Weekly Reads: Anatomy of a Misfit

I'd heard a bit of buzz about Andrea Portes' Anatomy of a Misfit. It's her third novel, and her first go at YA. It's also based on a true life experiences. The quip I read about the book was that it's Mean Girls meets The Perks of Being a Wallflower. Well ok, I'm interested.

The story was amazing. There were many laugh out loud moments. I received an advanced reader copy of the book to review and promote to library customers, and midway through reading it, I texted my co-worker and reading bestie that she "OMG HAD TO REQUEST AND READ THIS BOOK ASAP!" because it was so great.

And then the book took a dark twist. And it was even better. Seriously. This is one of the best YA books I've read so far this year. I wish I could go back 15 years and hand this to high school Jerbear and let it help her understand that it doesn't matter what people think of you. Great message, even better delivery.

My rating: 5 stars.

Summary from goodreads:

Fall’s buzzed-about, in-house favorite. Outside, Anika Dragomir is all lip gloss and blond hair—the third most popular girl in school. Inside, she’s a freak: a mix of dark thoughts, diabolical plots, and, if local chatter is to be believed, vampire DNA (after all, her father is Romanian). But she keeps it under wraps to maintain her social position. One step out of line and Becky Vilhauer, first most popular girl in school, will make her life hell. So when former loner Logan McDonough shows up one September hotter, smarter, and more mysterious than ever, Anika knows she can’t get involved. It would be insane to throw away her social safety for a nerd. So what if that nerd is now a black-leather-jacket-wearing dreamboat, and his loner status is clearly the result of his troubled home life? Who cares if the right girl could help him with all that, maybe even save him from it? Who needs him when Jared Kline, the bad boy every girl dreams of, is asking her on dates? Who?

Anatomy of a Misfit is Mean Girls meets The Perks of Being a Wallflower, and Anika’s hilariously deadpan delivery will appeal to readers for its honesty and depth. The so-sad-it’s-funny high school setting will pull readers in, but when the story’s dark foreboding gradually takes over, the devastating penultimate tragedy hits like a punch to the gut. Readers will ride the highs and lows alongside funny, flawed Anika—from laughter to tears, and everything in between.