Readers' rating:
Published Aug 2001
304 pages
Genre: Literary Fiction
Publication Information
My parents suck ass. Banning me from the phone and restricting my computer privileges are the most tyrannical parental gestures I can think of. Don't they realize that Hope's the only one who keeps me sane? . . . I don't see how things could get any worse."
When her best friend, Hope Weaver, moves away from Pineville, New Jersey, hyperobservant sixteen-year-old Jessica Darling is devastated. A fish out of water at school and a stranger at home, Jessica feels more lost than ever now that the only person with whom she could really communicate has gone. How is she supposed to deal with the boy- and shopping-crazy girls at school, her dad's obsession with her track meets, her mother salivating over big sister Bethany's lavish wedding, and her nonexistent love life?
A fresh, funny, utterly compelling fiction debut by first-time novelist Megan McCafferty, Sloppy Firsts is an insightful, true-to-life look at Jessica's predicament as she embarks on another year of teenage torment - from the dark days of Hope's departure through her months as a type-A personality turned insomniac to her completely mixed-up feelings about Marcus Flutie, the intelligent and mysterious "Dreg" who works his way into her heart. Like a John Hughes for the twenty-first century, Megan McCafferty taps into the inherent humor and drama of the teen experience. This poignant, hilarious novel is sure to appeal to readers who are still going through it, as well as those who are grateful that they don’t have to go back and grow up all over again.
"Shelve this gem in the adult area if necessary; the lime, hot-pink, and orange cover coupled with rave reviews in teen magazines across the country will ensure that this excellent first novel arrives in the hands of the right readers. Grades 10+." - Voya
"Such a sharp, funny, poignant heroine, with an inner world we can all relate to. I love it." - Sophie Kinsella, author of Confessions of a Shopaholic
This information about Sloppy Firsts was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Megan McCafferty is the author of Sloppy Firsts (2001), an ALA Top 10 Quick Pick for Reluctant Readers, an ALA Popular Paperback, and a New York Public Library Book for the Teen Age. Its sequel, Second Helpings (2003) was also selected to the NYPL list, and was a Booklist Editor’s Pick for one of the best novels of 2003. Charmed Thirds (2006) was an instant New York Times bestseller and a NYPL pick. Fourth Comings (2007) and Perfect Fifths (2009) also made the New York Times, USA Today, Publisher’s Weekly, Booksense, Barnes and Noble, Borders and other national bestseller lists.
McCafferty edited a short story anthology called Sixteen: Stories About That Sweet and Bitter Birthday (2004). She has contributed to several fiction and nonfiction anthologies including
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