Underrated Predictability

The novel Peaches by Jodi Lynn Anderson turned out to be pretty good ( I would say "delicious" but puns are overrated). The story was pretty sad at first because Birdie's farm is going under and her dad is a divorced, sad, fat old man with no hope left in him, about to sell to a skeevy resort owner. Her dejection and lack of confidence at the beginning of the novel is intensely annoying because she keeps comparing herself to her "perfect" cousin, Leeda. She also is an emotional eater - she's described as a little on the chunky side and she's always holding or near some type of food (mostly Girl Scout cookies. It makes me hungry). Leeda, who is far from perfect, is annoying too, half the time going on and on about how her sister is preferred over her (although it doesn't really make me hate her, just her mom who is an *expletive*), the other half spent talking about Rex, her supposedly hunky yet unacceptable boyfriend. Murphy is the only girl who didn't host a pity party 99.9% of the first half of the book. She's feisty and quick-witted and I like her sarcastic, dry sense of humor. She's a B.A! Although she is a little promiscuous...oh well! She's the best! The good part is that this dejectedness only lasts until the three girls become friends, sneak out and then actually start working, picking peaches. Birdie starts losing weight, acting a little less like an emo second grader, and meets a boy! Ah, the comfort of predictable teenage fiction. It's not a YA novel without boys getting in the way. By the way, Rex starts liking Murphy. Yikes! My favorite part, though, is when Murphy tells off Leeda's mom for not respecting Leeda, and treating her as if she was worthless. I told you, Murphy's feisty! It didn't make anyone happy, but that doesn't matter. Conflict is exciting, especially when the villians get their just desserts. The predictability of this novel was a nice change from Never Let Me Go and Atonement and the diction was much easier to understand, although I do like the challenge of elevated diction that literary fiction has to offer. I like the combination of easy and difficult reading; it makes for an interesting week. Plus, all of my posts don't have to sound pretentious. (At least, that's how I see it. I may flatter myself I sound more intelligent than I actually do).