Helpful Score: 3
I enjoyed this. It was a fast read. Jen Nakamura Taylor grew up in a small southern town, where her half Japanaese heritage always bothered her. She has been "in love" with the same local boy since 4th grade and gets a wedding invitation from her spoiled cousin who is marrying - guess who??? She needs a date for the wedding and ends up taking a co-worker, who she has a crush on. Between the drive to the wedding, the car breaking down, visiting Graceland and seeing the multi Elvis's (Elvii??), the trip itself has her on the verge. She finally arrives to find that her 4th grade boyfriend is showing an interest in her. Loved the wedding!!!
A fast read, good characters, fun book.
A fast read, good characters, fun book.
Helpful Score: 2
With a mother who is a Japanese American Southern Belle and a good ole boy daddy named Bubba, how can Jen help but having an identity crisis. Furthermore, she's just found out that her cousin is about to marry the boy back home that Jen first loved. Guess that it's time for a road trip back to the South.
Helpful Score: 2
Quick easy read. Brings back funny memories of being a teenager in the 80's.
Helpful Score: 2
I absolutely adored this novel. It's funny, it's quirky, you fall in love with the characters, and if you're from the south, you'll end up rolling around laughing. It was an easy, quick read that I thouraghly enjoyed!
Helpful Score: 2
There were many times that I laughed out loud while reading this book, because, as a Southerner, it's amusing to read things and understand their quirks, if only because you live that way, too. :) And I thought Riley was fecthing! Haha.
Still, as a previous poster said, I felt like the dialogue kept repeating itself - especially the parts where the mother and grandmother kept saying "Ya-shee!" or something to that effect. It was funny, and it did add to the character of the book, but after awhile I was wondering if that's all the mother knew to say at times.
It was an enjoyable read and very quick! You can start it by midday and finish it like two hours later.
Still, as a previous poster said, I felt like the dialogue kept repeating itself - especially the parts where the mother and grandmother kept saying "Ya-shee!" or something to that effect. It was funny, and it did add to the character of the book, but after awhile I was wondering if that's all the mother knew to say at times.
It was an enjoyable read and very quick! You can start it by midday and finish it like two hours later.
Helpful Score: 1
Jen Nakamara Taylor didn't have a conventional childhood. In her hometown of Dixieland, Arkansas, most girls' mothers didn't serve sushi at their tenth birthday parties. As a television producer living in Chicago, she thinks she's left her childhood insecurities behind. Then she receives an invitation to the marriage of her grammar-school crush to her beauty-queen cousin.
The subsequent search to find a suitable date, eventful trip back South, and the riotous wedding are all hilarious, but the real appeal of this book lies in its portrayal of a woman confronting her past and embracing her present. Each chapter begins with a platitude from The Karate Kid's Mr. Miyagi, and every other chapter weaves in scenes from Jen's childhood. It seems odd at first, but helps reveal the character's quirky sensibilities. Lockwood is half-Japanese herself, and here she ably and humorously depicts the struggle to fit in.
The subsequent search to find a suitable date, eventful trip back South, and the riotous wedding are all hilarious, but the real appeal of this book lies in its portrayal of a woman confronting her past and embracing her present. Each chapter begins with a platitude from The Karate Kid's Mr. Miyagi, and every other chapter weaves in scenes from Jen's childhood. It seems odd at first, but helps reveal the character's quirky sensibilities. Lockwood is half-Japanese herself, and here she ably and humorously depicts the struggle to fit in.
Fun story, quick read.
Helpful Score: 1
A quick and funny read if you are looking for something light. This would be great for lying out by the pool.
Helpful Score: 1
Very good book. Entertaining.
Helpful Score: 1
Such a great light read! Laugh out loud funny!
Helpful Score: 1
Not being a big fan of books with romantic themes I was not sure if I would like this story, but I enjoyed it tremendously! All of Cara Lockwood's characters are so unique, and I'm sure many of us can relate to the eccentric relatives in her family that the main character is embarrassed by but also loves at the same time. Jen, the main character, must make a journey home to a place she wants to forget, but once she is there she realizes that it is a part of her still, and that makes her who she is. Cara Lockwood is very funny also, I laughed through the whole book! I definitely recommend it!
quick read - cute story!
I'm not really sure how I feel about this book. At first I didn't really like it. There is a lot of whining in this book and I hate whininig. I did like it but I wasn't in love with it.
Wax on....
Jen Nakamura Taylor thought she left behind her awkward past of growing up half-Japanese, half-white in a small Southern town when she moved north to produce a popular Chicago television show. But when she gets word that her Southern Belle cousin is marrying Kevin Peterson, the very boy Jen loved-with-a-capital-L for years, she realizes she can't run from her past forever. Not only does the news conjure up sticky memories of growing up with a mixed heritage in the South (soy sauce on chicken fried steak, anyone?) but now the very single and very busy Jen has got to find a date for the wedding-a grand affair that could put Scarlett O'Hara to shame.
Wax off....
Riley-Jen's cute British friend from work- seems just the ticket; even his girlfriend thinks it's a good idea. But as Jen and Riley whistle on down to Dixie, sparks start to fly. Add to the fire that grown-up but still charming Kevin Peterson, who appears to have a soft spot for Jen, and, well, whoa. It's going to take everything Jen has (and a lot of help from the Karate Kid-wisdom of her pop culture hero Mr. Miyagi) to survive the meeting of past and present, and of North and Far East and South...where Jen finally learns to come to terms with her heritage, her love life and herself.
Wax on....
Jen Nakamura Taylor thought she left behind her awkward past of growing up half-Japanese, half-white in a small Southern town when she moved north to produce a popular Chicago television show. But when she gets word that her Southern Belle cousin is marrying Kevin Peterson, the very boy Jen loved-with-a-capital-L for years, she realizes she can't run from her past forever. Not only does the news conjure up sticky memories of growing up with a mixed heritage in the South (soy sauce on chicken fried steak, anyone?) but now the very single and very busy Jen has got to find a date for the wedding-a grand affair that could put Scarlett O'Hara to shame.
Wax off....
Riley-Jen's cute British friend from work- seems just the ticket; even his girlfriend thinks it's a good idea. But as Jen and Riley whistle on down to Dixie, sparks start to fly. Add to the fire that grown-up but still charming Kevin Peterson, who appears to have a soft spot for Jen, and, well, whoa. It's going to take everything Jen has (and a lot of help from the Karate Kid-wisdom of her pop culture hero Mr. Miyagi) to survive the meeting of past and present, and of North and Far East and South...where Jen finally learns to come to terms with her heritage, her love life and herself.
This is one of those books that you laugh outloud! i really enjoyed it from cover to cover.
Really cute book, I enjoyed the authors' characters and the story line.
