Monday, July 25, 2011

Review:3 Willows by Ann Brashares

ISBN:0385736762
Edition: Hardcover
Source: Public Library
Pages: 318      Chapters: 26
Genre:Young Adult Sub-Genre:Realistic/Contemporary
Release/Publication Date:January 13th 2009
Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers
Series:N/A
 Ama is a brainiac shipped off to an outdoorsy camp, even though she only wants to be reasearching in an air-conditioned library. Jo is staying in her parents beach house for the summer with a job at a local restauant. She wasn't expecting har parents surprise, nor was she counting on meeting the super-cute boy. Polly is trying not to miss her friends this summer. Her solution: aim for the glamourous life and never look back...but is she cut out for it?
     Honestly, I underestimated this book. I truly believed that this would be a crappy replica of the Sister fo the Traveling Pants. I won't lie. I'm happy to say I was very wrong. While the beginning was a little slow, it didn't take long for the pace to pick up. Just like the first sisterhood, the friends spend the summer away from each other, but unlike the first sisterhood it isn't really their first time apart. I find it fascinating that there are references to the first sisterhood, but at times it feels like too much effort was put in to make the new sisterhood seem different from the traveling pants girls. Readers don't need previous knowledge of the traveling pants and its sisterhood to follow the story. I'm surprised that such a relatively short story can cover heavier topics like divorce, body image, accepting what you can't control and so many more without seeming jam-packed and stuffed in an awkward, walking advertisement kind of way. This will sound a bit cliche, but this book was the first on this type to actually engage me until the end. I actually wasn't expecting it from this book. But the characters, their issues and their friendship all felt so real to me. It all reminded me of my own friendships.
I was sincerely impressed by this book and think with Ann Brashares other larger-than-life series( The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants) casting a giant shadow over this one, it's not getting enough attention. I'd recommend it again and again.
Level of Romance: In a shallow kind of first love way, I'd say a solid almost one third of the book has it.
Rating: 5 out of 5

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