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lau_m25's review
3.0
More reviews at Beautiful Books
Piper Perish is a about Piper Perish (duh!) and her artsy shenanigans. I love art, although I'm more of a Renaissance fan myself (I'm fully convinced that if past lives are a thing I was so alive during the Renaissance) while Piper is a hardcore Andy Warhol fan herself. To each their own. I was expecting a cutesy contemporary that was also about family and the story had those elements, but not in the way I was expecting them. To be honest, I don't know if I liked or didn't like this book.
I can certainly tell that the first half was a struggle and I wasn't so on board with Piper. She has a friend and boyfriend, Enzo, and he breaks up with her because he fell in love with this dude and her first reaction is to think that she turned him gay and I went "Um... honey bisexuality is a thing and you can't turn someone gay." Okay, thanks. I didn't particularily like any of the other characters for the first half either. Except Adams (their art teacher), she was rad.
As the story moved along, though, I started to grow fond of them. I was intrigued enough to want to know if Piper would be able to go off to New York and follow her dreams. I did feel identified with Piper, because I am also afraid to follow my dreams and put things off until I absolutely have to do them. It comes with the fear of being rejected, I guess.
As for the character relationships, I wasn't invested in any of them. The one I liked most, though, was Piper's relationship with her Dad. It was heartwarming. I wish the family aspect had been explored more. Also, someone get Marli some formal psychological help because her behaviors throughout the book were concerning and she should see someone. That's all I' saying about that.
However, I didn't find the story incredibly inspiring or satisfying or even that unique. I felt meh about the book and the characters in general. Definitely a solid three star book.
Piper Perish is a about Piper Perish (duh!) and her artsy shenanigans. I love art, although I'm more of a Renaissance fan myself (I'm fully convinced that if past lives are a thing I was so alive during the Renaissance) while Piper is a hardcore Andy Warhol fan herself. To each their own. I was expecting a cutesy contemporary that was also about family and the story had those elements, but not in the way I was expecting them. To be honest, I don't know if I liked or didn't like this book.
I can certainly tell that the first half was a struggle and I wasn't so on board with Piper. She has a friend and boyfriend, Enzo, and he breaks up with her because he fell in love with this dude and her first reaction is to think that she turned him gay and I went "Um... honey bisexuality is a thing and you can't turn someone gay." Okay, thanks. I didn't particularily like any of the other characters for the first half either. Except Adams (their art teacher), she was rad.
As the story moved along, though, I started to grow fond of them. I was intrigued enough to want to know if Piper would be able to go off to New York and follow her dreams. I did feel identified with Piper, because I am also afraid to follow my dreams and put things off until I absolutely have to do them. It comes with the fear of being rejected, I guess.
As for the character relationships, I wasn't invested in any of them. The one I liked most, though, was Piper's relationship with her Dad. It was heartwarming. I wish the family aspect had been explored more. Also, someone get Marli some formal psychological help because her behaviors throughout the book were concerning and she should see someone. That's all I' saying about that.
However, I didn't find the story incredibly inspiring or satisfying or even that unique. I felt meh about the book and the characters in general. Definitely a solid three star book.
slide_key's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
caitgreatcaf's review against another edition
2.0
Piper Perish is, in a word, super annoying. Normally I don't have a problem with self-centered characters to this extent, and maybe it's because we only get the story through her (understandably biased) journal entries, but I couldn't stand Piper. She was so wrapped up in being the next big thing that she treated her friends and family like second fiddles, but somehow remained insecure and doubting? Uh uh. I have trouble articulating exactly what bothered me so much about her, but her constant "how does this affect me and only me" attitude grates like no other. And having a) her best friend, who we've been told over and over and over is way more talented and a better artist and blah blah blah say that she's actually just jealous of Piper and Piper's talent b) her gay-ish ex-boyfriend keep kissing her randomly and her not telling him to cut it out c) her fancy art school mentor fall half in love with her over a few exchanged emails and d) her smashed New York dream be suddenly salvaged by a random comment from an eccentric fashion designer who just has to have her senior project for his fashion week debut? It's bullshit stacked on bullshit. I cannot STAND the main character! The only reason I made it through was because the supporting characters were pretty solid, even if they were flat in places and out of established character in others. (marli-in-labor is suddenly a decent human being and loves her sister? come on). Kit is great; I would much rather read a book about her. Enzo is great, and Philip is way better than the drama Piper drags him into by proxy. Hopefully after Piper goes off to NYC they all have much better lives.
addieanderson's review against another edition
4.0
I really really liked this book! The style is different but fun and Piper and her situations are relatable. So cute and I loved the ending!
itsareaderslife's review against another edition
2.0
*I received an e-ARC copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*
I have seen lots of people talking about Piper Perish on social media so when I saw it was available for request on Netgalley I jumped at the chance. Sadly, I was not a fan.
