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rachcannoli's review against another edition
3.0
Let me start by saying my rating is not because this is a bad book by any means, it's simply because I think this story was trying to accomplish quite a lot and never quite got there for me. Courtney Summers excels in writing difficult topics that are hard to stomach, a theme I think she's perfected with All the Rage, but while that one is not only difficult but incredibly compelling, this one does not read the same way.
Some Girls Are tries to be a book about bullying, revenge, untrustworthy friends, rape, and teenager problems all in one, which is a lot of ground to cover. To me the strength of this book is the betrayal of people Regina thought were her closest friends and realizing how toxic those relationships are and how they brought out the absolute worst in her. The inciting incident being her almost rape seemed to take too much of the focus away from that. I understood it's use, but I felt there were a lot of ways to illicit the same result without someone so extreme, even just the bruises or him hurting her could have been enough.
I did not enjoy reading this book, at all. I can understand a lot of the decisions made by the characters, no matter how horrific I think they are, but since I'm not a teenage girl I just got supremely frustrated. She should've just ignored everything and not fired back. She's such a dick to Michael for the majority of the book, I understand she deserves a break and he's a wonderful person and feels bad, but I just didn't quite see her make enough changes to deserve his love and it felt a bit rushed and extremely predictable. Did I want it to happen? Sure, since he was literally the only good thing in this entire book, but it still made me extremely frustrated.
Every other character is basically a garbage person, including Regina herself. Why the heck doesn't she tell her parents anything? I know that she's a teenager and thinks they can't do anything, but come on. Also they'd notice her bruises. There was one point after they beat her that her parents thought it was an accident from gym class...I mean come on thick can you get? I also understand that high school is such a status thing, but then just ignore everyone else, if it doesn't have power of you than it shouldn't affect you.
There are unfortunately parts of this book that are realistic. People can be truly terrible in high school, especially if you're even a little bit different, and there are incredibly toxic people that can get away with pretty much anything just because they're attractive. And toxic friends can also yield good memories, but as a whole you have to know they're not worth it. I think my biggest issue with this is Regina doesn't really learn anything. She fights back because she stops valuing her own preservation and the only way they can get to her is hurting someone else, so she may value her relationship with one person but I still don't feel she understands or learns really anything from the whole ordeal. Part of the problem is it just ends after they 'solve it' which isn't really solving anything, it's just another person threatening someone else. There's no closure between anyone and no one is better off for it except maybe poor Michael who was spared what could have happened by leaking his journal.
This is one of Summers older books, so I really do think it's just her having so many good ideas and not being able to properly channel them in the best possible way. The book is also quite short and could totally benefit from another 100 pages to flesh it out a bit more, but I can understand no one wanting to read more of how brutal her treatment was since they weren't really working towards proper catharsis. This could also be a more beneficial book for a younger audience since they wouldn't find the problems so irritating and trivial and hopefully open their eyes to simply be kind and treat others better. Not my favorite of hers and I probably won't ever reread it, but I can respect and understand why others like it a lot.
Some Girls Are tries to be a book about bullying, revenge, untrustworthy friends, rape, and teenager problems all in one, which is a lot of ground to cover. To me the strength of this book is the betrayal of people Regina thought were her closest friends and realizing how toxic those relationships are and how they brought out the absolute worst in her. The inciting incident being her almost rape seemed to take too much of the focus away from that. I understood it's use, but I felt there were a lot of ways to illicit the same result without someone so extreme, even just the bruises or him hurting her could have been enough.
I did not enjoy reading this book, at all. I can understand a lot of the decisions made by the characters, no matter how horrific I think they are, but since I'm not a teenage girl I just got supremely frustrated. She should've just ignored everything and not fired back. She's such a dick to Michael for the majority of the book, I understand she deserves a break and he's a wonderful person and feels bad, but I just didn't quite see her make enough changes to deserve his love and it felt a bit rushed and extremely predictable. Did I want it to happen? Sure, since he was literally the only good thing in this entire book, but it still made me extremely frustrated.
Every other character is basically a garbage person, including Regina herself. Why the heck doesn't she tell her parents anything? I know that she's a teenager and thinks they can't do anything, but come on. Also they'd notice her bruises. There was one point after they beat her that her parents thought it was an accident from gym class...I mean come on thick can you get? I also understand that high school is such a status thing, but then just ignore everyone else, if it doesn't have power of you than it shouldn't affect you.
