I liked the premise: who wouldnt? Especially when Gigi, Bea, Neerja and Sarah Strohmeyer can convince me that they truly are smart (young) women who also think about typical adolescent things.

But then I started noticing the weaknesses. The exposition that takes up nearly a third of the book before any forward action seems to happen. The fact that I couldnt distinguish between the three friends, despite the fact that the book is told from Gigis first-person point of view. Then the moment when I discover its inspired by Pride and Prejudice is usually a moment that feels me with giddiness, but in this case I couldnt bring myself to care all that much. In the long run, SMART GIRLS GET WHAT THEY WANT didnt add anything indispensible to the YA contemporary field, not when it seemed to have the potential to really be a 21st-century YA Jane Austen and not just an Austen wannabe. And that makes it hard for me to recommend this.

Share/Like this Review?

Summary:
Gigi, Neerja, and Bea have been friends forever. They are entering into their sophomore year of high school with one thing on their minds, get noticed/involved. The dream of being the smart girl that goes through high school and then makes it into a college where they are finally are understood had previously kept them going, but after stumbling across Neerja's sister's yearbook that was almost completely blank of signatures, the girls need something more than just studying hard and getting great grades. This year they are going to keep those grades up and make the best of their high school year. This includes Gigi getting over her fear of public speaking and running for student rep, Neerja playing around in drama, and Bea slipping into the ski club. Of course, this also involves boys, several very cute boys!
My Opinion:
I liked this book. It wasn't something that I could not put down, but I enjoyed reading it as I was reading. I really love good girlfriend tales. I love it when a strong bond between girls is made and they don't spend the novel bickering at one another, trying to steal boyfriends, or trying to sabotage one another. This is a great book for that sisterly bond we love to see in high school girls. The three stick together through everything. They always have each other's backs and don't give up a girlfriend for the cute boy(friend). It's refreshing to see girls that don't only revolve around the boys that are in their lives. I also like that they go about getting noticed in positive ways. They aren't trying to be better than everyone else. There really isn't a lot of competition throughout the book. The girls keep their grades up while also involving themselves in outside activities. Basically, the best part of this book is the friendship. It's a good lesson that I hope more girls pay attention to.

Share/Like this Review?