Laura ZimmermannCritiques

I have conflicting thoughts on this one. First off, Maggie is insufferable. It was driving me batty throughout the whole story. Until the end, every time she was on page, it was because she was in Super Activist Mode, lecturing on tiny, trivial things and throwing a hissy fit.
Next up, I find it incredibly unrealistic that Greer is a 30H and can't fit into any clothes. She would have to size up for tight tops but the average top should still be fine (unless she doesn't have a bra that fits, then that's a whole different can of worms).
Also, the book places so much emphasis on people noticing only that specific feature. That really irritated me because I have a hard time believing that to be true since 30H isn't as large as the book suggests.
This may be controversial, but I am not a big fan of minors looking into breast-reducing surgery. Greer is 15. She is still so young and to put it into perspective, can't even drive or vote yet.
For any other girls that have issues finding bras, I'd highly recommend Googling "A Bra That Fits Calculator" and starting there. Personally, I found it very helpful.

Content: scattered f-bombs (although not much other language), obviously lots of discussions about body shapes

Gr 8 Up—Brimming with humor and absurdity, Zimmermann's latest follows two sisters desperate to keep what
remains of their family intact after their mother tries to abandon them for a Justin Timberlake concert and instead
ends up dead in the shed. Witty, unexpectedly emotionally powerful, and unforgettable.

Is Drew a rigid rule follower, or simply trying to survive while juggling an impossible array of adult responsibilities? She's seventeen, with a younger sister and half brother. They live with her mother who comes across as being somewhere on the sliding scale of narcissism and sociopathy. When Justin Timberlake-obsessed Mom takes off for one of his concerts in Mexico, Drew is left not only with all her current adult responsibilities, but new, unexpected, and much scarier ones. The most pressing is the man from social security who is investigating potential fraud by their mother, Heidi, regarding their dead grandmother. She's still collecting Gram's retirement checks. Add in an overemotional boyfriend, the growing coolness and snark from her sister, the antics of the step brother, plus a huge surprise regarding their mother, and all of a sudden Drew is in a giant crisis.
Read the book to discover how she manages all this and more. It's darkly funny, gruesome at times and ends in a surprising way. Altogether a top notch book.

An engaging and positive story about a teenage girl’s relationship with her own body. Sixteen year old Greer prefers to avoid attracting attention and hides her breasts beneath oversized sweatshirts, but when she decides to try out for volleyball, she can’t keep hiding.

Greer's narration is funny and perceptive. Even though I’ve not been in her exact situation, I found her awkwardness, her self-consciousness, and her struggles to find clothing that’s flattering / comfortable / supportive, relatable.½

I really enjoyed this book. It wasn’t your typical rom com between a boy and a girl, it was a rom com about a relationship between a girl and her large boobs. While there was a romantic interest, the story didn’t focus on it. I really enjoyed Greer’s two friends, Maggie and Jessa, who taught her it was ok to be her, that not everyone is perfect and that not everyone is focusing on her endowed chest. I laughed out loud in so many places. I also enjoyed the sub-story with Quninlan and her anger and how Greer helps her through it. She was a little girl crying out for help and Greer was the one who could actually see her pain. This is definitely one any HS girl who may have issues with parts of their body should read! Great debut!!

Oh I just loved this! I can't believe Zimmermann is a debut author! Everything about it is so effortless: the voice (very authentic), the dialogue, the supporting characters, Greer, the main character, the thought processes of a teenage girl self-conscious about her body, the humor. As I read, I wondered, what teenager isn't self-conscious or was it just me?

A few quibbles I had. Ok, I get it; your breasts are really big. They're embarrassing. How much do we have to be hit on the head with this fact? Just shy of the middle of the book I was growing tired of the self-hating, inner monologue. Her mother's cluelessness about Greer's body dysmorphia seemed odd in this day and age of parents overparenting. Maybe her mother didn't want to make her more self-conscious? Still, at least get her better-fitting bras.

More that I loved. I loved best-friend Maggie and her militancy, I loved the names Greer had for her breasts, Mavis and Maude - perfect! I loved the inner butterfly monologues. I loved Jessa's influence on Greer in body positivity. It was really a multi-dimensional novel tackling sexism, bullying, loneliness, binary choices girls are still forced to make, and more without seeming overloaded or preachy.

I received an ebook advanced reader copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really really liked it!!

This was one of those books that make you think......Do people out there seriously face problems because their breasts are big? On my own, I would have never imagined it; I mean almost every girl faces problems with breasts in jumping, running, sweating, trying on clothes, etc., but I never knew that these could be very serious problems, causing other health problems.

So, this book was a bit of an eye-opener in that way. Also, like I commented on one of my updates, I did not know that girls in America too have to face problems with availability of bras in different sizes. I, personally, haven't faced a lot of problems in this department, but it is mostly relatable.

The thing I did not like a lot, was the romance; I mean, don't get me wrong, it was good but I thought it could have been written a bit better? Because nearing the end of the book, I wasn't really sure whether I wanted these two to end up together.

I really liked that her support in this book was a solid one; I mean no one cared that she might be different, and everyone was really supportive.

I really liked this book, and I recommend it to any girl who has ever faced the slightest problem with her decolletage (I really miss Sophronia), and likes a bit of romance thrown in with a good plot.

