Journal Entry 1 by Kyrissaean from Littleton, New Hampshire USA on Thursday, July 31, 2008

ARC -- good book!


Ed Rochester is the epitome of cool and completely on top of his game. As a senior high school's almost in the bag, but that's hardly on his mind anymore. Eddy's the primary writer and director of Riot Grrl 16, a serial drama that's taking the Internet by storm and about to win him a spot on MTV. Film is everything. And girls? They're great too, as long as they don't expect anything later. Everyone knows he's the "love'em and leave'em" type so it's all good, right?

Except sometimes life turns in unexpected ways, and suddenly Eddy finds himself with a girl he doesn't want to leave. Lucinda Dulko is interesting, and beautiful, and tough, and into her own things...and being Eddy's long-term groupie may not be one of them. Eddy's life starts taking a lot of turns he didn't see coming. He's still got his camera, but is he always the director?

The main plotline is a great one - it doesn't just sound good in summary, it's a fantastic read - but the writing and the characters totally make this book. The characters are fully fleshed out and interesting, and by the end of the book I wanted to know them even more. This isn't a story about good guys and bad guys; it's a story about people with all their complicated little bits. The reader goes in expecting a smart aleck and ends up finding so much more in Eddy - the way he takes care of his quirky little brother and their talking bird, his sensitivity to his family, the way that sometimes he can't help but be a good guy in spite of himself. Play Me is at once sharply funny and deeply affecting. Laura Ruby delivers.