Flirt Club: Review

Title: Flirt Club
Author: Cathleen Daly
Release Date: January 2011
Published By: Roaring Brook Press
Genre: Contemporary
Pages: 288
Goodreads Rating: 3.68 stars

Review: Izzy and Annie are two eighth-grade girls who have tried their hands at romance, with unsuccessful results. They and a few other friends form Flirt Club, where they attempt to model the flirting techniques they see more popular girls exhibiting, and at first, it seems to work. Izzy nets one of the most popular guys in school, Michael, but finds herself having to choose between her friends and her boyfriend. Soon she must figure out what's more important to her - love or friendship.

I loved the format of FLIRT CLUB. Though there was a lot of traditional narration, much of the book was comprised of notes passed between the girls and journal entries, which added a lot of fun to this read. Some reviewers didn't like the fact that the girls' method of communication was so outdated, but Izzy and Annie were rather quirky and I felt the long note passing suited them well. At times the letters could be a little off-topic even though that kind of thing would be normal in real life, and that was occasionally a bit distracting.

As I said, Izzy and Annie were quirky, different, and a blast to read about. (Plus, Izzy had my name!) They were hilarious and honest even in tough spots. Although a lot of the book was about fun and boys, this wasn't completely fluffy and dealt with topics like a surviving friendship, first love, and first heartbreak. It did sometimes feel like the characters did things most eighth graders wouldn't - second base and drinking parties were treated like they were normal, but I remember in middle school, getting drunk and/or felt up was scandalous.

All in all, this was a fun and cute book that many tweens and younger teens would enjoy reading. Despite the drinking and second base, this had a lot of good themes about the importance of friendship and first dealings with boys, and had very much an innocent air. FLIRT CLUB is an adorable read that I would recommend to anyone looking for something funny and sweet to relax with, especially after a first heartbreak.