Customer Reviews

Perfect You (Turtleback School & Library Binding Edition)

5 star:		(22)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Kate's life has never been perfect, but it used to be fairly okay: She grew up with a best friend, Anna, who knew everything about her, and vice-versa. She had a roof over her head, two parents with stable jobs, and no big conflicts with her older brother. She got decent grades in school and had a decent freshman year.

But now she's a sophomore, and Kate's life is so far from perfect that it's in another state. When Anna came back from her summer vacation, she looked like a different person. Newly thin and blonde, Anna starts hanging out with the popular crowd at school and stops speaking to Kate. Kate's father abruptly quit his job to sell Perfect You infomercial vitamins in a booth at the local mall. Kate is expected to work there after school, and she doesn't get paid for it. In fact, sometimes, she's the only person manning the booth, as her father is prone to wander off to play video games or solicit customers from other stores. Due to her less-than-stellar driving tests, Kate isn't allowed to get a car yet, so she has to rely on her family members to cart her around. Her brother obtained a college degree, then moved back home. Instead of actually getting a job, he sits on the couch and decides he wants to be an actor. Of course, he changes his dream job as often as he changes his socks, so Kate doubts he's serious. To top it all off, a guy at school named Will with a reputation for flirting and leading girls on keeps bugging her.

Kate is conflicted, to say the least. Her first-person narration relates her ups-and-downs with Will, Anna, and her family members. She doesn't want to admit that she likes Will and she certainly doesn't want to get hurt, but she starts to see him anyway. She restricts their time together to mall breaks, not wanting people at school to know about them, and she refuses to let things become serious. She doesn't even know if Will honestly likes her or is just using her like he's used all of the other girls, and she pretends as though she doesn't care either way. She desperately wants to repair her friendship with Anna but isn't sure what it will take to do that. Kate is mortified by her father's antics at the mall, but she suffers these little indignities quietly, not wanting to stir up trouble. She can sense that her parents' relationship, once fun-loving, is starting to get strained. Kate's maternal grandmother comes to visit and ends up staying indefinitely. After taking a second job to make ends meet, Kate's mother is stressed enough, and the addition of her own mother to the household only causes more problems.

Sometimes, all it takes is a good or bad conversation, even one that's ten seconds long, to change your mind and your feelings. Elizabeth Scott (Bloom) writes dialogue that sounds very true to life and very true to teens - remarkably, with minimal swearing and slang. A quick exchange of words with Anna and Kate thinks they are friends again, then a blatant snub in the hallway makes her heart sink. It's hard to have a friend "outgrow" you or otherwise leave you behind. I like that they drifted apart due to their own changes (well, Anna wanting something more and changing herself) rather than being torn apart by some devastating, earth-shattering event. Nevertheless, it still felt devastating to Kate.

By the end of the book, things in Kate's home have changed yet again, and her relationships with Anna and Will are totally different than they were at the beginning of the school year. Kate has to decide whether to hang on or move on.

Kate's sophomore year hasn't been the best so far. Her only close friend has stopped speaking her after she lost 90 pounds and made friends with the popular crowd. Her father quits his job to sell cheesy, overpriced vitamins, and money is so tight that her wealthy nightmare of a grandmother moves in, causing even more tension at home.

Her whole life seems to be falling apart around her, but strangely enough, obnoxious Will Miller seems to be paying quite a lot of attention to Kate. But is he looking for an actual relationship or just another meaningless hook-up for which he is notorious for?

Here is a novel full of loyalty, laughter, anger, and tears. Every sort of insecure feeling that you've ever felt is artfully channeled through Perfect You in such a way that each and every reader can make an instant connection with Kate. Her fears, hopes, and expectations are tangible and are those that you can easily empathize with, making her triumphs over each insecurity all the more satisfying. Scott's portrayal of first love is confusing, exhilarating, and refreshing, and readers will delight in the verbal sparring between Kate and Will as they try to find a happy medium. This is the type of novel that will cause you to smile just as quickly as it will make you sad. Wholesome and substantial, Perfect You is as real as it gets.

Elizabeth Scott's second novel is just as poignant and addictive to read as her well-reviewed debut, BLOOM --- perhaps even more so. In the year since BLOOM's publication, Scott has clearly honed her skills, crafting a tighter story that fluently captures the anxieties of talking to (let alone trusting) a first crush, the self-deprecation and anguish of losing a best friend, and the bemusement that comes with having to parent...your parents.