There are unfortunately parts of this book that are realistic. People can be truly terrible in high school, especially if you're even a little bit different, and there are incredibly toxic people that can get away with pretty much anything just because they're attractive. And toxic friends can also yield good memories, but as a whole you have to know they're not worth it. I think my biggest issue with this is Regina doesn't really learn anything. She fights back because she stops valuing her own preservation and the only way they can get to her is hurting someone else, so she may value her relationship with one person but I still don't feel she understands or learns really anything from the whole ordeal. Part of the problem is it just ends after they 'solve it' which isn't really solving anything, it's just another person threatening someone else. There's no closure between anyone and no one is better off for it except maybe poor Michael who was spared what could have happened by leaking his journal.
This is one of Summers older books, so I really do think it's just her having so many good ideas and not being able to properly channel them in the best possible way. The book is also quite short and could totally benefit from another 100 pages to flesh it out a bit more, but I can understand no one wanting to read more of how brutal her treatment was since they weren't really working towards proper catharsis. This could also be a more beneficial book for a younger audience since they wouldn't find the problems so irritating and trivial and hopefully open their eyes to simply be kind and treat others better. Not my favorite of hers and I probably won't ever reread it, but I can respect and understand why others like it a lot.
marsdabla's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
jadeeby's review against another edition
5.0
Originally posted on my blog Chasing Empty Pavements
I fell in love with Courtney Summers when I picked up This Is Not a Test. I literally fell head over heels in love with her. I read and reviewed that novel here. I had no doubt when I had the time to pick up her other novels--I would gulp up each book in one sitting and fangirl all around the house because of how awesome she is. Friends, I cannot lie. I squeed. And squealed. And danced. And cried. I FELT ALL THE FEELS WITH THIS ONE.
From the first page to the last, I was hooked on this book. This was one of those I'm-going-to-start-a-book-and-not-do-anything-else-until-I-finish-it kind of books. I seriously started it and ONLY tore my eyes away from it when I was going to the bathroom. I read straight through and loved every single minute of this wretched (in a good way) novel. Summers has mastered the art of FEELS. What does that mean? It means that I laughed, cried, yelled, swore and threw my Kindle down because Summers wrote Regina so damn well. SO. DAMN. WELL. I loved her, I hated her. I loved to hate her and hated to love her. But I think that was the point. Reformed mean girl Regina ends up getting a taste of her own medicine. She's done her fair share of screwing up other people's lives and when it's her turn, she get's it back worse then anyone she ever messed with. This, my friends, is karma. It should be the theme of the novel. I'm just going to say it--Regina is a straight up bitch. BUT. She gets what hers and by the end of the novel--you know there is more to Regina than just being a bitch. But really, this book is horrifying in a way. It almost felt like voyerism watching the inside workings of how high school girls treat each other. It wasn't so long ago that I, myself was a high school girl. I was probably most like Michael or Liz in the novel. The kid who was nerdy, good at school and kept mostly to herself. Which made me a target for bullying. So while none of the things that happened in this novel directly happened to me, I have NO SHADOW OF A DOUBT--it can and HAS happened to a high school student at one point. Teenagers are cruel. Teenage girls are even crueler. They are the meanest of the mean and they will knock you down dead if you let them. Maybe that's why this novel affected me the way it did. Because I've been there--I've witnessed things like this. It made my stomach churn like butter when I read the things they do to each other in this novel. The way Regina feels about herself, about the other people. It makes me sad and angry. As it should. There are so many themes that run rampant in this book, it's crazy. From acceptance, forgiveness, self-realization, guilt, rape, drinking, sex and friendship. Really, it goes further than those even. Courtney Summers is the master of creating characters who make you rethink your moral compass and challenge what you thought you understood about yourself. I know a lot of people have complained that they don't like Summers' books because of the "unlikable" female characters but I have to completely disagree. I love that she doesn't make the characters nice, respectable or even friendly girls. She makes them REAL. And you know what? There really are bitchy, mean girls out there who are still human. Who still deserve compassion and love even if they haven't been the best kind of girls to give it in the first place. And that is why I respect Courtney Summers as a novelist so much.
