questions about self-identity, fitting in with peer groups, the oddities of her own family, and struggling for direction in life. These are questions that all teens face to some degree, but Ms. Clairday, through Genesis, shows that these serious issues can be met with humor and self-acceptance--a very good coping mechanism for anyone in tough situations. I would recommend this book to any teen--and any adult, because most of us remember what a struggle our teen years were.