Waiting For You

So apparently I went two for two on young adult reads this weekend.

Told in the first person, we have Marisa ready to start her sophomore year in high school. Marisa had a bad year as a freshman when she suffered from depression and anxiety. Now she is happy to start a new year where she can wipe the slate clean and finally find a boyfriend to fall in love with.

I thought that honestly way too many serious things that were going on were just ignored so we could focus on Marisa being obsessed with a boy she wasn't even dating. When Marisa finally gets the romantic entanglement she wants, the rest of the book is her feeling dissatisfied with it (the grass is always greener) and doing things that 100 percent labeled her a stage five show more clinger.

There was sadly no development of any other characters in this book either. We get Marisa's best friend Sterling, her sister, her mother and father, her aunt, and the boy next door, Nash.

There was a lot going on in this book which sadly led to not everything being treated with equal weight and me personally feeling bored by focusing most of the story on Marisa's search for her soulmate. It didn't help that the author included a similar plot-line to the movie, Pump Up the Volume that just did not work for this book at all. I think I was supposed to be all amazed by what the mysterious podcaster was saying about being a teenager. Christian Slater was there first ladies and gentlemen, you are never touching that.

I seriously at one point just kind of laughed, because I used to watch this movie at least once every couple of weeks when I was a teenager and there were a lot of references to things this mysterious character (not really) was saying that were similar to Christian Slater's movie character.

The writing was okay but the flow was pretty bad from beginning to end. There were serious things happening in Marisa's life that would be referred to chapters later.

When the ending happened I guess I was supposed to be all hip hip hooray but I just rolled my eyes. Oh high school, when you sat and thought that every guy/girl was the one. show less

I picked this up after flipping through [b:So Much Closer|8492805|So Much Closer|Susane Colasanti|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1286325931s/8492805.jpg|13358342] at work and generally liking what I read. I liked it well enough to go and grab one of Colasanti’s earlier books. Unfortunately, there wasn’t as much pep and funny to grab me with Waiting for You.

A huge problem with the book is the pacing, especially with the first third of the book. The chapters were extremely erratic, switching between what was going on in the plot and having Marisa pontificate on her interests and feelings. It felt jarring and took me out of the plot. The chapters whenever Marisa went off about her interests and life didn’t really gel with the show more others. She would go on for about five pages about why she did photography, or why she absolutely had to practice her violin in the bathroom. While it’s not a laundry list of characteristics and we see her doing and enjoying some of her hobbies, I wanted to see their introduction integrated more into the story itself, not getting a whole chapter with a tiny bit of plot development.

There’s also the issue that a lot of these chapters serve solely to introduce secondary characters, again, with no previous set-up. For example, Marisa’s little sister Sandra gets randomly introduced in chapter five, with no prior mention. (Heck, we’re not told she’s the younger sister until about a page and a half in.) Aunt Katie is another character who just gets a random introduction, with little to no build-up, and in fact, I thought could have been completely cut from the story.

It’s also this random, sprawling writing style that made me dislike Marisa as our main character. I can’t get a real grasp on who she’s supposed to be—is she an artist? Normal high school girl? Someone trying to get over past issues? There’s at least one or more mentions of everything that she does, but it never defines Marisa. Also, her interests really don’t show anything more to her character. There are scenes scattered throughout the book where Marisa describes taking photos and why she likes doing it, but the only reason it feels like she’s a photographer is so she can discover that her dad’s moving out. Then, it’s randomly dropped that she has an anxiety disorder and has been getting over a year-long bout of depression. While this would have helped for great characterization, it doesn’t feel realistic. First, side tangent on the fact that Marisa claims that she doesn’t go to therapy anymore. I don’t know what this says about Marisa or her parents, but depression does not work that way. There’s no easy cure-all, and if Marisa actually had an anxiety disorder, she would have been recommended to get help and medication.

The love story is barely interesting. Once Marisa hooks up with Derek, it feels like he was leading her on the whole time and we never get to see the side of him that complimented Marisa on her artwork. His ex-girlfriend is there to be catty and bitchy and only wants to steal him back. I’m a little bit more interested in Nash, but there’s not much that we see to him, and it’s so obviously set up that he’s Dirty Dirk the podcaster. There’s no real build-up to either love interest.

The only major plotline that goes anywhere interesting is Marisa’s parents splitting up, and even then, there’s not much done with it. Marisa indulges in a lot contrived drama—she hates her father, he’s must have obviously cheated on her mother; oh no, her mother had the affair, now what is she supposed to do? The fact that her mother purposefully delays telling either one of her daughters about what’s happening also pissed me off—I know divorces and affairs are really messy, especially when dealing with the kids’ reactions, but her mother’s excuses of how everything happened so fast and “I just want to be happy for me!” felt contrived and plot convenient. Also, the resolution of Marisa starting to forgive her mother felt too rushed and way too easy.

Overall, it’s not a very good book. It’s not terrible, but the bland nature of the plot and the drama was way too convenient to fit the plot needs. Also, the handling of teen depression is really bad. I may have to give her other books a full read, but I probably won’t be picking up any more of Susane Colasanti anytime soon. show less

Waiting for You was so easy for me to read. A lot of times I sit down to read and have to stop every few minutes, I think of something I have to do or the writing catches me up and I have to slow down or take a break. But Waiting for You I could just sit down with and read, no if ands or buts.

