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nsusdorf's review against another edition
4.0
Make Lemonade is a very engrossing book about to young women trying to better themselves. It has some content too mature for my middle schoolers, but this would be great for reluctant high school readers.
emilymorgan02's review against another edition
4.0
I think this is my third time reading this novel. I love novels in verse and I love the strong main character in these. I love watching her work hard, make mistakes, learn, and move forward. The audiobook narrator is perfect.
krpollard's review against another edition
4.0
A solid YA read that reminds us we're all not born with the same chances in life.
readwithpassion's review against another edition
4.0
A beautiful book in verse that teaches a great message. I love how the title connects with the storyline, as well.
clesuma's review against another edition
4.0
Make Lemonade is a beautifully written story about 14 year-old LaVaughn's after-school babysitting job for 17 year-old single mom Jolly. LaVaughn and Jolly are opposite sides of a coin: LaVaughn is an excellent student babysitting to save money for college, while Jolly is a high school dropout with two young children from different men. The lessons that they teach each other while learning to care for three year-old Jeremy and one year-old Jilly powerfully relate the value of friendship, hope, family, and perseverance. I loved the "not verse" verse narrative, which was nonetheless highly poetic, and that the quiet, everyday moments of the story are just as powerful as the more plot-driven portions of the novel. The two strong and yet very different protagonists create a potentially broad audience, although the slow, quietness of the plot, fragmented narrative, and verse-like format might be difficult for reluctant readers to stick with through the end.
nssutton's review against another edition
2.0
heard the third part of the triology booktalked a bunch of times this year, but i couldn't really get into it.
saidtheraina's review against another edition
4.0
Read this as part of my Teen Services class in grad school. Lovely.
bobbylupin's review against another edition
3.0
Another book I picked up because it is a requirement for my Teen-Lit class this fall, it was a fairly easy read, I finished it in about a day. It was a pretty good book. Some of the language at certain points in the book was a bit difficult for me to pay attention to, because the style of the book is kind of set up in a way that you are reading the exact thoughts of the main character LaVaughn. I definitely think that this book is a good example of how someone you meet in life can be at rock bottom, but just by showing them a little kindness can change their life for the better... I don't know why but for some of the descriptions of Jolly and her situation.. I surprisingly pictured some of my friends I grew up with, and their situations.. although they were a lot better off than Jolly .. to say the least. I also really liked some of the symbols and metaphors that the author used in story. In conclusion, I was happy with this book. I would recommend it if you are looking for something with a realistic feel to it.. and I mean it is such a light read that you don't really have much to lose by giving it a shot.
milesofbooks_al's review against another edition
3.0
I admit, I struggled when first starting this book. I couldn’t get a clear picture of the characters right off the bat and the poor grammar and sentence structure really bothered me. But as the story progresses and the characters’ stories build, I become more attached to LaVaughn, and really started rooting for her. I even made predictions in my mind that she would eventually get fed up with the filth and Jolly would come home to a completely spotless apartment some night after work. While this story shows the “glass half empty” almost worst case scenario for teen pregnancy, I still think it is a good book for kids to read in that it also shows that there is hope out there, even in your darkest hour. It bugged me that Jolly kept telling LaVaughn that she couldn’t count on anyone in her life, when LaVaughn had done so much for her (babysitting, a little house cleaning, babysitting for free, buying Jeremy shoes, getting Jolly into the Moms Up program, just to name a few). But, I am really happy that Jolly did get a hold of her life towards the end and seemed to be doing just fine on her own two feet.