Customer Reviews

Virgins

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Funny, sassy, sensitive and real, Rivers triumphs with this novel that captures the heavenly (and hellish) aspects of growing up Catholic. Main character Peg and her best friend Con are hilarious; their wry wit allows them to cope with Con's alcoholic, abusive father, and Peg's "love for a boy who loves God more." Sean, the object of Peg's affection, tries to balance his devotion to his lifelong romance with Peg (his playground crush) and to his God.

All are grappling with the desire to be a good Catholic, and desire to try it all before graduation. Though the world around their Catholic school is strict and solemn, their own journeys of self-discovery are dotted with high school high jinks, humor, and true displays of friendship and love. A must-read for any former Catholic schoolgirl, or anyone who crushed on one.

I loved this book, I really couldn't put it down. Although I am not Catholic, I am a junior in high school and I think that this book is so great, it's funny, sweet, and sad. When I picked it up I didn't expect tears to be rolling from my eyes by the time I turned the last pages. You know that feeling when your in the middle of a book, then you keep reading and you want to get to the end, but if you get to the end that means it's over and there is nothing left, I just finished this book and I came online hoping to find a sequel and I did, I am going out today to buy Girls Forever, Brave and True. Don't skip out on reading Virgins, it is a one the best books I have ever read!

This book has the amazing ability to make you laugh and cry all within a matter of a few pages. I felt like the author had dropped right into my high school and had written about my life. I highly recommend this....you won't regret it. When you are done reading this, read the sequal called "Girls Forever Brave and True" to find out what happens to the characters 10 years later.

This book touched me deeply, both in my heart and in my funny bone. I can't read this book anywhere I can't laugh out loud because even after countless readings I still find it to be the funniest thing I have ever read. Then just a page or two later, I find an ache in my chest and a tear in my eye. Peg has a place in my heart for the rest of my life, and I am thrilled to tears to see that the author has written more books, especially another about the characters from Virgins. I would recommend this book to anyone ( even my husband loved it) but I rarely lend it for fear of losing my copy.

I read this book when I was 17. I'm now 40 and this book still makes me laugh until tears are running down my face. Though I'm not Catholic, it helps to know a bit about the inner-workings of the religion and a bit about the time period this was written about. This is one of those books that you hope Hollywood never finds out about because they could never do it justice. It's a once in a lifetime read about coming of age that every older teen should read. Be warned there are some pretty explicit scenes but it's not dirty, it's just life...

I read this book and the sequel "Girls Forever Brave and True" when they first came out. I loved them then and still love them now. The characters are funny and endearing. These two books rank on my all time favorite list!

If my life had a bibliography, this book would be on it. I love it. I read it first as a teenager, and revisit it regularly when I need a pick-me-up. It is one of the funniest, most touching, most wonderful books that I have ever discovered, and I am totally baffled by the fact that it is no longer in print. I recommend that you get your hands on a copy however you can--but you'll have to fight me for them, because I buy them and give them to my friends. I also loved Girls Forever Brave and True, the sequel to Virgins.

This book is about the coming of age of two Catholic teenagers in the early 1960s. You might believe by the title that this is a racy story. Although it is not steamy, it is hilarious! Every friend that I have lent this book to agrees that it is one of the funniest books ever;I dare anyone to read past page 4 without laughing out loud!

While I am not Catholic or in love with a priest, I can relate to nearly every word of this novel. The main character, Peggy, develops so much, and the reader feels every bump along the way, whether the audience is in high school or taking a nostalgic look back. The themes of this book, quite clearly a coming of age story, are spelled out, but it is the straightforward approach that makes this novel so wonderful. To be cliche, I laughed, I cried, and while it's not Shakespeare, it is entertaining and satisfying.

Caryl Rivers is one of my favorite authors for a very good reason: she tells a good story with wit and insight. Although not Catholic or growing up in the middle of the century, some things about becoming an adult transcend decades. It's hard to figure out what kind of a person you are, how you want to live your life, how to deal with loss. Ms. Rivers gives us two heroines who make these decisions with flair, real emotion, and occasionally a bit of lunacy--as in their constant efforts to become immortal. According to another one of her books, Occasional Sins, some of the things in this book are fictionalized accounts from the author's life. They make the book more authentic. I would have killed for friends like Con, Molly, and Peggy in high school!