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A review by ssshira
Kristy's Big News by Nola Thacker, Ann M. Martin
4.0
in this actually interesting book that portrays complex emotions in response to nuanced situations by ghostwriter [a:Nola Thacker|133114|Nola Thacker|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/f_50x66-6a03a5c12233c941481992b82eea8d23.png], kristy’s deadbeat dad, patrick, is getting married and asks charlie, sam, and kristy to fly to california to be in the wedding. obviously he has a fourth kid, david michael, but it’s not really explained why he doesn’t invite him, and d.m. is really bummed about it (see highlights). charlie doesn’t want to go, but their mom says kristy and sam can only go if charlie does, so he reluctantly agrees. they get to patrick’s house, which is in sausalito, a place so fancy that it has its own pepperidge farm cookie AND it has macadamias in it, which are probably the most expensive nut:
even aside from being in famously expensive marin county, the house is huge and gorgeous and patrick’s car is an audi. which doesn’t really fit the picture of the guy who abandoned his family because he didn’t want to be tied down. they find out that patrick is the head chef at a restaurant owned by his bride-to-be, zoey. kristy ends up really liking zoey in spite of herself, because zoey is actually pretty cool. she puts patrick in his place when need be, and she really listens to kristy and is sympathetic to her role in this whole thing. she even listens to kristy explain the whole dad abandonment thing from her perspective, and she’s like, “it’s a shame your dad was a jerk back then, but he’s grown up and is a decent man now.” kristy is confused when she realizes she actually likes zoey more than she likes patrick. still, kristy and her brothers are literally the only members of patrick’s family who are going to be in the wedding. patrick then asks charlie and sam to be his best men, and sam agrees but charlie doesn’t. after charlie mopes around a lot for the whole book, finally he says something that pisses patrick off enough that he snaps at him. kristy has been trying to get charlie to be nicer to patrick, but still, in this moment she takes charlie’s side and yells back at patrick. sam is really mad at charlie, because though he is mad at patrick for abandoning their family, he still wants to have a relationship with his dad (which is reasonable) and charlie is ruining it. finally charlie gets it together enough to go to the rehearsal dinner and pretend to be okay, because he thinks patrick should have SOMEONE in his family on his team. and then charlie makes a toast at the wedding. and all is okay, I guess. though we never really find out if the thomas kids end up having a relationship with their dad after this, so who knows? maybe this was closure, not the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
highlights:
-david michael actually wants to go to the wedding and is really upset that he wasn’t invited. did patrick forget he existed? did he think it was okay to not even mention d.m. in his invite because he was a baby when he left? this is a nice touch, because it is so damn harsh and cruel and really makes you think patrick is a jerk.
-watson makes gnocchi from scratch. it’s a very charming moment
-charlie says he doesn't owe patrick anything, and he doesn't have anything to say to him. but he doesn't want kristy and sam to miss the opportunity. this book is full of nuanced human experiences, handled pretty well.
-patrick sends car keys in the mail along with the plane tickets and gives directions to find the car parked in the airport parking lot because he and zoey aren't able to pick them up. like, really? patrick is not gaining any sympathizers. I love how damn harsh this book is!
-charlie is not afraid to tell it like it is. patrick says "it's been so long," and charlie says, "whose fault is that?"
-the tuxedo shop is called the tuxedo cat and there's an actual tuxedo cat who lives in the store.
-the tuxes patrick and sam pick out are ugly yellow-orange ones with ruffled shirts, so I’m definitely picturing this:
-at the tuxedo cat kristy holds up a tuxedo to her body to admire herself in a three-way mirror and thinks that she'll try the look herself one day. I <3 my gay kristy.
lowlights/nitpicks:
-how can kristy define zoey's outfit as including a chemise and espadrilles? there is no chance kristy knows what either of those words mean.
-zoey says patrick is happy to have his kids around and charlie says "then why can't he tell us that himself?" and zoey says she doesn't know but that he should. but it seems like patrick can't win with charlie. like, I appreciate how real they get, but there’s a point where I am reminded that charlie is 17 and shouldn’t be acting like such a whiny baby.
