Review: Ten Things We Did (and probably shouldn't have)

Ten Things We Did (and probably shouldn't have) by Sarah Mlynowski

Published by Harper Teen

Genre: YA

$17.99 (US hardback)

368 pages

What it's about:

2 girls + 3 guys + 1 house – parents = 10 things April and her friends did that they (definitely, maybe, probably) shouldn't have.

If given the opportunity, what sixteen-year-old wouldn't jump at the chance to move in with a friend and live parent-free? Although maybe "opportunity" isn't the right word, since April had to tell her dad a tiny little untruth to make it happen (see #1: "Lied to Our Parents"). But she and her housemate Vi are totally responsible and able to take care of themselves. How they ended up "Skipping School" (#3), "Throwing a Crazy Party" (#8), "Buying a Hot Tub" (#4), and, um, "Harboring a Fugitive" (#7) at all is kind of a mystery to them.

In this hilarious and bittersweet tale, Sarah Mlynowski mines the heart and mind of a girl on her own for the first time. To get through the year, April will have to juggle a love triangle, learn to do her own laundry, and accept that her carefully constructed world just might be falling apart . . . one thing-she-shouldn't-have-done at a time.


My thoughts:
This was the first Sarah Mlynowski book that I've ever read, and it definitely won't be my last.

Right from the beginning I was laughing out loud. April and her friends are hilarious. I fell instantly in love with the trio and caring about what would happen to each of them. The idea of two teenage girls trying to live in a house parent free was quite funny if not a little sad. Watching April try and learn how to do things that adults have to do every day was great. Learning how to manage money, doing the dishes, cleaning, all that.

What really drew me to this book was the voice. It was one of those books that I instantly fell in love with just because of it. It was random and hilarious. I loved some of the quotes so much I had to jump up, find a pen and paper, and write them down so I could add them to my quote book later.

Though it wasn't exactly what I thought it was going to be, I honestly can't think of one complaint that I have about this book. I loved every minute of it.

My rating: 10/10