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lorien13's review
3.0
Definitely not a favorite, but it was okay. Sunny really is whiny, and I can see why people don't like her. Although it's hard not to when one parent is fading away, while the other takes his pain out on her. And everyone else he can.
I'm sad that Dawn and Sunny sit and judge each other instead of talking. I know they're fine by #12, though, so they'll be okay. Once they give instead of expecting to receive.
I'm sad that Dawn and Sunny sit and judge each other instead of talking. I know they're fine by #12, though, so they'll be okay. Once they give instead of expecting to receive.
jilliannewrites's review
5.0
I read this book multiple times growing up and it still amazes me how a writer can go from the bubbly Baby-Sitters Club series to a dark and mature book like this one. Sunny is on her way into a downward spiral and she gets as down and dirty one can go in a tween-aimed novel. Well written, shocking and heart-wrenching, it's a great read.
(Side note: As crazy as this sounds, I changed my own handwriting after reading this. Took me about a year, but that's just how I write now.)
(Side note: As crazy as this sounds, I changed my own handwriting after reading this. Took me about a year, but that's just how I write now.)
finesilkflower's review
5.0
Sunny and Dawn trade moms.
During her mother's long illness, Sunny's been spending a lot of time at Dawn's, and tensions are running high between the two longtime best friends. Sunny doesn't see why Dawn is so resentful of her freewheeling young pregnant stepmother, Carol; Sunny thinks she's fun. Meanwhile, Dawn is lovingly and consistently visiting Sunny's mother in the hospital, and she's disgusted that Sunny, her own daughter, is too busy running around with her multiple boyfriends to do the same. Sunny is lauded as a hero after getting Carol to help when she collapses on a mall trip.
This entry in the California Diaries series hits all the right emotional marks, and the plot is well-constructed, with a natural cascade of cause and effect. I don't have... any... complaints!
The Ambiguously Gay Ducky: "A guy who likes shopping," Sunny marvels in her diary after Ducky helps her pick the perfect date outfit at the mall. "It's almost like he climbs inside my brain. I don't know why I don't just go out with him. Yes, I do. It would ruin the friendship. Besides, Ducky's not my type. For a boyfriend." You are not his either, Sunshine.
Timing: March 13 to April 9
Revised Timeline: We're approaching the one-year mark of the characters' graduation from college. They should be around 23 now, with Ducky about 26. Most of this book concerns fairly universal, age-agnostic concerns, including dying parents, friendship, dating, and responsibility.
During her mother's long illness, Sunny's been spending a lot of time at Dawn's, and tensions are running high between the two longtime best friends. Sunny doesn't see why Dawn is so resentful of her freewheeling young pregnant stepmother, Carol; Sunny thinks she's fun. Meanwhile, Dawn is lovingly and consistently visiting Sunny's mother in the hospital, and she's disgusted that Sunny, her own daughter, is too busy running around with her multiple boyfriends to do the same. Sunny is lauded as a hero after getting Carol to help when she collapses on a mall trip.
Spoiler
Carol is put on bedrest, and Sunny later jeopardizes the lives she arguably saved by almost letting the house burn down while she is ogling boys. Deeply ashamed, Sunny manages to take a few steps toward patching things up with Carol and Dawn's dad--though they say they're deeply disappointed and she'll need to work to regain their trust--but Dawn isn't so quick to forgive. The friendship is blown apart in a giant fight. In a touching and heartbreaking scene at the end, Sunny visits her mom and we see that it is harder for her than for Dawn: to Dawn, visiting is a simple good deed for a neighbor; to Sunny, it's a matter of watching her mother fade in front of her eyes.This entry in the California Diaries series hits all the right emotional marks, and the plot is well-constructed, with a natural cascade of cause and effect. I don't have... any... complaints!
The Ambiguously Gay Ducky: "A guy who likes shopping," Sunny marvels in her diary after Ducky helps her pick the perfect date outfit at the mall. "It's almost like he climbs inside my brain. I don't know why I don't just go out with him. Yes, I do. It would ruin the friendship. Besides, Ducky's not my type. For a boyfriend." You are not his either, Sunshine.
Timing: March 13 to April 9
Revised Timeline: We're approaching the one-year mark of the characters' graduation from college. They should be around 23 now, with Ducky about 26. Most of this book concerns fairly universal, age-agnostic concerns, including dying parents, friendship, dating, and responsibility.
sammah's review
3.0
I feel like Sunny is really, really selfish. Though I also realize that she's 13 years old, and that her reactions are fairly realistic. Some people deal with grief by lashing out, doing insane things, falling apart and being in denial. The sickening part about this one is that she has several adults in her life, including her father and the Schafer parents, but nobody tunes into any of this. She's skipping school, going out with guys who are much to old for her, piercing parts of her body without permission, and all sorts of other things and nobody bats an eye. Somebody should have perhaps noticed this and DONE SOMETHING?
xtinamorse's review
Read my recap at A Year with the BSC via Stoneybrook Forever: www.livethemovies.com/bsc-blog/california-diaries-6-sunny
xeni's review
1.0
The California Diaries were interesting for me because I lived in California when I read them. Otherwise, they were boring, teenage drivel which held no interest for me. I didn't learn much from them... in fact I'd go so far as to say that they killed some of my brain cells. Lame. Not much else to say to them, really.
megggriffin's review
3.0
I read all three of Sunny's diaries again, probably for the first time since I was in 6th grade, in order to talk about this one on a podcast. I remember reading all of these back then, and how they affected me. Also not sure if these are considered middle grade or YA? They definitely shouldn't just be 13 eye roll.
Still, ready to talk about Sunny and her deffo need of T-H-E-R-A-P-Y.
Still, ready to talk about Sunny and her deffo need of T-H-E-R-A-P-Y.
debz57a52's review
1.0
This is part of the remedial reading program I teach, so I thought I'd pick it up and read through it. Immediately, I thought the diary structure, complete with a handwriting-type font, was inviting, but that's really where it stopped for me.
Although this is #2 in the Sunny series and #5 in the CA Diaries series, it seems to be a good stand-alone book. Sunny's having trouble with her mom in the hospital (with cancer), her dad becoming a workaholic at his book store, and her friends not making time for her. She's floating around in her life, full of anger and angst, completely self-absorbed and not willing to give other people a thought about the troubles they're shouldering as well. Plus, she's fairly boy crazy, jumping from one guy to the next every dozen pages, and not caring how the previous guy felt. By page 30, I was bored beyond tears, but I kept pushing through, hoping the end would offer some kind of resolution or a wake-up call about her selfishness. I was disappointed, but I imagine there's a better resolution at the end of her "story" in the last book of the series. Too bad I'm not willing to read any more.
Although this is #2 in the Sunny series and #5 in the CA Diaries series, it seems to be a good stand-alone book. Sunny's having trouble with her mom in the hospital (with cancer), her dad becoming a workaholic at his book store, and her friends not making time for her. She's floating around in her life, full of anger and angst, completely self-absorbed and not willing to give other people a thought about the troubles they're shouldering as well. Plus, she's fairly boy crazy, jumping from one guy to the next every dozen pages, and not caring how the previous guy felt. By page 30, I was bored beyond tears, but I kept pushing through, hoping the end would offer some kind of resolution or a wake-up call about her selfishness. I was disappointed, but I imagine there's a better resolution at the end of her "story" in the last book of the series. Too bad I'm not willing to read any more.
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