Going Vintage

Going Vintage

By: Lindsey Leavitt

Sixteen-year-old Mallory loves her boyfriend, Jeremy. Or at least likes him more than she's ever liked any other boy. She's sure he feels the same way. Until she happens upon his online Authentic Life game and discovers he's cheating on her ...online Mallory's life is falling apart and technology is the cause. And then she finds a list, written by her grandma when she was Mallory's age. All her grandma had to worry about was sewing dresses and planning dinner parties. Things were so much simpler in the 1960s. And there's nothing on the list that Mallory couldn't do herself. Maybe it's time for Mallory to go vintage and find the answers to her modern-day problems.

 

Well, if this wasn't adorable I don't know what is. I normally don't like contemporary romance books, but this was less of a romance and more of a sort of self-discovery book (I mean, don't get me wrong, there was a fair amount of relationship stuff. But in the end it was more about Mallory learning about herself). This is quite a wonderful little contemporary piece with enjoyable and developed characters and a kind of quirky and entertaining plot.

 

I'm just going to list the things I liked for this book because I don't know if I have enough thoughts to write a typical review.

 

Things I Liked:

-Mallory:

She was realistically funny for a teenage girl. And her humor always fit in with the situation she was in. She was quirky and down-to-earth (even when she had her freak-out moments). I think she's the type of person you'd want as a friend in real life because she normally acknowledged her faults and was a generally great friend. I loved her dynamic with Oliver and their banter kept me smiling through the book. I will say that I lovelovelovelove where the book ends. How it wasn't the typical happily-ever-after. Mallory was smart enough to ask for some time to just be single and Oliver was gentlemanly enough to give it to her (not because he had to, but because he truly cared about her). I loved that it wasn't this huge deal in their friendship (or relationship) that they would wait. The knew that they had to for their relationship to start correctly and so they did it. It was wonderful.

-Ginnie:

She was so sweet and funny and I want a little sister just like her. I thought her and Mallory's relationship was very true to what a sister dynamic is and should be (even though I don't have a sister, I am a sister). Even their fights were realistic and not blown out of proportion (like YA books sometimes have a tendency of doing to even the smallest of arguments).

-The real parents with their real relationship:

Breaking another YA habit, the parents weren't just absentee sort of characters. They were genuine parents who made mistakes in parenting, but that also made great choices. I liked their relationship because they did fight and they did make up and that was okay.

-Oliver

Talk about adorable! This boy was just fantastic (and yet not perfect. Which is really important). He made mistakes and was charming and funny and sweet (oh, and peppy). Again, I loved the banter and the jokes Oliver and Mallory had with each other. One of my favorite scenes was easily their car ride together and then when Oliver called about the song. There was just so much to love about him and about them together. And I loved when he called Jeremy out for being a total tool.

-The Internet Fast

I think the idea of cutting out all modern technology to clear your head was really cool. I also loved the (for lack of a better word) moral of the story being that teenage problems have existed for as long as teenagers have and the unspoken idea that that is what can connects us to our parents and our grandparents.
-The Lists
Each chapter started out with a different list from Mallory's life. This was really cool because we learned that Mallory is a "lister" and that let us in on a bit more of her personality. And as an added bonus, the lists were usually really funny and relevant to what was coming up in the chapter.

 

Quotes:

 

"People laugh because they're nervous, or to cover up tension, or to flirt, or because there's some instant applause meter in their head telling them that it's the socially acceptable thing to do. Genuine laughter, I don't even think that happens daily."

 

"The memory stays. The agony fades."

 

"He's jealous of my breeziness; I envy his ambition."

 

"And, right now, that might feels more honest than the sure thing."

 

"Adolescence is the same tragedy being performed again and again. The only things that change are the stage props."