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Jessica Darling #1
Sloppy Firsts
"My parents suck ass. Banning me from the phone and restricting my computer privileges are the most tyrannical parental gestures I can think of. Don't they realize that Hope's the only one who keeps me sane? I don't see how things could get any worse."
When her best friend, Hope Weaver, moves away from Pineville, New Jersey, hyperobservant sixteen-year-old Jessica Darling is devastated. A fish out of water at school and a stranger at home, Jessica feels more lost than ever now that the only person with whom she could really communicate has gone. How is she supposed to deal with the boy- and shopping-crazy girls at school, her dad's obsession with her track meets, her mother salivating over big sister Bethany's lavish wedding, and her nonexistent love life?
A fresh, funny, utterly compelling fiction debut by first-time novelist Megan McCafferty, Sloppy Firsts is an insightful, true-to-life look at Jessica's predicament as she embarks on another year of teenage torment—from the dark days of Hope's departure through her months as a type-A personality turned insomniac to her completely mixed-up feelings about Marcus Flutie, the intelligent and mysterious "Dreg" who works his way into her heart. Like a John Hughes for the twenty-first century, Megan McCafferty taps into the inherent humor and drama of the teen experience. This poignant, hilarious novel is sure to appeal to readers who are still going through it, as well as those who are grateful that they don't have to go back and grow up all over again.
When her best friend, Hope Weaver, moves away from Pineville, New Jersey, hyperobservant sixteen-year-old Jessica Darling is devastated. A fish out of water at school and a stranger at home, Jessica feels more lost than ever now that the only person with whom she could really communicate has gone. How is she supposed to deal with the boy- and shopping-crazy girls at school, her dad's obsession with her track meets, her mother salivating over big sister Bethany's lavish wedding, and her nonexistent love life?
A fresh, funny, utterly compelling fiction debut by first-time novelist Megan McCafferty, Sloppy Firsts is an insightful, true-to-life look at Jessica's predicament as she embarks on another year of teenage torment—from the dark days of Hope's departure through her months as a type-A personality turned insomniac to her completely mixed-up feelings about Marcus Flutie, the intelligent and mysterious "Dreg" who works his way into her heart. Like a John Hughes for the twenty-first century, Megan McCafferty taps into the inherent humor and drama of the teen experience. This poignant, hilarious novel is sure to appeal to readers who are still going through it, as well as those who are grateful that they don't have to go back and grow up all over again.
298 pages, Paperback
First published August 28, 2001
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44.5k people want to read
About the author
Megan McCafferty
25 books2,535 followersMegan McCafferty writes fiction for tweens, teens and teens-at-heart of all ages. The author of twelve novels, she’s best known for SLOPPY FIRSTS and four more sequels in the New York Times bestselling Jessica Darling series--available throughout 2021 in updated 20th anniversary editions. She published two new books in 2020: TRUE TO YOUR SELFIE (MG, Scholastic) and THE MALL (YA, Wednesday Books). Described in her first review as “Judy Blume meets Dorothy Parker” (Wall Street Journal), she’s been trying to live up to that high standard ever since.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 2,100 reviews
May 6, 2021
Happy book birthday to this lovely YA fiction! 🥳
Wow! After the first release in 2001 it seems like nothing much changed with the dynamics in a impressively witty and sarcastic high school girl’s life.
Jessica definitely not so Darling (she’s definitely not a sweet girl next door! She has sharper claws than wild tiger )reminded me of Easy A’s Olive and Never Have I Ever’s Devi: sassy, smart, entertaining who has hard time to blend in school, ignored by the boy she has big crush on, surrounded by dumb girls crew ( a.k.a Clueless Crew) , trying get approval of her parents as she’s overshadowed by the brilliance of her older sister!
This book is sweet, tasty, enjoyable combination of high school movies! Jess reminds you of the cool, smart ass girls you want to be or you hang out with! And the best trait about her: she never makes irritating mistakes, making dumb choices. She’s so mature and clever enough for that! I also enjoy reading her truly complicated relationships with charming Marcus!
It was easy to read, easy to relate with Jess’ world, fast pacing, funny, emotional, heartfelt, feel good YA realistic fiction with romantic vibes which earned my four humorous, clever, hooking, engaging four stars!
Don’t forget to read new foreword the author shared at the beginning of the book!
Special thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press/ Wednesday Books for sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest opinions.
Wow! After the first release in 2001 it seems like nothing much changed with the dynamics in a impressively witty and sarcastic high school girl’s life.
Jessica definitely not so Darling (she’s definitely not a sweet girl next door! She has sharper claws than wild tiger )reminded me of Easy A’s Olive and Never Have I Ever’s Devi: sassy, smart, entertaining who has hard time to blend in school, ignored by the boy she has big crush on, surrounded by dumb girls crew ( a.k.a Clueless Crew) , trying get approval of her parents as she’s overshadowed by the brilliance of her older sister!
This book is sweet, tasty, enjoyable combination of high school movies! Jess reminds you of the cool, smart ass girls you want to be or you hang out with! And the best trait about her: she never makes irritating mistakes, making dumb choices. She’s so mature and clever enough for that! I also enjoy reading her truly complicated relationships with charming Marcus!
It was easy to read, easy to relate with Jess’ world, fast pacing, funny, emotional, heartfelt, feel good YA realistic fiction with romantic vibes which earned my four humorous, clever, hooking, engaging four stars!
Don’t forget to read new foreword the author shared at the beginning of the book!
Special thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press/ Wednesday Books for sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest opinions.
July 12, 2021
For those of you that aren't aware, this book originally came out in 2001 and it was my ABSOLUTE favorite book all throughout middle school and high school. The Jessica Darling series was my first ever experience reading Young Adult and it truly is the series that I credit to me falling in love with reading. With that being said, the original version of the story is not without issues you would expect from a book written in 2001 (extremely dated language, slurs, slut/body shaming, etc). When I found out that Wednesday Books was republishing this series in 2021 with some changes and updates, I was absolutely thrilled. While I can't speak to how someone coming into this series for the first time in 2021 would feel, as a re-read I was extremely satisfied by the updates made to the story and I adored my time spent re-visiting Jessica (and Marcus!!!). This was an absolute blast to re-read and I cannot!!! wait!!!! for the rest of the series to be re-published and for me to finally have a complete matching set of all the books after 15 years of loving them. Hot dog!
CW: overdose, death of a loved one, sudden infant death syndrome, drug use, body/fat shaming, food shaming, slut shaming, statutory rape
CW: overdose, death of a loved one, sudden infant death syndrome, drug use, body/fat shaming, food shaming, slut shaming, statutory rape
October 29, 2012
If you haven’t heard of the Jessica Darling Series before then…well, you’ve been living under a rock, that’s what. If, however, you’re like me and have seen the gushing reviews for this all over the place and somehow never picked it up…well, don’t make the same mistake I did of waiting for months before reading this: pick it up now. Seriously, this series is just that good. It’s funny, it’s quirky, and it’s hilarious, but it is also deep, provocative, compelling, and is most certain to strike a cord within your heart.
When Hope, Jessica’s best friend moves away, Jessica is heart-broken. She must now suffer through sophomore year alone, stuck with a group of “friends” who she secretly despises, a mother who is more concerned about her lack of a boyfriend than anything else, a father who is constantly behind her back to train for track, a sister who is getting married in a matter of months, and bad-boy Marcus Flutie who is giving her an unusual amount of attention. It might just be sophomore year, but Jessica is stressed beyond belief and she must struggle to find who she is beneath all the layers of ‘fake’ she wears to please everyone else in her life.
Jessica Darling has quickly become one of my favorite protagonists of all time. I kid you not; Jessica is sensible, she is intelligent, she is sarcastic, she is quirky, she is funny without meaning to be, she is dramatic when she wants to be, she is observant, and she is so afraid to be herself that I just want to give her a hug. Jessica Darling is like every teenage girl in the world; she has her insecurities, her embarrassing moments, her random crushes on older guys, her difficulties with finding true friendships, her bad days, and the days when she just wants to get rid of her family altogether. I don’t think I’ve ever clicked with a protagonist so easily and I loved that about Jessica. I loved that she could understand me and I could understand her and more than a book-character-and-reader friendship, it felt more like a best-friend-friendship. Jessica’s narration is one that you cannot help but love and believe me, you won’t want her story to end or stop; you’ll just want to keep reading, even until the early hours of dawn.
While Sloppy Firsts is an utterly character-driven novel, steered by a protagonist I absolutely loved and who wasn’t afraid to point out and notice all the flaws in herself, what made me love this novel as much as I did were the issues it undertook. Admit it: High School was the worst four years of your life. It’s a jungle of people trying to fit in and 99% of the people you meet only care about themselves; so really, it’s just a brutal climb to the top of the social ladder or, if you attend my high school, the top of the ‘Highest GPA’ ladder. So, while many novels tackle on the hidden truths behind real high schools, I feel as if McCafferty does it the best. She does it in a way that is funny, but also drives her point across. She uses Jessica not only as a character that is easy to understand, but one that is easy to look up to, admire, take inspiration from and learn from as well, which I love. Sloppy Firsts is not only the type of book you finish wanting to read it again (or pick up the sequel because of its cliffhanger ending), but it is also the type of book you finish feeling wiser about the world in general and I love that. It isn’t just another chick-flick-high-school-drama – it has a purpose and it fulfills that purpose beautifully.
Nevertheless, the best part about Sloppy Firsts is the fact that the two most influential people in Jessica’s life, Hope and Marcus, are conspicuously absent for most of it. Hope is literally in a different state, but Marcus (who is so sweet and smart and funny and ohmygosh swoooon) only makes an appearance during the second-half of this novel. I loved this, simply because it left so much more room for Jessica to grow and learn by herself. Furthermore, sometimes, the best people in our lives aren’t and simply can’t always be with us, which I found so realistic. Even your crush, who you think is always with you, is really only in your brain 99% of the time. Seriously, think back to all your crushes – how many times did you really interact? While Marcus and Jessica interact quite a bit in the second-half of this story, they have their distances too which I appreciated. I loved how their romance was a slow build-up of the sexual tension between them, a deeper understanding of their personality, and the ability to make a marked impact on each others lives. In other words, it totally sucked me in and I’m flying high off the drug character that is Marcus Flutie.
