Jean and Johnny

This romance is dated in a lot of ways but none of them really matter. Jean is every girl- we've all been in love with someone disastrous, haven't we? I could certainly identify with Jean's towering structure of rationalization, and what comes after. Sweet but not cloying. Realistic characters. Well done. Thanks go to Wendy for strong-arming me into this kicking and screaming.

Compresses years of learning about boys and friends and self into one semester. I am so glad that Jean learned that her friendship with Elaine was more important than being at a handsome player's beck & call. And that she learned what style of clothing flatters her (because attractiveness *does* count) and that boys like Kenneth and Homer have a lot more to offer than do handsome boys.

The neatest part of the story was near the beginning, when the girls were given a limited amount of money and sent to shop for their own independent dinner. Fun way to practice arithmetic, budgeting, and nutrition.

Reading others' reviews, I see that the lessons about being boy-crazy are still relevant.

Jean is fifteen, and just beginning to notice boys when the most sought-after boy at school chooses to dance with her, and then follows up with walking her to the bus. So why is Jean unhappy, and constantly trying to justify Johnny's actions?

A bit slow to start, this story finally got intriguing at about the halfway mark, and came to a satisfying conclusion. While I don't feel this is one of Ms. Cleary's better works, she still handles childhood and adolescent thoughts and feelings better than any other author I've read.

i liked that Jean was not only smart enough to see through (eventually) asshole Johnny, but also to just go ahead and wear the skirt she made even though the plaid doesn't line up right.

My edition is hardcover, from the library and has the Joe & Beth Krush illustrations. When I was a child one of the few illustrator credits I knew and looked for was Krush. And when I was fifteen I would have loved this book. Jean had a loving big sister and a patient friend to help her see boys clearly - I had only books. If I'd read this then I'd have saved myself several messy crushes and dating experiences. The book is also lovingly written with Cleary's trademark charm, insight, and gentle wit.

That being said, it isn't quite the timeless classic the Ramona and the Henry books are. The girls try to be strong, smart, and independent - but only by earning money by sewing and babysitting to earn enough money for store-bought dresses. show more Otoh, they do learn some important lessons about friendship, love, and life - even though the book is not didactic.

Is the book worth seeking out for your daughter, or worth keeping in print? I'm not sure. I don't know any teen girls. I would *hope* girls are by now stronger and smarter, and don't need to learn to have anough self-esteem to react to boys' advances wisely. But then, it wasn't that long ago that [b:The Rules(TM): Time-Tested Secrets for Capturing the Heart of Mr. Right|703790|The Rules(TM) Time-Tested Secrets for Capturing the Heart of Mr. Right|Ellen Fein|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1177439332s/703790.jpg|5421604] was a big hit. You'll have to decide. Know that if I were reviewing this objectively, I'd probably give it only three stars - but I, personally, really did enjoy it. show less

Four stars for capturing so precisely the drama that teenage girls can create from the most insignificant word or look. This was me in high school (in the late 90's) though I didn't learn Jean's lessons until I went to college. I found it funny that I knew a Johnny exactly the Johnny character in the book. I wonder if I would have recognized the similarities and learned from the book had I read it in high school.

Oh my, I wanted to liberate Jean a little bit. I'm glad she finally realized that Johnny was worthless, but I wish I could have made her get unimpressed by him faster.