Waiting for You was a fun yet emotional story. I liked how complex the story was, there was a lot to grasp onto and relate to. I thought I might have a hard time reading about Marisa's parents separation but it actually presented it in a way that was easily digestible. I think my favorite part was Marisa trying to figure out who she wanted to be with romantically and learning more about herself in the process. I also loved the plotline of the show more mysterious nighttime DJ. I mean, I knew exactly who it was from the beginning but I loved finding the little clues sprinkled through the book as to their identity! It definitely had me grinning.

It came as no surprise to me that Nash, Marisa's friend from childhood would be my favorite character. I'm all about the eccentric dorky boys. Another of my favorite parts involved Marisa's friend Sterling waiting at a park to meet a guy she chatted with online. He turned out to be not what she expected and it was pretty hilarious!

Overall a multi-dimensional book full of family, friends, and love! I can't wait to read more by Colasanti! show less

Review by Sliced Open Reviews

Now I don’t know about you but my typical reads are between Paranormal YA and New Adult BUT I always have to slip in a good chick lit or realistic fiction to keep the equilibrium, so I think I can officially add Susane Colasanti to the list of reliable sources.

Waiting For You was a coming of age story of High School Sophomore Marisa. Colasanti built Marisa’s character to be slightly dark and high school bright at the same time, but it was done masterfully. While probably somewhere in Chapter 2 I could tell you what the end of the story looked like, I don’t think the ending was as important as the middle. The “in between” of this book was what did it for me, the building of Marisa’s character, the show more mystery behind Dirty Dirk, and the relationships between all of the characters. So, overall liked the book, it’s not a book I’ll read again, but it did fulfill my chick lit needs! show less

Marisa's story is a classic dilemma. Nerdy boy likes girl, girl likes popular boy, will things ever work out for the two?

Marisa and Nash have always been neighbors but have grown apart over the years. Nash is the nerdy boy who is obsessed with robots and science and Marisa is the girl who would love to be popular but can never quite fit in. Marisa's problem is that she has an anxiety disorder that made most people think that she was crazy.

This year, though, Marisa and her best friend Sterling make a pact that Sophomore year will be the best yet. They both plan to reinvent themselves over the summer and start fresh. Things seem to be going great for both of them, especially when Derek, the boy of her dreams, seems to take an interest in show more Marisa.

While things get better and better for Marisa, her friendship with Sterling seems to be deteriorating. Marisa won't spend time with Sterling because she is too busy with Derek but Marisa won't let Sterling find her own boyfriend. Sterling has a tendency to go for the older guys that she meets on the internet and Marisa is worried that something might happen. All Sterling wants is someone like Derek is to Marisa and she can't seem to find it anywhere but the internet. More and more Marisa blows off Sterling to hang out with Derek and Sterling finally cracks. She can't stand being put second in Marisa's life and she won't put up with it anymore.

Things couldn't be better for Marisa but she can't seem to stop thinking about Nash. Nash also entered into a new relationship and instead of being happy, Marisa seems to be a tad bit jealous. When Derek starts hanging out with his ex-girlfriend, Sierra, things get even worse.

Not only is Marisa having trouble with friendships and relationships, her family life seems to be getting worse. Her parents, who have always been the type to show their affection, don't seem to even notice each other anymore. What could possibly be going on with them?

Will Marisa finally choose the right guy for her? Will Sterling ever get over finding older guys on the internet? Will Marisa's parents make-up of break-up?

Waiting For You is a classic coming-of-age story about friendship and first love. Not only does Susane Colasanti manage to create a great love story, she manages to incorporate that maybe the guy of your dreams is right in front of you and you are just too afraid to look. Susane Colasanti was able to show in this story that love isn't necessarily about looks and what other people think but about how you feel. Waiting For You is one of those books that makes you want to keep reading and find out if everything works out in the end. It will inspire you to live your life in the Now and let the future come at you as it may. show less

This was a sweet, coming-of-age story of a young girl who is at the point in her life where she is discovering who she is and where she is going. Marisa is a very relatable character - she's a sophomore in high school and is looking for Mr. Right. When she lands the perfect boyfriend (handsome, popular, etc.) she begins to realize that sometimes love doesn't have to be perfect and can be found when least expected.

Although the story does have a light feel to it, it does touch on some rather serious subjects, making it not just a fun book but also an emotional story. I do have to say that I was drawn more to the lighter/more romanticer (yes, I made that word up) moments in the story. I also enjoyed the whole anonymous DJ bit... although I show more did guess who it was from the start.

I have to confess that I did wish that it would have been more fast-paced... I felt as if something was waiting around the corner the whole time, but it just never came. All in all, this is a classic coming-of-age story about friendship and first love that is easily enjoyed. show less

Another great Susane Colasanti book! When I heard about Waiting For You, I was really excited, as I absolutely love When It Happens (there actually happens to be a quote from it on the walls of my school in the English department) and Take Me There is a favorite as well. This was a fun read that kept me reading rather quickly. I predicted the ending right away, but it was still a lot of fun to read how it would come to that conclusion.

I really liked Marissa's character, I felt she had elements that relate to all sorts of people which draws you in even more if you connect with the character. Nash was another really well written character, he was just so sweet. Some of the others characters I felt where a little too true to stereotypes. show more

The setting was another thing that really drew you into the story, the setting of the high school was actually believable. In some books with high school settings, you think, "That's not what high schools really like." Plus the message sent is really cute, which is you should appreciate what you have rather than hoping for the next "thing" which if it happens, may not surpass what you had to begin with.

I love the cover, it's perfect for the plot of the book.

This is definately a great summer read! show less