Book Review: The Boy Book

The Boy Book: A Study of Habits and Behaviors, Plus Techniques for Taming Them by E. Lockhart (a sequel to The Boyfriend List)

SUMMARY: Ruby, first introduced in The Boyfriend List, continues to narrate the events in her life at Tate Prep. Interspersed throughout the story are excerpts from The Boy Book: A Study of Habits and Behaviors, Plus Techniques for Taming Them, a journal written by the teen and her ex-friends in years past. Ruby is now in her junior year and discovering that there is life after a boyfriend breakup and the loss of previous friends for not following The Rules for Dating. She discovers that she can make new friends, reconnect with some of her old ones, and simply accept that some people are lost forever. The story is both humorous and witty, and the language is realistically raw. (from the School Library Journal review)

OPINION: It has been a while since I read The Boyfriend List, but it didn't take long before I was totally immersed this story. I read the whole book last night while I was supposed to be sleeping...something I don't do a whole lot since baby Nat arrived! But it was so much fun to read the hilarious entries from The Boy Book and to see how Ruby actually got some assertiveness and learned to cope with her issues. The footnotes of movies on various relationship topics made me laugh, too. The humorous tone of this book makes even therapy, break-ups, and rocky friendships seem OK.