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Losing It
To avoid Losing It in the bushes with some random guy in a heavy-metal T-shirt after too many tequila shots, four best friends make a to lose it before schoolies week – and preferably in a romantic, sober way that they won't regret.What follows is a sometimes funny, sometimes awkward, but always compelling comedy of errors as Abby, Mala, Bree and Zoe each try to find their Mr Right . . . or at least get laid.A hilarious and thought-provoking novel by the award-winning author of Bye, Beautiful and The Push.
264 pages, Paperback
First published March 21, 2012
3 people are currently reading
796 people want to read
About the author
Julia Lawrinson
22 books42 followersJulia Lawrinson is an Australian writer of children's and young adult fiction. Her debut novel Obsession (Fremantle Press, 2001) won the Western Australian Premier's Prize for Young Adult Writing: since then her work has been shortlisted for numerous awards. Her latest book for young adults is Before You Forget (PenguinRandomHouse 2017). Her latest novel for children is Mel and Shell (Fremantle Press 2021), and in 2023 she published her first picture book, City of Light (ill. Heather Potter and Mark Jackson) with Wild Dog Books. Her memoir, How To Avoid A Happy Life, is out with Fremantle Press.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews
April 16, 2012
You say “Virginity Challenge”, I think cliché-ridden teen comedy film featuring at least one gross-out scene and more double entendres than you can shake a stick at.
Right or wrong, what immediately comes to my mind is the tired formula of a group of teens and their various misadventures on a “hilarious” quest to lose their virginity before [insert momentous high school event here].
But Julia Lawrinson’s Losing It is not a cheap laugh at a string of sex jokes. While it definitely has its funny moments, this is a deeper look at four characters and the personal motivations and relationships that factor into their decisions.
To be honest, I think a large part of my enjoyment of this book was because it caused a few flashbacks to “Reynje: The Teen Years”. I was a GeeGee. (No, not a horse, a Geek Girl). And the interactions between Lawrinson’s characters had me quietly chortling and feeling a bit nostalgic for my own high school shenanigans. (Because, confession: I actually liked high school.)
In the GeeGees, Lawrinson has created a diverse cast of teenage girls – a cross-section of backgrounds and cultures that’s fairly representative of high schools in Australia. Year Twelve students Zoe, Bree, Mala and Abby enter into a challenge to lose their virginity during the year, keeping their experiences (or lack of) secret until the final reveal at Schoolies. (It’s taking all my willpower not to make a lame Schoolies pun here). The book is divided into sections, with the spotlight rotating from each character in turn as they relate what is essentially their final transcript of events. There’s some cross over between the viewpoints, and it’s interesting to see the events and characters from other perspectives, and the layers of context that develop as a result.
I found Abby and Mala’s narratives the most interesting. (Oh Mala, honey. Let me give you a hug.) In their respective cases, Lawrinson does an excellent job of communicating very complex family dynamics in an understated and effective manner.
However, while the circumstances of each character’s story are different, I didn’t find the voices particularly striking. The manner in which they all relate their version of events has a similar tone, which slightly lets down the concept of multiple narrators.
Losing It is a very frank book, and it addresses the subject of teen sexuality in an upfront manner that manages to be sincere without always taking itself too seriously or talking down to its audience. Lawrinson presents a range of scenarios and character motivations, without screaming: “LOOK! OVER HERE! AN IMPORTANT MESSAGE FOR TEENS!” Rather, she’s honest and sympathetic and has created a story that (in my opinion) will resonate with its intended audience.
That ending, however? Yeah no. Not buying it. The neatness and the ease of acceptance with which the stories wraps up is a bit too tidy for me to believe. I appreciate the focus on the strong friendships, but I’m pretty sure that in real life there would be more emotional fisticuffs going on before the group hug.
Overall, Losing It is funny, brash and pretty realistic. It’s not as gritty as Heartbreak High, but not as soapy as Home and Away .
Right or wrong, what immediately comes to my mind is the tired formula of a group of teens and their various misadventures on a “hilarious” quest to lose their virginity before [insert momentous high school event here].
But Julia Lawrinson’s Losing It is not a cheap laugh at a string of sex jokes. While it definitely has its funny moments, this is a deeper look at four characters and the personal motivations and relationships that factor into their decisions.
To be honest, I think a large part of my enjoyment of this book was because it caused a few flashbacks to “Reynje: The Teen Years”. I was a GeeGee. (No, not a horse, a Geek Girl). And the interactions between Lawrinson’s characters had me quietly chortling and feeling a bit nostalgic for my own high school shenanigans. (Because, confession: I actually liked high school.)
