Publisher: Electric Monkey
Format: ARC
Published: 7th May 2012
Number of Pages: 304
Book: For Review*
Genre: Contemporary, Comedy, Romance, Realistic-Fiction, Humour, YA
Recommended
Age: 12+
Contains: Mild Swearing, Verbal Bullying
No Alcohol, Drug References
Author's
Twitter: Diane Messidoro
Can taming a gorgeous boy really be as easy as
walking a dog?
“I refuse to spend my entire life swooning
pointlessly.”
Circe Shaw is on a mission!
“I must transform into a fabulously sophisticated
journalist and discover the amazing truth about boys.”
But life is beyond complicated. Circle has to deal with a poisonous rival,
her mum’s annoying “just friends” men and her own Dark Past.
Can Circe’s daring investigation really teach her
the facts of love?
Will it help finally get a boyfriend?
Or will it break her heart…?
Review:
Circe Shaw wants to become a fabulously
sophisticated journalist and uncover the mysterious truth about the male
species.
But she has some major problems. It's
hard being fabulously sophisticated living in "The Nook" (the smallest cottage ever) with her mum and her "just
friends" guys "in The
Middle Of Absolute Nowhere", while facing down an arch enemy and her
romantic Dark Past...
In amongst blogging and "Male Human Pet Control
Experiments", can Circe find out the real truth about guys - and maybe
get herself a boyfriend of her own?
Or is this mystery meant to remain a
mystery for all eternity - as it has a tendency to cause way to too many
problems and broken hearts when seriously investigated...?
I love, love, love books that make me
laugh. Always have. How To Keep
A Boy As A Pet? Constant LOL-ING! Quirky and fun and bonkers, I
just sped through this book: I felt myself being drawn in by Circe's madness
from the word go and couldn't stop reading! But what I truly loved was
that it was more than just funny, it was also really thoughtful, insightful and
pure genius - and will definitely help in attracting a pet boy! For
everyone looking for an amazingly written, hilarious and bonkers book: *thrusts How To Keep A Boy As A Pet at you*! This really is a must read for all teen
girls! Seriously!
Circe Shaw was bonkers and funny and cute
and oh-so fabulously sophisticated! Evidence of her wit, insanity and
cuteness: "hamstericidal ratlets".
I adored Circe - she was the most teenage
teen, so relatable and loveable. An average, normal teen girl with
abnormally large hair! As fabulous as she was, she was also dreadfully
insecure - it just made you love her more, that vulnerability beneath the
bravado, and I loved watching her grow and mature.
Rufus Strakes was kinda grumpy and
snarky and smirk-y. He was really hard to figure out - a mystery!
But that intense thing he had - yum! He was dark, broody,
mysterious... Hey! Circe got her very own R-Patz! Learning
more about him just made me adore
him! And I loved the glimpses of the sweet, vulnerable Rufus we got, the
Rufus lingering under the snark.
I also loved seeing how Circe's and Rufus'
relationship grew. It started off as an experiment, but soon became much,
much more. I felt it - it was so sweet and real and so not a science experiment!
I just adored all the characters - from the
poshies to the besties to the "just
friends" men. They were all brilliantly described and very varying
and very funny! I also loved all the various relationships - how they
evolved, how different they all were - how real. Tash and Ben, Circe’s
best friends, were both awesome and so cute together! Savvy Rose, Circe's real-imaginary-reader of
her blog, was clever, cheerful and a great advice giver – like a virtual big
sister! I loved the conversations she and Circe had! But who was
she really...? And I loved Circe’s pets' names - Johnny Depp,
Jude Law and Daniel Craig. LOL! Blame her mother!
The writing was just hilarious and so, so Circe! I was constantly giggling
and just loved the blog layout and how Circe liked to Put Things In Capital
Letters A Lot! She was very thorough, very descriptive and very, very
funny! She just felt so totally teen-ager-y! Loved it! I loved
how she wrote as she felt, and how we could tell when she was excited, shocked,
in pain. I really, truly felt like I got to know Circe!
And the plot was just utterly
addictive! I adored Circe's "Male
Human Pet Control" experiments - they had me absolutely cracking
up! The plot was marvellously simple and sophisticated and straight
forward, totally original and addictive. And gotta admit - did not see most of it coming!
I also loved that beneath the snarky, funny
exterior lay a deeper, more serious theme - bullying, what it is and how to
deal with it. Circe didn't think she was being bullied but she was -
horribly so. Diane Messidoro dealt with it skilfully, tackling it and
telling the reader how to stop/deal with it if it happens to you or a
friend.
One girl's mission to be a fabulously
sophisticated journalist while trying to discover the truth about the male
species and hopefully land a boyfriend, How
To Keep A Boy As A Pet was bonkers, hilarious and marvellously, barmily British!
I found that I couldn't put it down, and when I did I had a lovely warm feeling
inside. I loved this book to pieces and will be counting down the days
til the next book in the series (What Not
To Do In The Dark) comes out!!
Star Rating:
5 Out of 5
5 Out of 5
Read this
book if you liked:
Confessions of Georgia Nicolson by Louise Rennison
The Vampire Blog by Pete Johnson
Bridget Jones' Diary by Helen Fielding
Challenges
It's Taking Part In:
Happy Reading
Megan
* This
book was received from Egmont in exchange for an honest review
3 comments:
Amazing review! Am loving this (as you know from Goodreads :) )
great review, I cant wait to get this one read, Its high up on my tbr pile!
Cliona: Thanks! Yep, I know! It's such an amazing book!!
Raimy: Thanks! It's brilliant - Bridget Jones-esque without the cringing! ;)
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