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cosmo_junk's review
2.0
2.5, the writing didn't allow me to rly connect with the characters, as well as it having way too many outdated references even for 2017 standards (not the old music ones i mean like the justin bieber and facebook references in the first few pages). has gay rep which i love, and punk riot grrrl rep which i also adore. pretty entertaining overall but i zoned out near the end.
thais_reads's review
1.0
I had received this book as a gift and tried to read it 3 times but I just couldn't get through the first half of the book.
When Lizzie goes to college, she is separated from her friends, leaving her alone in a new school. When Lizzie meets Viv, a very beautiful lead singer in a band, she is asked to be apart of the band as the bass player. The problem is, she has no idea what to do. When Lizzie starts taking lessons from Viv's boyfriend, Lizzie can not stop looking at him and is instantly attracted to him. Lizzie Brown changes to Betty Brown but it isn't only her name that changes.
Personally I HATED this book. I'm going to try to not be harsh in this review but I'm definitely not going to sugar coat anything. I was looking forward to starting this book. I just felt like Lizzie changed COMPLETLEY. She acted sooo naïve for her age! I felt like her decisions were selfish and just wrong. I really did try to get through it but it was just SO painful that I had to DNF this book. Characters : a complete disaster, Plot: not well written whatsoever, Lizzie: ANNOYING!
I wouldn't really recommend this book. I felt like there was potential but it was just no. I mean if you like reading a book about a girl who changes herself completely and only thinks about herself, go ahead.
When Lizzie goes to college, she is separated from her friends, leaving her alone in a new school. When Lizzie meets Viv, a very beautiful lead singer in a band, she is asked to be apart of the band as the bass player. The problem is, she has no idea what to do. When Lizzie starts taking lessons from Viv's boyfriend, Lizzie can not stop looking at him and is instantly attracted to him. Lizzie Brown changes to Betty Brown but it isn't only her name that changes.
Personally I HATED this book. I'm going to try to not be harsh in this review but I'm definitely not going to sugar coat anything. I was looking forward to starting this book. I just felt like Lizzie changed COMPLETLEY. She acted sooo naïve for her age! I felt like her decisions were selfish and just wrong.
Spoiler
I mean wanting to make friends in a new school is one thing but ditching your old ones for no reason whatsoever and then stealing a girls ,who welcomed you, boyfriend is on another lever!I wouldn't really recommend this book. I felt like there was potential but it was just no. I mean if you like reading a book about a girl who changes herself completely and only thinks about herself, go ahead.
undervmountain's review
inspiring
fast-paced
5.0
I accidentally read two UK YA books about girls and bands at the same time, and luckily I loved them both. While Ice Cream & Indie Music is about a girl who's a roadie for a touring band before she leaves for college, this story takes place in Brighton, and is about a girl who finds her love for music while struggling with the traditional expectations of school.
It was really refreshing later in the story to see parents who didn't see school as the be all and end all, as it's really common in the UK to not go to college or university after high school. I think this showed the different dynamics of a toxic friendship and a wholesome friendship really well, and I loved Dirty Harriet almost instantly upon meeting them.
It was really refreshing later in the story to see parents who didn't see school as the be all and end all, as it's really common in the UK to not go to college or university after high school. I think this showed the different dynamics of a toxic friendship and a wholesome friendship really well, and I loved Dirty Harriet almost instantly upon meeting them.
elenacutillass's review
1.0
Estoy leyendo este libro porque me lo compré en el aeropuerto de malta por 3€ y dije: por qué no? Una lectura fresquita para el verano, pero madre mía. Me da pena decir esto porque soy consciente de que la autora le ha dedicado mucho tiempo de su vida pero es que por libros como este hay un desprecio hacia la literatura juvenil. De los peores libros que he leído.
bookish_me's review
1.0
I had received this book as a gift and tried to read it 3 times but I just couldn't get through the first half of the book.
When Lizzie goes to college, she is separated from her friends, leaving her alone in a new school. When Lizzie meets Viv, a very beautiful lead singer in a band, she is asked to be apart of the band as the bass player. The problem is, she has no idea what to do. When Lizzie starts taking lessons from Viv's boyfriend, Lizzie can not stop looking at him and is instantly attracted to him. Lizzie Brown changes to Betty Brown but it isn't only her name that changes.
Personally I HATED this book. I'm going to try to not be harsh in this review but I'm definitely not going to sugar coat anything. I was looking forward to starting this book. I just felt like Lizzie changed COMPLETLEY. She acted sooo naïve for her age! I felt like her decisions were selfish and just wrong. I really did try to get through it but it was just SO painful that I had to DNF this book. Characters : a complete disaster, Plot: not well written whatsoever, Lizzie: ANNOYING!
I wouldn't really recommend this book. I felt like there was potential but it was just no. I mean if you like reading a book about a girl who changes herself completely and only thinks about herself, go ahead.