In the GeeGees, Lawrinson has created a diverse cast of teenage girls – a cross-section of backgrounds and cultures that’s fairly representative of high schools in Australia. Year Twelve students Zoe, Bree, Mala and Abby enter into a challenge to lose their virginity during the year, keeping their experiences (or lack of) secret until the final reveal at Schoolies. (It’s taking all my willpower not to make a lame Schoolies pun here). The book is divided into sections, with the spotlight rotating from each character in turn as they relate what is essentially their final transcript of events. There’s some cross over between the viewpoints, and it’s interesting to see the events and characters from other perspectives, and the layers of context that develop as a result.
I found Abby and Mala’s narratives the most interesting. (Oh Mala, honey. Let me give you a hug.) In their respective cases, Lawrinson does an excellent job of communicating very complex family dynamics in an understated and effective manner.
However, while the circumstances of each character’s story are different, I didn’t find the voices particularly striking. The manner in which they all relate their version of events has a similar tone, which slightly lets down the concept of multiple narrators.
Losing It is a very frank book, and it addresses the subject of teen sexuality in an upfront manner that manages to be sincere without always taking itself too seriously or talking down to its audience. Lawrinson presents a range of scenarios and character motivations, without screaming: “LOOK! OVER HERE! AN IMPORTANT MESSAGE FOR TEENS!” Rather, she’s honest and sympathetic and has created a story that (in my opinion) will resonate with its intended audience.
That ending, however? Yeah no. Not buying it. The neatness and the ease of acceptance with which the stories wraps up is a bit too tidy for me to believe. I appreciate the focus on the strong friendships, but I’m pretty sure that in real life there would be more emotional fisticuffs going on before the group hug.
Overall, Losing It is funny, brash and pretty realistic. It’s not as gritty as Heartbreak High, but not as soapy as Home and Away .
August 26, 2012
Books with suggestive titles/covers make me feel awkward when purchasing them or taking them out at the library. How on earth people buy or borrow those romance books with half-naked people on the cover is entirely beyond me. Every time I see someone with a Kindle the only logical conclusion is that they are reading a book too embarrassing to reveal the cover to anyone else. Fortunately they have self-serve check-outs at the library near where I live now. I love self-serve check-outs. Every time I go to the supermarket, I feel like I'm living in the future. It's sensational.
After having read an extract from the beginning of Losing It, I wasn't particularly interested in reading it, to be entirely honest with you. But still! I picked it up! That first part is probably my least favourite of the whole book. Third-person scenes book-end the novel, with four separate sections filling the space between - a short story from each of the main characters, at various points through the year. And I very much love multiple narrators, and I think this method of story-telling worked very well. Each of the four friends were unique and endearing and imperfect, and pretty stupid at various points, and I think the realism of each of them and their voices was what kept some out-there ridiculous plot twists from turning the book unbelievable. The first story, Zoe's, was undoubtedly the funniest, and I loved that the most academically smart of the girls was also the most obnoxious.
I did read this immediately after I read The Reluctant Hallelujah, however, and I have established weirdness in books is almost always a good thing to me. So maybe it will too much weird for you? You won't find out till you read it, though, because I would ruin it if I told you! It is pretty hilarious, and I would hate to spoil it.
Shortly after reading Losing It, I was doing my usual 'wasting time on the internet, shouldn't I be writing or doing something important with my life?' thing, when I read this quite wonderful post by another author, Foz Meadows, entitled 'Why YA sex scenes matter.' And this is definitely something I want to write more on*, later, but I thought I'd touch on this now, since it is super relevant to this book. But this is a big thing that I loved about Losing It, despite the fact that it was at times uncomfortably weird, was that it represented four very different experiences of teenage sexuality, realistically and non-judgementally. The novel was not a vehicle for the author to express her views - it was entertaining and involving and well-written - but it still depicted everything in a positive but not saccharine manner. So that makes me happy. Not all sex scenes in YA novels should be wedding-night-with-a-vampire, guys.
So age recommendation - girls, fourteen and over? It's a novel about a virginity pact. I think we've gathered eleven-year-olds won't really like it. And the girls do a bit of drinking of alcoholic beverages in the first and final scenes. I plan on writing about this, as well - what is appropriate in YA and what isn't. I plan on writing about everything. While the sex in this book is older teenage subject matter, it's all dealt with in a very tactful manner and there aren't any damaging sort of values going on. I wouldn't be concerned about younger teenagers reading it, really. I get more worried about violence in books, that freaks me out. This novel is lovely and honest and hilarious and leans towards the ridiculous at times, but it's got a big heart. So there.