Protagonist Piper Perish lives in Houston and is in her senior year. She dreams of going to NY with her two best friends to study art where Andy Warhol did. The novel begins on New Years Day when we find out Piper's long term boyfriend, Enzo, has broken up with her because he has come to the realization that he is gay. Following this, we watch Piper's life unfold when she applies to university and deals with a selfish and pregnant sister, a jealous best friend and a few boys along the way. The novel is laid out like a diary and follows Piper from January until August. By the end, you feel as if you've lived a lifetime with Perish.
Here's the thing. I really struggled to like Piper. As a character, I found her very selfish which was kind of ironic because she spent most of the novel complaining about how selfish her older sister was. She failed to see why her best friend was upset in parts of the novel, putting all of it on her, and was pretty mad with her (ex) boyfriend when he came out. Don't get me wrong, there were times I felt some sympathy towards Piper, like when her parents told her they didn't think she'd get in to her chosen university or when she had to endure the first meeting with Enzo's new boyfriend, but for the most part I found her too wingey to see past this. I think the diary aspect played a role in this because you would usually rent to your diary but this novel felt slightly too pre-teen for me.
'If I was you, I wouldn't come back either.'
However, this novel and Piper are very relevant to my life right now. I am currently in my last year of sixth form (senior year) and I will be starting university in the autumn so I did feel like I could connect to Piper on that level. In a few months I'll be going through all the things she went through and making the decisions she had to make.
One part of the novel I did like was Piper's friendship group. Kit and Enzo are both aspiring artists like Piper and I've never come across a more supportive group. Although things don't go as the group planned, they were still there for each other every step of the way. Enzo was the perfect gay best friend. He designed all of Piper's outfits for her and gave her a talking to when she needed it but also consoled her for hours when she couldn't control her emotions. Kit, on the other hand, struggled at times when it appeared Piper was excelling in the art world but I thought Kit was a really funny character and she sounded super talented too. For the most part, she was just as supportive as Enzo and the group together where the magical trio.
'Being that close to him, it just felt so...us. But for the first time it didn't feel..right.'
Moving on to Piper's sister. Oh my god, what a bitch. Marli was horrible to her sister, her boyfriend and her parents. Marli falls pregnant at the beginning of the novel and has to return home but she never shows any gratitude for her parents who are trying to make ends meet. She also got mad at the slightest thing Piper did. Like when Piper looked at her the wrong way she had a huge melt down and then make out she was some great and wonderful sister. Although Piper was the nicest of the two, it was clear they both share a selfish gene.
There were three different boys in this novel, although we meet them all at very different times and situations. First up is Enzo, Piper's first boyfriend. After the pair break up, they do share some moments which shows Enzo's confusion and denial of his sexuality. In that respect, he reminded me of Patrick from The Perks Of Being A Wallflower. The second was Silas, Piper's mentor, who we don't actually get to meet until the very end of the novel. They exchange emails through the course of the book and Silas appears to be a really cool guy, looking out for Piper and giving her advice before he has even met her. The third was CJ, who thought he was some hotshot journalist and put all of Piper's friends down in his articles. They were a mixed bunch but I think all of them helped Piper grow as a person in some way.
Although I liked some characters and story lines in this novel, I feel like I've been reading it for months and there was never really a pinnacle dilemma moment in the book like most novels have. I really struggled to connect with the main character and I think that is so important when reading a book because we see the rest of the word through their eyes. This novel was just not for me.
'The best thing about a picture is that it never changes, even if the people in it do,'
My Rating: 2.5/5
I have seen lots of people talking about Piper Perish on social media so when I saw it was available for request on Netgalley I jumped at the chance. Sadly, I was not a fan.
Protagonist Piper Perish lives in Houston and is in her senior year. She dreams of going to NY with her two best friends to study art where Andy Warhol did. The novel begins on New Years Day when we find out Piper's long term boyfriend, Enzo, has broken up with her because he has come to the realization that he is gay. Following this, we watch Piper's life unfold when she applies to university and deals with a selfish and pregnant sister, a jealous best friend and a few boys along the way. The novel is laid out like a diary and follows Piper from January until August. By the end, you feel as if you've lived a lifetime with Perish.
Here's the thing. I really struggled to like Piper. As a character, I found her very selfish which was kind of ironic because she spent most of the novel complaining about how selfish her older sister was. She failed to see why her best friend was upset in parts of the novel, putting all of it on her, and was pretty mad with her (ex) boyfriend when he came out. Don't get me wrong, there were times I felt some sympathy towards Piper, like when her parents told her they didn't think she'd get in to her chosen university or when she had to endure the first meeting with Enzo's new boyfriend, but for the most part I found her too wingey to see past this. I think the diary aspect played a role in this because you would usually rent to your diary but this novel felt slightly too pre-teen for me.
'If I was you, I wouldn't come back either.'
However, this novel and Piper are very relevant to my life right now. I am currently in my last year of sixth form (senior year) and I will be starting university in the autumn so I did feel like I could connect to Piper on that level. In a few months I'll be going through all the things she went through and making the decisions she had to make.
