Pretty Amy [Paperback]

Lisa Burstein (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 8, 2012

Amy is fine living in the shadows of beautiful Lila and uber-cool Cassie, because at least she's somewhat beautiful and uber-cool by association. But when their dates stand them up for prom, and the girls take matters into their own hands--earning them a night in jail outfitted in satin, stilettos, and Spanx--Amy discovers even a prom spent in handcuffs might be better than the humiliating"rehabilitation techniques" now filling up her summer. Worse, with Lila and Cassie parentally banned, Amy feels like she has nothing--like she is nothing.

Navigating unlikely alliances with her new coworker, two very different boys, and possibly even her parents, Amy struggles to decide if it's worth being a best friend when it makes you a public enemy. Bringing readers along on an often hilarious and heartwarming journey, Amy finds that maybe getting a life only happens once you think your life is over.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"If you’ve ever felt like you didn’t belong or didn’t know what you wanted to do with your life, then Pretty Amy is a must-read for you."— Girl's Life Magazine

"Pretty Amy will resonate with any teen considering or already on the wrong path. Burstein paints a bleak picture of teenage politics and one girl's search to fit in and be loved."- San Francisco Book Review

“A coming-of-age story without the comfort of padding…a relatable and compelling character [with] a lot of wonderful snark.” —New York Journal of Books

"Lisa Burstein has one of the most refreshingly real YA voices I’ve read in years.  Get your hands on a copy of Pretty Amy – STAT! "— E. Kristin Anderson, Co-editor of Dear Teen Me, Authors Write Letters to their Teen Selves

"In PRETTY AMY, Lisa Burstein has masterfully captured the private heart and soul of what it means--exactly how it hurts--and how vulnerable life is for teen girls. Burstein's writing is beautifully raw and hyper-real. PRETTY AMY will shock you, make you laugh, cry, yell & cheer.”— Anne Eliot, Author of Almost

About the Author

Lisa Burstein is a tea seller by day and a writer by night. She received her MFA in Fiction from the Inland Northwest Center for Writers at Eastern Washington University and is glad to finally have it be worth more than the paper it was printed on. She lives in Portland, Oregon with her very patient husband, a neurotic dog and two cats. Pretty Amy is her first novel. She never went to her senior prom. Burstein lives in Portland, OR.

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Entangled Teen (May 8, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1620611198
• ISBN-13: 978-1620611197
• Product Dimensions: 5.4 x 0.9 x 8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (70 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #979,521 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Lisa Burstein is a tea seller by day and a writer by night. She received her MFA in Creative Writing from the Inland Northwest Center for Writers at Eastern Washington University. She is the author of Pretty Amy, The Next Forever and Dear Cassie. As well as a contributor to the upcoming essay collection, Break These Rules: 35 YA Authors On Speaking Up, Standing Out, and Being Yourself. She lives in Portland, Oregon with her very patient husband, a neurotic dog and two cats.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars No surprises, but strong characterization and well written April 27, 2012

By Christina (Ensconced in YA) TOP 500 REVIEWER

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

This book came highly recommended so I decided to give it a try.

Pretty Amy is a coming of age YA novel about Amy, a graduating senior who is hanging out with the wrong crowd~ beautiful Lila and trash talking Cassie. Amy finally feels like she fits in, but during a fateful prom night her life changes forever, and she has to finally grow up.

This novel is well written and while Amy is hard to like sometimes because of her bitterness, anger and frustration, we somehow get the sense she'll turn around at the end. I loved her parrot AJ and liked Conner.

The difficulty with novels such as this is that this is material we've all seen before. Teenage angst and a troublemaker who eventually sees the light through tough love. And there are some romance issues in the background. I recently sat in on a group of child psychiatrists who were talking about words they used to describe teenagers. These descriptives included overconfident, hormonal, defiant, experimental---all which were shown in this novel to the tee. The difficulty is going beyond the expected. I immediately compared this novel to Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver which remains one of my favorite novels. These two novels have a very similar beginning-- but the books are vastly different in the way the material was handled. Unfortunately, while this book has many strong points, it does little to get out of the stereotype. However, the voice of Cassie is what is unique and gripping, and that is what carries the reader to stay until the end.

That said, this is a strong first novel. While there were no surprises, it was well written and flowed nicely with good characterization.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Snarky & Honest Contemporary YA! April 25, 2012

By Jenna Detrapani

Format:Paperback

To begin, I would like to thank Entangled Publishing for giving me this opportunity to read and review PRETTY AMY. I knew that Pretty Amy would be the perfect read for me, since I have recently become obsessed with contemporary YA literature. I could tell from the description that Amy would be a girl that I'd relate to (minus the whole jail thing). This book could easily have been called Pretty Jenna, a comical (albeit exaggerated) retelling of my youth.

Plot: 10

The book description gives you a good idea what to expect as far as the story goes, but what it doesn't tell you is that, although she is plenty lost and unsure of her place in the world, Amy is actually a very snarky and strong willed teenager. A good part of the book centers around her thoughts and actions as she copes with the deep doo-doo she has gotten herself into (and the even further doo-doo she gets herself into because of her thoughts and actions.)