Honestly... as much as I want to complain because I got so angry with Regina sometimes--I know that's part of how Summers wanted me to feel and I can't possibly think someone who is able to make me love all the FEELS has given me anything other than a stellar book. And that's the truth. I couldn't find anything I really didn't like about this book.
Overall, I'm in awe over this book. Complete and utter awe. I loved every moment of it and I highly recommend it. Just buy the damn book already and read it!
I fell in love with Courtney Summers when I picked up This Is Not a Test. I literally fell head over heels in love with her. I read and reviewed that novel here. I had no doubt when I had the time to pick up her other novels--I would gulp up each book in one sitting and fangirl all around the house because of how awesome she is. Friends, I cannot lie. I squeed. And squealed. And danced. And cried. I FELT ALL THE FEELS WITH THIS ONE.
From the first page to the last, I was hooked on this book. This was one of those I'm-going-to-start-a-book-and-not-do-anything-else-until-I-finish-it kind of books. I seriously started it and ONLY tore my eyes away from it when I was going to the bathroom. I read straight through and loved every single minute of this wretched (in a good way) novel. Summers has mastered the art of FEELS. What does that mean? It means that I laughed, cried, yelled, swore and threw my Kindle down because Summers wrote Regina so damn well. SO. DAMN. WELL. I loved her, I hated her. I loved to hate her and hated to love her. But I think that was the point. Reformed mean girl Regina ends up getting a taste of her own medicine. She's done her fair share of screwing up other people's lives and when it's her turn, she get's it back worse then anyone she ever messed with. This, my friends, is karma. It should be the theme of the novel. I'm just going to say it--Regina is a straight up bitch. BUT. She gets what hers and by the end of the novel--you know there is more to Regina than just being a bitch. But really, this book is horrifying in a way. It almost felt like voyerism watching the inside workings of how high school girls treat each other. It wasn't so long ago that I, myself was a high school girl. I was probably most like Michael or Liz in the novel. The kid who was nerdy, good at school and kept mostly to herself. Which made me a target for bullying. So while none of the things that happened in this novel directly happened to me, I have NO SHADOW OF A DOUBT--it can and HAS happened to a high school student at one point. Teenagers are cruel. Teenage girls are even crueler. They are the meanest of the mean and they will knock you down dead if you let them. Maybe that's why this novel affected me the way it did. Because I've been there--I've witnessed things like this. It made my stomach churn like butter when I read the things they do to each other in this novel. The way Regina feels about herself, about the other people. It makes me sad and angry. As it should. There are so many themes that run rampant in this book, it's crazy. From acceptance, forgiveness, self-realization, guilt, rape, drinking, sex and friendship. Really, it goes further than those even. Courtney Summers is the master of creating characters who make you rethink your moral compass and challenge what you thought you understood about yourself. I know a lot of people have complained that they don't like Summers' books because of the "unlikable" female characters but I have to completely disagree. I love that she doesn't make the characters nice, respectable or even friendly girls. She makes them REAL. And you know what? There really are bitchy, mean girls out there who are still human. Who still deserve compassion and love even if they haven't been the best kind of girls to give it in the first place. And that is why I respect Courtney Summers as a novelist so much.
Honestly... as much as I want to complain because I got so angry with Regina sometimes--I know that's part of how Summers wanted me to feel and I can't possibly think someone who is able to make me love all the FEELS has given me anything other than a stellar book. And that's the truth. I couldn't find anything I really didn't like about this book.
Overall, I'm in awe over this book. Complete and utter awe. I loved every moment of it and I highly recommend it. Just buy the damn book already and read it!
missbookiverse's review against another edition
4.0
Regina gehört zur Fearsome-Five-Clique ihrer Schule. Niemand stellt sich diesen Mädchen in den Weg. Als Regine jedoch auf einer Party vom Freund der Cliquenkönigin begrapscht wird, glaubt ihr niemand und sie fällt stattdessen in Ungnade.