In summary, Sloppy Firsts is a must-read. It’s a novel that you will instantly connect with, instantly love, and will constantly re-read. It’s funny while tackling serious issues, hilarious while representing a true form of high school and teenage life, and it has one of the best female heroines to grace Contemporary YA Fiction. Far from being sloppy, Sloppy Firsts is a riveting beginning to a series that is sure to become a favorite and will leave you anxiously waiting for more. (I do mean this in the literal sense because until you get your hands on Second Helpings, you will lose sleep over Marcus and Jessica. You don’t think characters can affect your life so deeply? Yeah, tell me that after you finish this novel!)
You can read this review and more on my blog, Ivy Book Bindings.
When Hope, Jessica’s best friend moves away, Jessica is heart-broken. She must now suffer through sophomore year alone, stuck with a group of “friends” who she secretly despises, a mother who is more concerned about her lack of a boyfriend than anything else, a father who is constantly behind her back to train for track, a sister who is getting married in a matter of months, and bad-boy Marcus Flutie who is giving her an unusual amount of attention. It might just be sophomore year, but Jessica is stressed beyond belief and she must struggle to find who she is beneath all the layers of ‘fake’ she wears to please everyone else in her life.
Jessica Darling has quickly become one of my favorite protagonists of all time. I kid you not; Jessica is sensible, she is intelligent, she is sarcastic, she is quirky, she is funny without meaning to be, she is dramatic when she wants to be, she is observant, and she is so afraid to be herself that I just want to give her a hug. Jessica Darling is like every teenage girl in the world; she has her insecurities, her embarrassing moments, her random crushes on older guys, her difficulties with finding true friendships, her bad days, and the days when she just wants to get rid of her family altogether. I don’t think I’ve ever clicked with a protagonist so easily and I loved that about Jessica. I loved that she could understand me and I could understand her and more than a book-character-and-reader friendship, it felt more like a best-friend-friendship. Jessica’s narration is one that you cannot help but love and believe me, you won’t want her story to end or stop; you’ll just want to keep reading, even until the early hours of dawn.
While Sloppy Firsts is an utterly character-driven novel, steered by a protagonist I absolutely loved and who wasn’t afraid to point out and notice all the flaws in herself, what made me love this novel as much as I did were the issues it undertook. Admit it: High School was the worst four years of your life. It’s a jungle of people trying to fit in and 99% of the people you meet only care about themselves; so really, it’s just a brutal climb to the top of the social ladder or, if you attend my high school, the top of the ‘Highest GPA’ ladder. So, while many novels tackle on the hidden truths behind real high schools, I feel as if McCafferty does it the best. She does it in a way that is funny, but also drives her point across. She uses Jessica not only as a character that is easy to understand, but one that is easy to look up to, admire, take inspiration from and learn from as well, which I love. Sloppy Firsts is not only the type of book you finish wanting to read it again (or pick up the sequel because of its cliffhanger ending), but it is also the type of book you finish feeling wiser about the world in general and I love that. It isn’t just another chick-flick-high-school-drama – it has a purpose and it fulfills that purpose beautifully.
Nevertheless, the best part about Sloppy Firsts is the fact that the two most influential people in Jessica’s life, Hope and Marcus, are conspicuously absent for most of it. Hope is literally in a different state, but Marcus (who is so sweet and smart and funny and ohmygosh swoooon) only makes an appearance during the second-half of this novel. I loved this, simply because it left so much more room for Jessica to grow and learn by herself. Furthermore, sometimes, the best people in our lives aren’t and simply can’t always be with us, which I found so realistic. Even your crush, who you think is always with you, is really only in your brain 99% of the time. Seriously, think back to all your crushes – how many times did you really interact? While Marcus and Jessica interact quite a bit in the second-half of this story, they have their distances too which I appreciated. I loved how their romance was a slow build-up of the sexual tension between them, a deeper understanding of their personality, and the ability to make a marked impact on each others lives. In other words, it totally sucked me in and I’m flying high off the
In summary, Sloppy Firsts is a must-read. It’s a novel that you will instantly connect with, instantly love, and will constantly re-read. It’s funny while tackling serious issues, hilarious while representing a true form of high school and teenage life, and it has one of the best female heroines to grace Contemporary YA Fiction. Far from being sloppy, Sloppy Firsts is a riveting beginning to a series that is sure to become a favorite and will leave you anxiously waiting for more. (I do mean this in the literal sense because until you get your hands on Second Helpings, you will lose sleep over Marcus and Jessica. You don’t think characters can affect your life so deeply? Yeah, tell me that after you finish this novel!)
You can read this review and more on my blog, Ivy Book Bindings.
December 11, 2011
This was a really funny, feel-good novel reminiscent of novels like Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging and other such hilariosity. I'd heard comparisons made between the two before but, I admit, I was reluctant to check it out, being sure that it would be unlikely to entertain me as much as Georgia Nicholson's journals. However, I'd say it's pretty fair to make positive comparisons between the two, it's just unfortunate that I keep reading how most people didn't enjoy the rest of the series as much as this first installment.
Jessica Darling is a very amusing narrator, she is cynical, has insecurities, crushes and an insufferable family. She reminded me of Georgia in many ways. The main difference that stood out is that this book is much ruder - in a funny way - compared to Louise Rennison's pretty tame stories. Like this where Jessica is asked to sign the yearbook of a fellow student who has a crush on her:
*giggles* It's just rude enough so that it stays funny and doesn't become ridiculous.
Oh yeah, and the other difference between this and the Georgia stories is that there are some serious issues in this book - like death and family matters - whereas, Georgia wouldn't know serious if it hit her in the face. But, on the whole, if you're looking for something that is mostly mindless fun, you should read this book. Just maybe be prepared for future disappointments or, like me, you could just plan to stop after book one.
Jessica Darling is a very amusing narrator, she is cynical, has insecurities, crushes and an insufferable family. She reminded me of Georgia in many ways. The main difference that stood out is that this book is much ruder - in a funny way - compared to Louise Rennison's pretty tame stories. Like this where Jessica is asked to sign the yearbook of a fellow student who has a crush on her:
Pierre,
I've always admired your ability to conjugate a verb. And I'll never forget the night I found out the true identity of The Black Elvis. See you in French II.
A bientot,
Jessica
The grin on his face was a mile wide. It was as if I had written:
Pierre,
I've always admired your ability to fill out a pair of tightie-whities. And I'll never forget the night I found out that you know your way around a clitoris. See you in my wettest, wildest dreams.
Voulez-vous coucher avec moi ce soir?
Jessica
*giggles* It's just rude enough so that it stays funny and doesn't become ridiculous.
Oh yeah, and the other difference between this and the Georgia stories is that there are some serious issues in this book - like death and family matters - whereas, Georgia wouldn't know serious if it hit her in the face. But, on the whole, if you're looking for something that is mostly mindless fun, you should read this book. Just maybe be prepared for future disappointments or, like me, you could just plan to stop after book one.
August 13, 2021
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So I recently found my old copies of books #2 and #3 from the original publisher (Broadway Books) that I somehow never got around to reading when I read SLOPPY FIRSTS for the first time. I don't know where my copy of book #1 went. I lent it to my sister and then never saw it again, heh. But anyway, I remember really loving this book when I read it in my late teens/early twenties because of how Jessica Darling's snark resonated with me, a precocious curmudgeon who also hated everyone and thought all other people were phonies.
There's an afterword in the new edition I splurged on for Kindle that talks about how the author made the decision to make this book more PC because attitudes that were commonplace when this book was first published in 2001 don't fly now. On the one hand, I respect that, but on the other hand, she was like "hopefully no one will notice" and, lol, I definitely noticed. I don't think it's a bad thing, necessarily, but it is at odds to see 2020 wokeness about people of color elbowing in with 2000s party culture and slut-shaming. It feels really weird and I'm not actually sure that this was the best move, because making it progressive in some ways makes the not-so-progressive stuff way more glaring. I did think it was interesting how the original version of this book was published under an adult imprint because teen and children's books were lumped together and she felt like the topics were too mature for middle grade (probably true). So I did appreciate the afterword, even if just for context.
Regarding the story itself, it was fun. The original came out when I was still in grade school, so reading this made me very nostalgic for all the pop culture references of yore. It also made me realize how much I seriously DON'T miss high school in the slightest. All the drama is so exhausting and so utterly unimportant in the long run. I really did like Jess for the most part because I felt like a lot of her observations were pretty on-point and it was amusing how she could see through the BS even as she simultaneously bought into it (the catch-22 of high school). I loved the love interest, Marcus Flutie, and when I read the poem he wrote her, I. DIED. Bad boy love interests done right, seriously.
I'm giving this a three-star rating because it got so exhausting after a while and the book was so much longer than it needed to be. The comparison to Louise Rennison is fair, but I do think that the Georgia Nicholson series is slightly better just because I felt like Georgia had a more complex relationship with her group of frenemies, whereas Jess seemed to totally hate hers, and I also think that there just wasn't enough action to really keep this book engaging and some of Jess's internal monologues felt, well, like an adult trying to sound hip through a teen avatar. I did like it but it doesn't quite hold up.
2.5 to 3 stars
August 11, 2021
Sloppy Firsts was a book that had actually been on my TBR probably since I joined Goodreads but much like everything else that is out of sight/out of mind I didn’t ever actually try to obtain a copy. Then it got a new look for it’s 20th(????? – I think 20th) anniversary and a freebie was available to me for review so obviously I was all over it.
You’re probably getting sick of hearing me say that I have no ability to read anything “deep” of late, but it is what it is and that’s what ended up being the driving force behind me finally getting to this one. My qualifier for a good YA selection always seems to be “would it translate well to the screen.” I’m happy to report that is the case with this option. I could easily see this series becoming a Netflix bang bang bang release. I'm also always a sucker for a coming of age tale. Good things about this one were the leading lady was pretty hilarious/relatable/likeable, the diary type writing style leads its hand easily to a voiceover/narrator to fill you in on all the goings on inside Jessica’s head, the leading male is every girl’s bad boy swoony selection . . . .
Or for Boomers like me . . . . .
Oh Dylan McKay, how much I wanted to bang the crap out of you before I even knew what banging was.
That’s another good thing I should mention. Since this is a revamped oldie my geriatric heart found so much fondness in reminiscing about the olde days of yore when The Real World was fresh and Amaya was boiling bunnies over Colin, the Smiths weren’t just for poseurs and youngsters weren’t offended by John Hughes movies. Ahhhhhh, good times.