To sum it all up, if you are a woman and you currently are or ever have been a teenager, I welcome you: this is the story of your life.

Characters: 8

Lisa is a master of the element of surprise. And her surprises come via the backgrounds of her characters. Each of them has their own personality, from the "self-involved and overly helpful in all the wrong ways" mother, to the convenience store clerk who walks his own pace in life, to the two "bad girls" who compliment each other in a "back-handed compliment" sort of way.

And then there's Amy. Pretty Amy... Kudos to Lisa for successfully putting every insecurity and fear of the modern teenage girl into one single individual. Pretty Amy... more like Poor Unfortunate Amy. I swear, if I was her I would have probably had the same exact self-esteem complex that she does. I do admit, there were many characteristics in her that I saw in myself 10-15 years ago. But if I had to deal with ALL her insecurities, I would probably implode! While I don't blame her for having a hard time "helping herself" throughout the book, I still couldn't help but be a bit annoyed at times by her behavior. Then again, with a mom as horribly annoying, controlling and self-absorbed as hers is, I have to wonder, would I have behaved the same?

Setting: 10

High school. We all know how it is, whether we're experiencing it now or have in the past. Kids are cruel. Heck, I was telling my mother just this morning that my four year old (A FOUR YEAR OLD. IN DAY CARE.) is dealing with "mean girls" in her "class"... Just this morning she told me that she didn't want to go to "school" (day care) because she doesn't like it there. She's FOUR! Kids these days certainly have it tough, and Lisa perfectly brings out the worst of this tough new world in her story.

The home life of a teenager. All parents have expectations, and so do Amy's parents. Amy has disappointed her parents, and how they react to that disappointment is thoroughly explored in this book. If you ever wanted a psychological walk-through of what families go through after their teen has had a brush with the law, this is your book.

Pacing: 7

This is one area where Pretty Amy falters, but only just a bit. The story begins fairly quickly, as we learn about what type of people Amy and her friends are. But then Amy has to deal with the outcomes of her crime and that's where the pacing suffers. Not to say that things don't happen, because they do. And the events that take place are more often than not quite entertaining for the reader. But at the same time we have to get inside Amy's head... Her typical teenage brain is a place of "two steps forward, two steps back", if you know what I mean... Over and over she dances - forward and back, forward and back. Realistic? Yes. Testing on my patience? Most definitely. But then, perhaps this is just a sign of my age. I'll bet plenty of teenagers could read this book and simply nod their heads in agreement when she takes a mental step backward, whereas I find myself smacking my forehead, groaning, "Oh, Amy!"

Style: 8

One of the highlights of Pretty Amy is the snarky voice that the main character provides. Lisa is the Queen of One-liners, most of which are downright hilarious in a dark and cynical sort of way. I found myself laughing out loud more than once. The situations that Lisa puts Amy into are examples of the very worst things a creative imagination could possibly conjure up for a teenager. Poor Unfortunate Amy, to be the victim of such creativity... But at least it gets the story across and makes it interesting at that!

I took off a point for the cursing. Prudish me. I know the language realistically coveys the personality of the characters, but I have to. There is also talk of sex, drug use, etc. among the characters. Thank goodness, the book is appropriately rated age 15 and up because of the content.

In the end, I found Pretty Amy to be a highly enjoyable contemporary read. It is one of the most realist books about being a teenage girl that I have read in some time. For this reason, I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys contemporary YA lit.

Grade: 93 (4.5 Stars!)

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Just a must read! April 24, 2012

By Freak-YA-tastic

Format:Paperback

[...]

I received an e-ARC of this stand alone novel tanks to Netgalley, Entangled Publishing and the author.

Before I read this novel I was sure to spend a good time and I was also a little afraid to be disappointed. It happens often when you're eagerly waiting for a novel. But, Pretty Amy is far much more than what I thought.

In my opinion, the author catches the spirit of all teenagers. Amy is a so believable character that, sometimes, I forgot it's just a book. There's a little of myself in Amy and I'm sure you'll feel the same when you'll read this novel.

Her voice is strong, full of questions about herself, about her future, about her parents and friendships and about how others perceive her. She's lost, she's naive and feels lonely even surrounded by people who care about her, but maybe not how she wants them to. Ho never felt this way at one point?

In my opinion, this novel is a real piece of life. We were all Amy at one point, even if our life and the consequences were different. That's why this book is so good. You picture yourself quite often.

The writing style of the author is simple, true and conveys perfectly Amy's story. From the first sentence to the last one, I was hooked, remembering what it was like for me when I was a teenager trying to fit in the crowd, in my family.

This novel is never boring. It's smart because it makes you think, which is even better for a YA book. If only I could read more books like this one!

Moreover, the chapters are not built following the same structure which is very important for the rhythm of the novel and also to keep the readers on the edge.

So, this novel is a must read for me. It's funny, it's also grave and it sounds true to the core. You can't be disappointed!