*Who knows when I'll write a proper post about this? I am very hesitant about expressing definite views on things, because I am so wary of offending people now and aware that my own views are bound to change. I had a lot more confidence to just say 'I believe this! I know everything!' when I was slightly younger. Maybe this is what growing up does to you? You have to endlessly think about things? You are never quite sure? Gosh, adulthood is terrible.
After having read an extract from the beginning of Losing It, I wasn't particularly interested in reading it, to be entirely honest with you. But still! I picked it up! That first part is probably my least favourite of the whole book. Third-person scenes book-end the novel, with four separate sections filling the space between - a short story from each of the main characters, at various points through the year. And I very much love multiple narrators, and I think this method of story-telling worked very well. Each of the four friends were unique and endearing and imperfect, and pretty stupid at various points, and I think the realism of each of them and their voices was what kept some out-there ridiculous plot twists from turning the book unbelievable. The first story, Zoe's, was undoubtedly the funniest, and I loved that the most academically smart of the girls was also the most obnoxious.
I did read this immediately after I read The Reluctant Hallelujah, however, and I have established weirdness in books is almost always a good thing to me. So maybe it will too much weird for you? You won't find out till you read it, though, because I would ruin it if I told you! It is pretty hilarious, and I would hate to spoil it.
Shortly after reading Losing It, I was doing my usual 'wasting time on the internet, shouldn't I be writing or doing something important with my life?' thing, when I read this quite wonderful post by another author, Foz Meadows, entitled 'Why YA sex scenes matter.' And this is definitely something I want to write more on*, later, but I thought I'd touch on this now, since it is super relevant to this book. But this is a big thing that I loved about Losing It, despite the fact that it was at times uncomfortably weird, was that it represented four very different experiences of teenage sexuality, realistically and non-judgementally. The novel was not a vehicle for the author to express her views - it was entertaining and involving and well-written - but it still depicted everything in a positive but not saccharine manner. So that makes me happy. Not all sex scenes in YA novels should be wedding-night-with-a-vampire, guys.
So age recommendation - girls, fourteen and over? It's a novel about a virginity pact. I think we've gathered eleven-year-olds won't really like it. And the girls do a bit of drinking of alcoholic beverages in the first and final scenes. I plan on writing about this, as well - what is appropriate in YA and what isn't. I plan on writing about everything. While the sex in this book is older teenage subject matter, it's all dealt with in a very tactful manner and there aren't any damaging sort of values going on. I wouldn't be concerned about younger teenagers reading it, really. I get more worried about violence in books, that freaks me out. This novel is lovely and honest and hilarious and leans towards the ridiculous at times, but it's got a big heart. So there.
*Who knows when I'll write a proper post about this? I am very hesitant about expressing definite views on things, because I am so wary of offending people now and aware that my own views are bound to change. I had a lot more confidence to just say 'I believe this! I know everything!' when I was slightly younger. Maybe this is what growing up does to you? You have to endlessly think about things? You are never quite sure? Gosh, adulthood is terrible.
April 16, 2018
I have to admit I thought the premise of Losing It by Julia Lawrinson sounded dubious. Four high school friends challenge themselves to lose their virginity before the end of Year 12. This could have been trivial, possibly nonsensical but Lawrinson gives readers a sensitively told and compassionate look into the girls’ complicated and at times, heartbreaking lives. Without giving away spoilers, watch out for the character, Matty who is a wonderful minor although pivotal character in the book. Losing It is a sometimes funny, and sensitively written story about finding yourself and losing your virginity. A heartwarming YA read about friendship and relationships.
June 3, 2012
Review originally posted in: http://forget8me8not.blogspot.com.au/...
Cover:
Such a cute cover! When I first saw the cover, I thought those hearts were balloons but after reading the book, I found out that they are not actually balloons!
Story:
4 girls, end of year 12. Losing It.
I never thought Losing It was such an enjoyable read! Losing It is a story of four girls who are trying to lose their virginity. They make a pact to try and lose IT and gather together to share their stories. The story is split into 5 different sections. The first section introduces us to the story of how these girls end up making a pact to lose their virginity. Then the rest of the four sections are the stories of each girls and how they lose it or perhaps not losing it!
Losing It was such a realistic read. The idea of sex in this book is both 'terrifying' and 'exciting'. The girls feel excited and also worried about losing it. Although, this was a light read. Nothing too heavy. Each girl's story was cute and funny! When I read the book, I noticed 'something' or 'someone' to be precise in each of the girl's story and after reading four of them, I never thought this 'someone' is actually the same person! I do like the how the book ended. The ending wrapped up the book quite well!
