Audrey, Wait!

I read this delightful little book last week but I got so caught up in the Divergent/Insurgent mania that I’ve left the review until now.


This book was great, I have nothing positive sunshiney rays of feeling toward it. Much like the technicolor rays blasting from Audrey rockin’ out on the cover.

The story is sublimely simple: Audrey Cuttler dumps her rock-god wannabe loser boyfriend and in doing so provides the catalyst to propel him, and herself, to stardom. Her somewhat callous decision to keep walking right out the door when he calls “Audrey, Wait!” (though I get it, sometimes you gotta keep walking or the sad breakup tractor beam will pull you right back into the relationship) inspires him to write an angry scorned-lover pop show more rock anthem that takes their town, then college radio, then the country by storm. Suddenly all eyes are on Audrey as she is cast as either muse or heartless bitch, depending on who’s doing the talking.

Audrey is in no way enjoying being suddenly thrust into the limelight, she’s just a normal chick who broke up with a crummy boyfriend, but she tries to deal and hopes it will blow over soon. While taking advantage of an unexpected perk of her instant-celebrity, she accidentally boosts herself to infamy status and front-page tabloid fodder. Her best friend encourages her to milk her fifteen minutes for every free cosmetic and comped ticket it’s worth, but Audrey is having a hard time seeing the silver lining when she can’t even attend classes without paparazzi snapping her through the windows.

This book is absolutely solid, just a great read and one I would definitely pass on to my fame-hungry pre-teen niece. Audrey is one of the most believable sixteen-year-olds I have ever read in YA fiction: bursting with energy and charisma, in love with music and life, makes some pretty poor snap decisions that haunt her later, and is more swayed by public opinion than by her own assessment of things. The ex, Evan, is the ubiquitous sixteen-year-old boy in a band without devolving into a stereotype. It is easy to see why Audrey was dating him in the first place, and it’s equally as easy to see why she would dump him. Audrey’s co-worker at the local ice-cream shop and potential love interest James is the kind of stand-up guy teenage girls overlook every day, and it’s to her credit that Audrey recognizes her own shallowness in writing him off. Their romance develops over the course of the novel and is not without its hiccups, it makes for great reading.

One of the best things about this book is one of the more subtle aspects: Audrey’s support system. Far from suffering from disappearing-parent syndrome, Audrey’s are there every step of the way trying to navigate this unexpected situation with her. They never fly off the handle and confine her to her room, but they don’t allow her college-student levels of latitude either. Both parents listen to their daughter first no matter what the tabloid covers say, and the whole relationship is totally refreshing in a sea of absentee parents or draconian taskmasters. Equally refreshing is Audrey’s aforementioned best friend, Victoria, a true-blue bestie who sticks by Audrey even when she’s being a whiny brat and steers her toward all the things that are good for her: good guys, good times, good vibes. I was so glad the author didn’t take the “jealousy-related falling out” or “suddenly ultra-competitive user” route with this friendship (even if Audrey may have perceived some of it that way).

Another fun part of the novel is that each chapter starts with an appropriate lyric from a song, after awhile I got on Spotify and started playing them as I read. It added a little something to this energetic read.

There is nothing I would change about this book, so I hope all of you pick it up and give it a chance because it’s a fun read (with the happiest ending)! show less

I love this book so much. I recommend it to anyone obsessed with music whether you have Audrey's tastes or not. She'll start describing the feeling of a song and you're just like, "Yes. Yes, I totally understand this," and it's a pretty beautiful moment.

Aside from that, it's just a great story with great characters and great writing. Audrey is unique and cool and goes through serious character growth (always a plus), while Victoria is pretty important herself. Jonah's cool. James is cool. Evan is cool. Bendomalena is cool. Sharon isn't so cool, but that's the point.

All of the characters are very real, which is what I appreciate most. They overreact to situations that real people would overreact to. So while you're sitting there with show more Audrey, you're like, "Dammit why are you reacting this way, chill out!" But then you step out of her shoes and realize that really, you'd probably react that way too. I don't know if that makes any sense, but it's very well done.

