Crazy-for-Books.com: Review: Cracked Up to Be by Courtney Summers

Friday, January 29, 2010

Review: Cracked Up to Be by Courtney Summers

1:45 PM | Thoughts by Jennifer (Crazy-for-Books) |

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214 pages

ISBN: 9780312383695

Genre: Young Adult
Buy from Amazon - as of this post, the bargain price is $3.98! (Yes, I am an Amazon affiliate and would receive a small commission if you were to purchase through my link!)

My Rating: 3.5 stars

This book meets the following 2010 Reading Challenges:

100+ Reading Challenge

Reading From My Shelves Project

Synopsis:

"Perfect Parker Fadley isn’t so perfect anymore. She’s quit the cheerleading squad, she’s dumped her perfect boyfriend, and she’s failing school. Her parents are on a constant suicide watch and her counselors think she’s playing games…but what they don’t know, the real reason for this whole mess, isn’t something she can say out loud. It isn’t even something she can say to herself. A horrible thing has happened and it just might be her fault. If she can just remove herself from everybody--be totally alone--then everything will be okay...The problem is, nobody will let her."

My Thoughts:

Cracked Up to Be is the story of Parker Fadley, a mean-spirited perfectionist who has a huge secret that is destroying her “perfect” life. This is a quick and easy YA read, and, although I could feel for Parker at times, I did not find her character very likeable. I thought, at first, that she was being mean to people because she didn’t want anyone to be close to her due to her "secret". But, as I continued to read the story, I got the impression that she was always a bit mean-spirited and the situation she found herself in just made it a worse.

I really enjoyed how this story was told, from present-day conversations and issues, to flashbacks of the night her life changed forever. It really tied together nicely and I found it a very compelling way to tell the story. I applaud the people around Parker who were trying very hard to help her, even though she keeps pushing them away. I could relate to Parker’s panic and anxiety attacks, even though she didn’t want to readily admit that that’s what was happening to her! Her nervous tick was also very interesting! You could really tell that she needs intensive help to deal with her issues.

Overall, this was a good story about how your “perfect” life can change in an instant. I would have liked a bit more information on her “secret” and about the ending of the book. I can’t say what exactly without giving away the story, though!! I just want to know exactly what happened in the aftermath of the “secret”. Coming from a teen’s point of view, this story was especially interesting and I found it very believable. I would definitely recommend this book to any YA fans!

Labels: 2010 100+ Reading Challenge, 2010 Reading From My Shelves Project, 3.5 stars, Books I've Read, Courtney Summers, Crazy Fabulous, January 2010, YA

214 pages

ISBN: 9780312383695

Genre: Young Adult
Buy from Amazon - as of this post, the bargain price is $3.98! (Yes, I am an Amazon affiliate and would receive a small commission if you were to purchase through my link!)

My Rating: 3.5 stars

This book meets the following 2010 Reading Challenges:

100+ Reading Challenge

Reading From My Shelves Project

Synopsis:

"Perfect Parker Fadley isn’t so perfect anymore. She’s quit the cheerleading squad, she’s dumped her perfect boyfriend, and she’s failing school. Her parents are on a constant suicide watch and her counselors think she’s playing games…but what they don’t know, the real reason for this whole mess, isn’t something she can say out loud. It isn’t even something she can say to herself. A horrible thing has happened and it just might be her fault. If she can just remove herself from everybody--be totally alone--then everything will be okay...The problem is, nobody will let her."

My Thoughts:

Cracked Up to Be is the story of Parker Fadley, a mean-spirited perfectionist who has a huge secret that is destroying her “perfect” life. This is a quick and easy YA read, and, although I could feel for Parker at times, I did not find her character very likeable. I thought, at first, that she was being mean to people because she didn’t want anyone to be close to her due to her "secret". But, as I continued to read the story, I got the impression that she was always a bit mean-spirited and the situation she found herself in just made it a worse.

I really enjoyed how this story was told, from present-day conversations and issues, to flashbacks of the night her life changed forever. It really tied together nicely and I found it a very compelling way to tell the story. I applaud the people around Parker who were trying very hard to help her, even though she keeps pushing them away. I could relate to Parker’s panic and anxiety attacks, even though she didn’t want to readily admit that that’s what was happening to her! Her nervous tick was also very interesting! You could really tell that she needs intensive help to deal with her issues.

Overall, this was a good story about how your “perfect” life can change in an instant. I would have liked a bit more information on her “secret” and about the ending of the book. I can’t say what exactly without giving away the story, though!! I just want to know exactly what happened in the aftermath of the “secret”. Coming from a teen’s point of view, this story was especially interesting and I found it very believable. I would definitely recommend this book to any YA fans!

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