The Perfect Age

by Heather Skyler

Book Overview

Helen is just fifteen, lanky and striking. She is a lifeguard at the pool at The Dunes hotel this summer-her first job, a step toward independence in a world beginning to treat her as an adult and a woman. Her mother, Kathy, watching Helen grow up, suddenly finds herself in a place equally uncertain: her children getting older, her stable marriage perhaps too stable, the slow days of summer leaving her adrift. When she meets Helen's boss, the manager...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0393058700
• ISBN13: 9780393058703
• Release Date: January 2004
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
• Length: 394 Pages
• Weight: 1.15 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 6.6" x 8.1"

Customer Reviews

Beautifully written novel.

This book is a very beautifully written coming of age novel. I would recommend it to every teenager as a very good perspective on growing up, having a serious boyfriend, and adultery, among other themes. The Perfect Age ranks in the top five on my list of favourite young adult fiction. After I closed the book, I thought, "Helen isn't real. These characters aren't real." It was the first time the thought had occurred to me, and it struck me as wrong somehow. These characters were so real to me that it struck me as bizarre that they weren't actually living in Las Vegas, working at the Dunes. I read this almost straight through. Everything was so beautiful and lyrical that I just couldn't put it down. It was unique, mostly. Amazing book, every teen should read it.

not sure why others aren't feeling this book...

i thought that this book was both a beautifully written coming of age tale and also provided a very true to life picture of a house wife frustrated in her marriage where there REALLY wasn't much to complain about. i don't think that the story was too slow, i though it was paced steadily...the ending is a bit abrupt, and is in some ways unexpected. if there is one theme in this books that's recurring and paralelled in both the mother and daughter's separate lives it's sexual frustration. overall, it's an emotional and enjoyable read for both teens and adults...definitely worth your time.

A Complex Tribute to Family

I enjoyed this book because it covers the everyday aspects of a family which muddles along with all the external temptations (which they give into, to various degrees), but which also serve as a backdrop to the Prevailling Power of the Family Unit. The family consists of 2 teenage girls, the oldest, in particular, in various degrees of love with her teenage boyfriend, and in varying degrees of mistrust with her mother, who forms a liason with her daughter's boss at the pool. This pool manager is is a complete opposite to the mother's exacting and erudite husband who teaches Russian at the local university ( and who has longing thoughts of his own). The writer explores all of the main characters in pages of their own, giving them a resonance that is probably greater than handling them all from a single point of view. The Las Vegas setting is interesting. There are references to the heat, the superficiality, and the schlockiness, but really the book and the events are universal. I loved the scenes with the teenager's boyfriend working in his father's clock shop. All the characters have wants that extend beyond their politically correct ones. And all the characters have admirable qualities and human frailties. I would give the book 5 stars, but I think the writer could have jacked up the tension enough and really thrust her characters into a true dilemma, a dramatic situation. Also, some of the coincidences in the book seemed either contrived, or unimportant dramatically. All the same, I really admire Skyler's unaffected style of writing, and her obvious affection for her characters. I was very impressed with how much she could convey in few words.

Excellent book!

I loved this book! It had great character development. I liked the way the story unfolded. The twists and turns with the characters and storyline would make it an excellent choice for a book club discussion. It was well-written, and I'm looking forward to her next book.

My Review on "The Perfect Age"

It's a very good book - I saw it in YM and I decided to read it. It captures reality and twists it just a little bit. I'd definitely recomend it.