The Boyfriend List

At the suggestion of Kelly (Literary Lunch) I finally got around to reading The Boyfriend List and the sequel, The Boy Book: A Study of Habits and Behaviors, Plus Techniques for Taming Them by by E. Lockhart . Both books were great fun to read and fifteen-year-old Ruby "Roo" Oliver sounds like a real person, with normal crazy, mixed-up feelings. In The Boyfriend List she’s having a tough year due to a series of social debacles, in which she loses her best friends, her boyfriend, and her reputation. Now a “leper,” Ruby starts having panic attacks and ends up with a shrink, Dr. Z, who asks her to make a complete list of the boys with whom she's ever had any thoughts about, crushes, kisses, a relationship or anything. Along her journey of self-discovery, Ruby begins to notice patterns in her life. The sequel is as humorous and witty as the first book as Ruby, who is as likeable as ever, continues to narrate the events in her life. Now in her junior year Ruby adjusts to life after losing her boyfriend and friends. She continues therapy with Dr. Z., gains control over her panic attacks, and eventually makes new friends while reconnecting with some of her old ones.