Sarah Tomp

This book is written in the first person, in the form of a letter sent by Luisa (“LuLu”) Mendez to Mason Malone. We know something disrupted their relationship, but we don’t really know what until the end. Lulu is writing this letter, rehashing the events of the previous summer, in order to help herself understand what happened and why.

Lulu has lived her whole life in Dale, Virginia, and has always disdained what she calls this “gritty mountain holler” of “redneck Virginia.” show more She has been accepted to college in San Diego and can’t wait to get away. She needs more money for tuition, however. She has worked hard to save, but her father “borrowed” her money and squandered it, and now she is desperate for cash. When someone delivers a moonshine still to the junkyard at which she and her BFF Roni work, they “relocate” it to some empty land with the help of Roni’s boyfriend Bucky, and Bucky’s friend Mason. Calling upon Mason’s expertise (he comes from a family of moonshiners), the four start making alcohol to sell to raise money.

Lulu’s plan fills her with conflict; the fact that moonshine is such a lucrative market in Dale is exactly what makes her hate it. But the process is exciting, and she and the other three have a good time learning and creating. And the attraction between LuLu and Mason is palpable. Nevertheless, there are a lot of reasons none of them should be messing around with this illegal activity, especially not Mason, who is a recovering alcoholic. But LuLu has tunnel vision, with San Diego at the end of her sightline.

The reader knows from the very beginning because of the narrative structure that the many dangers inherent in what the four of them are doing will catch up to them, but it is unclear in what way, and whether any of them will remain unscathed, until close to the very end. How it all turns out is a bit of a surprise. LuLu learns some hard lessons, and gains some insight about responsibility, maturity, and love in the process.

Discussion: This is an interesting story, different than the usual YA fare, which tends to focus on kids from the middle and especially upper classes, and is generally not as gritty.

I had difficulty feeling positive toward LuLu as she became “distilled into something new and dangerous”; I think the first person approach ironically kept me at more of a distance. Or maybe it was Lulu’s general lack of consideration for anyone's needs beside her own. The three other main characters, alternatively, were extremely sympathetic, especially Mason. Mason had a negative reputation in Dale he couldn’t shake - one that constantly kept him down and threatened to defeat him, but he was far and away the most likable of the four: he had talent, integrity, and a huge amount of courage. LuLu may have been the one with grand “dreams,” but it was Mason for whom I found myself rooting.

Evaluation: This story is unique and thought-provoking - haunting, even, with memorable characters. I think book clubs or groups of readers would find a lot to discuss with this one. show less

Ms. Tomp’s novel is realistic fiction about desperation and life’s way of laughing at people who make plans. I read a galley and didn’t see the cover of the book; I have to admit, I was surprised. I don’t think the cover matches the story within.

Lulu has graduated from high school and is on her way out of Dale, Virginia, never to return to this hick town after this summer. She’s moving to San Diego too attend college. Her best friend, Roni, is content to stay; she’ll marry her show more boyfriend Bucky and they’ll be happy. Lulu and Bucky are the academics—they made good grades and can go to college. Bucky hasn’t decided if he wants to leave or not. Always a good girl, Lulu doesn’t drink and attends confession at church with her father; her mother doesn’t attend church because she has agoraphobia. Everything is going as planned……until Lulu’s dad admits that he doesn’t have the money to send Lulu to college.

The novel begins with Lulu learning about drinking because she wants to know about being drunk before leaving for college. Bucky offers to give his friend Mason a ride home, which is when Lulu meets a reason to stay in Dale. Mason has been repairing a car, so Lulu tells him that she can help him with parts because she works in a salvage yard. A still is delivered to the yard and Lulu forgets to catalog it. She discovers that people will pay a lot for good alcohol. Why not make moonshine to finance her way to college? Mason’s family is well-known moonshiners although Mason, himself, has quit drinking. He agrees to teach Lulu, Roni, and Bucky how to make quality moonshine safely. They now have a time limit—they need to make enough money for Lulu to go to college with her split of the money.

Lulu drove me absolutely nuts. We are told repeatedly that she’s smart, but there is never any evidence of her intelligence; the reader witnesses stupid action after stupid action. In desperation, Lulu stops thinking and makes decisions based on adrenaline. As annoyed as I was with her, I couldn’t put the book down. I do like that Lulu doesn’t forget what the church has taught her.

