Reviews

Girl Defective by Simmone Howell

katdid's review against another edition

4.0

This was bloody good: unflinching, entertaining, unjudgemental. And it was surprisingly comforting to read an Australian novel after a string of international ones. I found myself thinking that this was what would happen if one of the characters from Dogs In Space (dir. Richard Lowenstein, 1986) grew up and had a family.

limeywesty's review against another edition

4.0

Everytime I read a Simmone Howell novel I feel like the borderline dork that has been allowed to hang out with their idol for the day. Trying to fit in a Melbourne more hipster than I'm associated with, entirely envious, but full of gratitude for her generous sharing.

"Girl Defective" will make you wish you lived in St Kilda, visiting secret raves with a more credible authentic taste in music. It will have you people watching at Luna Park and humming Paul Kelly's appreciation tribute "From St Kilda to Kings Cross".

Skylark is the soul searching teen minus the angst, Nancy, a soul searching "adult". Sky's younger brother Gully is a bandit searching kind of guy instead. With characters as vibrant and, defective I suppose, you can't not end up with a wonderful tale. Simmone Howell will have you making a new wistful mixtape and wishing you were as cool as she is.

lavaplant's review

emotional funny medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

biblialex's review against another edition

4.0

Have I read an Australian YA title that I didn't like? Skylark Martin's family is weird and dysfunctional without being just a collection of quirks. The book's strong sense of place makes it seem just as much about the fate of the family record shop and the darkness lurking beneath the surface of a popular summer vacation spot as it about Sky's search to define herself. (Also worth noting, the protagonist is bisexual/biromantic--there's no specific label applied in the text, but either way it's a rarity.)

blyttgh's review against another edition

5.0

I love this book.

demonsreadtoo's review against another edition

4.0

I was hoping to like this one. The premise sounded fun, but I didn’t expect to love it. But love it, I did. Girl Defective is very near unputdownable. It was struggle come bed time when ‘just one more chapter’ turned into five. Filled with such engrossing, realistic and distinct characters, I felt like I’d picked up a John Green novel. Steeped deeply in family issues, the main character, Sky, holds herself out as the only semi-sane one amongst them. Very easy to connect with, her own angst seems to play second fiddle as she navigates the craziness that keeps gravitating around her.

Read the full review at my blog, Demons Read Too

anniea89's review against another edition

4.0

Great coming of age story, refreshingly set in Australia. The characters are well developed and complement the 'whodunnit' esque narrative. Not a hard read but nonetheless enjoyable.

sarah_piette's review

hopeful reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

katereads2much's review against another edition

4.0

This book felt more genuinely real real than any book I can remember reading, especially in the teen genre. I don't know that I have ever been so convinced that characters in a book were real people out there that I could run into one day - even of the non-fiction books I've read. This book says it's about the good things, but I think it's really about the hard things both good and bad - love and rejection, loyalty and abandonment, life and death, family and strangers. It's intense in the way that real, average life can be tense and confusing. This isn't a traditional love story or a mystery, but it contains elements of both. Yes this is a coming of age story, but it's unlike any other I've read.

misskrislm's review against another edition

3.0

I received an ARC copy from a Goodreads giveaway several months ago and have only now gotten a chance to read it. My expectations were much lower than this book deserves. An in-depth exploration of this multi-faceted family and their experience over one winter. Enjoyable and unpredictable in its quirkiness from start to end, it's a nice light read for anyone looking for something just outside of the norm to peruse.