Perfect You

This is my first book written by Elizabeth Scott, and I enjoyed it so much I will be reading more! The main character is realistic in that she is flawed and not perfect in any means. Her life is not in a happy spot when the book begins, and it seems to be spiraling downward still with little ups and downs. She is definitely a glass half-empty person, and cannot yet see the world too far beyond her and her life. There are moments when she has growth, which is realistic for a sixteen year old. The author does a good job with the other characters, as well. I especially enjoyed the mother and grandmother. Will, also, is an extremely likable lead male character who is a great balance to Kate. I picked up the book thinking I would read a page or two before going to bed, and ended up reading the whole thing. The writing is easy to follow and understand. Conversation between the characters flowed very well. There was nothing I would add or want to take-away from the story. For what this lovely book was, I would round up my 4.5 rating to a 5. This story deals with some heavier issues of friends and family without becoming too depressing or hard to get through by having laughs and triumphs, too. I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a contemporary high school romance/teen/ya novel that is serious, but has plenty of smile moments and is fun.

Elizabeth Scott's second novel is just as poignant and addictive to read as her well-reviewed debut, BLOOM --- perhaps even more so. In the year since BLOOM's publication, Scott has clearly honed her skills, crafting a tighter story that fluently captures the anxieties of talking to (let alone trusting) a first crush, the self-deprecation and anguish of losing a best friend, and the bemusement that comes with having to parent...your parents. But what does all of this have to do with vitamins? It all started when Kate's father quit his job at a prestigious software company because his desk had broken in half. He figured it was a sign. Not even a month later, he cashed in his retirement fund to purchase boxes full of infomercial vitamins called "Perfect You." His plan? To buy a booth at the mall and sell them to anyone who would take the bait --- with Kate's help, of course. So instead of going to parties with her friends and cheering for her boyfriend on the basketball team, Kate is stuck trying to hide her mortification when her father wears his B-Buzz vitamin bee costume during her shift, or worse yet, when he gets thrown out of the Sports Shack for pushing vitamins on their customers. But wait. Kate doesn't have a boyfriend. Nor does she have any friends aside from the three Jennifers who are so busy competing to be each other's best friend that they barely notice her. Granted, Kate's life hadn't always been so terrible. Prior to her sophomore year, she spent every waking second with her best friend, Anna, who never seemed to care what anyone else thought --- at least not until hunky Sam, the boy Anna had been in love with for forever, called her a "wide load." After that, everything changed. Anna came back from her summer in Maine, determined to be a different person. She was blonde, 70 pounds thinner and suddenly popular, which, of course, meant No More Kate. So for the first few months of 10th grade, Kate spends every day alone --- that is, until Sam's cute friend, Will, kisses her behind the dumpsters at the mall. In the chapters that follow, Kate bumbles through a series of crushing setbacks (Anna delivers one too many blows to her dwindling self-worth, her parents separate due to her father's seemingly endless mid-life crisis, Will asks her out on a date --- to humiliate her?) before ultimately crumbling in defeat. But, as those who liked Scott's first novel are aware, Kate's story is far from over despite the trauma she has endured, and readers will breeze through the last few chapters with genuine pleasure. PERFECT YOU has just the right combination of humor, charm and weight to satisfy old fans and win over new ones. Its rich characters --- especially haughty but wise Grandma --- are brimming with quirky idiosyncrasies meant to both irritate and please. Like in BLOOM, Scott navigates familial dysfunction and teen melodrama with aplomb, and teens will eat up what develops when Kate and Will finally "get real" at the end. --

Kate Brown is having a rough year. Her dad decided to quit his job to sell Prefect You infomercial vitamins in the mall, her best friend is too popular to talk to her and Will won't leave her alone. Put all of that together and you have a lethal combination. Kate is struggling with having to work in the mall, for free, with her dad who loves to embarass her. Then, there's also the fact that she can't stop thinking about Will, even though he's out of her league. She also has a college graduate brother that still lives at home and can't get a real job. Can Kate handle what's happening to her family? Can she handle not having a best friend anymore? Or better yet, can she forget about Will? With Kate's vivid, swanky attitude and Will's charming wit, this book is defintaly a hit. With each turning page, you will see style and grace in Elizabeth Scott's writing. You feel for Kate as she goes through the trials and tribulations of teen years. You will cry with her as her family starts to fall apart, as well as the relationship with her best friend, Anna. You will root for her to overcome and wish she could have her best friend at her side. And eventually you will figure out Will's intentions. This book is well written and a must read. [...]

Kate's sophomore year hasn't been the best so far. Her only close friend has stopped speaking her after she lost 90 pounds and made friends with the popular crowd. Her father quits his job to sell cheesy, overpriced vitamins, and money is so tight that her wealthy nightmare of a grandmother moves in, causing even more tension at home. Her whole life seems to be falling apart around her, but strangely enough, obnoxious Will Miller seems to be paying quite a lot of attention to Kate. But is he looking for an actual relationship or just another meaningless hook-up for which he is notorious for? Here is a novel full of loyalty, laughter, anger, and tears. Every sort of insecure feeling that you've ever felt is artfully channeled through Perfect You in such a way that each and every reader can make an instant connection with Kate. Her fears, hopes, and expectations are tangible and are those that you can easily empathize with, making her triumphs over each insecurity all the more satisfying. Scott's portrayal of first love is confusing, exhilarating, and refreshing, and readers will delight in the verbal sparring between Kate and Will as they try to find a happy medium. This is the type of novel that will cause you to smile just as quickly as it will make you sad. Wholesome and substantial, Perfect You is as real as it gets.

PERFECT YOU by Elizabeth Scott is the perfect book. When I started reading I wondered how I could ever relate to Kate, whose life was spinning out of control when her Dad quit his job to try and sell vitamins in a mall. As her life crumbles and evaporates- her best friend no longer speaks to her, her family is dysfunctional at best, her home is slipping away- she is beset with doubts and pursued by a guy who might just be a player. During this collapse of all she held near and dear - we begin to see her strength. She is afraid of living her life as it has become and she longs for normalcy- and instead gains such an insight into herself and her friends that we have to rejoice. The ending is clever and a gifted concept. I truly loved this book. It is well written and funny and quirky. I feel we, the reader, should learn something about ourselves, our relationships and the realities of life from every book we read. This book delivers. Yes I cried, my friends know I do that a lot, I laughed, and I thought of how I can be a better friend and eventually a better girlfriend. There is not a word of this book I would have changed and I highly recommend it.