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beccarox7's review
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content, Adult/minor relationship, and Alcohol
Minor: Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Rape, and Incest
limeywesty's review
3.0
I was afraid reading this would be too much like my own Year 12 experiences. That it would shame me by appearing in front of me in black and white print. Fortunately, Julia Lawrinson includes a plot-warp that left me off the hook. Enjoyable, a quick read, but just a little peculiar. Refreshingly, it wasn't the whole, "you can lose it when you're in love with that one person" message like I thought it might turn out to be.
minorasimulator's review
4.0
had to sleep on my opinion of this one, but here it goes.
I originally picked up this title in a Booktopia Easter weekend sale and as it's been sitting on my shelf fairly untouched for the past two years, I thought it was about time I picked it up. My tastes have changed a bit since I got it, and a book about four girls who challenge each other to lose their virginities before 'schoolies' week wasn't something I was keen on.
I was wrong. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It consists of four stories of girls exploring their sexualities bookended by the creation of the challenge at the start and the culmination of the challenge at the end. The stories take place in chronological order of the challenge-induced sexual activity, and they also look at the friendship dynamic up to their final year of school. It has characters from different family structures, ethnic backgrounds and sexualities. I originally thought that the narrative voices would be too similar, but that wasn't the case at all, with each character reading so completely differently.
This is the bit where I talk about the issues I had.
Firstly, there was some really glaring editing issues. This book was initially published in 2012, and I got this copy in 2016, so I would have thought that perhaps things like that would have been cleaned up already. Secondly, I started thinking about half-way through that this book was set in Western Australia, and I got confirmation of that right at the end when they mentioned both Scotch College and PLC in the same sentence, and I still had to double check by googling the author. It's extremely clear that this book has been edited for an Eastern States audience. The target audience at the time of publication would have started high school in Year Eight, not year Seven, which explains some later discrepancies in terms of character age at the start of HS (Mala being 13, for instance). In WA, we also call the week-long celebration at the end of school 'leavers', which is another reason it took me so long to figure out. So yeah, my main issues with this book is that the editing made it far more accessible to the Eastern States rather than, you know, the people in the state where it's set. But I'll leave that for now and go back to things that I like.
Overall, I thought this was a really heartwarming story about friendship and exploring sexuality. I don't think I could say I'd have enjoyed this book more when I was in high school, but I definitely think I would have benefited from having read this earlier in my life. There are some trigger warnings for both rape and incest, but these aren't explicit and they're only suggested at in terms of side characters (but they're still there). I enjoyed this far more than I thought I would, and I'm looking forward to picking up more of Lawrinson's work in the future.
I originally picked up this title in a Booktopia Easter weekend sale and as it's been sitting on my shelf fairly untouched for the past two years, I thought it was about time I picked it up. My tastes have changed a bit since I got it, and a book about four girls who challenge each other to lose their virginities before 'schoolies' week wasn't something I was keen on.
I was wrong. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It consists of four stories of girls exploring their sexualities bookended by the creation of the challenge at the start and the culmination of the challenge at the end. The stories take place in chronological order of the challenge-induced sexual activity, and they also look at the friendship dynamic up to their final year of school. It has characters from different family structures, ethnic backgrounds and sexualities. I originally thought that the narrative voices would be too similar, but that wasn't the case at all, with each character reading so completely differently.
This is the bit where I talk about the issues I had.
Firstly, there was some really glaring editing issues. This book was initially published in 2012, and I got this copy in 2016, so I would have thought that perhaps things like that would have been cleaned up already. Secondly, I started thinking about half-way through that this book was set in Western Australia, and I got confirmation of that right at the end when they mentioned both Scotch College and PLC in the same sentence, and I still had to double check by googling the author. It's extremely clear that this book has been edited for an Eastern States audience. The target audience at the time of publication would have started high school in Year Eight, not year Seven, which explains some later discrepancies in terms of character age at the start of HS (Mala being 13, for instance). In WA, we also call the week-long celebration at the end of school 'leavers', which is another reason it took me so long to figure out. So yeah, my main issues with this book is that the editing made it far more accessible to the Eastern States rather than, you know, the people in the state where it's set. But I'll leave that for now and go back to things that I like.
Overall, I thought this was a really heartwarming story about friendship and exploring sexuality. I don't think I could say I'd have enjoyed this book more when I was in high school, but I definitely think I would have benefited from having read this earlier in my life. There are some trigger warnings for both rape and incest, but these aren't explicit and they're only suggested at in terms of side characters (but they're still there). I enjoyed this far more than I thought I would, and I'm looking forward to picking up more of Lawrinson's work in the future.
brittys_books's review
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
missjo77's review
This is an amazing book, i loved how it was set out within the four characters.
diemnhun's review
3.0
‘Losing It’ by Julia Lawrinson is split into 6 parts: ‘The First Week of Year 12’, Zoe’ story then Abby’s, Mala’s, Bree’s and ends with ’November Schoolies Week’
In the first section which sets up the story, the language used surrounding the girls’ pact to ‘lose it’ was very heteronormative. However, as I kept reading I was glad to discover that this book was not as heterosexual as I feared it would be.
Mala’s section was a highlight for me as I found it the most sex positive. She’s from a cultural background where sex is kept hush hush and only described in the most clinical terms (there’s a scene where Mala recalls her mum’s sex ed lesson and the reader is privy to her many questions sprouted from the straight to the point talk). Female sexuality is treated differently and female pleasure is not prioritised in her culture and society in general, and I liked the ways Mala sneakily resisted.
I also enjoyed reading Bree’s section as it was heartfelt. I wish there was more of her story.
Overall, I think 'Losing It' would be a good read for teen readers.
In the first section which sets up the story, the language used surrounding the girls’ pact to ‘lose it’ was very heteronormative. However, as I kept reading I was glad to discover that this book was not as heterosexual as I feared it would be.
Mala’s section was a highlight for me as I found it the most sex positive. She’s from a cultural background where sex is kept hush hush and only described in the most clinical terms (there’s a scene where Mala recalls her mum’s sex ed lesson and the reader is privy to her many questions sprouted from the straight to the point talk). Female sexuality is treated differently and female pleasure is not prioritised in her culture and society in general, and I liked the ways Mala sneakily resisted.
I also enjoyed reading Bree’s section as it was heartfelt. I wish there was more of her story.
Overall, I think 'Losing It' would be a good read for teen readers.
missusb21's review
4.0
I love that Lawrinson is tackling a contemporary setting (again?).
The four girls have distinct voices, divergent problems but there is a clear, connecting thread weaving its way through the separate narratives, and Lawrinson navigates the delicate topic with humour and insight.
Really enjoyed this very funny, but very warm-hearted novel.
The four girls have distinct voices, divergent problems but there is a clear, connecting thread weaving its way through the separate narratives, and Lawrinson navigates the delicate topic with humour and insight.
Really enjoyed this very funny, but very warm-hearted novel.
lauredhel's review against another edition
4.0
This book is so, so much better than its cover. It's also bound to end up on more than a few Banned Books lists for the on-screen sex, which has been bleached out of a lot of other YA books. The concept is rather blah, but the book rises above it. Check it out - it's worth it, for genuinely likable characters, authentic and complicated teenage female sexuality, and a warmth at its heart.
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