When Lizzie goes to college, she is separated from her friends, leaving her alone in a new school. When Lizzie meets Viv, a very beautiful lead singer in a band, she is asked to be apart of the band as the bass player. The problem is, she has no idea what to do. When Lizzie starts taking lessons from Viv's boyfriend, Lizzie can not stop looking at him and is instantly attracted to him. Lizzie Brown changes to Betty Brown but it isn't only her name that changes.
Personally I HATED this book. I'm going to try to not be harsh in this review but I'm definitely not going to sugar coat anything. I was looking forward to starting this book. I just felt like Lizzie changed COMPLETLEY. She acted sooo naïve for her age! I felt like her decisions were selfish and just wrong.
Spoiler
I mean wanting to make friends in a new school is one thing but ditching your old ones for no reason whatsoever and then stealing a girls ,who welcomed you, boyfriend is on another lever!I wouldn't really recommend this book. I felt like there was potential but it was just no. I mean if you like reading a book about a girl who changes herself completely and only thinks about herself, go ahead.
rebecca_hedger's review
4.0
Full review here: https://beccasbookmark.wordpress.com/2018/03/19/becoming-betty-review/
I LOVED the music and band theme. I loved Lizzie, and seeing how she develops through the course of the story.
The detail was great - lots of little things that I related to, and the story tackled topics that are not mentioned enough in YA (periods and bikini line at the top of that list!).
My only issue was some of the characters weren't complex enough, you only got to see one side of them. I can't really explain this enough without spoiling it!
I LOVED the music and band theme. I loved Lizzie, and seeing how she develops through the course of the story.
The detail was great - lots of little things that I related to, and the story tackled topics that are not mentioned enough in YA (periods and bikini line at the top of that list!).
My only issue was some of the characters weren't complex enough, you only got to see one side of them. I can't really explain this enough without spoiling it!
thebankofbooks's review against another edition
3.0
Becoming Betty was an easy, fairly enjoyable read, full of music, friendship and finding yourself.
Admittedly, it was mostly predictable and often felt like it was trying a little too hard to be quirky, but I did find myself desperate to see things turn out well for Lizzie.
It was quite a fun read, and I would have absolutely adored reading it a few years back - in fact, I probably would have felt inspired. Yes, Lizzie loses her way a little amongst life with her new friend, but she also manages to explore a life she had never considered, a life she discovers that she really loves. After losing her self a little, she realises that being herself is enough, and she even finds exactly what she’s been searching for. It’s perfect for teens who are maybe feeling a little lost in life, and who need that reminder that their self is enough.
Had I read this a few years back, I would have rated this much higher, but I do feel it felt a little young for me now, and I couldn’t connect as much as I wish I did, but for anyone around 13-16, this book may be perfect for you!
Admittedly, it was mostly predictable and often felt like it was trying a little too hard to be quirky, but I did find myself desperate to see things turn out well for Lizzie.
It was quite a fun read, and I would have absolutely adored reading it a few years back - in fact, I probably would have felt inspired. Yes, Lizzie loses her way a little amongst life with her new friend, but she also manages to explore a life she had never considered, a life she discovers that she really loves. After losing her self a little, she realises that being herself is enough, and she even finds exactly what she’s been searching for. It’s perfect for teens who are maybe feeling a little lost in life, and who need that reminder that their self is enough.
Had I read this a few years back, I would have rated this much higher, but I do feel it felt a little young for me now, and I couldn’t connect as much as I wish I did, but for anyone around 13-16, this book may be perfect for you!
goldenbooksgirl's review against another edition
4.0
Equal parts hilarious and heart-warming, Becoming Betty tells the story of Lizzie Brown as she begins college and meets Viv, who convinces her to become the bass player in her new band so that they can enter a Battle of the Bands contest, despite Lizzie`s protests that she`s never played a note in her life. The characters were so well written; I adored Lizzie and the members of an opposing band Dirty Harriet, and loved to hate Viv, who I felt was incredibly manipulative and nasty. I also really enjoyed the ending as it felt perfect for the book. In short, this book is a lot of a fun, but also carries the important message that you shouldn`t change to please others, and I`d really recommend it to fans of authors such as Holly Bourne. 4.55/5
beyondthebig5's review against another edition
5.0
Eleanor Wood follows up her awesome debut My Secret Rockstar Boyfriend with another incredibly fun contemporary filled with amazing characters (including an appearance, in a small role, from Tuesday, star of her first book.) I adored Betty, the lead here, and this is a really warm and funny read which I raced through. In addition to being completely hilarious it's also a great look at the way friendships change, at a close family - I LOVED that the parents here played more of a part than in most YA novels - and at the different paths teens can choose after finishing Year 11. One of the best UKYA books of the year so far for me and Eleanor is one of my autobuy authors given how good both of her first two books have been.
kellysrambles's review against another edition
4.0
I’ve got to admit that until picking up this book ‘girlbandlit’ wasn’t really something that had crossed my path before. I can’t remember a book I’ve read that could compare to Becoming Betty and I thought it was a marvellous introduction to the world of band lit.
