Pretty Things

by Sarra Manning

Book Overview

Brie is in love with Lancme Juicy Tubes, Louis Vuitton accessories, and her gay best friend Charlie, who is in love with 1960s pop art, 1980s teen movies, and serial heartbreaker Walker, who has ever... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0142405396
• ISBN13: 9780142405390
• Release Date: March 2006
• Publisher: Speak
• Length: 263 Pages
• Weight: 0.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.0" x 6.9"
• Age Range: 14 years and up
• Grade Range: Grade 9 and higher

Customer Reviews

Best Teen Reads in Years

At first, I didn't pick up the book at my local bookstore since the cover didn't appeal to me, but I did get Lets Get Lost, another book by Sarra Manning. Her style of writing is witty and entertaining. So I went back and get Pretty Things a try. And to tell the truth, I absolutely FELL IN LOVE with the book. Sarra's writing is great, it's doesn't come out sounding like a 50-year-old lady trying to pose as a teen. It just give off that natural teen-angst way of speech. I laughed at every page because her sarcasm is just remarkable. I swear I finished the book in a day, and also fell in love with the character. Sarra Manning's books are a MUST READ (she is now officially my favorite author) To sum it up, what I enjoy most about her books are the natural flow of it, and the way it doesn't come out all Overaged-woman-trying-to-figure-out-teens way of writing. A book that's worthy of your time.

So very good...

Brie is in love with Charlie. Charlie is in love with Walker. Walker is in love with Daisy...and Daisy is in love with Walker? But she's a lesbian. Thats the way this love rectangle goes in the book Pretty Things by Sarra Manning. I enjoyed reading this book so much. It was so funny and I could not put it down. The characters are all so likeable. My favorite would probably be Charlie. And I realy like Charlie and Brie's relationship. This book is for anyone who enjoys a good read.

Gay, straight, or both?

This book is about 4 North Londoners figuring out who they are, while trying to make it through summer, and a boring-as-heck-theatre class. Bri, Charlie, Daisy, and Walker(Wanker) are the four main characters caught up in a love...square(?). Pretty Things is a fast/slow/fast paced book filled with witty banter and random occurences. I would recommend this book to teens 14 and over.

Brilliant

"Pretty Things" is a fantastic book. Period. It deals with many different adolescent problems (a main one being fancying your best friend). Brie's best friend is Charlie. Brie is a straight "footballer's wife" type girl. Charlie is a gay rocker boy who cuts his hair with nail-scissors and listens to The White Stripes. They both decide to go to a theatre group, where Charlie meets Walker, a straight, womanising guy who has now fallen in love with none other than Charlie's friend Daisy, a self-proclaimed lesbian. Could things get any more complicated? Actually no. The book is very easy to get into and the story-line is easy to follow. All in all, a very enjoyable read.

An entertaining story about 4 teens caught in a love rectangle

Brie, Charlie, Walker, and Daisy are four London teens trapped in a love rectangle. All are involved in a local summer theater production of "The Taming of the Shrew," but little do they know that their lives will become equally as dramatic as a Shakespearean play. Brie can't live without designer labels, lip gloss, and her best friend Charlie. She's often hungry because she's always on a diet. Brie's mother constantly tells her daughter that she'd better work at her appearance or else nobody will be attracted to her. "The minute Mum heard me open the fridge she'd be peering over my shoulder to make sure that I was going to get an apple because if I put even the smallest crumb of chocolate in my mouth, she reckons I'd bloat up twenty-five pounds and never get a boyfriend." As a result, Brie obsesses and stresses about every detail of her life. The thing she wishes for the most, though, is for Charlie to be straight, and not gay. If he were straight, he could be her boyfriend. Charlie already has seen her at her worst. He always stood by her side. He loved her, flaws and all. But unfortunately for Brie, Charlie isn't straight. He's gay. And he's in love with Walker, the womanizer. Charlie is a self-described "indie/emo hybrid." Unlike Brie's designer labels, Charlie likes his Converse All Star low-tops and his homemade T-shirt with the word "Gayer" written on it. Though he was comfortable being gay --- when he came out to his Mum she said, "That's okay, babes. I kind of already knew" --- Charlie was not into "scene queens." He just wanted to date a normal guy. And the guy who Charlie had set is eyes on was Walker. Walker doesn't have a good track record with girls. His reputation follows him around town with his given nickname "Shagger." Walker claims, "I can resist anything but girls who can resist me." And the girl who resists Walker the most is Daisy, a strong-willed lesbian. Daisy has a lot of hate. She's hated Walker for years. Because she's known him and his reputation since elementary school, she's not thrilled to see him in the summer theater. Daisy also hates Brie, who is the opposite of Daisy's looks and beliefs. Sarra Manning's PRETTY THINGS is told in four alternating voices. Each voice reveals a deeper layer to the characters, and the reader soon sees that things are not always how they appear. North London-based Manning --- who has written for many teen magazines including J17 and ELLEgirl UK --- showcases yet again her stellar ability to write for the teen scene. She has created four distinct characters and put them into a whirlwind story filled with some of the doubts and questions that many teens face today. --- Reviewed by Kristi Olson