-zoey offhand mentions that they are going to have kids one day, but she also says earlier that she's over 40. that seems weird to me, but okay...
outfits
claudia outfit:
-"...who was...wearing cutoff jeans over bicycle shorts, and suspenders she'd decorated with buttons. Beneath that, she was wearing a paint-splattered T-shirt, which she called her tribute to Jackson Pollock."
zoey outfit:
-"Zoey was wearing baggy khaki pants and a bright green crocheted vest over a yellow-and-blue striped cotton chemise. Heavy espadrilles with colorful ribbons were on her feet. Her only jewelry was a ring with a small, square-cut emerald that hung on a gold chain around her neck."
kristy outfit:
-"I was in cutoffs and a Cynthia Cooper WNBA shirt."
mary anne outfit:
-"Mary Anne was in khaki shorts and a faded polo shirt."
stacey outfit:
-"Stacey had opted for linen overall shorts and a ribbed sleeveless undershirt the exact color of her eyes.
no snacks in claudia’s room.
even aside from being in famously expensive marin county, the house is huge and gorgeous and patrick’s car is an audi. which doesn’t really fit the picture of the guy who abandoned his family because he didn’t want to be tied down. they find out that patrick is the head chef at a restaurant owned by his bride-to-be, zoey. kristy ends up really liking zoey in spite of herself, because zoey is actually pretty cool. she puts patrick in his place when need be, and she really listens to kristy and is sympathetic to her role in this whole thing. she even listens to kristy explain the whole dad abandonment thing from her perspective, and she’s like, “it’s a shame your dad was a jerk back then, but he’s grown up and is a decent man now.” kristy is confused when she realizes she actually likes zoey more than she likes patrick. still, kristy and her brothers are literally the only members of patrick’s family who are going to be in the wedding. patrick then asks charlie and sam to be his best men, and sam agrees but charlie doesn’t. after charlie mopes around a lot for the whole book, finally he says something that pisses patrick off enough that he snaps at him. kristy has been trying to get charlie to be nicer to patrick, but still, in this moment she takes charlie’s side and yells back at patrick. sam is really mad at charlie, because though he is mad at patrick for abandoning their family, he still wants to have a relationship with his dad (which is reasonable) and charlie is ruining it. finally charlie gets it together enough to go to the rehearsal dinner and pretend to be okay, because he thinks patrick should have SOMEONE in his family on his team. and then charlie makes a toast at the wedding. and all is okay, I guess. though we never really find out if the thomas kids end up having a relationship with their dad after this, so who knows? maybe this was closure, not the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
highlights:
-david michael actually wants to go to the wedding and is really upset that he wasn’t invited. did patrick forget he existed? did he think it was okay to not even mention d.m. in his invite because he was a baby when he left? this is a nice touch, because it is so damn harsh and cruel and really makes you think patrick is a jerk.
-watson makes gnocchi from scratch. it’s a very charming moment
-charlie says he doesn't owe patrick anything, and he doesn't have anything to say to him. but he doesn't want kristy and sam to miss the opportunity. this book is full of nuanced human experiences, handled pretty well.
-patrick sends car keys in the mail along with the plane tickets and gives directions to find the car parked in the airport parking lot because he and zoey aren't able to pick them up. like, really? patrick is not gaining any sympathizers. I love how damn harsh this book is!
-charlie is not afraid to tell it like it is. patrick says "it's been so long," and charlie says, "whose fault is that?"
-the tuxedo shop is called the tuxedo cat and there's an actual tuxedo cat who lives in the store.
-the tuxes patrick and sam pick out are ugly yellow-orange ones with ruffled shirts, so I’m definitely picturing this:
-at the tuxedo cat kristy holds up a tuxedo to her body to admire herself in a three-way mirror and thinks that she'll try the look herself one day. I <3 my gay kristy.
lowlights/nitpicks:
-how can kristy define zoey's outfit as including a chemise and espadrilles? there is no chance kristy knows what either of those words mean.
-zoey says patrick is happy to have his kids around and charlie says "then why can't he tell us that himself?" and zoey says she doesn't know but that he should. but it seems like patrick can't win with charlie. like, I appreciate how real they get, but there’s a point where I am reminded that charlie is 17 and shouldn’t be acting like such a whiny baby.
-zoey offhand mentions that they are going to have kids one day, but she also says earlier that she's over 40. that seems weird to me, but okay...
outfits
claudia outfit:
-"...who was...wearing cutoff jeans over bicycle shorts, and suspenders she'd decorated with buttons. Beneath that, she was wearing a paint-splattered T-shirt, which she called her tribute to Jackson Pollock."
zoey outfit:
-"Zoey was wearing baggy khaki pants and a bright green crocheted vest over a yellow-and-blue striped cotton chemise. Heavy espadrilles with colorful ribbons were on her feet. Her only jewelry was a ring with a small, square-cut emerald that hung on a gold chain around her neck."
kristy outfit:
-"I was in cutoffs and a Cynthia Cooper WNBA shirt."
mary anne outfit:
-"Mary Anne was in khaki shorts and a faded polo shirt."
stacey outfit:
-"Stacey had opted for linen overall shorts and a ribbed sleeveless undershirt the exact color of her eyes.
no snacks in claudia’s room.