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Being Friends With Boys by Terra Elan McVoy

Sunday, June 10, 2012
Charlotte and Oliver have been friends forever. She knows that he, Abe, and Trip consider her to be one of the guys, and she likes it that way. She likes being the friend who keeps them all together. Likes offering a girl's perspective on their love lives. Likes being the behind-the-scenes wordsmith who writes all the lyrics for the boys' band. Char has a house full of stepsisters and a past full of backstabbing (female) ex-best friends, so for her, being friends with boys is refreshingly drama-free...until it isn't any more.
When a new boy enters the scene and makes Char feel like, well, a total girl...and two of her other friends have a falling out that may or may not be related to one of them deciding he possibly wants to be more than friends with Char...being friends with all these boys suddenly becomes a lot more complicated.

Goodreads Summary

It's never easy to be friends with boys when you're a high school girl who doesn't necessarily consider herself to be a social butterfly.  For Char, however, even her social ineptitude's don't stop her from being friends with boys.  She has had trouble with backstabbing ex-best friends and harsh stepsisters and finds that boys are easier to get along with.  Will she ever get tired of offering love advice, writing song lyrics, and being the "go-to girl?"

In a book full of major characters, it may have been easy for Charlotte to slip into the background.  Instead, she grows with the story, maturing and altering slightly into an admirable character in the end.  Charlotte isn't particularly mean or nice, sweet or sarcastic...she has her own freshness about her that is easy to appreciate.  The other band members could have blended together, but the author sets them apart with different characteristics and actions that make them memorable.  The characters, as a whole, were fun to get to know.

Terra Elan McVoy's style of writing is clear and fluid.  The reader will have a hard time setting this book down, always needing to discover what will happen in Charlotte's life next.  The best aspect of this book is its complete likability, it is easy to relate to.  The reader will probably be able to picture scenes from this book occurring in real life.  Overall, this book should not be missed and is recommended to young adult/teen readers.

4 Stars

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This product or book may have been distributed for review, this in no way affects my opinions or reviews.

15 comments:

  1. this book sounds great, and I'll definitely be reading it soon! Thanks for the review.

  1. Ooh, this looks like a good read - I hadn't heard of it before now, but seeing as you enjoyed it so much, I would like to check it out now. Great post!

  1. Ha! This sounds like my teenage years. I'll check it out.

  1. Thank you for all the great comments! I really found this book interesting, worth a read :)

  1. yeay! finally found a review about this book. I really want to read it and since you seem to love the characters and the protagonist matures over time, I think I will enjoy it too!

    great review,
    Juhina @ Maji Bookshelf

  1. Randi M said...:

    This sounds like a sweet read. :) Thank you for sharing your review!

  1. Sometimes it is definitely easier to be close friends with boys and not girls. And I love fresh and amazing characters. This sounds like a great read. :)

  1. Unknown said...:

    Oooh that sounds good! :) Maybe I should read it.

  1. This book sounds so sweet! I can't wait to get my hands on a copy!

  1. Unknown said...:

    I think I should read this, thanks for your review :)

  1. I've always wished that I was like those girls in the movies who grew up with the boy best friend living in the house next door who's window was across from mine, haha.

  1. Lili said...:

    I've never heard of this book prior to your review, but it looks so interesting. It looks like a great contemporary novel and I love the whole "one of the boys" and "behind the scene lyrical genius" spin to it! Definitely want to check it out.

    Glad you enjoyed it so much.

  1. Nori said...:

    Great review. I've been thinking about checking this one out for a while, and now I think I will. I like that all the character stand out because I hate when there's a group in YA books, that gets all blended together.

  1. katayoun said...:

    interesting, makes me think of the movie "she's the man" which i loved!!

  1. Unknown said...:

    Guy friends can be great and less drama. But very curious what Charlotte will do when a new boy enters. I love books where I can relate and picture the scenes occurring in my real life. I like a character that stands on their own and doesn't have to be overly sarcastic or nice or mean.