Review - Sloppy Firsts by Megan McCafferty

Published by Random House
Published on 28 August 2001

When her best friend, Hope Weaver, moves away from Pineville, New Jersey, hyperobservant sixteen-year-old Jessica Darling is devastated. A fish out of water at school and a stranger at home, Jessica feels more lost than ever now that the only person with whom she could really communicate has gone. How is she supposed to deal with the boy- and shopping-crazy girls at school, her dad’s obsession with her track meets, her mother salivating over big sister Bethany’s lavish wedding, and her nonexistent love life?

A fresh, funny, utterly compelling fiction debut by first-time novelist Megan McCafferty, Sloppy Firsts is an insightful, true-to-life look at Jessica’s predicament as she embarks on another year of teenage torment--from the dark days of Hope’s departure through her months as a type-A personality turned insomniac to her completely mixed-up feelings about Marcus Flutie, the intelligent and mysterious “Dreg” who works his way into her heart.

Jessica Darling is fast becoming one of my all time favourite YA protagonists.  Wrote in the style of a journal and monthly letters to her best friend Hope, you get a sneak preview into the life of a teenager who refuses in the slightest to conform to what others deem acceptable, and the struggles of dealing with the departure of the only friend you think will ever understand you.  

I loved Jessica as a character.  She is cynical, intelligent and has bucket loads of wit, her observations of her peers and her family made me giggle hysterically.  Sprinkled with sarcastic comments that hit close to home and make you nostalgic for your teenage years.  The way she was written made her easily relatable, her story is probably one that is utterly universal that it will appeal to all ages.  

As with most teens, Jessica feels mis-understood.  Oh the days when I thought the whole world was against me and no one would ever ever understand me.  This is what got me.  This was my own personal hook, along with her fascination with all things eighties.  The eighties pop culture references made me happy.

The writing is fast paced, comical and unlike any other author I have read.  The characters were not two dimensional, even the secondary characters staked their own claim in the story, never feeling like they were used to just flesh out chapters.  No, every character was real and complex.  Ahhhhh, Marcus Flutie.  The resident Dreg.  His painful honesty, his enigmatic nature and his gorgeous eyes *sigh*.  It's like quote so not cool to be having like weird sex dreams about like the school dreg unquote.  See this here, the dialogue, crap, even writing that line made me laugh like a lunatic. 

At the moment, I feel like i've turned up to a fancy dress party in an outrageous outfit, only to find everyone else is in their dapper evening wear.  How could I have not read this book before now, where have I been?!  For those of you who haven't jumped on the Jessica Darling train, then what are you waiting for?  This is one of those books thats just infused with the heart of a teenager.  You would be a fool to miss it.