Becoming Betty truly embraces that teenage struggle of finding yourself. After leaving school with her GCSEs and starting afresh in college, Lizzie soon finds herself firmly under the wing of ‘cool’ girl Viv. It’s not long until Lizzie becomes Betty and loses touch with herself. Will she be able to find her way back to Lizzie?
I first have to address the fact that for almost 2/3’s of this book I really wasn’t sure how I felt. I really despise the trope of girls (in particular, but it can also be boys) changing themselves to be ‘cool’ by doing bad and detrimental things. I think it gives out such a negative vibe to young readers and I have to admit that I was concerned at where this book was going. Luckily Eleanor Wood saved the day in the final third of the book and I loved how this story turned out. I loved that by the end of this book Lizzie had found her true self and realised that she only ever needed to be herself to fit in and feel loved. The ending of this book was strong enough for me to add that fourth star to my rating!
I really, really, really loved Lizzie’s parents in this, particularly her dad. As someone who never really grew up around a supportive father I felt quite emotional at times because I longed for a dad like Lizzie has. He is so sweet and supportive and I loved all his little fangirling moments about various bands. Although there is a clear distance between Lizzie and her mother I liked how this felt realistic and by the end you could see that actually her mum just cares about her so much that sometimes it comes across in the wrong way to Lizzie. It was so refreshing to read a YA book where parents were so supportive and involved.
The characters in this book are SO well written and I have to give Eleanor Wood her due for that. I wanted to scoop Lizzie up in my arms and just give her a hug and tell her everything would be okay. I loved Lizzie so much and as a result absolutely despised most of what Betty was. Daisy and Jake seemed really fun and I liked the portrayal of Lizzie and Grace’s sibling relationship. Despite their differences they were deep down really supportive of each other and I appreciated that so much. Viv makes my skin crawl, maybe partially because she reminded me of someone that I know. I just couldn’t stand how manipulative and self-centred she was regardless of how it affected others. She was horrid. I’ve also decided that I would have SO loved to be best friends with the girls in Dirty Harriet, they sounded like a right laugh!
Overall I thought this was a great book and really well written. I loved the characters and the way their relationships were portrayed. It was also really cool to read a book with so many musical references and I definitely want to read more books like this in the future.
Becoming Betty truly embraces that teenage struggle of finding yourself. After leaving school with her GCSEs and starting afresh in college, Lizzie soon finds herself firmly under the wing of ‘cool’ girl Viv. It’s not long until Lizzie becomes Betty and loses touch with herself. Will she be able to find her way back to Lizzie?
I first have to address the fact that for almost 2/3’s of this book I really wasn’t sure how I felt. I really despise the trope of girls (in particular, but it can also be boys) changing themselves to be ‘cool’ by doing bad and detrimental things. I think it gives out such a negative vibe to young readers and I have to admit that I was concerned at where this book was going. Luckily Eleanor Wood saved the day in the final third of the book and I loved how this story turned out. I loved that by the end of this book Lizzie had found her true self and realised that she only ever needed to be herself to fit in and feel loved. The ending of this book was strong enough for me to add that fourth star to my rating!
I really, really, really loved Lizzie’s parents in this, particularly her dad. As someone who never really grew up around a supportive father I felt quite emotional at times because I longed for a dad like Lizzie has. He is so sweet and supportive and I loved all his little fangirling moments about various bands. Although there is a clear distance between Lizzie and her mother I liked how this felt realistic and by the end you could see that actually her mum just cares about her so much that sometimes it comes across in the wrong way to Lizzie. It was so refreshing to read a YA book where parents were so supportive and involved.
The characters in this book are SO well written and I have to give Eleanor Wood her due for that. I wanted to scoop Lizzie up in my arms and just give her a hug and tell her everything would be okay. I loved Lizzie so much and as a result absolutely despised most of what Betty was. Daisy and Jake seemed really fun and I liked the portrayal of Lizzie and Grace’s sibling relationship. Despite their differences they were deep down really supportive of each other and I appreciated that so much. Viv makes my skin crawl, maybe partially because she reminded me of someone that I know. I just couldn’t stand how manipulative and self-centred she was regardless of how it affected others. She was horrid. I’ve also decided that I would have SO loved to be best friends with the girls in Dirty Harriet, they sounded like a right laugh!
Overall I thought this was a great book and really well written. I loved the characters and the way their relationships were portrayed. It was also really cool to read a book with so many musical references and I definitely want to read more books like this in the future.
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