Tuesday, March 24, 2015

The List by Siobhan Vivian

The List by Siobhan Vivian
Published: April 1, 2010
Publisher: Push

Synopsis: An intense look at the rules of high school attraction -- and the price that's paid for them.

It happens every year. A list is posted, and one girl from each grade is chosen as the prettiest, and another is chosen as the ugliest. Nobody knows who makes the list. It almost doesn't matter. The damage is done the minute it goes up.

This is the story of eight girls, freshman to senior, "pretty" and "ugly." And it's also the story of how we see ourselves, and how other people see us, and the tangled connection of the two. 
****
I don’t have words to describe this book. It’s very different from a lot of YA books. The List is, obviously a … list, which gets posted all over the school of the week of homecoming. This book is written in not just two or three or four, but in eight points of view. It follows the eight girls who are in the list. 

Abby: a freshman who doesn’t really care for her school. She’s happy when she was named the prettiest girl from her grade. To be honest, I didn’t really care for her; she’s kind of a brat. However, it was very sad to read about her relationship with her sister, Fern, who is completely the opposite of Abby. 

Danielle: another freshman, but she’s named the ugliest girl from her grade. I really liked Danielle. She’s passionate about swimming and really cares about her boyfriend, Andrew. But when the list posted called her “Dan the Man,” everything changed between them. His friends started to tease him and humiliate her, but Andrew never stood up for her. 

Lauren: a sophomore, and the prettiest. Lauren was homeschooled her whole life, and she’s pleased when become popular so fast. This girl is adorable. She’s has no clue whatsoever about the world of high school; extremely naïve and really sweet. 

Candace: also a sophomore, and the ugliest. Now Candace isn’t ugly, she’s actually very pretty, and when she found out, she thought it was a joke. Why wouldn’t she, right? It’s not fair to name the pretty girl ugly, right? Right! But the person who made the list didn’t see her from the outside; they saw her from the inside. And Candace is one mean girl in the inside. Despite the list, I actually like her. She’s isn’t that mean. She doesn’t show it but she’s sweet. But, of course, she has her time when she’s nasty, but sometimes aren’t we all a little bit nasty? 

Bridget: a junior, and pretty. From all these girls, Bridget’s life is the one that really scared me. She doesn’t eat. Period. She wants to eat but she doesn’t let herself eat. It was shocking for me to learn that one thing--an article of clothing--can change a girl’s life forever, and the change is NOT always good. 

Sarah: a junior, and the ugliest. Sarah is the outcast, and I don’t think she even want to fit in. She has one friend/boyfriend (I’m not sure what he is to her), Milo. Finding out she was put the ugliest in her grade was hurtful. Instead of crying or feeling sad for herself or letting Milo comfort her, she rebelled. And her rebel idea is gross. From all the girls’ stories, I looked forward to Sarah’s and Milo’s. They really cared for each other, and when Milo shows his feeling, Sarah wasn’t willing. I liked her development in the book. A lot. It was nice.

Last but not certainly the least, the two seniors: Margo, the prettiest, and Jennifer, the ugliest. I didn’t like two of them; I hated them. I’m not going to say more about this two more than that I despise them. 

Overall, it was an okay book. I liked how different it is from other YA books out there. 


Rating: 3/5 (Recommend it, but borrow it)

1 comment:

  1. 8 people! That's a lot of characters to follow! This book sounds kind of interesting! Maybe I'll take your advice and borrow it one day! Lol!

    Pearl @ AsteriskPearl's Book Blog

    ReplyDelete