Review: The Best and Hardest Thing by Pat Brisson

AUTHOR: Pat Brisson

PAGES: 240
PUBLISHER: Viking Juvenile
SERIES/STAND ALONE: Stand alone
SOURCE: Bought

OUTLINE: Fifteen-year-old Molly Biden has always been studious, dependable, some might even say saintly. And she's sick of herself. So when she spots mysterious bad boy Grady Dillon, she devises a plan to make herself over into someone new, someone who will attract Grady's attention. She succeeds—but a little too well. When Molly discovers she's pregnant, she's forced to make the hardest choice of her life.
This addictively readable portrayal of Molly's struggle to accept her pregnancy and the fact that her life will never be the same is told entirely in poetry, from sonnets to haiku.

THOUGHTS:

This book was an easy read just because of the way it was written. (Versus form) Even though it was written this way it still packed a bit of a punch. If I had to go through what Molly went through at age 15 I don't know what I would have done. I don't know if I could have made those decisions. At 15 I wasn't thinking about whether or not to keep a baby, or any of the other things she thought (actually) The book shows just how much peer pressure one person can sometimes take, or how just a single word can completely change a persons way of thinking. That person can be on the right track, and be a good kid (Let's face it that's still what a 15 year old is) then one little word assignment from a teacher, and her life spirals out of control. She no longer wants to be a "good girl" "nice" "studious" "saintly" all words which her classmates chose for her.

So what does she do about this? Easy. Yeah, that pretty much somes it up. She changes herself into someone new to get Grady's attention. I don't know it seemed like it went a little to well for her. (Maybe guys are just that easy to impress, or he just wanted some. My guess being the second.) Sorry for being kind of straight forward, but it's the truth. That was one part I was like really? You're going to make it that easy on him to get what he wants? Smart girls can do stupid things apparently. I had a hard time really liking the characters if you couldn't tell from the above. Everyone just seemed stupid.

I did like the book if not for any other reason then it hit on some subjects that teenagers are faced with in teenager-hood? Teenager-dom? Adolescence that's the word. (I still liked the other words better. Total Ashley words) so that's a plus. :) If anything I hope it helps others who read it to understand that sometimes one word can change a person.

I know it's a bit of a short review. Sometimes that happens I can only think of a few things to say. *sigh*