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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Sophomoric, November 9, 2006
This review is from: Pop! (Paperback)
In the new novel *Pop!* the main character, Marit, is a young girl (17) who is obsessed with losing her virginity. Through skillful writing, Marit comes off as smart for her age, and yet she makes poor and consequential choices by ultimately sleeping with her best friend, a boy named Jamie. She believes this will ready her for the boy she really likes, a new kid named Noah. Noah is a lacrosse player and a joiner, a trait Marit normally despises but is willing to overlook because of his good looks.
The reader might like Marit for her occasional wit, but will inevitably deride her for her selfish and immature behavior. Anyone clued into American society knows today's teenagers popping with hormones and sexual activity is rampant. That's not my problem with this book. My problem is that there's simply not enough reason to root for the heroine. Considering the subject matter, I'd stick with something like *Forever,* by Judy Blume.
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8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Sex and the City Meets The After School Special, November 6, 2006
This review is from: Pop! (Paperback)
This book, tempting for `young adults,' is presented in large type with lots of white space and is readable in an hour or two. While well written, with snappy and believable dialog, I wouldn't let my own `young adult' near it. It may have cleaner, more PG-language than the television show that the author carries a writing credit for one episode, but the subject matter--sex--and the main character's obsession with it, is the story.
Pop! is the tale of a self-absorbed high school senior, Marit. The first thing we learn about her is that she's "dying to have sex." She's characterized as pretty and funny. Although witty, she's a sub-par, apathetic student, with a disdain for anyone at school who is involved with sports or activities. Her best friends, Caroline, a quirky sidekick type who spends more time at Marit's house than her own due to her parents' rocky marriage, and Jamie, a geeky film freak with seemingly no fellow male friends. Marit's father is an artist and her mother--well, her mother is practically non-existent in the tale. And it shows. Marit ends up "solving" her sexual dilemma by taking advice from her equally self-absorbed older sister, Hilly, and decides to lose her virginity to Jamie. "Friends with benefits," suggests Hilly. From this point forward, the plot is completely predictable and the stereotypical characters lineup one by one to "torture" Marit, all the while making her appear more and more insipid and unlikable--even during what's supposed to be her finest moment, when she tells off the school bully.
I realize kids are not only obsessing over sex, but also having sex a lot earlier these days, and if anything, Pop! illustrates what's wrong with this. I therefore recommend it to a mature audience to perhaps educate parents on today's youth, and unlike the parents and characters in this story, pay attention and counsel wisely.
From the author of "A Line Between Friends," McKenna Publishing Group.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
A humorous novel full of snappy and witty dialogue, January 26, 2007
This review is from: Pop! (Paperback)
Marit is convinced that she is the only 17-year-old virgin left in Connecticut. The problem is, whenever things get physical with a guy, she freaks out. Until the obvious solution presents itself --- what if she loses "it" with her best guy friend Jamie? Or would this be too much for their long-term friendship to handle?
When a cute new boy, Noah, ends up as Marit's conversation partner in German class, she can't believe her luck. And when he asks her on a date to the bonfire, she is ecstatic. "I won't ruin this relationship," she thinks. She prays that she won't do something embarrassing or get scared or freak out. At the bonfire, however, that's exactly what happens when she starts making out with Noah. Humiliation. She runs away, disgusted with herself.
If only she could get "it" over with, so she wouldn't have to worry about "it" anymore. That's when the idea of a mutual friendly agreement with her best guy friend Jamie is suggested. Maybe with a little experience, she wouldn't be so scared and freak out around other guys. Maybe with a little experience, she'd finally get a boyfriend who would last.
Author Aury Wallington brings her experience of writing for the sassy and smart television shows "Veronica Mars" and "Sex and the City" to her first novel. Wallington's dialogue is snappy, quirky and funny, like great television writing should be. Marit is an endearing teen character, though at times she lacks depth and almost makes her quest a bit too flippant. Also, the story wraps up so quickly that it left this reader with a few unanswered questions. Parents should be aware that there are sex scenes included in POP! that may be considered overly descriptive.
--- Reviewed by Kristi Olson.
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