But what does all of this have to do with vitamins?

It all started when Kate's father quit his job at a prestigious software company because his desk had broken in half. He figured it was a sign. Not even a month later, he cashed in his retirement fund to purchase boxes full of infomercial vitamins called "Perfect You." His plan? To buy a booth at the mall and sell them to anyone who would take the bait --- with Kate's help, of course.

So instead of going to parties with her friends and cheering for her boyfriend on the basketball team, Kate is stuck trying to hide her mortification when her father wears his B-Buzz vitamin bee costume during her shift, or worse yet, when he gets thrown out of the Sports Shack for pushing vitamins on their customers. But wait. Kate doesn't have a boyfriend. Nor does she have any friends aside from the three Jennifers who are so busy competing to be each other's best friend that they barely notice her.

Granted, Kate's life hadn't always been so terrible. Prior to her sophomore year, she spent every waking second with her best friend, Anna, who never seemed to care what anyone else thought --- at least not until hunky Sam, the boy Anna had been in love with for forever, called her a "wide load."

After that, everything changed. Anna came back from her summer in Maine, determined to be a different person. She was blonde, 70 pounds thinner and suddenly popular, which, of course, meant No More Kate. So for the first few months of 10th grade, Kate spends every day alone --- that is, until Sam's cute friend, Will, kisses her behind the dumpsters at the mall.

In the chapters that follow, Kate bumbles through a series of crushing setbacks (Anna delivers one too many blows to her dwindling self-worth, her parents separate due to her father's seemingly endless mid-life crisis, Will asks her out on a date --- to humiliate her?) before ultimately crumbling in defeat.

But, as those who liked Scott's first novel are aware, Kate's story is far from over despite the trauma she has endured, and readers will breeze through the last few chapters with genuine pleasure.

PERFECT YOU has just the right combination of humor, charm and weight to satisfy old fans and win over new ones. Its rich characters --- especially haughty but wise Grandma --- are brimming with quirky idiosyncrasies meant to both irritate and please. Like in BLOOM, Scott navigates familial dysfunction and teen melodrama with aplomb, and teens will eat up what develops when Kate and Will finally "get real" at the end.

--- Reviewed by Alexis Burling

This is my first book written by Elizabeth Scott, and I enjoyed it so much I will be reading more!

The main character is realistic in that she is flawed and not perfect in any means. Her life is not in a happy spot when the book begins, and it seems to be spiraling downward still with little ups and downs. She is definitely a glass half-empty person, and cannot yet see the world too far beyond her and her life. There are moments when she has growth, which is realistic for a sixteen year old.

The author does a good job with the other characters, as well. I especially enjoyed the mother and grandmother. Will, also, is an extremely likable lead male character who is a great balance to Kate.

I picked up the book thinking I would read a page or two before going to bed, and ended up reading the whole thing. The writing is easy to follow and understand. Conversation between the characters flowed very well.

There was nothing I would add or want to take-away from the story. For what this lovely book was, I would round up my 4.5 rating to a 5. This story deals with some heavier issues of friends and family without becoming too depressing or hard to get through by having laughs and triumphs, too. I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a contemporary high school romance/teen/ya novel that is serious, but has plenty of smile moments and is fun.

PERFECT YOU by Elizabeth Scott is the perfect book. When I started reading I wondered how I could ever relate to Kate, whose life was spinning out of control when her Dad quit his job to try and sell vitamins in a mall. As her life crumbles and evaporates- her best friend no longer speaks to her, her family is dysfunctional at best, her home is slipping away- she is beset with doubts and pursued by a guy who might just be a player. During this collapse of all she held near and dear - we begin to see her strength. She is afraid of living her life as it has become and she longs for normalcy- and instead gains such an insight into herself and her friends that we have to rejoice. The ending is clever and a gifted concept. I truly loved this book. It is well written and funny and quirky. I feel we, the reader, should learn something about ourselves, our relationships and the realities of life from every book we read. This book delivers. Yes I cried, my friends know I do that a lot, I laughed, and I thought of how I can be a better friend and eventually a better girlfriend. There is not a word of this book I would have changed and I highly recommend it.

