A Totally Awkward Love Story

February 15, 2016
Two teens on the cusp of adulthood find love in this British import. Hannah and Sam have both finished their exams and are looking forward to spending their last summer before university with friends and pursuing the opposite sex. Hannah aims to lose her virginity with Freddie, an acceptably handsome classmate. Sam has spent the last year investing in a relationship that's gone bust. Sam doesn't really know what to expect when his friends drag him to a party to celebrate the end of their exams. This party is where Hannah plans to hook up with Freddie, but circumstance puts Sam and Hannah in the same room, and thus begins a cumbersome courtship. In alternating first-person narration, the two move in and out of each other's lives for the next few months, the authors taking great delight in bringing them together only to pull them apart again. Hannah's perspective gives the book an emotional backbone with her evolving relationships with her circle of friends. Sam's provides most of the novel's humor, with welcome respites from Hannah's emotionally draining passages. The novel captures teen angst and lust, but it's also funny, with some genuine laugh-out-loud moments. Both teens are white, judging by the amusing jacket art that sets the tone for the lightly Americanized text. An engaging and endearing story of what it is to find your place in the world and a person to share it with. (Romance. 13-17)

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April 1, 2016

Gr 10 Up-A fun romantic comedy set in the UK featuring teens who keep missing a true connection. School is over, and Hannah is looking forward to university in the fall, but first, she needs to get rid of that pesky virginity thing she's been carrying around for her whole life. Her trio of friends encourage her to choose Freddie, but she knows in her heart that he's just not "the one." Regardless, Hannah goes through a totally embarrassing and painful waxing and readies herself for the big night, only to unexpectedly meet "the one" in the purple bathroom at the big party. Immediately, both teens know that this is it-but they don't have the chance to exchange names, and poor Sam becomes "Toilet Boy" in Hannah's head. Chance encounters over the next few weeks are full of misunderstandings and complications. While the plot is formulaic, the main characters are anything but. Hannah is quirky, insecure, and deep, while Sam is sensitive, impulsive, and frustrated. A little bit raunchy with frank sexual discussion, this title will be a big hit with older teens. VERDICT This surprisingly smooth, well-crafted, and enjoyable dual-narrative rom-com should be added to collections looking to expand their YA romance offerings.-Susan Riley, Mamaroneck Public Library, NY

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March 15, 2016
Grades 10-1 British teens Hannah and Sam are desperate to rid themselves of their pesky virginities. Each is one of the last of their respective friends to be deflowered, and each is anxious to get it done before heading to university in the fall. Neither one has particular qualms about waiting for The One, but when they meet in the bathroom of a party, the sparks that fly are undeniable. Still, the course of true love never runs smoothly, and circumstances turn this chance encounter into a farcical comedy of errors that includes a large cast of secondary characters, an outdoor music festival, and more than a few weird (often dryly explicit) sexual encounters. Told in Hannah's and Sam's alternating perspectives, this is at times over the top, although the dramatics certainly add to the fun. American readers will need to adjust to the cultural differences, but this is raunchy, irreverent slapstick in the vein of Louise Rennison's Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogging (2000) and is likely to attract a similar audience.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)