The bad news????? This was one hundred percent open ended. Now I am well aware that this is #1 in a series, but generally books like these work just fine as standalones. For someone like me who is nearly always allergic to reading past book one, my reaction upon turning the last page and seeing the Acknowledgments was . . . . .
And I know I tend to go on and on about cartoon covers and my inability to stop myself from requesting them either in ARC form or from the library, but I actually like the original leg cover of this one so call me fickle.
So 3.5 Stars and rounding down rather than up it shall be.
ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you, NetGalley!
You’re probably getting sick of hearing me say that I have no ability to read anything “deep” of late, but it is what it is and that’s what ended up being the driving force behind me finally getting to this one. My qualifier for a good YA selection always seems to be “would it translate well to the screen.” I’m happy to report that is the case with this option. I could easily see this series becoming a Netflix bang bang bang release. I'm also always a sucker for a coming of age tale. Good things about this one were the leading lady was pretty hilarious/relatable/likeable, the diary type writing style leads its hand easily to a voiceover/narrator to fill you in on all the goings on inside Jessica’s head, the leading male is every girl’s bad boy swoony selection . . . .
Or for Boomers like me . . . . .
Oh Dylan McKay, how much I wanted to bang the crap out of you before I even knew what banging was.
That’s another good thing I should mention. Since this is a revamped oldie my geriatric heart found so much fondness in reminiscing about the olde days of yore when The Real World was fresh and Amaya was boiling bunnies over Colin, the Smiths weren’t just for poseurs and youngsters weren’t offended by John Hughes movies. Ahhhhhh, good times.
The bad news????? This was one hundred percent open ended. Now I am well aware that this is #1 in a series, but generally books like these work just fine as standalones. For someone like me who is nearly always allergic to reading past book one, my reaction upon turning the last page and seeing the Acknowledgments was . . . . .
And I know I tend to go on and on about cartoon covers and my inability to stop myself from requesting them either in ARC form or from the library, but I actually like the original leg cover of this one so call me fickle.
So 3.5 Stars and rounding down rather than up it shall be.
ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you, NetGalley!
April 5, 2017
Video full series review (spoiler free)- https://youtu.be/igSoCG9Z_9c
So the good stuff:
It hooked me, I couldn't put it down, it was very reminiscent of my high school experience, and I want to continue the series!
I enjoyed the nostalgia that is high school in the early 00s, and the diary format. I can see why this book was an early staple in YA.
And the (not so) bad:
It had a difficult start. There is a LOT of teen speak and dated slang. This book is set in the year 2000 and was a gooooooood dose of culture shock. However, once I got used to her narrative voice I realized that yep, this is 100% an accurate portrayal of what high school was like back then.
Because this was written and set in 2000, there are a lot of red flag topics that would never fly today. There is SO MUCH slut shaming, fat shaming, and gay and racial stereotypes. It's difficult to read that stuff since we're so attuned to it today, but back in 2000 I didn't even know what slut shaming was, let alone that it was a bad thing, so yes, this book is a product of it's time. Because of this, I think younger readers will have a harder time getting into this book. Older readers who were in high school during this time will probably relate and be glad of how far we've come.
I wasn't a fan of the main love interest for several reasons which boil down to either personal preferences or being too old for the games of high school luuuvvvvv. There were aspects to the way the romance progressed that didn't feel fleshed out to me. However, the love interest is an interesting character and brings about several positive changes in Jessica's life so I do like him as a character and I bet a lot of other readers would do a fair amount of swooning.
So the good stuff:
It hooked me, I couldn't put it down, it was very reminiscent of my high school experience, and I want to continue the series!
I enjoyed the nostalgia that is high school in the early 00s, and the diary format. I can see why this book was an early staple in YA.
And the (not so) bad:
It had a difficult start. There is a LOT of teen speak and dated slang. This book is set in the year 2000 and was a gooooooood dose of culture shock. However, once I got used to her narrative voice I realized that yep, this is 100% an accurate portrayal of what high school was like back then.
Because this was written and set in 2000, there are a lot of red flag topics that would never fly today. There is SO MUCH slut shaming, fat shaming, and gay and racial stereotypes. It's difficult to read that stuff since we're so attuned to it today, but back in 2000 I didn't even know what slut shaming was, let alone that it was a bad thing, so yes, this book is a product of it's time. Because of this, I think younger readers will have a harder time getting into this book. Older readers who were in high school during this time will probably relate and be glad of how far we've come.
I wasn't a fan of the main love interest for several reasons which boil down to either personal preferences or being too old for the games of high school luuuvvvvv. There were aspects to the way the romance progressed that didn't feel fleshed out to me. However, the love interest is an interesting character and brings about several positive changes in Jessica's life so I do like him as a character and I bet a lot of other readers would do a fair amount of swooning.
November 26, 2011
Oh boy. So its, uh, been a while since I've written a review. Sorry about that everyone. College and whatnot has kept me busy.
So what is it about Sloppy Firsts that inspired me to write? Well, I loved it, for one. Look at that rating! Five stars, baby! And that's not because its a groundbreaking work of literature, but because its funny, true, and smart.
This is one of these books I've always heard about, but not one I actually ever saw myself reading. First of all its old. Lizzie McGuire was still on when this came out (and I did tempt myself into imagining a few of the characters in Hilary Duff's more eccentric outfits). Secondly, I misinterpreted the title and tone of the summary. I thought it was going to be about a teenage girl's sex life. Which it was of course, but it was smarter than I would have originally gave it credit for. And thirdly, this is the sort of book that requires an explanation. I have a snooty, English major reputation to uphold. I can't let people see myself reading chick-lit! (le gasp!) I read this at my job, with the cover flat down on the desk. If someone walked up that I knew, I would sit on it. Alas, I really should be more secure with myself.....but I did recommend it to my friends! Does that cancel out my previous embarrassment?
Anyway, Jessica Darling would have been my friend. At least, I would like to think so. She's sassy, smart, funny, but not intimidatingly perfect. I have a feeling we would laugh about the same thing, get annoyed at the same things. Some reviewers found her annoying and to that I say, "Well, duh". She is a teenage girl. As a teenage girl myself, I can say that we pretty much are all annoying. For one thing, it is all too easy to forget that high school is pretty much a universal experience. It is easier to mope and whine about life, believing you are the only one in the world who is this lonely. It's too easy to forget that almost everything you've experienced, has already been experienced, and that almost everything you feel, has already been felt. This book reminded me that I wasn't the only confused, lonely girl in high school. I would be reading along, laughing and musing with Jessica, and stumble on a quote that pretty much sums up my exactly feelings. I would pause, briefly wonder if McCafferty is a mind-reading alien or some kind of genius or something, before finally deciding she was a perceptive woman who remembers what it is like to wander those locker-studded hallways and not have a flying-fuck of a clue.
Jessica seemed like she could have been an actual person. She was a fully fleshed-out characters, as was the majority of the cast. Even the "popular" girls had their quirks which distinguished themselves from each other. And Marcus Flutie.....hot damn. Plus the writing style, which mirrored journal entires focusing on Jessica's up and downs of the year, was extremely effective in conveying the story of Jessica's sixteenth year. I enjoyed the main characters, and the characters that seemed to come in, then back out. Because thats what life does. People enter our lives and others leave them.
Overall, I'm really glad I walked into Goodwill that day. I went in expecting to buy a five dollar sweater and left with a great series to follow. Thank you, Goodwill and your $1 paperbacks.
So what is it about Sloppy Firsts that inspired me to write? Well, I loved it, for one. Look at that rating! Five stars, baby! And that's not because its a groundbreaking work of literature, but because its funny, true, and smart.
This is one of these books I've always heard about, but not one I actually ever saw myself reading. First of all its old. Lizzie McGuire was still on when this came out (and I did tempt myself into imagining a few of the characters in Hilary Duff's more eccentric outfits). Secondly, I misinterpreted the title and tone of the summary. I thought it was going to be about a teenage girl's sex life. Which it was of course, but it was smarter than I would have originally gave it credit for. And thirdly, this is the sort of book that requires an explanation. I have a snooty, English major reputation to uphold. I can't let people see myself reading chick-lit! (le gasp!) I read this at my job, with the cover flat down on the desk. If someone walked up that I knew, I would sit on it. Alas, I really should be more secure with myself.....but I did recommend it to my friends! Does that cancel out my previous embarrassment?
Anyway, Jessica Darling would have been my friend. At least, I would like to think so. She's sassy, smart, funny, but not intimidatingly perfect. I have a feeling we would laugh about the same thing, get annoyed at the same things. Some reviewers found her annoying and to that I say, "Well, duh". She is a teenage girl. As a teenage girl myself, I can say that we pretty much are all annoying. For one thing, it is all too easy to forget that high school is pretty much a universal experience. It is easier to mope and whine about life, believing you are the only one in the world who is this lonely. It's too easy to forget that almost everything you've experienced, has already been experienced, and that almost everything you feel, has already been felt. This book reminded me that I wasn't the only confused, lonely girl in high school. I would be reading along, laughing and musing with Jessica, and stumble on a quote that pretty much sums up my exactly feelings. I would pause, briefly wonder if McCafferty is a mind-reading alien or some kind of genius or something, before finally deciding she was a perceptive woman who remembers what it is like to wander those locker-studded hallways and not have a flying-fuck of a clue.
Jessica seemed like she could have been an actual person. She was a fully fleshed-out characters, as was the majority of the cast. Even the "popular" girls had their quirks which distinguished themselves from each other. And Marcus Flutie.....hot damn. Plus the writing style, which mirrored journal entires focusing on Jessica's up and downs of the year, was extremely effective in conveying the story of Jessica's sixteenth year. I enjoyed the main characters, and the characters that seemed to come in, then back out. Because thats what life does. People enter our lives and others leave them.
Overall, I'm really glad I walked into Goodwill that day. I went in expecting to buy a five dollar sweater and left with a great series to follow. Thank you, Goodwill and your $1 paperbacks.