Ich liebe Bücher über mean girls, weil ich die Dynamiken, die innerhalb einer solchen Gruppe herrschen so interessant finde. Was bewegt andere Mädchen dazu mit so grenzenloser Ignoranz zu einer Person aufzuschauen, nach ihrer Pfeife zu tanzen und andere für sie zu schikanieren? Courtney Summers hat das ganze Konstrukt hier ein paar mal auf den Kopf gedreht. Protagonistin Regina wurde aus ihrer mean girls Clique ausgestoßen und befindet sich plötzlich auf der anderen Seite. Immer wieder wird sie nun Opfer ihrer damaligen Freundinnen. Das schöne ist aber, dass Regina nicht auf den Kopf gefallen ist und selber ein paar fiese Asse im Ärmel hat, die sie süffisant ausspielt. Ihre Wut und Gewaltbereitschaft ist trotz des offensichtlich falschen Mittels unheimlich nachvollziehbar. Gleichzeitig gerät sie mit früheren Opfern ihrer eigenen Taten in Kontakt, auf deren widerwillige Hilfe sie immer wieder angewiesen ist – eine unangenehme Situation für beide Seiten. Der letzte Teil ist eine Qual, denn Regina wird durch hinterhältige Erpressungen wieder in ihre frühere Rolle zurückgedrängt. Nur das Ende kommt etwas abrupt daher und lässt viele Konflikte offen.
Eine haarsträubende, fiktive Sozialstudie über das Verhalten von Teenagern. Von Lügen und Freundschaften über Mobbing und Erpressung bis zu (sexueller) Gewalt passt hier alles rein und wirkt dabei nicht nur authentisch, sondern auch erschreckend real.
Ich liebe Bücher über mean girls, weil ich die Dynamiken, die innerhalb einer solchen Gruppe herrschen so interessant finde. Was bewegt andere Mädchen dazu mit so grenzenloser Ignoranz zu einer Person aufzuschauen, nach ihrer Pfeife zu tanzen und andere für sie zu schikanieren? Courtney Summers hat das ganze Konstrukt hier ein paar mal auf den Kopf gedreht. Protagonistin Regina wurde aus ihrer mean girls Clique ausgestoßen und befindet sich plötzlich auf der anderen Seite. Immer wieder wird sie nun Opfer ihrer damaligen Freundinnen. Das schöne ist aber, dass Regina nicht auf den Kopf gefallen ist und selber ein paar fiese Asse im Ärmel hat, die sie süffisant ausspielt. Ihre Wut und Gewaltbereitschaft ist trotz des offensichtlich falschen Mittels unheimlich nachvollziehbar. Gleichzeitig gerät sie mit früheren Opfern ihrer eigenen Taten in Kontakt, auf deren widerwillige Hilfe sie immer wieder angewiesen ist – eine unangenehme Situation für beide Seiten. Der letzte Teil ist eine Qual, denn Regina wird durch hinterhältige Erpressungen wieder in ihre frühere Rolle zurückgedrängt. Nur das Ende kommt etwas abrupt daher und lässt viele Konflikte offen.
Eine haarsträubende, fiktive Sozialstudie über das Verhalten von Teenagern. Von Lügen und Freundschaften über Mobbing und Erpressung bis zu (sexueller) Gewalt passt hier alles rein und wirkt dabei nicht nur authentisch, sondern auch erschreckend real.
janina_reads's review against another edition
3.0
What is there to say about this book? I’m really not sure. It is a book I most definitely did not enjoy reading, yet it was almost impossible to stop. You know, like when you see a car wreck and you know you shouldn’t look at it, but you just can’t help yourself? Some Girls Are is this car wreck. Not in terms of writing or plot, no, certainly not. But in terms of being cruel, dark and almost brutal in its honesty.
Regina is one of these mean girls I can’t understand. She does extremely awful and cruel things to other people just to please her in-crowd friends, and she is too scared of being rejected by them to speak up against what they do. So she goes along with them, bullying fellow students until they are on the verge of committing suicide. Looking back, she reminds me a lot of Sam from [b:Before I Fall|6482837|Before I Fall|Lauren Oliver|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1289341713s/6482837.jpg|6674135]. Only that the things she and her ‘friends’ are doing are even worse, and that her friends really can’t be called friends at all, because besides their fear of not being accepted by Anna, their leader and Regina’s ‘best friend’, there is nothing that holds them together. Basically, they hate each other and their only goal is to gain Anna’s appreciation, no matter the cost.