One part of the novel I did like was Piper's friendship group. Kit and Enzo are both aspiring artists like Piper and I've never come across a more supportive group. Although things don't go as the group planned, they were still there for each other every step of the way. Enzo was the perfect gay best friend. He designed all of Piper's outfits for her and gave her a talking to when she needed it but also consoled her for hours when she couldn't control her emotions. Kit, on the other hand, struggled at times when it appeared Piper was excelling in the art world but I thought Kit was a really funny character and she sounded super talented too. For the most part, she was just as supportive as Enzo and the group together where the magical trio.
'Being that close to him, it just felt so...us. But for the first time it didn't feel..right.'
Moving on to Piper's sister. Oh my god, what a bitch. Marli was horrible to her sister, her boyfriend and her parents. Marli falls pregnant at the beginning of the novel and has to return home but she never shows any gratitude for her parents who are trying to make ends meet. She also got mad at the slightest thing Piper did. Like when Piper looked at her the wrong way she had a huge melt down and then make out she was some great and wonderful sister. Although Piper was the nicest of the two, it was clear they both share a selfish gene.
There were three different boys in this novel, although we meet them all at very different times and situations. First up is Enzo, Piper's first boyfriend. After the pair break up, they do share some moments which shows Enzo's confusion and denial of his sexuality. In that respect, he reminded me of Patrick from The Perks Of Being A Wallflower. The second was Silas, Piper's mentor, who we don't actually get to meet until the very end of the novel. They exchange emails through the course of the book and Silas appears to be a really cool guy, looking out for Piper and giving her advice before he has even met her. The third was CJ, who thought he was some hotshot journalist and put all of Piper's friends down in his articles. They were a mixed bunch but I think all of them helped Piper grow as a person in some way.
Although I liked some characters and story lines in this novel, I feel like I've been reading it for months and there was never really a pinnacle dilemma moment in the book like most novels have. I really struggled to connect with the main character and I think that is so important when reading a book because we see the rest of the word through their eyes. This novel was just not for me.
'The best thing about a picture is that it never changes, even if the people in it do,'
My Rating: 2.5/5
foreveryoungadult's review
Graded By: Mandy C.
Cover Story: Different Strokes
BFF Charm: Nay
Swoonworthy Scale: 3
Talky Talk: Dear Diary
Bonus Factors: Art, Email Relationship, Coach Taylor Award
Anti-Bonus Factor: Horrible Sister
Relationship Status: It’s Not Me, it’s You
Read the full book report here.
Cover Story: Different Strokes
BFF Charm: Nay
Swoonworthy Scale: 3
Talky Talk: Dear Diary
Bonus Factors: Art, Email Relationship, Coach Taylor Award
Anti-Bonus Factor: Horrible Sister
Relationship Status: It’s Not Me, it’s You
Read the full book report here.
knunderb's review against another edition
2.0
I really loved Piper, Kit, and Enzo. Reading through someone's creative process and picturing what they made was really cool. And Ms. Adams had some great quotes about failure, life, and art.
However, I thought it was total BS how Piper's parents let everything slide with Marli, Piper's older sister. She's a complete narcissist, treats Piper like garbage, and their parents continually tell Piper to "stop antagonizing your sister." It's pretty clear that Piper isn't antagonizing in any way, she just responds in a way that is to be expected when all your buttons are pushed. Marli just seems to be a plot device to make Piper's life suck so that the author could justify how badly Piper wanted to get out of Houston. There was absolutely no resolution between Piper and Marli, and Marli doesn't get any kind of punishment or anything for all the awful crap she put Piper through. Even after she completely destroys Piper's senior art project piece, she tells Piper that her art doesn't matter, and that what she's doing (growing a baby) is what actually matters, the real art. The book ends with the birth of Marli's baby and Piper realizing her dream of going to New York and things are."resolved" between them because now Piper has a niece and wants Marli to be happy. it was a very unsatisfying ending, and overall, the book just pissed me off.
However, I thought it was total BS how Piper's parents let everything slide with Marli, Piper's older sister. She's a complete narcissist, treats Piper like garbage, and their parents continually tell Piper to "stop antagonizing your sister." It's pretty clear that Piper isn't antagonizing in any way, she just responds in a way that is to be expected when all your buttons are pushed. Marli just seems to be a plot device to make Piper's life suck so that the author could justify how badly Piper wanted to get out of Houston. There was absolutely no resolution between Piper and Marli, and Marli doesn't get any kind of punishment or anything for all the awful crap she put Piper through. Even after she completely destroys Piper's senior art project piece, she tells Piper that her art doesn't matter, and that what she's doing (growing a baby) is what actually matters, the real art. The book ends with the birth of Marli's baby and Piper realizing her dream of going to New York and things are."resolved" between them because now Piper has a niece and wants Marli to be happy. it was a very unsatisfying ending, and overall, the book just pissed me off.
eupham's review against another edition
5.0
Ffffffrrrrriiiiiiccccckkkkkkk. So, I wrote a really long review for this but then chrome crashed and I lost all of it, and I'm to lazy to write another one. Basically it said that I freaking loved this and that the people, situations, and friendships were really real. Recommend to literally anyone.