January 24, 2011
Absolutely loved it. Jessica Darling has earned herself a spot on my list of favourite heroines. She is smart and clever, witty and sarcastic, thinks too much about everything and anything (I can relate to that pretty well) and despite her pessimistic attitude and her quick judgement of others, I couldn’t help but like her. I feel like basically everything has been said about this series already, you either like it or you don’t. Despite having heard not so good things about the later instalments, I ordered Second Helpings right away. The only thing that annoyed me a bit in this one was the cliff-hanger-like ending, but because I loved the book so much, I decided to be forgiving about it.
A few notes on the German translation: After a while, I got used to it, but at the beginning the frequent use of English words like ‘prom’ (Although we don’t have proms in Germany the way they have them in the US, there is still a German word for it.) felt weird. Also, what was the thing about the abbreviations of the swear words Scotty uses? Until now I can only guess what Vau Ess (yes, that are the letters VS, but actually written how you pronounce them) is supposed to mean.
And because I can’t really pinpoint my feelings reading this wonderful book, I have decided to post the titles of my playlist I think go best together with the story.
1. 3 Doors Down – Here Without You
2. The Subways – I Want To Hear What You’ve Got To Say
3. Snow Patrol – Set Fire To The Third Bar
4. Oasis – Roll With It
5. Train – Hey Soul Sister
6. KT Tunstall – Suddenly I See
7. Amy MacDonald - Run
8. Linkin Park - Numb
9. Oasis – Stop Crying Your Heart Out
10. Snow Patrol – Crack The Shutters
11. 3 Doors Down - Kryptonite
12. The Cranberries – Just My Imagination
A few notes on the German translation: After a while, I got used to it, but at the beginning the frequent use of English words like ‘prom’ (Although we don’t have proms in Germany the way they have them in the US, there is still a German word for it.) felt weird. Also, what was the thing about the abbreviations of the swear words Scotty uses? Until now I can only guess what Vau Ess (yes, that are the letters VS, but actually written how you pronounce them) is supposed to mean.
And because I can’t really pinpoint my feelings reading this wonderful book, I have decided to post the titles of my playlist I think go best together with the story.
1. 3 Doors Down – Here Without You
2. The Subways – I Want To Hear What You’ve Got To Say
3. Snow Patrol – Set Fire To The Third Bar
4. Oasis – Roll With It
5. Train – Hey Soul Sister
6. KT Tunstall – Suddenly I See
7. Amy MacDonald - Run
8. Linkin Park - Numb
9. Oasis – Stop Crying Your Heart Out
10. Snow Patrol – Crack The Shutters
11. 3 Doors Down - Kryptonite
12. The Cranberries – Just My Imagination
February 15, 2010
Update 4/21/2010 After reading the sequel and thinking about Jessica for a while, I don't think I like her that much any more. A little too much negativity and snobbishness. So take this review with a grain of salt.
I have no idea why I haven't read this book before, because I certainly heard about it a lot*. The synopsis just didn't sound that special I suppose, because on the surface, "Sloppy Firsts" is just your regular run-of-the-mill YA story about a smart 16-year old girl (Jessica Darling), her relationship with her best friend who is away, her parents and cheerleader so-called friends, her obsessions over boys, all in a diary format. How many times have I read this before? A million!
However, the difference here is the narrator. Jessica is clever, athletic, sarcastic, super-observant, prone to spaz attacks and lusty thoughts, but yet full of reason and self-respect. Her observations and comments about her family, friends and school-mates are funny, although often a little mean-spirited (I have to add this after a little pondering).
As an added bonus - there is a bad boy. To be honest, I am rather wary of those already, as they are just getting badder and badder, to an extent that they are simply jerks these days, but Marcus totally charmed the knickers off of me with his poetry, lip-nipping and extremely high IQ. And the fact that Jessica manages to push all THIS away with a firm hand just proves one more time why I love and identify with her so much.
The main negative about "Sloppy First" is its the setting-up-for-the-sequel ending. It would have been nice to have a more definite resolution.
But this complaint aside, "Sloppy Firsts" is a funny (in a sarcastic way) read which I won't hesitate to recommend. It's a bit raunchy for YA I think, it's written more like an adult book about teens, so don't give it to your 12-year olds. Otherwise, enjoy the ride!
*I know now - Jessica becomes a suckier and whinier person with each book.
I have no idea why I haven't read this book before, because I certainly heard about it a lot*. The synopsis just didn't sound that special I suppose, because on the surface, "Sloppy Firsts" is just your regular run-of-the-mill YA story about a smart 16-year old girl (Jessica Darling), her relationship with her best friend who is away, her parents and cheerleader so-called friends, her obsessions over boys, all in a diary format. How many times have I read this before? A million!
However, the difference here is the narrator. Jessica is clever, athletic, sarcastic, super-observant, prone to spaz attacks and lusty thoughts, but yet full of reason and self-respect. Her observations and comments about her family, friends and school-mates are funny, although often a little mean-spirited (I have to add this after a little pondering).
As an added bonus - there is a bad boy. To be honest, I am rather wary of those already, as they are just getting badder and badder, to an extent that they are simply jerks these days, but Marcus totally charmed the knickers off of me with his poetry, lip-nipping and extremely high IQ. And the fact that Jessica manages to push all THIS away with a firm hand just proves one more time why I love and identify with her so much.
The main negative about "Sloppy First" is its the setting-up-for-the-sequel ending. It would have been nice to have a more definite resolution.
But this complaint aside, "Sloppy Firsts" is a funny (in a sarcastic way) read which I won't hesitate to recommend. It's a bit raunchy for YA I think, it's written more like an adult book about teens, so don't give it to your 12-year olds. Otherwise, enjoy the ride!
*I know now - Jessica becomes a suckier and whinier person with each book.
December 21, 2010
Yep. This is potentially the hardest review I've ever written.
Why?
Because all I really want to do is vigorously pound on my keyboard with glee and happytears and EEEEEEE.
KLSA:LFAWOPE(*()@ 5jKOSAKOR(WE)_9 F S ASNKF WSETYW# $ w t)(w_#*%90@#% 9@)+_ +)_@#i 5m2 4ko56[2098305 U0264 JML"ESAK}PWAR}WQ#)% NDVSDSDF
Translation:
Holy.
Crap.
I've found the Holy Grail of YA writing. The kicker? It isn't even YA! And yet it is. It's everything. It's Jessica Darling.
I've put off writing my review for Sloppy Firsts for a long time. I don't even know what to say without falling so incredibly short of what this book deserves. I hadn't even heard of this series prior to starting my blog. I figured that it couldn't be THAT good if I hadn't even heard anything about it. My friends, this series is a diamond in the rough.
The characters are so very distinct in all their own ways and mannerisms. I'm convinced that Megan Mc has fashioned Jessica from a real person. Or perhaps she wrote her right off the pages. Yes, that's it! Jessica is so imperfectly perfectly written, that the words and paragraphs came together to form cells and skin and organs and hair and acne and she has jumped right out of the book and exists in our world today. No one can just think of someone SO AWESOME and not have her walk amongst us. I need this to be true so I can find her and make her my BFF. Because we'd get along that well.
I loved everything about every character. Even the ones I hated. Because Ms. McCafferty has taken the time to develop each and every one of them. Sara with her annoying "quote/unquote" abuse and Len with his "um" and Scotty with his...whatever it is that he does.
And Marcus. Yes, Marcus. I couldn't see what the hype about him was at first. But I have seen the light. Oh yes. And it glitters like Mariah Carey.
The journal-style writing makes it easy to become completely immersed into Jessica's internal cynicism and outlook on life. Having been a cynical teenager (ahem, and having never grown out of it), this speaks volumes to me. There are so many quotes that have caused me to burst into laughter--this never happens--or made me write down a quote or 352 in my review journal. And perhaps I've contemplated getting one tattooed on me somewhere.
This is a series I think everyone should read. It's a beautiful, hilarious, amazinngggg piece of work that has become my golden standard. I'm taking my time with this series, because I don't want it to ever, ever end. Megan McCafferty is my hero.
Why?
Because all I really want to do is vigorously pound on my keyboard with glee and happytears and EEEEEEE.
KLSA:LFAWOPE(*()@ 5jKOSAKOR(WE)_9 F S ASNKF WSETYW# $ w t)(w_#*%90@#% 9@)+_ +)_@#i 5m2 4ko56[2098305 U0264 JML"ESAK}PWAR}WQ#)% NDVSDSDF
Translation:
Holy.
Crap.
I've found the Holy Grail of YA writing. The kicker? It isn't even YA! And yet it is. It's everything. It's Jessica Darling.
I've put off writing my review for Sloppy Firsts for a long time. I don't even know what to say without falling so incredibly short of what this book deserves. I hadn't even heard of this series prior to starting my blog. I figured that it couldn't be THAT good if I hadn't even heard anything about it. My friends, this series is a diamond in the rough.
The characters are so very distinct in all their own ways and mannerisms. I'm convinced that Megan Mc has fashioned Jessica from a real person. Or perhaps she wrote her right off the pages. Yes, that's it! Jessica is so imperfectly perfectly written, that the words and paragraphs came together to form cells and skin and organs and hair and acne and she has jumped right out of the book and exists in our world today. No one can just think of someone SO AWESOME and not have her walk amongst us. I need this to be true so I can find her and make her my BFF. Because we'd get along that well.
I loved everything about every character. Even the ones I hated. Because Ms. McCafferty has taken the time to develop each and every one of them. Sara with her annoying "quote/unquote" abuse and Len with his "um" and Scotty with his...whatever it is that he does.
And Marcus. Yes, Marcus. I couldn't see what the hype about him was at first. But I have seen the light. Oh yes. And it glitters like Mariah Carey.
The journal-style writing makes it easy to become completely immersed into Jessica's internal cynicism and outlook on life. Having been a cynical teenager (ahem, and having never grown out of it), this speaks volumes to me. There are so many quotes that have caused me to burst into laughter--this never happens--or made me write down a quote or 352 in my review journal. And perhaps I've contemplated getting one tattooed on me somewhere.
This is a series I think everyone should read. It's a beautiful, hilarious, amazinngggg piece of work that has become my golden standard. I'm taking my time with this series, because I don't want it to ever, ever end. Megan McCafferty is my hero.
May 15, 2014
Since I had to explain to my wife that my latest reading excursion was not in fact a between-the-sheets adventure with multiple terms for male and female genitalia, I might have reached my erotica novel quota for the month of May and possibly June as well. In case you haven’t already figured it out, this is not erotica, nor is it even classified as romance. But I was romantically involved with it all the same. SLOPPY FIRSTS punched my two front teeth out and slapped me hard on the cheek. It lifted my feet six inches off the ground, and turned me upside down. Had I managed to offer the world a coherent thought or two, I probably would have followed it up with a giggle.
