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A review by melbsreads
Take Three Girls by Simmone Howell, Fiona Wood, Cath Crowley
4.0
Trigger warnings: misogyny, slut shaming, fat shaming, homophobia, drug/alcohol addiction, bullying, cyberbulling, creepy older dudes hitting on schoolgirls.
30/7/2020
I've been meaning to reread this book for a while now, and for whatever reason I've found it difficult to pick up in 2020. But I'm glad I did because the voices of these three characters are absolutely delightful and it was kind of hilarious seeing how many [insert my workplace here] touches were included in the story (one of the authors is an alumnus).
Kate is definitely my favourite of the three narrators, followed by Ady and then Clem. I definitely related to Kate, the studious musician, the most of the three. But I also loved her story because I loved the antagonistic and ultimately delightful relationship between Kate and Oliver. Ady's transition from Queen Bee to quirky arty kid seemed sliiiiiiightly extra considering the book takes place over the course of a term. And while Clem's story gave me a lot of feelings (Stu can go die in a fire, please and thank you), there was also something about the way she treated her sister that I just...yeah. It made me slightly uncomfortable and I can't put my finger on why... Anyway, this was fun and fast-paced and compelling and emotional and very very real, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
29/8/2017
I've been excited about this since I heard the authors reading an excerpt from it at the 2016 YA Showcase at the State Library in December of last year. So I may have squeed more than a little when I saw it for sale at the shop at the Melbourne Writers Festival over the weekend. And I read it pretty much straight away, because reasons.
This follows the story of three teenage girls at a snooty private school in Melbourne. Ady is dealing with her parents fighting constantly, with her father being out of work, and with her friends...not being particularly friendly. Clem is a former swimmer who isn't sure who she is after an injury. She's also not sure how she feels about her twin sister, Iris. And Kate is the quiet, studious country girl who wants nothing more than to make amazing cutting edge music on her cello.
The three girls are forced together by a wellness/positive education program at school, but they really start to bond over a godawful anonymous website dedicated to slut shaming and secret sharing girls at the local private schools.
As someone who spends 40 hours a week around 16 year old girls, this is pretty damned accurate. As someone who spends 40 hours a week in a place that emphasises the importance of positive education, the reaction the students have to the program (groans, mostly) is authentic.
There are friendship dramas, relationship dramas, family dramas, inappropriate relationships, and a whole host of feminism, female empowerment, and humour. I loved all three characters, although Kate's story is probably the one I related to the most of the three. I loved that it's not a conclusive, definitive ending. And I loved just how very Melbourne it is. BRB, shoving this book at teenagers.
30/7/2020
I've been meaning to reread this book for a while now, and for whatever reason I've found it difficult to pick up in 2020. But I'm glad I did because the voices of these three characters are absolutely delightful and it was kind of hilarious seeing how many [insert my workplace here] touches were included in the story (one of the authors is an alumnus).
Kate is definitely my favourite of the three narrators, followed by Ady and then Clem. I definitely related to Kate, the studious musician, the most of the three. But I also loved her story because I loved the antagonistic and ultimately delightful relationship between Kate and Oliver. Ady's transition from Queen Bee to quirky arty kid seemed sliiiiiiightly extra considering the book takes place over the course of a term. And while Clem's story gave me a lot of feelings (Stu can go die in a fire, please and thank you), there was also something about the way she treated her sister that I just...yeah. It made me slightly uncomfortable and I can't put my finger on why... Anyway, this was fun and fast-paced and compelling and emotional and very very real, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
29/8/2017
I've been excited about this since I heard the authors reading an excerpt from it at the 2016 YA Showcase at the State Library in December of last year. So I may have squeed more than a little when I saw it for sale at the shop at the Melbourne Writers Festival over the weekend. And I read it pretty much straight away, because reasons.
This follows the story of three teenage girls at a snooty private school in Melbourne. Ady is dealing with her parents fighting constantly, with her father being out of work, and with her friends...not being particularly friendly. Clem is a former swimmer who isn't sure who she is after an injury. She's also not sure how she feels about her twin sister, Iris. And Kate is the quiet, studious country girl who wants nothing more than to make amazing cutting edge music on her cello.
The three girls are forced together by a wellness/positive education program at school, but they really start to bond over a godawful anonymous website dedicated to slut shaming and secret sharing girls at the local private schools.
As someone who spends 40 hours a week around 16 year old girls, this is pretty damned accurate. As someone who spends 40 hours a week in a place that emphasises the importance of positive education, the reaction the students have to the program (groans, mostly) is authentic.
There are friendship dramas, relationship dramas, family dramas, inappropriate relationships, and a whole host of feminism, female empowerment, and humour. I loved all three characters, although Kate's story is probably the one I related to the most of the three. I loved that it's not a conclusive, definitive ending. And I loved just how very Melbourne it is. BRB, shoving this book at teenagers.