Scan barcode
halynah's review against another edition
4.0
Offbeat, very modern, interesting and unique book - a real treasure for all the fans of social networks, blogging and good literature! Highly recommended!
sarahlreadseverything's review against another edition
2.0
2.5 stars. Cute and kinda funny at points, Jeanne's style and blogging empire was a nice touch and the ending was lovely and bittersweet. BUT up until the end, both main characters were extremely annoying. Jeanne is possibly one of the most self-absorbed characters I've ever come across and Manning should have made the effort to make her more sympathetic far earlier than she did. Micheal was somewhat characterless - his voice (every second chapter) just didn't sit right somehow, to the extent I was confused everytime the narration changed perspectives. Also, I don't get why he was constantly referred to by almost everyone with his first name and surname. People don't refer to their friends by their full name to their face in real life. Or have I just missed that trend???
I have to admit I'm also biased against the
I have to admit I'm also biased against the
Spoiler
sex first, relationship later trope. And here it was done particularly badly, when according to at least one of the parties involved there wasn't even physical attraction. Random sex = not a good foundation for a relationship.yeontan's review against another edition
3.0
Jeane Smith's a blogger, a dreamer, a dare-to-dreamer, a jumble sale queen, CEO of her own lifestyle brand and has half a million followers on twitter.
Michael Lee's a star of school, stage and playing field. A golden boy in a Jack Wills hoodie.
They have nothing in common but a pair of cheating exes. So why can't they stop snogging?
Adorkable tells the story of two teens on opposite sides of the social spectrum. Michael Lee the school golden boy, and Jeane Smith the school outcast. The two have nothing in common aside from their cheating exes. They find themselves in an enemies with benefits relationship they can’t explain or end.
I enjoyed the relationship between Michael and Jeane and watching it grow form hate to affection. There were moments, especially in the beginning, where I really couldn't stand either of them. However, both really grew into their own (especially Jeane) and became self-aware. I loved Jeane's confidence, her passion for her blogging career, and the fact that she didn't care what anyone thought. There's also a surprise visit (or maybe just a surprise to me) from characters from Manning's other book Guitar Girl which I read as a teenager.
I'm not really a fan of the calling the girl ugly. Perhaps its because I graduated with a Psychology degree but I'm a big believe in the theory of proximity and habituation. I did however, not really mind it in this book because it was nice to see the person of color as the object of desire for a change.
(I do have to say as a bi-racial woman of color myself I did not like Jeane describing Michael as “exotic”.)
Overall, it was a fun quick read. While the characters can give you a headache in the beginning they do become endearing by the end of the book. I certainly enjoyed it and would recommend it if you like quick, fun reads.
Michael Lee's a star of school, stage and playing field. A golden boy in a Jack Wills hoodie.
They have nothing in common but a pair of cheating exes. So why can't they stop snogging?
Adorkable tells the story of two teens on opposite sides of the social spectrum. Michael Lee the school golden boy, and Jeane Smith the school outcast. The two have nothing in common aside from their cheating exes. They find themselves in an enemies with benefits relationship they can’t explain or end.
I enjoyed the relationship between Michael and Jeane and watching it grow form hate to affection. There were moments, especially in the beginning, where I really couldn't stand either of them. However, both really grew into their own (especially Jeane) and became self-aware. I loved Jeane's confidence, her passion for her blogging career, and the fact that she didn't care what anyone thought. There's also a surprise visit (or maybe just a surprise to me) from characters from Manning's other book Guitar Girl which I read as a teenager.
I'm not really a fan of the calling the girl ugly. Perhaps its because I graduated with a Psychology degree but I'm a big believe in the theory of proximity and habituation. I did however, not really mind it in this book because it was nice to see the person of color as the object of desire for a change.
(I do have to say as a bi-racial woman of color myself I did not like Jeane describing Michael as “exotic”.)
Overall, it was a fun quick read. While the characters can give you a headache in the beginning they do become endearing by the end of the book. I certainly enjoyed it and would recommend it if you like quick, fun reads.
silverwizzard's review against another edition
4.0
Very high 4 stars!! I need more stars! It was not a 5 but a really entertaining 4 :)
redgentk's review against another edition
5.0
..........Spoilers..............
i just feel like that to me personally this book has today's teens and pop culture
right under its thumb. it just really hit the spot because in today's world, fan-fiction and fan-groups really are a major factor of teen socialization. Whatever that means.
Where to start,.... well i have to say i loved this book. Its going to stay in my library and im going to read it over and over again till its a classic.
Many people are hating on Jeane but i personally loved her. She was a bitch and she knew it, maybe its just my point of view but i think people are born wicked but strive for goodness.( Im not a Christian ) So Jeane was really refreshing for me,she knew she was bad but she strived to be better while not censoring herself all that much.
She didn't mind if you called her on her shit, she might argue with you but on some stuff she knew she was wrong. And she had such a strong character, like apologizing to Barney.
She really didn't have to do that ( and in my opinion she shouldn't have) but she did. She didn't ask him to apologize to her for cheating and decided that she really liked him and wanted to stay friends. i couldn't do that even if i wanted to, i would be to caught up in my pride and feelings.And its not like she was being weak either. So i just really, really respect Jeane.