Jessica Darling might have been the greatest thing to happen to my otherwise miserable existence. She actually made me happy to be alive, and I even managed to smile for once in my dejected life. She made me want to attempt night running and swoon over poetry and wander the hallowed halls of my youth aimlessly and have crushes on Spanish teachers and pretend that I had a big sister named Bethany who was so full of herself that her head was a ticking time bomb and run through malls…and yes, it really was that fucking good.
The voice was filled with sardonic poetry and wisdom and wit and charm, and she sounded older than she really was, even if her body had the developed pace of a kindergartner. Whether it was Burke or Bridget or Marcus or Manda or Sara, I was hooked, lined, and snickered, and I found myself reeling in a big mouth bass.
Whether I actually did or not is hard to say, but I found myself bouncing along the halls with my head held high and my corduroys on rye and a picture perfect wave across the sky helping me find my way home.
If I really stop to think about it, I probably shouldn’t have fallen in love with this novel, but you can’t always choose what books you love, and in this case, I tried to say no, but I ended up saying yes. Over and over and over again.
Cross-posted at Robert's Reads
Jessica Darling might have been the greatest thing to happen to my otherwise miserable existence. She actually made me happy to be alive, and I even managed to smile for once in my dejected life. She made me want to attempt night running and swoon over poetry and wander the hallowed halls of my youth aimlessly and have crushes on Spanish teachers and pretend that I had a big sister named Bethany who was so full of herself that her head was a ticking time bomb and run through malls…and yes, it really was that fucking good.
The voice was filled with sardonic poetry and wisdom and wit and charm, and she sounded older than she really was, even if her body had the developed pace of a kindergartner. Whether it was Burke or Bridget or Marcus or Manda or Sara, I was hooked, lined, and snickered, and I found myself reeling in a big mouth bass.
Whether I actually did or not is hard to say, but I found myself bouncing along the halls with my head held high and my corduroys on rye and a picture perfect wave across the sky helping me find my way home.
If I really stop to think about it, I probably shouldn’t have fallen in love with this novel, but you can’t always choose what books you love, and in this case, I tried to say no, but I ended up saying yes. Over and over and over again.
Cross-posted at Robert's Reads
April 4, 2012
Megan McCafferty, you can't fool me. Sloppy Firsts isn't a work of fiction. It's McCafferty traveling back in time and stealing pages from my high school diary -- not the proper one I left behind for my mother and, okay, posterity because I had a heightened sense of self, but the real one I kept locked in my head, full of doubts, fears, hopes, wants, desires, and prejudices. And yes, those desires were sexual even if I was not at the time.
This is a book that I absolutely loved reading now and would've loved reading then. From the time Jessica Darling thinks "Manda thinks that reading feminist manifestos makes up for her borderline ho-bag behavior" and refers to her as "The Headmaster" on page ten, I knew I was in book love. MASH and Saved by the Bell references cemented it. I don't know if I said the exact things Jessica says, but I could have said them. McCafferty just nails Jessica's voice.
So what's it about? ME!!
Kidding. Although that was one of my reactions while reading.
It's about 16-year-old Jessica Darling, the brunette sheep of the family. She's always felt left out of her blonde sister and mother's golden circle of Stepford perfection. Her father though has always supported her, or rather, he's always supported her running track. Like most girls her age, her real source of support is her best friend, Hope. Unfortunately, Hope's family has just moved back to Tennessee. This leaves Jessica socially adrift but not totally outcast during her vital sophomore year. Every year was vital according to my mother, but I digress. Jess is in love with Paul Parlipiano, who obviously doesn't know she exists, but that's a minor concern. A bigger problem is that she hasn't gotten her period in months.
This is one of the areas in which this book would've been such a comfort to the teen me. I skipped my period all the time, but during 11th grade (or Year 11 -- hi, Aussie friends!), I didn't get my period from September to December and January to June. Same for 12th grade. I realized it after the fact, but I was so stressed during the school year that it basically stopped my cycle. It came back with a vengeance in the summer though. Of course I didn't tell my parents about it even though I was convinced my ovaries were dying and it was stressing me out even more. My best friends were who I went to, for this and everything.
Jessica no longer has her best friend close by and is limited to one 60 minute phone call a week and daily emails. This is where the generation divide shows because there are certain things, like her cycle, that Jessica doesn't discuss with Hope over email. Nowadays, email and text are the standard methods of communication, even for friends who aren't separated by distance, and I'd venture to say that there are less off-limit topics.
In her perpetual state of PMS, Jessica's sarcasm catches the eye of class dreg Marcus Flutie, or as I refer to him, Marcus fucking Flutie. I won't even talk about his appearance. (Noelle, you think a ponytail is bad? Try RED DREADS.) Marcus fucking Flutie is THAT guy -- the one who thinks he is too cool for school, but also God's gift. Think an unattractive Jordan Catalano. Sorry, I can't get over the dreads. Now instead of being illiterate, imagine if Jordan Catalano was secretly a genius.
Before reading Sloppy Firsts, I remember seeing Marcus Flutie's name on lists for Top YA Guys -- alongside the likes of Jonah Griggs, Tom Mackee, and Adam Wilde. AS IF! The girl in my book club who was gushing about Marcus Flutie when the book club pick was announced was suspiciously absent the night we discussed this book. I love my book club because we have differing opinions (ex: I hated Miss Peregrine, some loved it, some were indifferent), but 8 out of 8 girls had the same reaction to him: Marcus FUCKING Flutie! However, what I loved about Marcus was how Jessica reacted to him, and how that changed in the beginning, middle, and end of the book. Like the rest of the book, it felt honest.
Sloppy Firsts is a book that effortlessly takes you back to high school. Luckily, Jessica will make you laugh much more this time around.
This review appears on Young Adult Anonymous.
This is a book that I absolutely loved reading now and would've loved reading then. From the time Jessica Darling thinks "Manda thinks that reading feminist manifestos makes up for her borderline ho-bag behavior" and refers to her as "The Headmaster" on page ten, I knew I was in book love. MASH and Saved by the Bell references cemented it. I don't know if I said the exact things Jessica says, but I could have said them. McCafferty just nails Jessica's voice.
So what's it about? ME!!
Kidding. Although that was one of my reactions while reading.
It's about 16-year-old Jessica Darling, the brunette sheep of the family. She's always felt left out of her blonde sister and mother's golden circle of Stepford perfection. Her father though has always supported her, or rather, he's always supported her running track. Like most girls her age, her real source of support is her best friend, Hope. Unfortunately, Hope's family has just moved back to Tennessee. This leaves Jessica socially adrift but not totally outcast during her vital sophomore year. Every year was vital according to my mother, but I digress. Jess is in love with Paul Parlipiano, who obviously doesn't know she exists, but that's a minor concern. A bigger problem is that she hasn't gotten her period in months.
This is one of the areas in which this book would've been such a comfort to the teen me. I skipped my period all the time, but during 11th grade (or Year 11 -- hi, Aussie friends!), I didn't get my period from September to December and January to June. Same for 12th grade. I realized it after the fact, but I was so stressed during the school year that it basically stopped my cycle. It came back with a vengeance in the summer though. Of course I didn't tell my parents about it even though I was convinced my ovaries were dying and it was stressing me out even more. My best friends were who I went to, for this and everything.
Jessica no longer has her best friend close by and is limited to one 60 minute phone call a week and daily emails. This is where the generation divide shows because there are certain things, like her cycle, that Jessica doesn't discuss with Hope over email. Nowadays, email and text are the standard methods of communication, even for friends who aren't separated by distance, and I'd venture to say that there are less off-limit topics.
In her perpetual state of PMS, Jessica's sarcasm catches the eye of class dreg Marcus Flutie, or as I refer to him, Marcus fucking Flutie. I won't even talk about his appearance. (Noelle, you think a ponytail is bad? Try RED DREADS.) Marcus fucking Flutie is THAT guy -- the one who thinks he is too cool for school, but also God's gift. Think an unattractive Jordan Catalano. Sorry, I can't get over the dreads. Now instead of being illiterate, imagine if Jordan Catalano was secretly a genius.
Jordan Catalano - his attractiveness + a genius IQDo you know what that equals? Jess Mariano, or as I refer to him, Jess fucking Mariano. I couldn't stand him. He's the guy who not only thinks he's cooler and smarter than everybody else, but also wholeheartedly believes it to be true. Everything is about him, unless he decides that a girl is temporarily worthy. Even the girl in question is a reflection of his ego because it's about getting her.
Before reading Sloppy Firsts, I remember seeing Marcus Flutie's name on lists for Top YA Guys -- alongside the likes of Jonah Griggs, Tom Mackee, and Adam Wilde. AS IF! The girl in my book club who was gushing about Marcus Flutie when the book club pick was announced was suspiciously absent the night we discussed this book. I love my book club because we have differing opinions (ex: I hated Miss Peregrine, some loved it, some were indifferent), but 8 out of 8 girls had the same reaction to him: Marcus FUCKING Flutie! However, what I loved about Marcus was how Jessica reacted to him, and how that changed in the beginning, middle, and end of the book. Like the rest of the book, it felt honest.
Sloppy Firsts is a book that effortlessly takes you back to high school. Luckily, Jessica will make you laugh much more this time around.
This review appears on Young Adult Anonymous.
December 30, 2010
Well now, this was refreshing!
My namesake Jessica is a very likable protagonist, whom I could easily relate to. She’s witty, sarcastic, smart and I just love her snarky attitude. People tell me that most of the time it seems like I have "piss off" tattooed on my forehead, so when I learned that Jessica’s dad’s nickname for her was "Notso" as in Jessica Not-So-Darling I knew that we would be getting along just fine - because despite her last name, which is Darling, she is anything but sweet and darling.
Jessica has a lot on her plate. Her BFF Hope was shipped off to Tennessee and now she’s stuck with a clique of seemingly dumb girls she doesn’t really like (The Clueless Crew), her crush doesn’t even know her name and is absolutely unattainable for her, she feels misunderstood by her parents and her perfect older sister, who totally overshadows her, is being a pain. Sounds familiar? Yeah, I know. At first sight, Sloppy Firsts seems to be your typical YA novel, dealing with the standard teen issues. What’s different though is the protagonist. Jessica is level-headed and out of self-respect she made the right decisions where I expected her to go wrong. She really isn’t perfect, mind you, but she has guts and stays true to herself.
