Shug - Jenny Han

Goodreads summary:


SHUG
is clever and brave and true (on the inside, anyway). And she's about to become your new best friend.
Annemarie Wilcox, or Shug as her family calls her, is beginning to think there's nothing worse than being twelve. She's too tall, too freckled, and way too flat-chested. Shug is sure that there's not one good or amazing thing about her. And now she has to start junior high, where the friends she counts most dear aren't acting so dear anymore -- especially Mark, the boy she's known her whole life through. Life is growing up all around her, and all Shug wants is for things to be like they used to be. How is a person supposed to prepare for what happens tomorrow when there's just no figuring out today?

My review:

5/5

This book is adorable and I loved it.

It's a short, cute and lovely story that I wish I had read years ago, when I would've been able to relate even more to Shug. Even though she's years younger than me, I relate a lot to her and I loved reading about her.

Shug's personality is really interesting, because she's authentic and honest, but she has flaws, too. She cares about her friends and family, but not so much about popularity, even though she wishes she could be with her friends without being excluded all the time. Her family has issues, but she understands them very well and she still loves her sister and her parents, which I thought was adorable.

I disliked Mark. I understand that he's at that age when you want to look cool and be in the popular crowd, but I hated the fact that he couldn't stand up for his best friend. I thought he would change and realize that he can't act like that, but I was disappointed to find out that he didn't. It's what felt the most immature in this book, the fact that so many of Shug's friends want to look cool and act horribly to do so. I'm really happy to be older than that.

I loved Jack. I could see why he would act like that, being older than him, and I thought he was really cute and nice. I was happy to see him grow up, unlike Mark, and stand up for Shug. He doesn't care much about popularity, which made me like him even more.

I smiled throughout the whole story (except once, I teared up a little because I could understand the deeper meaning of a conversation between Shug and her mother and I thought it was really sad) and it's so short that I would reread it anytime. I highly recommend it, no matter what age you are, because you'll find something adorable and easy to read.