Perfect You

I've been hearing a lot about Elizabeth Scott lately, so I finally decided to read one of her young adult books. I will admit I had mixed feelings about Perfect You. When the book started I really had a hard time getting into it. The whole idea that Kate's father has quit his job to sell vitamins at the mall seems sort of unbelievable, and not really all that interesting. Kate also has a few other problems: her grandmother has come to live with them for a while, bringing along her expectations and demands; Kate's best friend Anna has come back from a summer away and no longer acknowledges Kate now that she has lost weight and joined the popular crowd. And along with her father's job change, the family faces a financial crisis as her father refuses to accept responsibility for things. Scott has written a novel with a lot going on. After I got past the fact that the idea of Kate's dad selling vitamins seemed unrealistic, the book did become more interesting. I also enjoyed the story about Kate and her friend, Anna. Kate so desperately wants Anna to still be her friend, and eventually she can see glimpses of the real Anna underneath her old friend's new hair do and new body, but Anna is so caught up in her new popular lifestyle that she really doesn't have room for Kate. Kate puts up with this for a while, but I liked that Scott allowed Kate to develop some self worth and realize how Anna's friendship was not genuine. Kate also begins to date Will, a boy from school who has a bad reputation. This, too, was interesting, as it unfolded that Will's reputation was not really how Will is, but just the product of what different people had made up and said about him.

I can definitely see why these books are appealing to young adults. While I didn't love Perfect You, I did enjoy it, and will definitely try a few more of Scott's books.