Sloppy Firsts was surprisingly complex. I liked that it wasn't focused on only one facet of the story but rather dealt with all of them in equal parts. Jessica’s difficult relationship with her family, her friendship with Hope and the members of the Clueless Crew, her forlorn crush on Paul Parlipiano and her weird relationship/friendship/fling/whatsoever with Marcus Flutie...each of those topics were dealt with thoroughly.
To sum it up: A highly enjoyable read that I’d definitely recommend to my booker friends.
My namesake Jessica is a very likable protagonist, whom I could easily relate to. She’s witty, sarcastic, smart and I just love her snarky attitude. People tell me that most of the time it seems like I have "piss off" tattooed on my forehead, so when I learned that Jessica’s dad’s nickname for her was "Notso" as in Jessica Not-So-Darling I knew that we would be getting along just fine - because despite her last name, which is Darling, she is anything but sweet and darling.
Jessica has a lot on her plate. Her BFF Hope was shipped off to Tennessee and now she’s stuck with a clique of seemingly dumb girls she doesn’t really like (The Clueless Crew), her crush doesn’t even know her name and is absolutely unattainable for her, she feels misunderstood by her parents and her perfect older sister, who totally overshadows her, is being a pain. Sounds familiar? Yeah, I know. At first sight, Sloppy Firsts seems to be your typical YA novel, dealing with the standard teen issues. What’s different though is the protagonist. Jessica is level-headed and out of self-respect she made the right decisions where I expected her to go wrong. She really isn’t perfect, mind you, but she has guts and stays true to herself.
Sloppy Firsts was surprisingly complex. I liked that it wasn't focused on only one facet of the story but rather dealt with all of them in equal parts. Jessica’s difficult relationship with her family, her friendship with Hope and the members of the Clueless Crew, her forlorn crush on Paul Parlipiano and her weird relationship/friendship/fling/whatsoever with Marcus Flutie...each of those topics were dealt with thoroughly.
To sum it up: A highly enjoyable read that I’d definitely recommend to my booker friends.
November 10, 2017
Had stupid grin on my face for the last half of this. Must start book two now. Have feeling may not emerge until series finished. Sorry can't talk good, am too excited.
FEELS.
July 24, 2013
Some men go through their mid-life crisis by buying a nice red sports car, and marrying their 25 year old secretaries. I go through my mid-life crisis by doing Yoga, eating coffee Häagen-Dazs ice cream, watching John Hughes films, and lately...reading YA novels.
SLOPPY FIRSTS is wonderful! It took me back to my youth, and if I could I would jump into this book, yank Marcus Flutie out and call him my own (when he is much older of course so he is age appropriate). Shhhh don't tell my boyfriend.
I gave this book four stars, but it really is out of the embarrassment of enjoying this book- at the age of 46- as much as I did. It should be rated at 5 stars...and at some point I may change it. If I was 16 years old again I would say......
"Jessica Darling is TRE'COOL"!!!
SLOPPY FIRSTS is wonderful! It took me back to my youth, and if I could I would jump into this book, yank Marcus Flutie out and call him my own (when he is much older of course so he is age appropriate). Shhhh don't tell my boyfriend.
I gave this book four stars, but it really is out of the embarrassment of enjoying this book- at the age of 46- as much as I did. It should be rated at 5 stars...and at some point I may change it. If I was 16 years old again I would say......
"Jessica Darling is TRE'COOL"!!!
April 20, 2009
The last 30 or so pages of this book were good, but not good enough to make a big comeback for me.
I really wanted to like this book because it was so highly recommended by my nestie friends whose opinions are generally really in line with mine, but I just never fell in love with it. The journal and letter style of storytelling Megan McCafferty used was not my favorite. It made Jessica's story feel realistic, and it had that day in the life feeling, but it also made the pacing really drag. It was three quarters of the way through before anything really happened to pick up the action. (****spoiler in the next sentence*****) Why couldn't she have thrown up on Paul Parlipiano's shoes in the second or third month of the book and gone from there? (***spoilers over***) I also thought the writing style was trying too hard to be hip and clever.
It probably didn't help that I read this right after several really good Sarah Dessen books so I couldn't help but compare the two authors. I just didn't feel a connection to or sympathy with Jessica and Marcus the way I did with Macy and Wes or Annabel and her family and Owen in The Truth about Forever and Just Listen.
While it had its good points and I did find myself wanting to know what happened after Sloppy Firsts left off I don't think I'll be running out to pick up Second Helpings anytime soon.
I really wanted to like this book because it was so highly recommended by my nestie friends whose opinions are generally really in line with mine, but I just never fell in love with it. The journal and letter style of storytelling Megan McCafferty used was not my favorite. It made Jessica's story feel realistic, and it had that day in the life feeling, but it also made the pacing really drag. It was three quarters of the way through before anything really happened to pick up the action. (****spoiler in the next sentence*****) Why couldn't she have thrown up on Paul Parlipiano's shoes in the second or third month of the book and gone from there? (***spoilers over***) I also thought the writing style was trying too hard to be hip and clever.
It probably didn't help that I read this right after several really good Sarah Dessen books so I couldn't help but compare the two authors. I just didn't feel a connection to or sympathy with Jessica and Marcus the way I did with Macy and Wes or Annabel and her family and Owen in The Truth about Forever and Just Listen.
While it had its good points and I did find myself wanting to know what happened after Sloppy Firsts left off I don't think I'll be running out to pick up Second Helpings anytime soon.
September 27, 2011
This book took entirely too long to get to any type of point. At page 88 I wondered why I was still reading it...then at page 108 I wondered how a writer could write such a pointless book. I believe she may just like the idea that she is a writer and not really grasp the concept of what writing is supposed to be about.
With lines like "...Last night was catastrophic. Cataclysmically catastrophic...." and "Apparently the staff at Middlebury were flummoxed by Marcus's complex philosophical takes on his self-destruction..." and "Besides, I've got perspective o'plenty. And to prove it, here are a few heretofore undocumented events that-in a less agitated stage of my life-inspired pages and pages worth of angst:..." the book just mires down in word salad...someone take away her thesarus please. She struck me as the type who watched every episode of Dawson's Creek and longed to be like the characters...so deep and introspective in an assinine convulusion of reality...see I can do it too! Doesn't make it entertaining or good.
At some point a nice little character named Marcus helped the book pick up a little and then the story line ended as abruptly as the book with promises of another chapter in the Jessica Darling angst-fest...no thanks, I'll pass.
Edit: I did find one line that was worth reading and proved meaningful..."I watch my life depart minute by minute....I anticipate the end of everything and anything...I'm continually waiting for something better that never comes. Maybe it would help if I knew what I wanted." That's one line out of 298 pages.
With lines like "...Last night was catastrophic. Cataclysmically catastrophic...." and "Apparently the staff at Middlebury were flummoxed by Marcus's complex philosophical takes on his self-destruction..." and "Besides, I've got perspective o'plenty. And to prove it, here are a few heretofore undocumented events that-in a less agitated stage of my life-inspired pages and pages worth of angst:..." the book just mires down in word salad...someone take away her thesarus please. She struck me as the type who watched every episode of Dawson's Creek and longed to be like the characters...so deep and introspective in an assinine convulusion of reality...see I can do it too! Doesn't make it entertaining or good.
At some point a nice little character named Marcus helped the book pick up a little and then the story line ended as abruptly as the book with promises of another chapter in the Jessica Darling angst-fest...no thanks, I'll pass.
Edit: I did find one line that was worth reading and proved meaningful..."I watch my life depart minute by minute....I anticipate the end of everything and anything...I'm continually waiting for something better that never comes. Maybe it would help if I knew what I wanted." That's one line out of 298 pages.
February 13, 2017
Thank you thank you thank you Chelsea for making me read this <3 I related to it so much more than I ever thought I would.
November 28, 2011
This book is much more than i expected. What I expected was a chick lit, a cheesy story of a teenager and her ramblings about boys.
But this is a coming of age story.
Jess is a stressed teenager whose best friend has just moved away and whose parents try to make her be something she is not. She tries to mold herself into being what everybody expects from her in order to fit in until a junkie guy, Marcus Flutie, makes her realize her priorities in life.
I liked this book for various reasons: first, even though i'm 34 and therefore well past my teenage years, Jess is a character i could easily relate too. She is an interesting, brainiac and very opinionated girl. The language was a plus as well. I am not a notive speaker and i enjoyed the slang used in the book. Finally she is funny, i nearly rolled down the couch when ,accused of being a lesbo, Jess replies: "Me?! A vagitarian??". I will read the next installment, curious to see what happens next.
But this is a coming of age story.
Jess is a stressed teenager whose best friend has just moved away and whose parents try to make her be something she is not. She tries to mold herself into being what everybody expects from her in order to fit in until a junkie guy, Marcus Flutie, makes her realize her priorities in life.
I liked this book for various reasons: first, even though i'm 34 and therefore well past my teenage years, Jess is a character i could easily relate too. She is an interesting, brainiac and very opinionated girl. The language was a plus as well. I am not a notive speaker and i enjoyed the slang used in the book. Finally she is funny, i nearly rolled down the couch when ,accused of being a lesbo, Jess replies: "Me?! A vagitarian??". I will read the next installment, curious to see what happens next.
April 2, 2021
I had the hardest time getting myself involved with this book. It took me to 55% to start to understand what plot the author was aiming and that was after going back to the synopsis to realize that I needed to look for Marcus. Not only did I struggle with finding the plot but a lot of the commentary that our protagonist gives to every single character of the book is either slut-shaming, sexist, or even racist at times. Which of course irritated me a whole lot. I also did not understand a lot of the references mostly the pop cultures one but I think it's because I'm not the designated audience for the book. I actually thought the character of Marcus was enjoyable but the fact that you only get to really know him at 65% and if this was not a book I'm reviewing for Netgalley, I would have never gotten to the point of knowing the love interest.
I know this is book one of a series, which is why the ending is unsatisfying to leave suspense. But since I didn't think this book was strong plot-wise it just leaves the book as unsatisfying,
When you are trying to publish a book for a second time with the designated audience being teenagers of this generation, Who are constantly supporting movements to embrace female sexuality, are against racism and are against sexism. The least you could do to sell this book for them is to modify the commentary to their beliefs.
