Leila Sales

Its been a long time since I really really connected to a character and actually liked them, warts and all but Elise (the main character in this book) really spoke to me from the first sentence.
I thought that I would dislike this book due to the characters obvious weakness and thought she would be a dribbling, self-pitying creature that would bore me to tears. She wasn't and, far from being bored to tears, I was actively rooting for her to do well.
This book shows you that things can go show more wrong - do go wrong - but you can progress a little at a time.
I was pleased that Leila Sales shows us that books don't have to have a perfect ending to be uplifting but simply a hopeful one - and ultimately, a more believable one.
I will definately be reading more by her in the future... show less

Vanessa's best friend Bailey isn't her best friend anymore, and Vanessa can't figure out why. When she finds an abandoned museum, she cleans it up and puts her own exhibit there: one all about Bailey. Then someone else discovers the museum and begins adding to it: Eli, a classmate from Hebrew school, creates an exhibit about his old dog, Einstein. Then Vanessa's older brother Sterling wants to exhibit his baseball cards. The three curators make some rules for the museum (no adults, for one), show more and then begin inviting visitors. In the process, Eli and Vanessa become friends, and Vanessa's friendship with twins Rosalie and Honore grows, and her understanding of her friendship with Bailey changes, too - it's not exactly as she presented it to the reader at first, but it's not exactly how she remembers, either.

The kids' museum can't last forever; the scheduled demolition is rescheduled, and Vanessa manages to reach a famous artist whose painting is the only one left in the museum, leading to a surprise visit, conversation, and outcome.

Vanessa and Sterling's father is in the military, visiting home between deployments and video-calling from abroad when he can; at one point they are afraid he has been killed, and Vanessa considers the horrible what-if.

Vanessa is also struggling with a habit of picking at her skin, something Bailey's new friends find disgusting and her father finds disturbing. In an unlikely coincidence, Mariko Marsden has a similar condition - picking out her own hair - and knowing there is a name for the condition, and other people like her, comforts Vanessa and allows her to talk to her mom about it.

Beautifully balanced and realistic.

See also: The Meaning of Maggie by Megan Jean Sovern, The Lost Library by Rebecca Stead and Wendy Mass (different tone)

Quotes

You'd think you'd need to go far away to find something new, but sometimes it was as simple as just turning left instead of right. (11)

Vanessa felt like the world was crumbling around her. She didn't want Bailey to act like a good friend just because she was fulfilling an assignment or something. She wanted Bailey to want to be a good friend. (59)

It took a long time to make, but to ruin it took almost no effort at all. (155)

Everybody wanted her to be somebody different. Because there was something wrong with her just the way she was. (170)

...it was worthless to the world, and priceless to Vanessa. (191)

"...it's just going to get taken down again."
"Maybe....But it would be good for as long as it lasts. Isn't that reason enough to do it?" (Vanessa and Rosalie, 212)

"What if he never comes home?"
"That would be terrible....It would be unspeakably tragic. It would be one of the worst things that could possibly happen. And we would find a way through it." (Vanessa and her mom, 218)

"If we don't work to protect beauty, it will disappear in favor of whatever people think they want at that exact moment in time. Beauty is harder to find, harder still to create, and easy to destroy." (Mariko Marsden, 233)

Everything was out of her control, and she hated it. (239)

Ruining something on purpose and ruining something on purpose were two very different matters. (251)

She didn't need the artifacts to prove that all this had been real and had mattered. (275) show less

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest and fair review. (Thanks, LibraryThing!)

Once Was A Time begins with Lottie and Kitty, best friends who live in war torn England in 1940. Lottie's father is scientist researching time travel and certain people would do anything to get their hands on his research. Lottie and Kitty are kidnapped in an attempt to persuade Lottie's father to share his research. Right as things go from bad to worse, a portal appears in front of Lottie, she show more makes a quick decision to jump through it, not knowing where or when it will drop her.
Lottie arrives in 2013 Wisconsin with nothing but the pajamas she's wearing and is forced to make a life for herself, making peace with the fact that she may never find a way back. That doesn't mean she stops hoping that someday, someway she'll find a way to reunite with Kitty.
I absolutely adored this book. It had everything. Part time travel, part mystery, part of coming of age, what's not to love?
I particularly enjoyed how realistic the book was in dealing with the aftermath of Lottie's time travel. Eventually she had to begin living in 2013, sleeping curled up among books only works for a couple of days, after that you need a shower and a proper meal. And after said meal, any decent person is going to do something about a homeless ten year old with no family or home.
I found Lottie incredibly self aware and loved that even she could see that as time passed, she was losing herself. The book did a wonderful job exploring friendship and the idea that the people we choose as friends are a reflection of who we are.
The ending was beautiful. It was slightly unexpected but completely wonderful and satisfying. I really don't have a bad thing to say about this book. It was a joy to read. show less

You could say MOSTLY GOOD GIRLS is about high school and its stresses. Or prep school. Or friendship. Or first loves. But I like to say that Leila Sales' debut novel is about growing up... the growing up that each and every one of does in high school, only more entertaining and witty than our own lives.

Violet is definitely her own person, but most girls will relate to her in one way or another. She's competitive, stressed about school, often feels second best, can't help but compare herself show more to her best friend, has been in love with the same boy for years, and she feels totally and completely overwhelmed the majority of the time. At multiple points throughout the novel, I found myself commiserating with Violet as she confronts the changes and challenges in her life.

What I enjoyed most about this novel is that there really wasn't one big issue. While I love novels that confront big, difficult topics like the death of a loved one, teen pregnancy, drug use, etc, etc, MOSTLY GOOD GIRLS took a different approach. There is some talk of bullying, but, for the most part, Violet is dealing with everyday, "normal" issues. Like grades and the distance that sometimes forms between previously inseparable best friends. Novels about those intense topics are needed and always appreciated, but there's something about Violet's story that pulls you in, even without those shocking twists and gutwrenching material.

MOSTLY GOOD GIRLS is a funny, relateable first novel and I can't wait for more from this talented author! show less