barbara the slut and other people. lauren holmes. (321)

i decided to read barbara the slut and other people, after seeing it all over instagram. also, i loved that the cover had slut in hot pink sprayed painted across it.  it looked a feminist manifesto!  and since i judge books by a cover, i had high expectations, and sadly this collection of short stories did not meet them.

i hate to be mean because holmes is a published writer and i am just some no name reader, but these stories didn't move me like the blurbs on the books claimed would happen.  i felt as if i was part of some writers workshop (see:  hbo girls season four). in fact, it was as if holmes was hannah, basically just writing her life.  don't get me wrong, i mean i get that all authors use their life as a basis for the life, but at least there seems to be some value other than just the story.  

barbara the slut read like that one co-worker's random life stories, it was interesting to her, but you are wondering as you listen to the recounting, so what is the point of this story?!??  and i know this sounds harsh, but i just felt the stories lacked any real depth.  it really felt like she just took incidents from her life and turned them into stories, which is fine, but just wasn't for me.  i mean i have always thought of doing just that but always figured the stories that no one else would find them interesting. 

i should also say that not all the stories are horrible, i did enjoy two of them.  the title story "barbara the slut" should be required reading for high school girls, though maybe edit out barbara's logic about sleeping with a guy only once to have to not deal with trust issues.  i should add that was a huge issue i had with the story, barbara was intelligent and a compassionate kid (she was helpful with her autistic brother), yet her logic about sex was horrible.  anyway, i did appreciate its lesson on slut shaming, mean girls need to read this and realize they need to stop hating on other girls.  and why can't they get that boys lie?!?! anyway, i felt bad for barbara, but luckily she was heading to college, so wouldn't have to deal with any of the pettiness of high school, though i hope she learned that sex with trust is a real thing.

another story, i was surprised that i really enjoyed was "my humans".  i was surprised, because i do not like dogs, but i loved reading a story from the perspective of a dog.  i thought that was very clever.  way to go, holmes.  i also loved that the dog discovered the cheating first, when jenna came home smelling different.  i have to add once a cheater, always a cheater.

a couple of other thoughts, that kid in "jerks" was a real jerk.  i also hate parents that are in denial about their kids being horrible.  though the mother in that story was a jerk, so its only logical that she was raising one.  i can add another horrible parent was the mom in  "i will crawl to raleigh if i have to", trying to blame her child's stealing on another kid.  really?  i have to add most of these stories had bad mothers, wonder what holmes is trying to say there?

last but not least, i know i should have been all about "desert hearts", a lawyer that gives up the corporate world to work in a sex shop posing as lesbian.  i mean i guess it could have been cool, but really i think the world has revolved enough that straight people can work in LGBT sex shops without it being an issue.  i mean, this would have been a cool story if it was like the early 90s.

i hate to be a hater, but though enjoyable this book wasn't as exciting as it's front cover claimed it would be.

everything leads to you. nina lacour. (215)

i can't remember how i first heard about nina lacour's everything leads to you. i searched flavorpill and the huffington post websites.  i even went over all the facebook pages i like, book riot, penguin paperback, random house, but could not find anything.  i finally decided upon penguin's first to read program. i must have read a blurb and decided to check it out.  i stressed out about how i found it because initially i hated it.  i hated it so much that i stopped about 60 pages in and decided to return it.  i couldn't do it, it was just so horrible.  i even planned writing about how much i did not enjoy it.  but i gave it a second chance and it turned out to be okay.  extremely predictable and cleaned up too nicely but then again it is a young adult novel.

i hate to come across like some book snob like ya novels should not be read about adults, i read ya novels all the time.  the issue that i had with this novel was that characters did not seem their age.  the situations they were in did not seem plausible for high school students.  i mean the main character emi and charlotte are intern for movies which would be more of a college thing.  it is addressed way later in the book that she started off in job via her brother but still it made no sense initially.  it would have made more sense if they were college students (even first years would have made more sense) versus high school seniors.  i felt like they were placed in high school simply so it would qualify for a ya novel.  so this judgement which occurred early on made it difficult for me to get into the book.

secondly, emi being naive and silly when it came to love.  i mean i can barely handle love in adult novels so i having to read about a high school senior being taken advantage of by her older ex didn't feel like my cup of tea.  i also couldn't take emi seriously due to it.  i mean i get that part of the plot is her growth in terms of understanding love but still teeny bopper romance not my thing.  though i will add kudos for lacour having emi be a lesbian.

thirdly, not that i ever been in the movie industry but all of that seemed far fetch too.  their jobs just seemed too perfect.  i mean the occurrence that starts off the story was so unrealistic.  also regardless of how much money their boss spent a record and belt buckle would have never just been given away like that.  i have seen enough of pawn stars to know that that buckle was more valuable esp since if was in a movies.   and also i just felt for being so young they had so much responsibility.  

the first 60 pages all i could think was, this would never happen in real life.  i am not sure what came over me but i decided to finish this book.  and it turned out to not be that bad.  i mean it was pretty predictable but it was sweet.

the story starts off with two friends, emi and charlotte, discover a letter written by deceased hollywood icon, clyde jones, in a record from his estate sale.  they decided to return the letter to the addressee.  they then discover that jones had a secret daughter.  however his daughter died so they go in search of his granddaughter. 

they find her ava, who is beautiful and a struggling actress.  they help her learn more about her past and help her come into her fortune.  emi also became a production designer for a movie which ava gets the lead!  and then emi and ava fall in love!  oh and toby and charlotte admit love for each other.  it all cleans up so nicely in the end just like a hollywood movie!!

i am being sarcastic now but high school senior me would have problem loved this.  i mean i did read nicholas sparks back then.

i should add that part of the reason i wanted to finish it was because  everything leads to you is set in los angeles.  i love reading about la.  and though i loved la as its backdrop, it was obvious the author was not a la native (the back flap said she is a norcal girl.) first of all, she spelled silverlake as silver lake.  and seriously everyone was way too willing to drive around everywhere.  i mean for morgan to just zip up to pasadena like that from what i am is assuming weho (actually where do lesbian brunch) okay maybe echo park seemed like a lot.  though it was work-related.  but la drivers hate actually having to drive outside of their neighborhoods.  also driving out to the deserts means driving out on the 10 to palm springs.  driving up the 405

to leona valley would be driving up the 405 to leona valley.  but the directions to the bev center was correct! 

all in all, an enjoyable read if you are 16.  if you aren't find something else to read.