Publisher: Hot Key Books
Format: ARC
Published: 7th February 2013
Number of Pages: 224
Book: For Review*
Genre: Real-to-Life Fiction, Contemporary, Comedy, Coming-of-Age, Romance, YA
Recommended
Age: 12+
Contains: Smoking, Mad Hijinks
No Alcohol, Drug References
No Alcohol, Drug References
'Life is not a bowl of cherries. Suck it
up.' On April-May's first day at Trinity College, she has the wrong colour bag,
too-bright socks and she gets her favourite novel confiscated for reading it
during class. She makes total enemies with the evil Mrs Ho, but she makes total
friends with mouth-breather Melly. Then, she meets the gorgeous Seb, loses her
entire wardrobe to a hobo and gets branded a sockless trouble-maker. A MONTH
WITH APRIL-MAY is a one-eyebrow-raised account of a teenager's trials and
tribulations as she navigates a new school, a new family situation and a whole
new way of life.
Review:
“I
should have known from the first moment I met her: it was either me or Mrs Ho.
One of us was going to have to go.”
Everyone knows staring a new school is
hard. And April-May February may have just had the worst first day in the
history of ever.
First, her bag was the wrong colour.
Then she got yelled at (again) for having too bright socks. Then she makes a new worst enemy in
the form of Mrs Ho, the evilest person ever. Next her clothes get nicked.
And on top of it all, she's totally addicted to Twilight and can't get
her hands on the second book (begin panic attack now!). Yup, day one, and
already she has the big, fat label of 'Trouble Maker'.
On the bright side, she does have a new best friend in
Melly. There's also a totally hot guy on the scene (he's called Seb and
might just be her own Edward).
Who said childhood was innocent and
carefree? Whoever did obviously never
had to live through Trinity College. Or have a to-the-end battle against
the persistent Mrs Ho.
Or have a freaking calendar
as a name!
I do love funny books, me. I read so
many tearjerkers and dystopias and paranormals, so down-to-earth funnies are
always more than welcome. Of course, A
Month With April-May wasn't overly down-to-earth, instead being more
bonkers, kind of like the Georgia Nicolson series – something I loved! It
was completely barmy and bundles of fun. I'll admit, there are some
darkish moments and bits where I wanted to smack April-May on the back of her
head, but I stormed right through the book in a single sitting, gobbling it up.
I can't wait for the next in the series!
I just adored all the characters in this
book – they were all absolutely mad! Since the book was only short, we
didn't really get to know everyone overly well, but I liked loads of them
anyway. And I loved April-May,
even if she was an evil, sneaky, crafty, sore-losing genius! She was
just hilarious – cheeky, funny, witty – everything you could want in a
teen lead! I found myself instantly falling in love with the wacky
April-May – she was just brilliant! Plus, her evil-genius moments were
pretty scary-brilliant! I loved Melly, her sweet bestie – she was the
best bestie a girl could have! And Mrs Ho was a brilliant character
– poor woman, the lady was in charge of a sinking ship and had an evil genius
as an arch nemesis! No wonder she was
tightly wound, hey?! I can’t wait to see
more of her. Seb was a bad boy – I don’t
really know what April-May saw in
him: I think she just wanted an Edward – but what teen doesn't? I also liked Fluffy, her dad. He was
kind of scattered but was really sweet and loving. Speaking of, April-May's
family was insane and so, so dysfunctional. I'm sure people will be able
to relate to April-May's situation – she felt like she had to be two people for
her parents, like being pulled apart. And all she wanted was for them to
be together again. I felt so sorry for her – and very impressed by her
crafty get-Mom-and-Fluffy-together-again tactics!
I loved Bulbring's
voice – it was snarky and funny and so teen. And I felt like I totally
got and loved April-May! Oh, and I loved all her "Cold
Facts" – some of them were really funny and all were so interesting.
I also loved all the Afrikaans words that were scattered about. And
I found April-May's war both amusing and the kind of thing only an evil genius
can cook up! And with the short chapters and non-stop hijinks, I found myself
zipping through it – y’know the sort: just one
more chapter ... Dangerous! And the ending was just perfect –
and left me wanting more of April-May's insanity!
I must say, I was kind of expecting a tween
book when I picked this one up – I'm not sure why, maybe the length? – but this
is a very teen book: I can't wait for
the teens of England to be set loose on this one, cause they're gonna love it!
Now, with a lovably flawed and crafty
heroine, a battle of wills between her and a teacher and a series of mad and
funny events, A Month With April-May
has left me wanting much more time with her! Perfect for fans of Jess Jordan and Georgia Nicolson, April-May is going to be a huge, huge hit with
teen girls. Yay to April-May! I'm super excited about your next
book - but please be longer!!
Star Rating:
4 Out of 5
4 Out of 5
Read this
book if you liked:
Confessions of Georgia Nicolson
by Louise Rennison
Jess Jordan by Sue Limb
Jacqueline Wilson Fans
Challenges
It's Taking Part In:
Happy Reading
Megan
* This
book was received from HotKeyBooks in exchange for an honest review
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