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| Atria Books |
by Jamie McGuire
4 Scribbles
First let me say
that I read this novel months ago and have been sitting on my review because I
am very torn about the story.
Abby Abernathy is
a good girl, or let’s say a reformed bad girl, however you want to look at
it—but she planned on making her life at Eastern the fresh slate she always
dreamed of, away from her tarnished beginnings in Las Vegas. At Eastern she
will date the right people and make only the best choices. Travis Maddox is the
quintessential bad boy; he’s muscled, tatted up, drinks heavily, street brawls
for cash, and goes through women like a chubby girl through a box of zebra
cakes (based on personal experience.) When the lives of these two intersect,
which is inevitable since Abby’s BFF is dating Travis’s cousin, sparks ignite;
initially these sparks begin with the constant bickering between the two, who
become fast “friends” and then later…well, you know.
Reading this
book was like watching a train wreck or the news about a natural disaster. So
in that regard, McGuire’s title is spot-on. I couldn’t put the novel down, but
not because I loved the characters and was invested in their future, it was
because I was so disgusted with them. Perhaps the disgust I felt had a lot to
do with the fact that many aspects of the novel are spot-on in regards to the
college experience for many who live on campus. In my recollection, there was a
lot of drinking, a ton of profanity, a lot of partying, a lot of sex (or talk
of sex) and a general feeling that these events were an important part of the
college experience. Most times, there was very little respect for the
individual. I have a very dated VHS which documents my own experience and that
of my friends, and I confess, there is a great deal of toasting and slurring
going on in this video. That being said, it seems like Abby and Travis always
seem to be where the action is and the studying thing between them is thrown in
to show that yes, indeed they can party all the time and do very well in school!
A debatable point at best. I could have possibly gotten past the
egregious use of alcohol and casual sex, but I was so very disappointed, outrageously
disappointed, when Abby and Travis eventually hook up and realize they can’t live
without one another. For one thing, Travis’s treatment of women, and of Abby is
abhorrent—I don’t even want to get started on what an absolute dog he is. And
Abby, is she really so weak-minded as to fall for his BS? At one point Abby’s
roommate points out that the relationship between Abby and Travis is
co-dependent and unhealthy. I remember praising this insightful character (although
a complete moron could have seen this) and thinking that surely, surely the
author was going to direct the ending to this conclusion and allow these two
individuals to see the light….wow, was I surprised. Here’s the thing though
despite my disgust, my chagrin, my disappointment, and my general anger at the
novel, I cannot criticize it for being unrealistic or overly dramatic…sadly it
smacks of truth. How many of us hooked up with the wrong guy when we were
young, the bad boy we wanted to fix? Don’t answer that. At any rate, I have to,
against every urge not to, give this novel 4 scribbles. I do this under
protest. I would love to hear what others have to say, because I’m all torn up
over this one. Am I going to read the sequel, Walking Disaster? Of course,
eventually…but I need a breather before I witness what I expect from the title
promises to be an even greater train wreck.
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