Synopsis (from Goodreads.com):
Seventeen-year-old Annabel Conway is tired of the Hillcrest High School elite making her life miserable because she’s not a size two. This summer, she’s hiring a personal trainer to help her lose weight.
Annabel doesn’t expect her trainer to be a gorgeous guy around her age. Boys like Tegan are jerks. They pretend to like girls like her so they can make an idiot out of them. Been there, done that. Totally not going there again. She kind of hates him on principal. Blond. Muscular. Funny. It doesn’t help that he knows her measurements!
Soon, Tegan’s so much more than that. He’s the boy who teaches her to box when she has a bad day. Who jogs with her and lets her set the pace. Who kisses her until she melts. He makes her feel beautiful regardless of what the scale says. Unlike her mom, he doesn’t expect perfection, and he doesn’t try to shield her from the world like her dad and best friend. Tegan likes her the way she is.
But what happens when he’s not there? He can’t always be there…
Will Annabel be able to stand on her own and learn that she already measures up? That her worth doesn’t lie in what the world thinks, the scale says, or even what Tegan tells her—but in herself?
Review:
I really liked loved this book! I’m not sure if it was because I was so busy in my real-life that I found an escape reading this (I think I enjoy books more when I know I should be doing other things, like studying for exams, etc.) but I think if I read this two weeks from now, I would still have enjoyed this book.
I think most girls can relate in some way to Annabel. Even though I have personally never struggled with my weight the same way she has, I still found her extremely relatable in how she thinks about herself. I often felt like we were personality twins as I was reading because I couldn’t help thinking, “I would have done/said the exact same thing!”. I find books today have the “rebellious” independent girls who are their own person, yet they all have perfect bodies/features and unbeknownst to them, every guy in the general vicinity is in love with them. With Annabel you don’t get that particular character but someone you have probably felt like at one point in your life.
Which is why I loved the relationship between Tegan and her. You could really see why they liked each other–it wasn’t just physical chemistry but what they talked about and believed that drew them together. They really supported each other–and not in some twisted, nearly obsessive way that some New Adult heroines and heroes “need” each other in order to live. Basically, they have a healthy, realistic relationship.
However, as much as I loved this book, I was a little disappointed. I would really like to see a sequel as I felt some issues, specifically with Tegan’s story, were not fully resolved. But overall, there is a solid ending that provides closer to the readers so you can cease your worrying over my wishful thoughts :P.
Conclusion:
This book was refreshing in a genre that is often just sex & tragedy focused. The characters a relatable and the plot is realistic. With this book, Nyrae Dawn has become a must-read author for me!
Rating: 5/5
Shorthand Stats:
Genre: New/Young Adult, High school, Realistic
Recommended for: 16+
Similar Reads: Size 12 is not Fat by Meg Cabot (Heather Wells Mysteries, #1) and Take Me by Bella Andre (Take Me Series, #1)
Hi there, I just noticed this review and wondered if you would like to link it in to the current monthly collection of books that people loved on Carole’s Chatter. This is the link There are already over 20 great books linked in that you might be interested in. It would be super if you came on over. Cheers
[…] Measuring Up by Nyrae Dawn~~~a touching love story by one of my new favourite authors! 2. Everything Between Us […]
[…] of View: First Person — Male POV Similar Reads: Charade by Nyrae Dawn (Games Series #1); Measuring Up by Nyrae Dawn; and Ruin by Rachel Van Dyken (Ruin Series […]