Review: Adorkable by Sarra Manning

Adorkable by Sarra Manning
Published: May 24th, 2012 (ATOM)
Pages: 336
Source: for review
Challenge: none
Series: no
Buy the book: Bookdepository
Rating: ★★★★★


Jeane Smith is seventeen and has turned her self-styled dorkiness into an art form, a lifestyle choice and a profitable website and consultancy business. She writes a style column for a Japanese teen magazine and came number seven in The Guardian's 30 People Under 30 Who Are Changing The World. And yet, in spite of the accolades, hundreds of Internet friendships and a cool boyfriend, she feels inexplicably lonely, a situation made infinitely worse when Michael Lee, the most mass-market, popular and predictably all-rounded boy at school tells Jeane of his suspicion that Jeane's boyfriend is secretly seeing his girlfriend. Michael and Jeane have NOTHING in common - she is cool and individual; he is the golden boy in an Abercrombie & Fitch T-shirt. So why can't she stop talking to him?

I absolutely LOVED (yes, in capitals!) this book. It made me laugh, it made me sad, it had everything to make it an amazing contemporary, and it is - an awesome book.

Jeane is adorkable - a bit of a weirdo in her school of hipsters, as she walks around in mustard yellow tights and an assortment of weirdly combined patterns in her clothes, with her own Adorkable blog which has over a million followers. When the school's biggest hipster, Michael Lee, tells her about his suspicions that his girlfriend and her boyfriend are hitting on eachother, she dismisses it. But when he turns out to be right, everything happens really quickly. She hates everything about Michael Lee; his mohawk, his converses and his stupid Abercombie & Fitch shirt. But somehow, it's impossible to stay away.

I la-la-loved this book. Michael made for an amazing character who was able to lure Jeane out of her shell. Jeane, who appears to be a tough cookie, turns out not to be so touch and I loved seeing how she tried to deal with it, even though it was quite sad to witness. I loved how their relationship developed. They are total opposites, completely different and yet they are so perfect together.

Jeane was quite obnoxious in a couple of scenes, but it only made me love her more. She wasn't perfect. Not everything worked out the way she wanted. She had a hard time dealing with the fact that her entire family lives outside the country, even though she tried to hide it. When she finally gives in to her sadness, it's heartbreaking.

I cannot rave enough about this book. I don't know what I was expecting when I picked this one up, but whatever it was, it turned out to be better. It was absolutely fantastic, funny and touching and I can't wait to grab me a finished copy and experience Jeane's and Michael's story all over again.

ALL the stars for ADORKABLE! - And I have nothing to declare but my dorkiness. Amen.