I know this is book one of a series, which is why the ending is unsatisfying to leave suspense. But since I didn't think this book was strong plot-wise it just leaves the book as unsatisfying,
When you are trying to publish a book for a second time with the designated audience being teenagers of this generation, Who are constantly supporting movements to embrace female sexuality, are against racism and are against sexism. The least you could do to sell this book for them is to modify the commentary to their beliefs.
June 1, 2011
I liked it, but I have to say it was completely different from what I had expected - but not in a bad way, not at all. The titles of this series, combined with the heroine's name and the leg-stressed covers said light, funny and fluffy - but bold on the sex-side - teen-chick-lit. I had expected a cross between - let's say ... Sophie Kinsella, Louise Rennison and Meg Cabot. To be completely honest, apart from being open to surprises because of my Goodreads friends' loving reviews, I did not really expect many bubbles beneath the pink and frothy surface of the usual high-school drama.
Thus I was rather hit in the chest by the depths of the story and its constantly emanating sadness. We follow our likable, but utterly lonely, insomniac, super-brainy heroine through a year of high-school, feel her miss her moved-away best - or rather only - friend like the permanent hurt of an infested wound, which is enhanced by the the author's withholding said friend's responses to the heroine's monthly letters, and experience to be at loss: We would like to help Jess to crawl out of that lack-of-persons-to-speak-to dump, her thinking-too-much-and-too-pointlessly-about-life hamster's wheel, her underdog position as the second-best daughter, whose success at acing important subjects and the track-team are taken for granted and rated as being inferior to being a boy-magnet and Miss Popular at home.
On top of that we had the heroine contemplating whether to give in to the temptation of acquiring a popular boyfriend out of pure convenience or whether to decide to get to know the multi-layered former druggie Markus Flutie better in spite of her far-away best friend Hope hating him whole-heartedly, since he was friends with her brother Heath when he overdosed on heroin and died.
This has once more proved to be a lesson in "Don't-be-fooled-by-cover-and-title". I would rather group "Sloppy First" with Sweethearts and Prom than with Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging, Can You Keep a Secret? and The Princess Diaries. Thinking deeply about it, I think it turned out to be good that way. But I would have decided on a different title-and-cover-combo, if it would have been my call at the publisher's table eleven years ago.
Thus I was rather hit in the chest by the depths of the story and its constantly emanating sadness. We follow our likable, but utterly lonely, insomniac, super-brainy heroine through a year of high-school, feel her miss her moved-away best - or rather only - friend like the permanent hurt of an infested wound, which is enhanced by the the author's withholding said friend's responses to the heroine's monthly letters, and experience to be at loss: We would like to help Jess to crawl out of that lack-of-persons-to-speak-to dump, her thinking-too-much-and-too-pointlessly-about-life hamster's wheel, her underdog position as the second-best daughter, whose success at acing important subjects and the track-team are taken for granted and rated as being inferior to being a boy-magnet and Miss Popular at home.
On top of that we had the heroine contemplating whether to give in to the temptation of acquiring a popular boyfriend out of pure convenience or whether to decide to get to know the multi-layered former druggie Markus Flutie better in spite of her far-away best friend Hope hating him whole-heartedly, since he was friends with her brother Heath when he overdosed on heroin and died.
This has once more proved to be a lesson in "Don't-be-fooled-by-cover-and-title". I would rather group "Sloppy First" with Sweethearts and Prom than with Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging, Can You Keep a Secret? and The Princess Diaries. Thinking deeply about it, I think it turned out to be good that way. But I would have decided on a different title-and-cover-combo, if it would have been my call at the publisher's table eleven years ago.
July 12, 2014
I got caught up in this book. It's well-written and engaging, even when the characters are, well, teens—by which I mean selfish and a little mean and so caught up in their own pain they don't recognize the hurt they're giving others.
I liked Jess, but only barely. Her family dynamics are heartbreaking and touching and I liked how she handles the developments in the course of the story. For such a short book, it sure packed a lot of heavy material without it actually feeling heavy at all. Indeed, the humor and wit of the book are crucial to how engaging it is and pull you seamlessly through the hard times as Jess grows in maturity and understanding and courage.
Indeed, this was cruising on a steady four stars the whole time I was reading. Until I got to the ending. Or the stopping, really, as it doesn't so much end as take a breath waiting for the next bit. It's bad enough that I'm going to call it a cliffhanger. I won't go into details because I can't without spoilers (and I think it may be worth reading the series as a whole despite being jerked around in the first book). It made me mad enough, though, that it spoiled the warm glow I had been enjoying. And dropped a full star as a result. Sad, really, and probably unnecessary.
I liked Jess, but only barely. Her family dynamics are heartbreaking and touching and I liked how she handles the developments in the course of the story. For such a short book, it sure packed a lot of heavy material without it actually feeling heavy at all. Indeed, the humor and wit of the book are crucial to how engaging it is and pull you seamlessly through the hard times as Jess grows in maturity and understanding and courage.
Indeed, this was cruising on a steady four stars the whole time I was reading. Until I got to the ending. Or the stopping, really, as it doesn't so much end as take a breath waiting for the next bit. It's bad enough that I'm going to call it a cliffhanger. I won't go into details because I can't without spoilers (and I think it may be worth reading the series as a whole despite being jerked around in the first book). It made me mad enough, though, that it spoiled the warm glow I had been enjoying. And dropped a full star as a result. Sad, really, and probably unnecessary.
February 23, 2009
oh lord, i really wanted to give this book 5 stars. something is holding me back, maybe because it feels weird to give a new YA lit book that much praise? considering i'm 27? 4 1/2 stars, 4 1/2 dammit! okay, i'm done.
i LOVED this book. LOVED IT. Jessica Darling was such an interesting, complex and yet normal teenage girl that i couldn't help completely relating to her. it's just really refreshing to read a book about a typical teenage girl who has regular problems like a best friend that moves away and crushes on random boys, including one of her weird guy friends. she deals with her family who doesn't quite get her, and the friends she has left who *she* just doesn't understand. all pretty universal themes, but Megan McCafferty writes about them in a really appealing way.
i had ordered the next two in this series before i'd even finished the book.
(EDIT: FIVE STARS IT IS! A recent re-read convinced me)
i LOVED this book. LOVED IT. Jessica Darling was such an interesting, complex and yet normal teenage girl that i couldn't help completely relating to her. it's just really refreshing to read a book about a typical teenage girl who has regular problems like a best friend that moves away and crushes on random boys, including one of her weird guy friends. she deals with her family who doesn't quite get her, and the friends she has left who *she* just doesn't understand. all pretty universal themes, but Megan McCafferty writes about them in a really appealing way.
i had ordered the next two in this series before i'd even finished the book.
(EDIT: FIVE STARS IT IS! A recent re-read convinced me)
September 20, 2012
A tale of a "jokette" going through high school. She's crude, crabby and totally mean. She doesn't care about anyone's feelings and is sarcastic and snotty.
She is just horrible to the only friends she has - she calls them names behind their back and constantly mocks them both to their face and behind their back. She even mocks Scotty, the most popular boy in school (who is puppy dog gaga over her)- and yet they are all still her friend. They all take her back the second she snaps her fingers and decides she might be nice enough to grace them with her presence and invites herself to whatever party they are going to (or other social event).
I won't even get into the weird druggy, alcohol kisses "pee in a cup" for me guy. It was just that awful. So was the Hy story line.
I just found Jessica Darling, at best, totally unlikable. At worst, totally unbelievable.
She is just horrible to the only friends she has - she calls them names behind their back and constantly mocks them both to their face and behind their back. She even mocks Scotty, the most popular boy in school (who is puppy dog gaga over her)- and yet they are all still her friend. They all take her back the second she snaps her fingers and decides she might be nice enough to grace them with her presence and invites herself to whatever party they are going to (or other social event).
I won't even get into the weird druggy, alcohol kisses "pee in a cup" for me guy. It was just that awful. So was the Hy story line.
I just found Jessica Darling, at best, totally unlikable. At worst, totally unbelievable.
October 15, 2014
This was hilarious, and adorable, and endearing. It made me bust out laughing, and occasionally want to cry. I didn't want it to end.
I also can't believe it just ended that way! I want to know more. I NEED to know more!
I'll most definitely be reading the rest of this series, no doubt about that!
December 6, 2020
update 6/dec/2020: you cannot convince me that this is not the best high school chick lit of all time. you just can't. anyway, upon reread, I find I disagree with many points I made in this review, so take everything with a healthy pinch of salt :D
update 26/feb/2017: there are so many grammatical mistakes and typos in here, darn it.
please bear with me if you spot them. i'm too lazy to correct them. tyvm.
One of the two books directly responsible for the end of my chick lit reading frenzy.
This book is 100% chick lit. The plot is not original, as is the case for 99% of the genre, but-the characters sure as hell are.
Jessica Darling is, upon first glance, your typical honors-heroine. The kind that is supposedly brainy and cynical and usually goes about slut-shaming everybody but themselves. Put simply, annoying little hypocrites. Now Jessica is definitely a hypocrite, but she's more or less cognizant of it. Okay, maybe she isn't, but she makes it up for being absolutely hilarious in her internal monologues. Also, she does seem genuinely intelligent. Lots of times heroines in chick lit are straight-A students or e.t.c, but besides from the occasional SAT word (that means, unless you are Hazel/Augustus you won't ever use these words in speech, because unless you are using it to annoy someone, it's not all that useful) there's nothing else to support the fact that they are what they claim to be. Jessica's manifestation of her IQ isn't impulsive. It's consistent. And for this "Show, not tell", she earns a million brownie points.
Marcus Flutie is, upon first impression, the typical bad-boy. But he rejects that erroneous assumption nearly immediately, by appearing too mysterious for that. However, he's never quite demystified in this book, and for that reason he makes everything much more interesting. The readers can decipher his actions without too much restraint, and I love that. Personally, () I like to think of Marcus as a hopeless born romantic who just doesn't give a shit about being successful because life is too short and he simply wants to live happily in his own way. (YES! you got it goin', lad!)