This novel has mystery in that Lulu is writing the story to Mason; so, the entire time you’re reading, you wonder where Mason is that she has to write her story to him. Is he dead? Is he in a coma? Is he gone? What happened? The side characters, Roni and Bucky are a great story themselves and you’ll be pulled into their romance as well. Mason was actually my favorite character because he’s got the most common sense although I don’t know what he sees in Lulu. It’s a captivating novel about four people whose plans about life change in one summer when they learn about choices, desperation, and the possibilities that life can offer. show less

“That’s the thing about Dale. You are what you are, what everyone things you are. Forever.”

This book, hands down, absolutely represents what it is like to be from a small town. (Especially a small town in the South).

And that’s why I related to this book so much. I know what it’s like to be stuck in a town and feel like you will never leave. Growing up in a town that both shaped who you are and traps you into thinking you need to stay.

It’s why I kept reading. Just to see if Lulu show more makes it out.

My Best Everything is a book that takes some time to get going. But once it gets going, it’s hard to put down.

Lulu, in an attempt to raise money for college tuition (has this girl never heard of FAFSA!?!), plans to make and sell moonshine. (I can’t help but wonder how people would have taken this book if she was growing marijuana).

And that premise hooked me, along with the Sarah Dessen like cover and country setting. I was eager to see what My Best Everything had in store.

The writing style is a letter. Lulu’s letter to Mason after everything happens. It’s a retelling of events, and it was probably one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to get used to while reading. But if you can get the flow of it, the writing is beautiful. I marked many quotes that spoke to me and a few things that made me laugh.

“Buzz cuts remind me of the darkest corners of Dale. The rickety old shacks down by the river. The places where cousins get shot in the living room for eating the last Oreo…”

YA’LL, I work in one of those small towns (I still haven’t left, you see). More importantly, I work for the sheriff’s office. STUFF LIKE THIS ACTUALLY HAPPENS! And yes, 9 times out of 10, someone is sporting a Buzz cut.

I loved the relationship between all the characters. (Once again, I was reminded of a Sarah Dessen novel. Which isn’t a bad thing considering that she is my favorite). They made me laugh and cry. They actually go through will life problems. Real decisions. Real outcomes. (I did not like her father. He was a jerk).

My Best Everything is going to take some patience. But if you want a cute story with a new and interesting premise, you’ll be happy you stuck around.

For fans of Sarah Dessen, obviously!

Reviewed at yabookscentral.com show less

Lulu Mendez has grown up in the small town of Dale, Virginia, focused as long as she can remember on getting out, going to college, pursing a future in medical research. She's just finished her senior year of high school, and her dream is within her grasp.

Then her father tells her that he's lost her college fund and she won't be leaving for the University of San Diego after all. Or anywhere, for a while. Or ever, since she has no confidence in his promise to win back her college fund in some show more big deal, real soon now.

As Lulu's dreams are exploding, her friend Roni, who has only dreamed of marrying her boyfriend Bucky and having babies, is invited to audition for a local, but increasingly popular and successful, band called Lullaby Breaker.

Suddenly Roni has a future that could take her away from Dale, while Lulu is looking at a future of continuing to work in Sal's Salvage, the local junkyard. But Lulu is not going to accept such a constricted future. In a matter of days, good girl Lulu has a plan.

It's a plan steeped in the traditions of the Virginia hills, but it's also illegal, and dangerous. It couldn't be a bigger break from her past, but she's desperate, and convinced it's the only key to her future.

Bucky and Roni are willing to help, but none of them knows what they're doing, and they need the help of someone who does. Lulu recruits Mason--a few years older, from a moonshining family, and with his own secrets, troubles, and dreams.

Lulu tells the story of her summer in a letter to Mason, some months after the end of that fateful summer. Is it an apology? An explanation? A love letter? We're on tenterhooks the whole time, not knowing the end until the end. What we do see are the growing tensions--between Lulu and Mason, with their growing attraction and determination to resist it; between Roni and Bucky, as they fight to maintain a relationship fraying under the pressure of Roni's new future; between Lulu and Roni, with their reversed positions, now that Roni has a future and Lulu is in danger of losing hers forever. And of course, the tensions between Lulu and her parents, whose love gave her dreams and whose weaknesses seem to be snatching those dreams away.

This is a really excellent young adult novel, and as such not limited to a young adult audience. Recommended.

I received a free electronic galley from the publisher via NetGalley show less