Literary Merit: Very Good
Characterization: Excellent
Grades: 9-12
Highly recommended

Going through life with large breasts (bra size 30H to be exact) may not seem like a big problem, but for Greer Walsh, keeping Maude and Mavis (the names she has given to her breasts) hidden has become all-consuming. She wears giant sweatshirts to keep them covered up, but this doesn’t stop the casual sexual harassment from her male classmates, who find humor in things like spelling out “boobs” on their calculators. Though she usually avoids activities that might draw attention to the girls, she can’t avoid gym class, and it turns out that she actually shows some promise as a volleyball player. Her teacher recruits her to try out for the team, and this leads Greer on a journey to develop a new relationship with her body. At the same time, her friendship with new guy Jackson Oates might be blossoming into something more if only Greer could believe that a boy could be interested in her without Maude and Mavis getting in the way.

Anyone who has ever felt limited by their body or struggled with self-confidence will relate to Greer. Even those who don’t personally relate will enjoy spending time with Greer, an authentic character who is smart, funny, and sarcastic. The side characters are well developed and realistic, and Greer’s relationships with her friends and family are also an important aspect of the novel. I loved Greer’s best friend Maggie and new volleyball friend Jessa, and her relationship with her younger brother Tyler was realistic and added some moments of humor to lighten the mood. Love interest Jackson is very sweet, but I liked that the romance subplot did not overtake the book, and the focus is on the strength of Greer’s female friendships. This is especially impressive for a debut novel. I am excited to see what Zimmerman does next! Highly recommended for all high school and teen collections.

This is how comic makers would draw a girl Hulk; it wouldn't be her muscles, it'd be her boobs that would burst the seams.
I stand in front of the mirror.
Shit.
I can't wear this thing.

:') is my main feeling right now

Greer is a fantastic character to spend time with, frustrating as she may be, and as much as you want to bundle her up and hug her - she's hilarious, whip-fast, full of heart, and completely understandable.

I may not get her precise insecurity, but what really hit me about this book was how it highlighted the total self-sabotage that comes with being incredibly insecure about yourself. It's not all about the teasing or you vs the world. A huge part of what sucks is destroying things that give you a chance because you're too afraid to face them, and I loved the kinda-painful process of reading a character do that to herself when you just wanted to shake her and be like, love yourself!!! seriously!!!!!!!!

I'll agree that it kiiinda skidded past the mark of complete self-acceptance (ended up more like self-tolerance?) and that was a bit of a bummer, but Greer was just so engaging that I fell in love with her right away and so fell in love with the book too. And Jackson was so gentle, genuine, and kind - i swear he's the actual guy teenage girls want to fall for, not the endless parade of brooding, cranky, stalker-y bad boys that I keep reading about. The side characters too were so lovable - Jessa, Maggie, Quin.

I grabbed this one for the cute cover and was really surprised by what a great time I had with it. It was! Just so sweet! Maybe I wish there was a TOUCH more love for Greer to give herself but still!!

:')

I enjoyed my time with Greer and found her voice to be authentic for a teen. I enjoyed the first person point of view which immediately placed me inside Greer's head. I found myself speeding through this fun novel and laughing out loud more times than I remember. Greer is truly relatable for teens as she tries to navigate high school and lack of self-confidence and self-acceptance.

The friendships in this book are amazing! I cheered for the loyalty these girls had for each other and how they supported each other, even when they pursued their own paths and talents. I also enjoyed the volleyball team, including the coach who knew how to get the best attitude and performance from her team and truly cared for each player as individuals.

I thought from the beginning that Jackson would play a bigger role in the story and I wished he'd had more page time to give us incite into his character. Jackson is a sweetheart and gentleman from what the author gave her readers. Greer seemed to focus on her chest on every page and it started getting tiresome after awhile and I'd hoped she'd struggle more with her feelings for Jackson.

Greer's parents drove me crazy--what parents ignore their child's pain, both physical and emotional when it's so obvious? I kept waiting for them to show growth in this area too and it never really happened.

The ending was good, but felt too rushed and unnatural for me, and left too much hanging unanswered. Overall, I liked this book and would recommend it to others who enjoy YA contemporary.

Imagine having almost every moment of your life ruled by a body part. Meet Greer Walsh. For maybe a day she was comfortable in her skin when puberty hit. After that, she was ultra self-conscious, let her insecurities run rampant and endured endless dialogues with Maude and Mavis as she calls her oversized breasts. Comfort is an elusive experience for her as is finding bras and tops that fit. She slouches and hides in oversized sweatshirts. She's very smart, particularly in math, but when it comes to thinking about a social life, she's a babe in the woods. Having a mother who is ultra confident and believes she has all the answers makes confiding a wishful, but impossible thing. Add in a younger brother who's a cross between Attilla The Hun and a barnyard animal and you start to understand why she endures with little hope of living.
All this begins to change when her mother drags her along to meet Jackson, son in a family Mom's working with in her capacity as a relocation specialist. There's an immediate connection between them. It grows as the story progresses, even though Greer's continual dialogue in her head with Maude, Mavis and how she things the rest of the world looks at her gets in the way. Add in a chance to try out for volleyball and a website the coach gives her that starts changing her life, great friends and situations that force her out of her head in time to start living, and you have one heck of a book. Quinlan, Jackson's little sister, may be a minor character, but she almost steals the show. Read the book to find out why. This deserves to be in lots of libraries. It's funny, painful, honest and will strike a chord with any teen with image of self consciousness issues.

The book was good and all but the author could have added a little more life problems that a teen may go through while growing up. I understand that she was making it about a girl who likes a boy but that’s what we always see in a romance novel. She could have used more imagination but it was cute how she used basic names and how she incorporated the mother because most books don’t really mention their parents. Overall it’s a good book you just need to be interested in what you are reading