I loved how McCafferty dealt with Hope and Bridget. Jessica spent 50% of the book lamenting over the loss of her best friend, Hope, who moved away from Pinesville, but Hope was conspicuously absent throughout the book. She was more of a symbol of hope than anything, and I found the concept of this very unique and cool.
It really irks me how girls in chick lit are often Regina George or Karen Smith: in reality nobody has that flat a character.
Now for the complaints.
I didn’t care much for the author’s treatment of Scotty. He started off as a really cute, really unique character. Jocks in books are usually just one of two types of jerks: a) the obnoxious, egotistical moron b) the hot, ex-man-whore who reformed because of the heroine. At first, Scotty fell into neither category. He was just a goofy sort of boy who just happened to like Jessica. He didn’t go around shoving his masculinity into everybody’s face. But he jock-alizes, becoming His Royal Guyness. I get that the author did it on purpose, putting emphasis on how easy it is to lose yourself under the pressure from the expectation of your peers, but I would’ve loved Sloppy Firsts even more if Scotty had remained true to himself. At first I was even rooting for Scotty.
If Scotty had wound up with Jessica, and if Bridget had become Jessica’s best friend, this would’ve been a true original, a “classic” as Marcus would call it. Why? This book would’ve been a tale of how a self-righteous, arrogant honors girl came to dispose of her condescension towards those not as brilliant as her. It would be about how she finally relinquished her pride and prejudice. Most importantly, this book would have succeeded in rejecting the biggest chick-lit tropes known to man. I just know that if the author tried to this, she would have been able to pull it off without turning this book into a complete preaching.
The only problem with this proposal is that I wouldn't have gotten to know Marcus. However, I am willing (!) to not know Marcus (!!) if it means that McCafferty makes Sloppy Firsts into the one and only chick lit that takes me off guard.
But she didn’t.
And that’s why this book is pure chick-lit. But that’s also fine, since I picked this up expecting a fluffy journey, and that’s precisely what I got. A very finely written one, I must add. I’m just saying that, if the author had done what I said, I would’ve been truly, truly blown away.
5 stars for outdoing any other angsty teen documentary.
update 26/feb/2017: there are so many grammatical mistakes and typos in here, darn it.
please bear with me if you spot them. i'm too lazy to correct them. tyvm.
One of the two books directly responsible for the end of my chick lit reading frenzy.
This book is 100% chick lit. The plot is not original, as is the case for 99% of the genre, but-the characters sure as hell are.
Jessica Darling is, upon first glance, your typical honors-heroine. The kind that is supposedly brainy and cynical and usually goes about slut-shaming everybody but themselves. Put simply, annoying little hypocrites. Now Jessica is definitely a hypocrite, but she's more or less cognizant of it. Okay, maybe she isn't, but she makes it up for being absolutely hilarious in her internal monologues. Also, she does seem genuinely intelligent. Lots of times heroines in chick lit are straight-A students or e.t.c, but besides from the occasional SAT word (that means, unless you are Hazel/Augustus you won't ever use these words in speech, because unless you are using it to annoy someone, it's not all that useful) there's nothing else to support the fact that they are what they claim to be. Jessica's manifestation of her IQ isn't impulsive. It's consistent. And for this "Show, not tell", she earns a million brownie points.
Marcus Flutie is, upon first impression, the typical bad-boy. But he rejects that erroneous assumption nearly immediately, by appearing too mysterious for that. However, he's never quite demystified in this book, and for that reason he makes everything much more interesting. The readers can decipher his actions without too much restraint, and I love that. Personally, () I like to think of Marcus as a hopeless born romantic who just doesn't give a shit about being successful because life is too short and he simply wants to live happily in his own way. (YES! you got it goin', lad!)
I loved how McCafferty dealt with Hope and Bridget. Jessica spent 50% of the book lamenting over the loss of her best friend, Hope, who moved away from Pinesville, but Hope was conspicuously absent throughout the book. She was more of a symbol of hope than anything, and I found the concept of this very unique and cool.
It really irks me how girls in chick lit are often Regina George or Karen Smith: in reality nobody has that flat a character.
Now for the complaints.
I didn’t care much for the author’s treatment of Scotty. He started off as a really cute, really unique character. Jocks in books are usually just one of two types of jerks: a) the obnoxious, egotistical moron b) the hot, ex-man-whore who reformed because of the heroine. At first, Scotty fell into neither category. He was just a goofy sort of boy who just happened to like Jessica. He didn’t go around shoving his masculinity into everybody’s face. But he jock-alizes, becoming His Royal Guyness. I get that the author did it on purpose, putting emphasis on how easy it is to lose yourself under the pressure from the expectation of your peers, but I would’ve loved Sloppy Firsts even more if Scotty had remained true to himself. At first I was even rooting for Scotty.
If Scotty had wound up with Jessica, and if Bridget had become Jessica’s best friend, this would’ve been a true original, a “classic” as Marcus would call it. Why? This book would’ve been a tale of how a self-righteous, arrogant honors girl came to dispose of her condescension towards those not as brilliant as her. It would be about how she finally relinquished her pride and prejudice. Most importantly, this book would have succeeded in rejecting the biggest chick-lit tropes known to man. I just know that if the author tried to this, she would have been able to pull it off without turning this book into a complete preaching.
The only problem with this proposal is that I wouldn't have gotten to know Marcus. However, I am willing (!) to not know Marcus (!!) if it means that McCafferty makes Sloppy Firsts into the one and only chick lit that takes me off guard.
But she didn’t.
And that’s why this book is pure chick-lit. But that’s also fine, since I picked this up expecting a fluffy journey, and that’s precisely what I got. A very finely written one, I must add. I’m just saying that, if the author had done what I said, I would’ve been truly, truly blown away.
5 stars for outdoing any other angsty teen documentary.
August 3, 2020
Finally! I finally met Jessica Darling.
Don’t let the cutesy name fool you though. This girl is no darling. Let’s see…how to describe Jessica Darling? Well to start she made me smile, cringe, angry, laugh, roll my eyes, remember, and sympathize. She’s a teenager. I mean the real deal. So real that I can’t even say for sure if I like her. Haha…THAT kind of real. We see it all—at school, home, and in her head. It’s a scary place! Full of angst, sarcasm, selfishness, confusion, doubt, and humor. This girl will make you laugh for sure! For example, why does Jessica write in her journal?
“I want my descendants to know what event cinched the last strap on my straightjacket.”
Through letters and journal entries readers get to see and hear about Jessica’s torment. At school, Jessica has to deal with her friends (aka the Clueless Crew). At home, she has to deal with her parents. And at night, Jessica has to deal with her own mind. She can’t sleep. Night after night she finds herself wide awake. Maybe because her best friend moved away. Or because her parents are all about her older sister getting married. Or maybe it’s her very complicated
There’s a lot going on here. Relationships with parents and friends, communication, perceptions, feelings, and more. Everything from a “brief foray into the law-breaking underworld” to catfights to lip-nipping to origami shaped notes. But for me, the big take away from this book is identity. Who is Jessica without her best friend at her side? Or without her older sister at home? Every school has their categories--jocks, brains, cheerleaders, skanks, dregs, nerds, and on and on. Can Jessica see past the labels, lies and poseurs though? Or is Jessica the biggest liar of them all?
“I thought tonight I’d show you what you miss when you don’t look hard enough.”
Which leads me to Marcus fucking Flutie. I have to shout out some love and frustration for how Ms. McCafferty dealt with the relationship between Marcus and Jessica. It was painfully real and painfully slow. It was….!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Awkward and fun and full of sparks. I can’t wait to see them in action again. Their banter was hysterical, aggravating, and oh-so confusing. I loved it! Remember the days of re-playing a one or two line conversation with the guy you liked over and over again in your head trying to figure out what it all meant? That energy and anticipation is right here in this book. It’s something special. That special kind of torture you can’t get enough of.
I can’t wait to see everyone again in Second Helpings. And I mean everyone! It’s kind of surprising how every single character grew on me. Like, love, or hate ‘em—I want to know how they all handle another year of high school together. Can they survive another year?
Recommended read.
December 31, 2012
Disclaimer: Snark and gifs.
Dis book.
I'm sitting here looking at the blinking curser trying to sum up my feelings for this trash.
Sums up my sarcastic feelings of this novel.
Jessica is an annoying main character. So much wangsting. So much judging. I mean this girl hates her friends. So much fucking slut shaming. She also is straight edge all the way, and judges everyone who has sex and does drugs. *hulk smash*
Basic Bitch.
In Jessica's world feminism = slut. YES!!!
Also drugs and sex r bad. mmmkay
Marcus is my fave character. I would hang out with him and smoke a bowl with him any day. He's smart and chill. I would read a book about him.
Drugs are bad tho. ;)
Dis book.
I'm sitting here looking at the blinking curser trying to sum up my feelings for this trash.
Sums up my sarcastic feelings of this novel.
Jessica is an annoying main character. So much wangsting. So much judging. I mean this girl hates her friends. So much fucking slut shaming. She also is straight edge all the way, and judges everyone who has sex and does drugs. *hulk smash*
Basic Bitch.
In Jessica's world feminism = slut. YES!!!
Also drugs and sex r bad. mmmkay
Marcus is my fave character. I would hang out with him and smoke a bowl with him any day. He's smart and chill. I would read a book about him.
Drugs are bad tho. ;)
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 30, 2008
I hope I don't kill the love for this series by admitting that I am a middle aged woman who loves it. Although Jessica Darling is less than half my age, I would have loved to be friends with her in high school...or even now. How pathetic is that?
Not very, actually. Jessica is an acerbic, rapier witted narratrix. The picture she paints of a New Jersey high school soon after the millennium change is at turnes hilarious, depressing and ridiculous...just like my memories of high school.
I started this series back when I was a librarian for teenagers...and had a solid excuse. Now I have none. But I am going to keep reading these anyway. If Jessica continues to balance the snark and the insights in her own special way, I am a fan for life and will follow her adventures into the nursing home, if possible.
Not very, actually. Jessica is an acerbic, rapier witted narratrix. The picture she paints of a New Jersey high school soon after the millennium change is at turnes hilarious, depressing and ridiculous...just like my memories of high school.
I started this series back when I was a librarian for teenagers...and had a solid excuse. Now I have none. But I am going to keep reading these anyway. If Jessica continues to balance the snark and the insights in her own special way, I am a fan for life and will follow her adventures into the nursing home, if possible.
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