Crystal Maldonado

While, at 57, I found myself rolling my eyes at some parts of this book - at times, Charlie played the victim a bit too much, IMO - I have no doubt that I would have loved it when I was in high school. I didn't think the conflict with the mother was really resolved. I'd have liked to know more about why she acted the way she did toward Charlie, particularly after having been heavy herself and having what appeared to be a happy, successful marriage. Something there didn't quite compute for me. But I appreciated that Cal didn't try to publicly humiliate Charlie, which was the obvious trope and where I thought it was going. And I definitely appreciated the diversity. I thought that the lesson Charlie learned was a valuable one. This was a decent read.… (mehr)

Digital audiobook performed by Carla Vega

From the book jacket: Charlie Vega is a lot of things. Smart. Funny. Artistic. Ambitious. Fat. People sometimes have a problem with that last one. Especially her mom. Charlie wants a good relationship with her body, but it's hard, and her mom leaving a billion weight loss shakes on her dresser doesn't help. The world and everyone in it have ideas about what she should look like: thinner, lighter, slimmer-faced, straighter-haired. Be smaller. Be whiter. Be quieter.

My reactions
This is a wonderful coming-of-age story that deals with body image, friendship, parent/child relationships, and societal expectations. Charlie is a strong young woman, mostly sure of herself, though plagued with self-doubt (as are most teenagers). Her feelings of inadequacy are compounded by media messages that “thin is in.” Thank heavens she has a great best friend, Amelia. And now a cute guy, Brian, seems to be interested in her, so things are looking up. But first love is rarely ever a smooth road.

It's how Charlie deals with the bumps in the road that really endears her to me. She’s smart, funny, kind, loyal and determined. I liked how Maldonado treated this first romance, and how the teens dealt with expectations, whether those of friends, each other, parents, teachers, or their own. And I really liked how Charlie found a way to shine and show her considerable talent.

Carla Vega does a wonderful job of narrating the audiobook. She really brought Charlie to life for me.… (mehr)