It's official, this is the worst year of Kate Brown's life. First of all, her best friend since preschool, Anna Dray, has taken to acting like Kate is invisible. Anna lost 80 pounds, got rid of her braces and glasses, colored her hair and became one of the beautiful people. Obviously, talking to Kate would remind the `in crowd' of who Anna used to be, so she doesn't. Kate knows that wanting Anna to be her friend again is pathetic, but she just can't help herself.

As if the best friend betrayal wasn't enough, Kate also has to deal with the demented stranger her father has become. Mr. Brown has suddenly realized that he has a calling to sell Perfect You vitamins, so he's quit his job, spent almost all of the family's savings on Perfect You stock, and rented a kiosk at the mall. The vitamin business is going so spectacularly poorly that Kate has been roped in to work at the kiosk for free.

The cherry on the top of Kate's miserable life has a name - Will Miller. He's ultra-cute and Kate's pretty sure she hates him, even though she does dream about him all too frequently. He's a jerk, right? So why does it seem as if he's the only one at school who really cares about Kate? She can't stop thinking about Will anymore than she can stop wishing Anna was her friend again. The thing is, Kate knows that she'll get hurt if she gets involved with Will. At least, she's pretty sure she will.

Oh, the kissing. Yes, the kissing. My God, the kissing.

"Perfect You" by Elizabeth Scott is the perfect kissing book. If you want a hefty dose of YA butterflies, buy this book. You'll fall in love with the guy, with the girl, and with the endless kisses they share. OK, "Perfect You" is about much more than kissing. Because as wonderful as kissing is, smooches alone cannot sustain a storyline. Characters and conflict do and "Perfect You" has plenty of that because the main character Kate is faced with quadruple teen dilemmas - best friend has ditched her, Dad is making her crazy with his crazy new job, parents have mucho money trouble, and, oh yeah, the boy she has a mega crush on likes her too but she can't accept that he does so they just kiss instead.

"Perfect You" doesn't take the easy road and just ride along on the lip-locked high. Kate has to face up to everything she lost, everything she is losing and everything she is preventing herself from having. What she winds up with will be worth it.

This book is why I love YA.

Kate Brown is having a rough year. Her dad decided to quit his job to sell Prefect You infomercial vitamins in the mall, her best friend is too popular to talk to her and Will won't leave her alone. Put all of that together and you have a lethal combination. Kate is struggling with having to work in the mall, for free, with her dad who loves to embarass her. Then, there's also the fact that she can't stop thinking about Will, even though he's out of her league. She also has a college graduate brother that still lives at home and can't get a real job. Can Kate handle what's happening to her family? Can she handle not having a best friend anymore? Or better yet, can she forget about Will?

With Kate's vivid, swanky attitude and Will's charming wit, this book is defintaly a hit. With each turning page, you will see style and grace in Elizabeth Scott's writing. You feel for Kate as she goes through the trials and tribulations of teen years. You will cry with her as her family starts to fall apart, as well as the relationship with her best friend, Anna. You will root for her to overcome and wish she could have her best friend at her side. And eventually you will figure out Will's intentions. This book is well written and a must read.

[...]

I absolutely fell in love with this book. It was so cute and heart felt and funny.

Okay, the narrator of this story, Kate Brown has been having a sucky year. Her best friend got a new look and dumped her for new friends, popularity, and a hot boyfriend. Her brother is moving back in, and then her dad quits his job to sell Perfect You vitamins and her sassy tongued grandmother comes to live with them indefinitely. And to top it all off, Will Miller, the "King of hook-ups", takes an interest in her and starts to talk to her. Kate acts like she hates the guy but she actually has a crush on him, but is too stubborn to admit it.

Then later in the book, her parents' relationship is strained, her ex-best friend is talking to her again, but is she really trying to be friends again? AND then Will asks her out, and she doesn't know what to believe anymore.

Anyways, this book was about how changes can be a good experience for you and that it won't necessarily ruin your life.

What a great read! This was my first time reading Elizabeth Scott and she will definitely be an author I will continue to read! Perfect You was an insightful look into a teenage girls life, Kate's confusion over her lost friendship is beyond believable. You see that happen all the time in high school. I guess I was lucky I moved in the fifth grade and didn't have to experience losing my childhood friends, although at the time I didn't see it that way. The supporting characters and the back ground story, was something that I think I actually enjoyed the most. I love when a story goes beyond focusing on the main character, sometimes the background characters are what make a story seem real. I was happy to see that in the end Kate learned to give people a chance and not always assume the worst.