Book: Boys, Bears, And A Serious Pair Of Hiking Boots by Abby McDonald
Release date: April 13, 2010
Number of pages: 304
Publisher: Candlewick
Source: Publisher
Summary:
Jenna may hail from the ’burbs of New Jersey, but Green Teen activism is her life. So when her mom suggests they spend the summer at Grandma’s Florida condo, Jenna pleads instead to visit her hippie godmother, Susie, up in rural Canada. Jenna is psyched at the chance to commune with this nature she’s heard about — and the cute, plaidwearing boys she’s certain must roam there. But after a few run-ins with local wildlife (from a larger-than-life moose to Susie’s sullen Goth stepdaughter to a hot but hostile boy named Reeve), Jenna gets the idea that her long-held ideals, like vegetarianism and conservation, don’t play so well with this population of real outdoorsmen. A dusty survival guide offers Jenna amusing tips on navigating the wilderness — but can she learn to navigate the turns of her heart?
First off, the characters. Jenna was annoying, Olivia only played a small part, Fiona was a bitch most of the book, and the guys were kind of mysterious. Jenna was all about helping the environment but she didn’t seem to know why she wanted to help. Olivia was only present in a couple of chapters and when she reappeared at the end of the book she was completely different and I didn’t know why. Fiona being a bitch was weird also. She didn’t ever explain why she was so mean and she changed pretty much overnight. Then there were the boys, Ethan, Grady, and Reeve. I didn’t get any of them. I kind of felt like I got to know parts of Ethan and Reeve but not Grady. He was just there.
The plot dragged quite a bit in the beginning. I had serious trouble getting into the book and sticking with it. It was pretty predictable and kind of boring. It picked up some towards the end but not enough to redeem the book. And the ending was kind of abrupt. I was left wanting more and not in a good way.
Overall, Boys, Bears, And A Serious Pair Of Hiking Boots is not a book I would recommend unless you have absolutely nothing else to read. And even then I would advise checking it out from your library, not buying it.
First line: “Re-use! Re-duce! Re-cycle!”
Writing: 4/5
Characters: 3/5
Plot: 4/5
Ending: 4/5
Originality: 4/5
Overall: 19/25=C
Cover: 4/5=B-
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That sucks that you didn’t like it. I still kind of want to read it though.
Thanks for the honest review! I think I’ll skip over this one.
Thank you for an honest, non-spoilery review. I thought the concept was adorable, I’ll have to see what I think when I get around to it.
Sorry you didnt like it, I might still pick this one up if I ever get a chance, just because its set in Canada, LOL.
That’s too bad. I was really excited about this! Oh well, I’ll still check it out.
Sounds like an interesting read. But I think instead of buying I will get it from the library.
Good review. I agree with Amy. I’ll get this one from the library :).
Hmm…doesn’t really sound like my type of book. Thanks for the honest review! 🙂
i thought it was a fabulous book and really enjoyed it!
I loved this book so much, but i agree that I wish there was more of an ending and not just a cliff hanger. Hopefully she wil write a part two to this book 🙂