Plus, the relationship between Audrey and her parents is awesome. A very nice break from the typical parent-teenage angst. show less

Audrey, Wait! is definitely a fun book that made me laugh, shake my head, and sometimes even roll my eyes at the antics of the characters in this book. The book isn’t perfect, but I will give the story props for being original and engaging. Even though Audrey is not a character I think I would be friends with in real life, she is kind of a breath of fresh air in YA. She breaks free of so many of the YA protagonist stereotypes. She’s not really insecure, has good relationships with her parents, and has a pretty healthy self-identity without veering into too extreme territory, even though she can be dramatic at times.

The characters in this book act & talk like real high school students(at least in my experience), even if they’re show more possibly a little more witty. But the fact alone is just REFRESHING. I can believe Audrey is a real person. Her love interest, James, is cute and charming without being the overboard best-guy-ever character. They get into fights. They say stupid things. Overall, they’re teenagers, and they act like it without seeming too mature or too young. Robin Benway does an excellent job of striking that balance.

A love of music also permeates this book, making it just so FUN. I’m not like Audrey at all in my music taste (I prefer acoustic whereas she likes her music rock-your-socks-off loud), I really like all the ties to music this book had. Between the concerts and CDs and Evan’s band, this book does a really great job about remind you why you like music, even if your taste differs from the character’s.

Is the plot a bit far-fetched? Yes. But that’s what makes it so entertaining. It may not be believable, but it does happen. With one song, Audrey becomes one of those people who’s famous for. . . being famous? She does nothing to earn her popularity besides walking out on her boyfriend, and the result is a quirky teenager girl who has to deal with the tricky world of paparazzi and being in the limelight all the time. It’s the kind of book that shows fame and attention definitely can be much harder than it looks.(I wouldn’t want to be in Audrey’s shoes!)

Even though I really enjoyed this book, I did feel a little let down by the ending, which is why it ends up being a 3 star read. I know this is a light and fun book and doesn’t need to be filled with angst and more drama(nor would I want it to be), but the resolution happens a little too quickly. I think it could have gone a little deeper and let the tied-up loose ends be tied up just a little slower. This book also breaks the fourth wall, as the story is basically Audrey telling her side of what happened after all the events have already past. Normally, I am all for breaking the fourth wall(I love this trope so much, actually), but in this case I can’t help but to wonder if I would have enjoyed it more if the action started while the story was still unfolding.

Final Impression: Even though the ending resolved a little too quickly for my liking, Audrey, Wait! was an insanely fun book that still managed to deal with some pressing issues. I flew threw it and was so refreshed by the realness of the characters, and definitely laughed out loud in some places. I highly recommend Audrey, Wait! when you’re in the mood for a light contemporary. A (strong) 3/5 stars.

Review to be posted on my blog at Book.Blog.Bake. show less

(#36 in the 2009 book challenge)
This is really fun YA fiction about a teenage girl whose ex-boyfriend writes a song about their break-up which then ends up launching him and his band to pop star success. And then Audrey can't escape the song or the press or screaming girl fans of the band or people posting cell phone pictures of her on the internet. In general, the characters are real and easy to like, and now I want an entire book about Audrey's best friend Victoria, who is even more hilarious than Audrey herself. Oh, and Victoria's laid back boyfriend, also a scream. It has a little bit of a Meg Cabot feel to it, if you like that, or if you want to rock it old school, Mary Rodgers. For some reason, I keep imagining the "Audrey, Wait" show more song to sound like the "Scotty Doesn't Know" song from EuroTrip, which I like (both the song and the movie) much more than a normal person should.

Most impressively, Benway is extremely successful at writing about music and music fandom. I think this is an incredibly challenging thing to do -- after all, it's using one format (written) to describe something completely different (aural), and so often books that rely on passionate descriptions of music end up feeling dated, or goofy, or simply fail to make the connection between what is printed on the page and what real music would sound and feel like to a fan. But it really works in this book -- the author hit on a great balance for writing about the music itself as well as those things that go along with it, from going to concerts, listening to the radio in the car, and even Audrey's crazy bedroom wall collage of musician pictures. And because Audrey (and obviously Benway as well) is a true music fan, she's often calling upon a variety of musical influences from different eras which I think will help tremendously with the potential pitfall of being too easily dated.

