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Book Review of I Love You, Beth Cooper

I Love You, Beth Cooper
thunderweasel avatar reviewed on + 147 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1


Poor Denis Cooverman. He practically worships high school classmate Beth Cooper, but he can't seem to rid of the obstacles (military ex-boyfriend, Cooper's bad driving, unintentional party crashing, a champagne cork, etc.) between them. His attempt to connect with the love of his life post-graduation leads him through one hell of a trip of self-discovery and "to-the-death beatings" at regular intervals.

Doyle's I Love You is unlike any other teen-lit novel, taking the ever-present teenage awkwardness of geeky future doctor Cooverman ("The Coove") and twisting it into an unforgettable tale involving the uncovering of Cooper's flaws and realness and figuring out whether best friend Rich Munsch is actually gay. Doesn't sound like much to fret over, but those two things alone lead him on a chase from Cooper's ex-boyfriend Kevin and his squadron, sowing wild oats along the way.

I Love You is absolutely hilarious with its frequent quips and sarcastic references; it's also relatable, pinpointing the particular moments in almost every teen's life that are pivotal and, well...kind of weird. Between the battle of the champagne cork and the police-escorting home, Cooverman, Munsch, Cooper and her two quite dumb friends use condoms as balloons, crash a Hummer through a house, break into their high school, break something around ten laws, get beaten up a number of times, fight back with food and canoe paddles, and somewhere in the midst of this, three of the said folks have a menage a trois that proves to research further whether Munsch is actually gay or not.

He still doesn't know.