But when Anna’s boyfriend tries to rape Regina – and Anna believes that Regina slept with him and betrayed her, Regina suddenly finds herself in the position of her former victims: Anna freaks out and tries to destroy Regina’s life. Suddenly, Regina finds herself alone and threatened by her former clique. And believe me, what these girls do to her is sometimes hard to take. I'm glad I've never high school girls like them. They trap others in closets, put old meat in their lockers, shove them down stairs, design hate websites, blackmail and beat them up and then leave them alone on a deserted field. It was sometimes hard to imagine and hard to take that there really are girls like that out there.
Even though Regina felt sorry for what she did in the past, I had a rough time relating to her. I felt pity for her, but I also hated her for being such a weak person. If Anna hadn’t rejected her at some point, she never would have quit torturing others, she would have just gone along with it forever – or, at least, as long as high school lasted. Nevertheless, I needed to know what would happen to her, and if she would be able to redeem herself in the end.
All in all, not necessarily a book to enjoy, but I would recommend giving it a try if you are looking for a darker and grittier portrayal of high school life.
Regina is one of these mean girls I can’t understand. She does extremely awful and cruel things to other people just to please her in-crowd friends, and she is too scared of being rejected by them to speak up against what they do. So she goes along with them, bullying fellow students until they are on the verge of committing suicide. Looking back, she reminds me a lot of Sam from [b:Before I Fall|6482837|Before I Fall|Lauren Oliver|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1289341713s/6482837.jpg|6674135]. Only that the things she and her ‘friends’ are doing are even worse, and that her friends really can’t be called friends at all, because besides their fear of not being accepted by Anna, their leader and Regina’s ‘best friend’, there is nothing that holds them together. Basically, they hate each other and their only goal is to gain Anna’s appreciation, no matter the cost.
But when Anna’s boyfriend tries to rape Regina – and Anna believes that Regina slept with him and betrayed her, Regina suddenly finds herself in the position of her former victims: Anna freaks out and tries to destroy Regina’s life. Suddenly, Regina finds herself alone and threatened by her former clique. And believe me, what these girls do to her is sometimes hard to take. I'm glad I've never high school girls like them. They trap others in closets, put old meat in their lockers, shove them down stairs, design hate websites, blackmail and beat them up and then leave them alone on a deserted field. It was sometimes hard to imagine and hard to take that there really are girls like that out there.
Even though Regina felt sorry for what she did in the past, I had a rough time relating to her. I felt pity for her, but I also hated her for being such a weak person. If Anna hadn’t rejected her at some point, she never would have quit torturing others, she would have just gone along with it forever – or, at least, as long as high school lasted. Nevertheless, I needed to know what would happen to her, and if she would be able to redeem herself in the end.
All in all, not necessarily a book to enjoy, but I would recommend giving it a try if you are looking for a darker and grittier portrayal of high school life.
annvalentine's review against another edition
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Suicidal thoughts, Bullying, and Sexual violence
erincataldi's review against another edition
2.0
This is essentially, "Mean Girls" on steroids. No exaggeration. One of the girls is even named Regina and they wear matching clothes on certain days, plus... they're evil. Regina is almost raped by her best friend's boyfriend, and no one believes her. She goes from being the best friend of the most popular girl to the most hated girl in high school. She is a social pariah. She seeks solace in Michael, one of the boys she used to mercilessly bully and torment but that doesn't seem to be enough. She's angry and she wants revenge. Now that she knows how awful it feels to be bullies, beat up, and laughed at she suddenly has sympathy for all those she used to torture. Rather than lying low and dealing with the bullies (like she deserves!) she keeps trying to get even. Michael tries to get her to stop but she's convinced that it's not fair and she needs to take down others with her. Ugh. Soo much ugh! Thank goodness high school was nothing like this. Super violent, bullying is the norm, and no one seems to learn their lesson. I couldn't stop reading it though, it was a train wreck and I wanted Regina to grow up. I would have even taken a cheesy ending but instead... ugh!!
highonbooks's review
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Death of parent, Sexual harassment, and Drug use
blackteardrop0217's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0