Grade: A
Recommended: Very funny, very light reading. Once you accept the fairly unbelievable situation of the instant pop stardom (or at least, it's an event that is unlikely to happen to most people) the characters take a very satisfyingly realistic approach to dealing with the problems of unexpected notoriety. show less

What do you do when you come to the realization that, behind the pretty packaging, your boyfriend is basically a self-centered narcissist? If you have a brain in your head, you dump him, of course. And that is precisely what Audrey does. Normally that would be the end of the story--except that Audrey's boyfriend has his own band, a modicum of talent, the inspiration for the ultimate break-up song, and a record executive coming to see his gig on the same night that she dumps him. And so, out of Mr. Shallow's pain and anguish, the song, Audrey, Wait! is born, and it's not long before it's sweeping the country and racing up the charts. Suddenly, Audrey is famous and not coping so well.

At first, I thought the idea that Audrey would become show more so famous for simply inspiring a hit song was a little over the top, but when I look around at the number of people who have become famous for doing absolutely nothing other than allowing cameras to follow them through their every waking moment, I had to admit that it's certainly possible. I liked that Benway portrays Audrey realistically, bumbling through her newfound fame and making mistakes that exacerbate the situation (such as talking to a reporter who doesn't register sarcasm, finding out a video of her making out with another singer has gone viral, allows her fame to alienate her from her friends, etc.). I also enjoyed the fact that Audrey and her friends seem authentic. They're sarcastic and intelligent without becoming unbelievably hip, a la Nick and Norah. There are quite a few funny moments, a fairly predictable romance (but, alas, such is the familiar landscape that is young adult lit), and an intelligent, funny, and strong female character. However, what really sold me on the whole concept is Benway's message about the pitfalls of fame--a message teenagers need to hear in a celebrity crazed, electronic media-based society. All in all, this makes for a fairly enjoyable read for adults, but a winning recipe for the target audience (I say this with authority as my female students love this book). show less

Audrey breaks up with her musician boyfriend, Evan, who then goes on to write a song about it - and the song soars up the charts, sending the band on tour and Audrey unwillingly into the limelight. She just wants to be a normal (well, normal-ish) high school junior, going to concerts with her best friend Victoria and dating her co-worker at the Scooper Dooper, James, but the paparazzi follow her everywhere. Will they ever go away? Will she have a chance to set the record straight about what really happened?

This is the second novel I've read by Robin Benway, and again she excels at writing great friend characters and including the parents in the story (so many YA authors leave them out entirely, when parents are usually a big part of a show more teen's life, like it or not). She also raises issues like the importance of privacy, the craziness of the media, and the importance of doing what you know is the right thing, no matter what others think.

Quotes

It's funny how bed and pillows and covers can change a conversation. Words turn quiet and you mean more and say less. (45)

"The way I see it, if crazy people hate you, you're ahead of the game." (Victoria to Audrey, 125) show less

Girl meets boy. Girl dates boy. Girl breaks up with boy. Boy writes song about girl. Girl becomes famous.

You know, I really wasn't expecting this novel to be as unique as it was. It could have easily been annoying and cliched, but instead it was fresh and humorous. And when I say humorous, I mean it. This book was laugh-out-loud funny. So I advise you not to read this book in public. We don't want the person sitting next to you on that 5 hour flight to think you are on some new medication.

Audrey was such a refreshing voice. She was witty, vibrant, and confident. I loved her sarcasm and tone. Most authors try to impose personality traits on their two-dimensional characters, but Audrey lived it up. Instead of the author telling me show more Audrey liked music, she made me believe. This girl goes to concerts, blows out speakers, jams out to mix tapes, and discusses her fave bands. I also like how Audrey isn't obsessive about her appearance or too self-depreciating. Anything we know about her we find out from other characters in passing.

All the rest of the cast was equally enjoyable. I would want to sit at thier table at lunch. Audrey and Victoria(like the Queen) had a very believable friendship, filled with inside jokes and shared interests. I even had a thing for Jonah, who was the perfect best friend's boyfriend. James was adorable (but not in a little brother kind of way) and I wish there were more redheaded love interests out there in bookdom. Even the parents were awesome in their obliviousness and almost-hipitude.

The writing was very, very enjoyable. While some of it seemed over-the-top, it never seemed like Benway was trying too hard. The humor was just effortless. My favorite line would have to be this: "'I'm having a life crisis. Pass me the Teddy Grahams.' He handed over the box. 'All that's left are little paws and legs at the bottom of the box,' he said. 'It's a massacre.'" The writing just rang true for me. And yes, that means there is cussing and sexual/drug references, so if you have a problem with that, then don't read this one.

Overall, a great debut from an author I'm expecting will be a star in the land of YA literature. show less