Customer Reviews

Enthusiasm

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

What can you do when your best friend is the most enthusiastic, passionate person you know?

Shake your head, laugh, and run right alongside her as she scurries from one new passion to another.

Ashleigh is an utterly exhuberant sophomore who grabs onto a new interest every few weeks and throws herself into it head-first. Julie, her best friend and next-door neighbor since childhood, has supported and weathered through all of Ashleigh's phases. She is six inches taller and much quieter than her friend, preferring a good book to an escapade.

One day, Ashleigh finally reads one of Julie's favorite books, Pride and Prejudice. Suddenly, Ashleigh decides that life would be grand if it were more like Austen's works. She dons long skirts, uses Victorian phrases, and plans to crash a formal dance at an all-boys school. She talks Julie into coming along with her, though they do not have tickets nor formal invitations.

As luck would have it, a Mysterious Stranger - the cute boy Julie has seen in town half a dozen times but never really spoken to - happens to be there. His name is Parr, and he is quite the gentleman. By the end of the night, Ashleigh is smitten with Parr. Ever the selfless one, Julie doesn't tell her best friend that she likes Parr too. When Ashleigh and Julie get involved in a contemporary musical version of A Midsummer Night's Dream at Parr's school, things get even more complicated - and funny, and fun.

Enthusiasm by Polly Shulman is, in a word, adorable. This is a sweet story about friendship, families, and following your heart. The characters are good kids, and you'll root for them. The story is good, clean fun, with a touch of its own slang (ie "ig" or "igsome" for someone or something the girls don't find appealing). It is G-rated, so younger teens may read it, and it has plenty of literary references to the works of Austen and Shakespeare, so adults will enjoy it.

I particularly enjoyed the fact that the story is told through the voice of the loyal sidekick. Julie is a fiercely loyal friend and daughter who juggles her schoolwork, her friend's whims, and her divorced parents' new lives, all with a good spirit - something which is rare in modern fiction. She has a great inner monologue, related through the first person narration. For example, every time she thinks of a witty retort but holds her tongue instead of vocalizing the snark, she banks a dollar in her mind.

I am a very enthusiastic person myself, so I related to that aspect of Ashleigh's personality. I do not go through phases like she does, however. Luckily, Ashleigh never completely forgets the things she liked; though she moves on to her Next Big Thing with gusto, she might later incorporate an earlier hobby into it later.

Last but not least, in spite of the fact that one should never judge a book by its cover, this particular cover deserves some kudos. Ashleigh is shown in the vintage dress she wears to that fateful dance, jumping in the air, holding a copy of Pride and Prejudice in her hand. Slyly, the paperback pictured is the Penguin Classics edition; Enthusiasm novel is published by Penguin Putnam's teen imprint.

Whether you are an adult or a teenager, whether you are a Julie or an Ashleigh, Enthusiasm will steal your heart and make you smile.

Polly Shulman's Enthusiasm is an absolutely fabulous book. It is so wonderfully written; it is surprising that this is her first book. Shulman ties in classic literature (such as Pride and Prejudice and Romeo and Juliet) with great skill and in a way that does them justice. It is the little details of the plot that make it so you just cannot put it down. Shulman ties them all together in a very Dickensian manner; they are all relevant in the end which makes the moment of realization extremely enjoyable.
Perhaps one of the things I liked the most about the book was the fact that the young females of the book were quite intelligent and sensible. I have found that in most literature for this age group, the author is compelled to make protagonist a total fool that doesn't know what is what, merely to create drama. Shulman does not have to stoop to that low to make the book interesting. She keeps the story upbeat without sacrificing reality.
This book will have you jumping with excitement and delight.

Julie's best friend Ashleigh is an enthusiast who jumps from one craze to the next, immersing herself and those around her into her latest obsession. One summer it was reptiles, another year it was King Arthur. Julie has always followed Ashleigh's crazes, but when Ashleigh reads PRIDE AND PREJUDICE and is determined to model their lives after the novels of Jane Austen, Julie isn't sure she wants to encourage her best friend in her latest enthusiasm. Not only does Ashleigh refuse to wear anything but long skirts and ballet slippers, she insists they must find love interests by crashing the fall formal dance at a nearby private boys school.

