Monday, March 30, 2009

My Big Nose and Other Natural Disasters by Sydney Salter

Amazon.com:

It’s the end of junior year, and summer is about to begin. The Summer of Passion, to be exact, when Jory Michaels plans to explore all the possibilities of the future--and, with any luck, score a boyfriend in the process. But Jory has a problem. A big problem. A curvy, honking, bumpy, problem in the form of her Super Schnozz, the one thing standing between Jory and happiness. And now, with the Summer of Passion stretched before her like an open road, she's determined for Super Schnozz to disappear. Jory takes a job delivering wedding cakes to save up for a nose job at the end of the summer; she even keeps a book filled with magazine cutouts of perfect noses to show the doctor. But nothing is ever easy for accident-prone Jory--and before she knows it, her Summer of Passion falls apart faster than the delivery van she crashes. In her hilarious and heartbreaking debut novel, Sydney Salter delivers a story about broadening your horizons, accepting yourself, and finding love right under your nose.

Oh my gosh did I have a good time reading this book! I couldn't get to the end fast enough! I think my favorite thing about this book was how many layers it had, for example not one potential love interest, or even two, but three! I mean yeah, I definitely knew who she would end up with but I liked having those few extra challenges for Jory to face! I like how the book mixed a fun summer, romance, learning about yourself, and body/self-esteem issues. It takes A LOT on and I think it does a pretty good job of balancing it all.

I love how we get to see Jory evolve over one summer and all the challenges she has to face. In particular I was really interested in reading about what could be considered a friendship betrayal, you'll have to read the book to see what I mean. I also loved seeing her accept others and realize it was ok to accept herself. This book was just great!

My only gripe with the book was that Jory made fun of herself, and particularly her nose a few too many times. Yes, I know that's part of the title etc but it just got to be a bit too much at times.

Overall a layered, humorous yet thoughtful look at finding yourself and being happy with what you see. I'd definitely recommend it!

My Big Nose and Other Natural Disasters is released on April 6th.

4.5/5 Stars
Review copy received from publisher

19 comments:

  1. Sounds fun - big noses should be embraced. Unless they are of Pinocchio-type proportions and then surgery is a must. Noses should never be a resting place for bird life.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I love the title of that book - I'm glad to see it lived up to it's potential.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Sounds fun! I'm going to have to stop reading your reviews, Alea, because you always make me want to read the book!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Wow, 4.5 stars! I didn't expect that much out of this book, but now I think I'll look into it some more. :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. I almost bought this book a week or so ago, lol. But I decided not to. I guess I may have to now...

    Great review!

    ReplyDelete
  6. such a cute cover too!

    ReplyDelete
  7. The cover alone grabs my interest. Its on my list!

    ReplyDelete
  8. The title alone gives the impression this would be a fun read. I am glad you enjoyed it, Alea. :-) It sounds like a fun book.

    ReplyDelete
  9. this book sounds really cute! I have read a few great reviews.

    ReplyDelete
  10. This book looks so good! And I love the cover!

    ReplyDelete
  11. This sounds really funny! Great review.

    Also reminds me of how Mallory in the BSC books was always complaining about how her parents were strict for not letting her get a nose job.

    ReplyDelete
  12. This sounds really good!
    Fantastic review!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Looks cute! Great review, Alea! And Bermudaonion, I agree: Love the title!

    ReplyDelete
  14. This was one of the books that I want to read. The title reminds me of The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things, another book that seems like a hilarious read.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Too self depreciating? BTW someone mentioned The Earth, My Butt and Other Big Round Things, which is super awesome.

    The cover of that book really freaks me out though ^_^

    ReplyDelete
  16. This book sounds super cute! I'll keep my eyes out for it.

    ReplyDelete
  17. The title reminds me of My Butt, and Other Big Round Things by Carolyn Mackler. I've never been crazy about my nose but I never wanted surgery!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Oh man, can I relate to the main character! As a child my nose looked big and bumpy! When the teacher left the room some of the other kids would draw a picture of my nose on the chalk board with stick people sking down it. No joke! I'd go home in tears. My parents told me that when I turned 16, I could get a nose job if I wanted. My older sister had one. By the time I was 16, my face was bigger so the nose was a bit more in proportion to it. My mom wanted me to get a nose job so I could be a model. LOL! I decided that peoplke would have to take me for who I am and if they couldn't that was their problem. Besides, I had the figure of a model but at 5'6", not the height.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Adele- LOL the main character doesn't like to lie for fear of that!

    Amee- LOL sorry!!!!!

    Teddy Rose- Oh my this is definitely the book for you!

    Thanks everyone!

    ReplyDelete

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...