Della Says: OMG! by Keris Stainton (review copy) -
Della’s over the moon when she kisses her long-standing crush at a party – but then she discovers her diary has disappeared...
When scans of embarrassing pages are sent to her mobile and appear on Facebook, Della’s distraught – how can she enjoy her first proper romance when someone, somewhere, knows all her deepest, darkest secrets? From Amazon UK
I have had this book sitting on my TBR pile for such a long time, and I really regret not picking it up sooner. Della Says: OMG! Is such a sweet novel!
It's completely believeable, it's a situation any teenager who keeps a diary would die over. You can't help but feel for Della when she realises her diary is gone and excerpts start appearing - especially considering the type of entries that show up. Not only are they personal, but they are likely to cause friction between her and the people in her life, because of things written in anger or changing situations. In some ways, it reminded me of Good Girls by Laura Ruby - although the plots are slightly different, they both involve humiliation through the sharing of things that should have be kept private through new technology. I had the same jaw-dropping reaction to both over how mean people can be.
Although it was pretty bad, I found that Della's relationship with Dan, and the sub-plot of her best friend Maddy's own relationship problems, to be what I was interested in most. Was Dan really genuine? What was Maddy going to do? I think this book really says something about relationships, how the most unlikely of relationships might not be as rocky as you'd assume, and how the strongest of relationships might not be as strong as you think.
There are funny moments, sad moments, and moments of extreme embarrassment, but what I love is the change that came over Della as the story progressed. From the unsure, self-concious girl, to the one who is a lot more confident, Della's story really is wonderful to read. My only negative is that I felt it ended quite abruptly, but overall it was a really sweet, lovely quick read. It would be great for summer reading!
Thanks to Keris Stainton and Orchard for sending me a review copy.
Published: 6th May 2010
Publisher: Orchard
Buy on Amazon USKeris Stainton's website
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Jessie Hearts NYC by Keris Stainton (review copy) - Jessie's just arrived in New York, hoping to forget about her awful ex.
Years ago, when I started going out with the man who is now my husband, we arranged to meet at Green Park tube station. It was on the day that the clocks changed, so when he didn't arrive, I assumed he'd forgotten to adjust the time and would be an hour late. I sat on a wall and read a book and tried not to look like I'd been stood up. After an hour, when he still hadn't arrived, I assumed the worst, but decided to give him the benefit of the doubt for about 15 minutes (I know, but I really liked him). At pretty much the exact moment I'd decided to leave, he appeared. Green Park tube has two exits on opposite sides of the road. He'd been waiting - for, yes, an hour and 15 minutes - at the other exit, but INSIDE the station, which is why we couldn't see each other. This is the kind of thing that happened before mobile phones.