Ashleigh's enthusiasm leads the two girls from one hilarious adventure to another. Convincingly narrated by Julie, ENTHUSIASM takes PRIDE AND PREJUDICE as only one of its literary themes. It is modeled less after any specific Austen book or Shakespearean plot than it is the classic themes of mixed identities, secret crushes, and keen social observation.

The book is deliciously light without being trite, and (biggest surprise of all) it actually had some decent poetry in it, including one fabulous acrostic poem around which much of the narrative centers. Touches of poetry appear throughout, including a hilarious first conversation between Julie and her love interest, modeled on the sonnet dialogue that accompanies first meetings in Shakespeare's ROMEO & JULIET.

In many ways the book shares more parallels with Austen's SENSE AND SENSIBILITY than it does PRIDE AND PREJUDICE. Julie plays the pragmatic Eleanor Dashwood to Ashleigh's more emotional Marianne. Like Eleanor Dashwood, Julie hides her true feelings for fear of hurting a friend. Her love interest is more like Mr. Ferrars than Mr. Darcy --- he's gentle and slightly awkward, and could never be accused of acting like a snob. There is, however, an obnoxious Mr. Collins-type suitor, which definitely is an appreciable touch.

The only underdeveloped part of the story comes on Julie's 16th birthday (December 17th, Ms. Austen's birthday as well), which is overshadowed by her stepmother's grief upon miscarrying a baby whose birthday would have been the same day. Counting the months, Julie realizes that the baby was conceived long before her parents' divorce and that her father had never intended to reconcile the way he had promised Julie and her mother.

There is also a very awkward and strange moment in a neighbor's greenhouse where she is found crying by a friend's appealing, older brother. They end up kissing and are interrupted by her friend. Neither situation is resolved, but in some ways they make the book more appealing. Messy edges and unexplained situations add a touch of realism to what is otherwise an idealistic romance. Both incidents are a peek beyond the literary romantic haze to the adult world in which courtly love plays no role, and bodies have interests that hearts may not share.

But the harsh, gritty realism often portrayed in young adult novels has very little to do with the many delights of ENTHUSIASM. This is an elegantly written and entirely entertaining book with a fresh and unjaded look at friendship and young love, as likely to appeal to older Austen enthusiasts as it is to young readers experiencing love for the first time.

--- Reviewed by Sarah A. Wood

Ashleigh is what you would call an "enthusiast." So when she discovers Jane Austen's pride and joy, PRIDE AND PREJUDICE, she becomes a little too wrapped up in the whole idea of finding the perfect someone. Julie, Ashleigh's best friend - and more conservative acquaintance - who just happens to have read "Pride and Prejudice" first, tries to calm her friend down, but when you're dealing with someone as enthusiastic as Ashleigh, that can be a little bit difficult. After all, Ashleigh becomes fascinated with a new craze almost as often as she changes her underwear. Sadly, it doesn't look like she'll be forgetting about this one anytime soon. It's bad enough that Julie must suffer the constant "Miss" and "Sirs" that have suddenly become a large part of Ashleigh's vocabulary, but now Ashleigh is running around in floor-length skirts, and trying to learn to dance like they did during the eighteenth century. As difficult as it is to accept all of this, Julie does what she can. But when Ashleigh decides that it's time for the two of them to find their very own Mr. Darcy, Julie puts her foot down. At least for a minute. Now the two girls are crashing a boys' prep school dance, and facing disastrous results. However, when things turn out better than expected, the two friends are left with two new pals - who just happen to be extremely cute guys. The problem? Ashleigh is crushing on the guy who Julie has liked - secretly - for months, and neither girl can figure out which one of them he likes better. Now, with a little help from Miss Austen, the two girls must try to crack the boy code, and see whether true love potential is lurking just around the corner for one - or both - of them.

I am shocked to see that ENTHUSIASM is Polly Shulman's first novel, for it has the qualities of a novel written by a seasoned writer. Shulman's descriptions of two teenage girls searching for first love are accurate, and relatable; and pre-teen and teenage girls will find themselves identifying with one, or both of the main characters. The fact that Shulman throws in a few other themes: pop culture, divorce, step-parents, new siblings, and first kisses makes ENTHUSIASM even more enjoyable, and just a tad more true-to-life. Both Ashleigh and Julie are fun, exciting characters - even if the former is a bit wacky, and the latter can sometimes be mistaken for someone teetering on the edge of prude-dom. Together, these two girls - along with the help of Miss Shulman, of course - have created a fast-paced, adorable read that is impossible to pass up, or put down. An excellent debut novel by a creative writer. If this is Shulman's first novel, I can't wait to see what she comes up with next.