She didn't shove her fame down people throats like she could have, and she didn't think herself better than everyone because of her fame. She thought herself better than everyone because she wanted to change the world, to learn all she could and to stop all the discrimination she saw out there. And her peers didn't, they just went with the flow.
And its not like im like Jeane at all really. I would be someone she didn't like even.
Sure i like to read and im considered a nerd or dork but i also like labels and clothing. I might go to feminist rock concerts but i don't try to change the world.
Plus she was kind and considerate sometimes, just like how sometime Micheal was a duchebag despite that overall he was a great guy. yes the book was a bit Mary Sue when you consider her life and the people she knew but some peoples lives are like that.
One thing i really enjoyed about the book (and it really surprised me too) was the sex in it. Teen novels don't have sex in it as a general rule but this one did, and i loved it. yes it wasn't very detailed like most adult books but it was there. and i just think that is a a part of today's teen culture. People as young as 12 or thirteen are having sex(or even younger) but then there's still many 19-20 year olds who are virgins. so we have this place where we might have had sex but we haven't had a lot of it and we still have a lot of issues surrounding it.
as such im really happy the author introduced it to the story because we don't all have epic romances and both guys and girls might not want to have legendary lovelives. Even though there was more than just a tad bit of it in here. Plus the references to Doctor Who really made me happy and i think the author knew they were hitting on a large fan-base of Whovians.
Read the story , its great. Maybe you wont see this book like i do but i think you'll enjoy it none the less.
i just feel like that to me personally this book has today's teens and pop culture
right under its thumb. it just really hit the spot because in today's world, fan-fiction and fan-groups really are a major factor of teen socialization. Whatever that means.
Where to start,.... well i have to say i loved this book. Its going to stay in my library and im going to read it over and over again till its a classic.
Many people are hating on Jeane but i personally loved her. She was a bitch and she knew it, maybe its just my point of view but i think people are born wicked but strive for goodness.( Im not a Christian ) So Jeane was really refreshing for me,she knew she was bad but she strived to be better while not censoring herself all that much.
She didn't mind if you called her on her shit, she might argue with you but on some stuff she knew she was wrong. And she had such a strong character, like apologizing to Barney.
She really didn't have to do that ( and in my opinion she shouldn't have) but she did. She didn't ask him to apologize to her for cheating and decided that she really liked him and wanted to stay friends. i couldn't do that even if i wanted to, i would be to caught up in my pride and feelings.And its not like she was being weak either. So i just really, really respect Jeane.
She didn't shove her fame down people throats like she could have, and she didn't think herself better than everyone because of her fame. She thought herself better than everyone because she wanted to change the world, to learn all she could and to stop all the discrimination she saw out there. And her peers didn't, they just went with the flow.
And its not like im like Jeane at all really. I would be someone she didn't like even.
Sure i like to read and im considered a nerd or dork but i also like labels and clothing. I might go to feminist rock concerts but i don't try to change the world.
Plus she was kind and considerate sometimes, just like how sometime Micheal was a duchebag despite that overall he was a great guy. yes the book was a bit Mary Sue when you consider her life and the people she knew but some peoples lives are like that.
One thing i really enjoyed about the book (and it really surprised me too) was the sex in it. Teen novels don't have sex in it as a general rule but this one did, and i loved it. yes it wasn't very detailed like most adult books but it was there. and i just think that is a a part of today's teen culture. People as young as 12 or thirteen are having sex(or even younger) but then there's still many 19-20 year olds who are virgins. so we have this place where we might have had sex but we haven't had a lot of it and we still have a lot of issues surrounding it.
as such im really happy the author introduced it to the story because we don't all have epic romances and both guys and girls might not want to have legendary lovelives. Even though there was more than just a tad bit of it in here. Plus the references to Doctor Who really made me happy and i think the author knew they were hitting on a large fan-base of Whovians.
Read the story , its great. Maybe you wont see this book like i do but i think you'll enjoy it none the less.
itsdanysbooks's review against another edition
4.0
Prvá polovica bola geniálna, potom to už bolo kus toto isté dokolečka a hlavnú hrdinku som chcela prefackať, poriadne ňou zatriasať a vykričať jej do tváre "NIE SI PUPOK SVETA!"
Inak to bola enormne reálna young adultovka s enormne nereálnymi prvkami. proste pohodička :D
Inak to bola enormne reálna young adultovka s enormne nereálnymi prvkami. proste pohodička :D
krish_'s review against another edition
4.0
Okay, there isn't anything really original about this book -- not the characters, not the plot, not the themes or big ideas: dorky girl with hot jock, hipster hating, card-carrying feminist outcast using hardcore persona to mask vulnerable heart, the impassioned heated, honest-to-goodness desire to save the world (one dork fashion statement at a time).
