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fwog19's review
4.0
As someone who loves to write letters, a series called "Pen Pals" caught my eye right away. (It was also a free book from my daughter's school - score!)
YA books are a treat for me, as I usually like the harder sci-fi. This was no different. I loved the 80s-ness of it. The girls talked about using a Walkman, Cyndi Lauper being a favorite artist, and one girl went to a Halloween dance as Joan Jett. It really appealed to my inner-third grader. ;)
The book is basically this: four girls at an all girl's school decide to place an ad with the neighboring boy's school for pen pals. The first book was all about them deciding how to go about meeting them. As this is a series, I'm guessing that the rest of the books are about their relationships with the pen pals and the trials of being a teenager.
I gave this book four stars not because it was bad, but because the book wasn't long enough for my liking. It was fluff and a quick read (it took me a month to read it because it was lost in my daughter's room) but it was GOOD fluff. The writing was good, the girls were likable and just about any girl growing up in the 80s could relate to them, right down to their clothing choices and their worries about chocolate causing acne.
Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to hunt down the rest of the series for my daughter. (Yeah, we'll stick with that.)
YA books are a treat for me, as I usually like the harder sci-fi. This was no different. I loved the 80s-ness of it. The girls talked about using a Walkman, Cyndi Lauper being a favorite artist, and one girl went to a Halloween dance as Joan Jett. It really appealed to my inner-third grader. ;)
The book is basically this: four girls at an all girl's school decide to place an ad with the neighboring boy's school for pen pals. The first book was all about them deciding how to go about meeting them. As this is a series, I'm guessing that the rest of the books are about their relationships with the pen pals and the trials of being a teenager.
I gave this book four stars not because it was bad, but because the book wasn't long enough for my liking. It was fluff and a quick read (it took me a month to read it because it was lost in my daughter's room) but it was GOOD fluff. The writing was good, the girls were likable and just about any girl growing up in the 80s could relate to them, right down to their clothing choices and their worries about chocolate causing acne.
Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to hunt down the rest of the series for my daughter. (Yeah, we'll stick with that.)
readingwithcats's review
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
This dddrrraaagggeeeddd on and on. The girls are all thinly sketched personalities and the boys are literally all interchangeable.
anastaciaknits's review
5.0
I read this book for my "YA of the 80's & 90's" challenge. I vividly remember reading this series in school, and not only do I remember reading the series, but I found a few penpals through the books as well. It's hysterical to read the book now as an adult, and there definitely some things I wanted to nickpick about the book (for example, all of the friends were so supportive & understanding off one of the girls when she decided to lie. 13 year old girls are not known to be understanding of anyone!) But the charm of the book just shines through, and I admit to laughing out loud, literally, on more than one occasion & sharing bits of the book with my coworkers (of my age group) who I knew would enjoy the flashbacks (for example, one of the characters dresses up as She-Ra for a costume party). This is a must read!
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