Erika Sorocco
Book Review Columnist for The Community Bugle Newspaper

While it may be the kiss of death to admit that I am a 40 year old parent, I just had to say that this is a wonderful book. As a Jane Austen fan, I was pleased by the author's homage to Pride and Prejudice. But more importantly, as a parent of a pre-teen, I am so glad to see a book about literate, happy, well-adjusted teens who are kind to each other and their families. A wonderful first novel, and I can't wait for the next one!

A friend gave me this book and I was instantly hooked. The plot, the intriguing chapter headings, the wit, even the terrific slang she invented. Polly Shulman's characters are so lively that I hope she will write more books about them. I know that this book is primarily for young people, but I'm over 30 and still adored this book. I'm ordering copies to give to friends.

Enthusiasm is a great book for teens and pre-teens. It makes connections of outside sources and uses different techniques of writing, kind of. There are different types of poems--short little poems and sonnets. TO understand some of what they are talking about, you have to have an understanding of the thing that the author was trying to connect to! In one part, Ashleigh says, "...Philistine!" If I had not just learned and read the essay on Philistines by Novakov in school, I would have not understood what they were talking about. There is a poem called "Sailing to Byztantium" and that is the name of the school magazine/newspaper. We also just talked about this in school. The poem is about young lovers and this book is really about young lovers, just it doesn't state that outwardly!!! WOW- there are alot of outside sources and connections! And everything that they say about Jane Austen's famed novel, Pride and Prejudice, is very true along with the other small bits of information from other novels, plays, operas, etc. I thought it was a fasinating novel and I really enjoyed it! All that school work is actually helping me understand a fiction novel! WOW!!
5 stars!

I was intrigued by this book because of the story's opening premise: Julie's favorite book is 'Pride and Prejudice.' She is dismayed when her best friend, Ashleigh discovers the book and adopts it as her latest passion. Ashleigh assumes the speech patterns, dress and mannerisms of Jane Austen's heroines and integrates them into her daily life. When she decides she wants to search for her "Mr. Darcy" she enlists Julie to help her crash a dance at the nearby private boys' school. Julie thinks of it as the "Snoot School Dork Dance" but they search out period dresses, learn to dance the quadrille and plan to get into the dance.

At the dance Julie meets her "Mysterious Stranger," the boy she has seen around town, who is a student at the school. Parr is a really nice guy and Julie is smitten. Unfortunately, Ashleigh has decided Parr is her Mr. Darcy and she keeps trying to convinice Julie that Parr's friend, Ned, is Julie's Mr. Bingley. Julie is dismayed and torn between her interest in Parr and her friendship with Ashleigh.

I liked Julie very much. An only child, she lives with her mother and visits her father who left to marry the "IA" or Irresistable Accountant. Julie is trying to keep some semblance of a relationship with her dad so she keeps her feelings about the IA to herself.

Shulman writes with a eye to Austen with her use of capitalization and tongue-in-cheek humor. This is a very lighthearted read. My highschooler told me the book was really fun.

Enuthusiam is a interesting and refreshing book. It keeps you turning the pages and is very well written. I thought Polly Shulman put a great new spin on the old love story by making the best friend of the main character an "enthusiast" who's current obssession in Pride and Prejudice. She develops the whole story around this obssession,and it makes for some great surprises. The main character was also very likable and different from the general main character-she's thoughtful and seems to value friendship. This book is fabulous and great for any reader!

Yes, the book is a charming romantic comedy. However, what I liked the most was Shulman's ability to accurately depict other aspects of teenage life. (SPOILER ALERT) For example, Julie's father's self-centered assumption that of course she should know that this isn't the first miscarriage her stepmother has suffered. Or the way that Julie's first kiss (from an older guy who is otherwise involved, and quite honest about merely providing her with some kissing practice) is handled.

Writing a teenage story requires being able to create a world in which in alternate moments you are treated as a total grown-up and then as a dimwitted child. Shulman does this deftly, in a way that has you nodding in recognition.