Monday, February 2, 2009

Vegan Virgin Valentine by Carolyn Macker


Summary

Mara Valentine is the perfect straight A student senior, and in a close race with Travis Heart, her x-boyfriend, to become valedictorian. She is on the road to success and is accepted to Yale early. Her much older sister Aimee is a huge screw up that moves somewhere new every time she has a crazy idea for a new job or dream as she calls it but eventually gives up a and tries something new. Mara is desperate not to disappoint her parents as her sister did. Aimee’s 16 year old Daughter who only goes by V, is a trouble maker and gains a new bad habit everywhere she moves. Mara and V don’t get along and when Mara finds out V is moving in because Aimee is moving to Costa Rica to pursue her dream in cooking (but is actually pursuing a surfer dude). Mara is upset and starts acting out on her parents. Mara hates that V can read through her to her insecurities, and that V uses it to annoy her. One of the first things V does when she enters the new school was hooks up with Travis in the girls locker room. When Mara finds out she is pissed and on the verge of tears. Travis was the only reason she became a Vegan because she was obsessed with the thought of them being together she had to find something else to obsess over. She was so angry at V that she couldn’t stay in the house when she was around so to avoid her she would take long walks and stay longer at her job at the coffee shop. She soon came to realize that she had feelings for her twenty-two year old boss James but cannot get with him because her friend Claudia who also works with her had feeling for him and have since they started working together. On one of her walks to stay out of the house she finds herself in front of his apartment building at 11 at night. When she is inside she finds out he also likes her also when he kisses her. She ends up freaking out because she feels like a bad friend to her co worker and runs out. Soon after she finds out that the right thing may not make her happy so she starts to question whether what she thinks is right is really right. So she goes back to James and tells him she’s sorry and that she really likes him and so they end up dating. After that she ends up winning Valedictorian. She forgives V and they become close because V taught her that its not always about what’s right or doing what your told but following you heart.


Review

Vegan, Virgin, Valentine, is a wonderful story for girls and boys of all ages. It relates to teens because Mara and V experience problems that everyday teenagers face. Carolyn Mackler is and excellent writer and really shows it in this book. Carolyn Mackler has also written many other books. I chose this book because have read another book by this author and loved it. Another reason I chose this book was because of the title, I caught my attention right away. V also known as Vivienne was my absolute favorite character in this book. In the begging you knew her as this trashy, pot smoking, mean girl who loved to party, but as the story soon reviles that there is much more to her then that. She helps Mara out of her goody goody princess role and into more free and happier version. Through out the story you find out little by little why she does the things she does and why she stops. Mara also rubs off on V and gets her out of some of her bad habits. So in the end they both help each other into becoming better happier people. The book itself was very real even though it was a fiction. I know that many girls can relate to this kind of story. I think the novel was very interesting and could be funny in certain moments. One thing I noticed is that one of the messages in through out the story is live life the way you want to,and don’t hold on to things forever , get over it. The hole story was based on a young 17 year old girl, who was obsessed with being perfect and an overachiever who learns to get over it and get a life.
Picture
I chose this picture because the questin marks represent the decisions Mara and V face. They don't always know whats right and whats wrong.

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