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10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An empowering and fun read!, December 29, 2009
This review is from: The Lonely Hearts Club (Hardcover)
Penny Lane (yes, as in The Beatles song) is just sick of guys. After one particularly nasty break-up with her childhood friend Nate, she forms The Lonely Hearts Club and resolves never to date another high school guy. After all, all they do is jerk you around, treat you like dirt, make you change who you are, and cause you to abandon your true friends. What Penny doesn't expect is most of the girls at her school happily flocking to her new club...and people (namely, the principal and the guys) getting angry at her. And then of course, there is the tiny matter of a certain very nice, very cute boy that Penny can't seem to get off of her mind...
The Lonely Hearts Club is a kick-butt, fun, and powerful read that isn't just about the romantic ups and downs of teen dating and swearing off guys, but about friendship and loyalty and never allowing a boyfriend to compromise who you are or make you give up your girlfriends. The many dating dynamics in the book are so, so true, which makes it an easy and enjoyable novel to get into, and Penny's witty voice will make you laugh and cringe with her at the same time, especially as the many girls share their dating woes (who knew guys could be so mean?). Penny's club is unconventional, but it is so fantastic to see how she turns her pain at rejection by guys into something positive and fun for the girls in her school, and it won't fail to entertain at the same time as despite her best intentions, Penny just can't stop liking guys. The Lonely Hearts Club is not about moping around; it's about boys, The Beatles, picking yourself back up again and coming out stronger, and being the better person (most of the time). It'll leave you downloading The Beatles' music and wanting to form your own Lonely Hearts Club. Thank you, Elizabeth Eulberg.
Cover Comments: I love, love, love this cover! The Abbey Road spin-off is cute, and it's very fitting considering all of the many, many Beatles references. I also like how the tastes of each girl are as varied as the characters. The only thing I don't really care for is the font of the title. It's just too swirly for me, and since the rest of the cover has such a presence and attitude, it just doesn't fit. Other than that, this book really stands out!
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
I wanted so badly to love this book, December 4, 2010
This review is from: The Lonely Hearts Club (Hardcover)
As the title says I wanted so badly to love this book. A girl who loves The Beatles and creates a "Lonely Hearts Club" hating boys?? The idea seems like a no miss! Unfortunately this book was so over the top, over dramatic and completely predictable, not to mention cheesy.
I just want to say now that no one has ever said or will ever say "What to the evs" its "Whatev" if anything...
I love The Beatles, I love them more than anything I have over 30 books about their career, about how they effect on society, about their music, about their lives, about everything so I was really, really excited when there was a book about someone who likes The Beatles and featured kids of "today" (I put this in quotes because of the "What to the evs" comment" liking The Beatles. I'm 24, I'm not ancient. I know a few things have changed since I was in high school but there is NOOO way that a club like The Lonely Hearts Club would and could ever exist. There were people my age in high school that had never heard of The Beatles. Not to mention the fact that they were too busy having sex with each other to want to give it up for some club.
Some reviewers have said that because there were curse words, I can think of two instances, that the book isn't appropriate for children. I'm sorry but that is not realistic. Kids in high school curse, even kids in elementary school curse. This book was just too immature, too unrealistic and too cheesy.
I actually completely got pissed off at the book for saying that Beatles tribute bands were not worthy of "true" Beatles fans attention. I'm sorry but I love Beatles tribute bands I've seen over 10 different Beatles tribute bands and those guys are awesome at what they do. Its harder to try to be someone else on stage and learn their quirks, voice and movements than it is to be your own artist. Especially good tribute bands like Rain, Fab Four, Liverpool Legends and so forth. I've toured with some of the bands even and I know the work that goes on behind the scenes and its not to be mocked. I almost stopped reading right then...
I gave this book 2 stars for a couple reasons, #1 because I actually finished the book. I only finished it because I truly believed it might have a good and unexpected ending. It did not. Fail.
#2 It featured The Beatles. I love The Beatles.
All in all I was greatly disappointed and bored almost out of my mind while reading. I hope someday someone can write a truly entertaining story featuring The Beatles.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Yay for girl power, January 18, 2010
This review is from: The Lonely Hearts Club (Hardcover)
Penny Lane, so named because of her parents' Beatles obsession, is sick of every boy except the four responsible for her namesake. So while she'll still listen to Beatles music, she's sworn off boys. That means no more dating and instead dedicating her time to herself. And so Penny becomes the first member of The Lonely Hearts Club (named because of the only boys allowed), but soon, everyone wants to know about it. It turns out, Penny's not the only girl fed up with letting boys be boys, and before long, girls are flocking to her growing club. It's about empowerment and not letting the other sex get in the way of real life. But despite all the good things the club has been doing for its members, Penny can't help but wonder if her original assumption, that all males are spawns of the devil, is really true and if not dating is really the way to go. Because despite how many times Penny tells herself that boys will only break her heart, there's still one boy Penny can't help but like.
The Lonely Hearts Club doubles as a sweet romantic comedy and a self empowerment book for all girls. Eulberg gets down to business quickly by listing nearly all the transgressions guys have made against girls. It's practically a universally known fact that a girl will sometimes do anything to get a guy, usually to her own detriment, as shown through Tracy's and Diane's characters. Penny's character offers an interesting solution to this: swear off boys and everything will be better. Of course, things rarely turn out as planned, and this heartwarming story is the result. I just love how Eulberg encourages girls to become independent from boys and take back their lives while also entertaining them with a cute and amusing tale. I wouldn't say anything else in particular really stands out about this novel; the Beatles tributes and even the storyline have been tried before. Nonetheless, The Lonely Hearts Club is sure to bring a smile and a little hope into every girl's life.
The Lonely Hearts Club appeals to teen girls who enjoy young adult romance stories including Audrey, Wait! by Robin Benway and The ABC's of Kissing Boys by Tina Ferraro.
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