So we've seen it before but it is refreshing. Adorkable is exactly what you'd expect from a book with such a cover, but Manning adds a bit of extra -- and that bit of extra is what ultimately glues your feelings to these characters, perhaps without even knowing it. I say that because Jeane is, for so much of the time, insufferable. She is loud, hate-y and obnoxious and she is so good at it, we want to give up on her just as much as the rest of the student body seems to have done. But we stay because of the sweet, good breeding of Michael Lee, who sometimes seems to be a little too good to be true -- I mean, I wish the jocks at my high school were just as understanding and all-embracing.
The top notes of Adorkable display quirkiness, cuteness, fun, and actual hilarity. Excerpt!
The base notes are made up entirely of loneliness.
Jeane talks so much you miss these slivers of raw emotion wedged tightly between drawn out speeches on whatever the blog topic of the week may be. She is hurt and isolated from the world just as much as she is tuned-in and connected through the media. Her cries for help are layered in snark but they are there and the tragedy is not that few people hear them, but that Jeane cannot help herself deflecting the very soul-to-soul connections she craves so much.
Sara Manning's writing is hilarious. Like, actual LOL material. I like that not everything laid out is what they seem. We see through Jeane's eyes and we see through Micheal's eyes and I'm glad to find a difference. It only makes the characters more believable because aren't we all delusional in the way we view things sometimes? Because surprise, the pretty bitch Scarlett of Jeane is really the shy, insecure Scarlett of Micheal. Emotions get in the way and sometimes we are harsh in our judgements. I love that Jeane had petty, jealous thoughts. But for all her faults, Jeane is most definitely not a Mary Sue. That, at the moment, is an achievement.
Adorkable has flaws, quite a few of them. But for this particular book, I'm going to go with a good book is anything that moves you. So screw all the negative ways Adorkable can be dissected and criticized. I liked it, alright?
This review also appears on The Midnight Garden. An advance copy was provided by the publisher.
---
It is all that and a bag of Cheetos.
Review to come.
So we've seen it before but it is refreshing. Adorkable is exactly what you'd expect from a book with such a cover, but Manning adds a bit of extra -- and that bit of extra is what ultimately glues your feelings to these characters, perhaps without even knowing it. I say that because Jeane is, for so much of the time, insufferable. She is loud, hate-y and obnoxious and she is so good at it, we want to give up on her just as much as the rest of the student body seems to have done. But we stay because of the sweet, good breeding of Michael Lee, who sometimes seems to be a little too good to be true -- I mean, I wish the jocks at my high school were just as understanding and all-embracing.
The top notes of Adorkable display quirkiness, cuteness, fun, and actual hilarity. Excerpt!
"...Barney and Scarlett? It made no sense. They defied all laws of God and man. I'd raised Barney in my own image: he was on my side, the side of the dorks, on the side of all that was good and pure. Scarlett was strictly darkside all the way."
The base notes are made up entirely of loneliness.
"I don't have a mum fussing about me, or a dad for that matter, so I always leave some homework on reserve so I don't have a chance to start wallowing."
Jeane talks so much you miss these slivers of raw emotion wedged tightly between drawn out speeches on whatever the blog topic of the week may be. She is hurt and isolated from the world just as much as she is tuned-in and connected through the media. Her cries for help are layered in snark but they are there and the tragedy is not that few people hear them, but that Jeane cannot help herself deflecting the very soul-to-soul connections she craves so much.
Sara Manning's writing is hilarious. Like, actual LOL material. I like that not everything laid out is what they seem. We see through Jeane's eyes and we see through Micheal's eyes and I'm glad to find a difference. It only makes the characters more believable because aren't we all delusional in the way we view things sometimes? Because surprise, the pretty bitch Scarlett of Jeane is really the shy, insecure Scarlett of Micheal. Emotions get in the way and sometimes we are harsh in our judgements. I love that Jeane had petty, jealous thoughts. But for all her faults, Jeane is most definitely not a Mary Sue. That, at the moment, is an achievement.
Adorkable has flaws, quite a few of them. But for this particular book, I'm going to go with a good book is anything that moves you. So screw all the negative ways Adorkable can be dissected and criticized. I liked it, alright?
This review also appears on The Midnight Garden. An advance copy was provided by the publisher.
---
It is all that and a bag of Cheetos.
Review to come.
carladionisio's review against another edition
2.0
This book ended up not being as bad as I thought it would be in the beginning – which is kind of a good thing, right? I didn't like the main characters, neither Jeane nor Micheal (well, I thought Micheal’s little sisters were really cute and adorable!)
I had some expectations about this book (all because of its title, to be honest. I kind of like the word “adorkable” and it kind of means a lot to me. It was such a promising title.) It’s not like it had disappointed me, it’s just... a meh book.
I like the message in the end, though: you should embrace who you are no matter what. Dorky, nerdy, crazy, geeky, weird - it’s okay to be all that and more, because we’re all made of awesome in our own way.
I had some expectations about this book (all because of its title, to be honest. I kind of like the word “adorkable” and it kind of means a lot to me. It was such a promising title.) It’s not like it had disappointed me, it’s just... a meh book.
I like the message in the end, though: you should embrace who you are no matter what. Dorky, nerdy, crazy, geeky, weird - it’s okay to be all that and more, because we’re all made of awesome in our own way.