Characters:
Abby, Mala, Zoe and Bree are fun and cute characters. They were really enjoyable to read about! I love how they are very different compared to each other. I love reading each of their stories and discovering whether or not they end up losing it or perhaps discovering something more about themselves! And there's Matt. Let's just say he's the main guy in the book. He's pretty cool but I don't really like him.
The characters are one of the best things about Losing It. Lawrinson's characters felt so real and she depicts teenagers well!
Overall:
Losing It is a fun, light and enjoyable read! Want to read a story about 4 girls losing IT? Read this book and find out how they lose IT or perhaps not losing IT! I really enjoyed Julia Lawrinson's writing and am looking forward to read more of her books!
Thank you Penguin Australia for the review copy!
Cover:
Such a cute cover! When I first saw the cover, I thought those hearts were balloons but after reading the book, I found out that they are not actually balloons!
Story:
4 girls, end of year 12. Losing It.
I never thought Losing It was such an enjoyable read! Losing It is a story of four girls who are trying to lose their virginity. They make a pact to try and lose IT and gather together to share their stories. The story is split into 5 different sections. The first section introduces us to the story of how these girls end up making a pact to lose their virginity. Then the rest of the four sections are the stories of each girls and how they lose it or perhaps not losing it!
Losing It was such a realistic read. The idea of sex in this book is both 'terrifying' and 'exciting'. The girls feel excited and also worried about losing it. Although, this was a light read. Nothing too heavy. Each girl's story was cute and funny! When I read the book, I noticed 'something' or 'someone' to be precise in each of the girl's story and after reading four of them, I never thought this 'someone' is actually the same person! I do like the how the book ended. The ending wrapped up the book quite well!
Characters:
Abby, Mala, Zoe and Bree are fun and cute characters. They were really enjoyable to read about! I love how they are very different compared to each other. I love reading each of their stories and discovering whether or not they end up losing it or perhaps discovering something more about themselves! And there's Matt. Let's just say he's the main guy in the book. He's pretty cool but I don't really like him.
The characters are one of the best things about Losing It. Lawrinson's characters felt so real and she depicts teenagers well!
Overall:
Losing It is a fun, light and enjoyable read! Want to read a story about 4 girls losing IT? Read this book and find out how they lose IT or perhaps not losing IT! I really enjoyed Julia Lawrinson's writing and am looking forward to read more of her books!
Thank you Penguin Australia for the review copy!
March 21, 2012
Meet Bree, Zoe, Abby and Mala – the GeeGees (aka ‘Geek Girls’). The GeeGees quickly banded together as the outcast scholarship kids at prestigious SMAC (aka ‘St. Michael’s Anglican College), and ever since then they have been inseparable.
Bree is the glamazon of their group – she turns boy’s heads but has a reputation as an ice queen.
Abby is a sweet Christian girl – but don’t be fooled, because it’s the quiet ones you’ve got to look out for.
Mala is the dutiful daughter who is slowly being suffocated by her lovingly over-protective family.
And Zoe is trying to control her insatiable love of men’s muscly arms, and trying to keep her jealousy of Bree in check.
All four girls are currently still in possession of their V-plates (aka ‘virginity’) but all that’s about to change… Schoolies week is, statistically speaking, the time in a young girl’s life when she is most likely to pop her cherry. But losing it on a sandy beach surrounded by boozing teenagers and empty bottles does not sound overly romantic. So the GeeGees have made a pact to lose ‘it’ before Schoolies.
Four girls.
One challenge.
Potential catastrophe.
Game on.
‘Losing It’ is the new YA novel by Australian author Julia Lawrinson.
For some readers, ‘Losing It’ will be a head-nodding, cathartic and hilarious read that will either trigger memories of your own befuddling experience, or act as a ‘what not to do’ as you navigate the treacherous terrain of virginity. And then for a few other readers, ‘Losing It’ will no doubt be a special glimpse into the secret world of girls … and all our neurotically romanticized ways.
When we meet the GeeGees – Bree, Abby, Mala and Zoe – they are formulating a plan to avoid a dreaded Schoolies week cherry-popping;
'Okay,' Zoe said. 'Here's a better idea. Why don't we still have the rules, but also say that nobody's forced to participate if they don't want to.'
'What's the point of that?' Bree said. 'We may as well just leave it to chance.'
'Well, no,' Zoe said. 'It could be a challenge, instead of a bet.'
'What's the difference?' Bree asked.
'A bet is something juvenile, shallow, something you do with no thought. A challenge, on the other hand, is something you rise to, so to speak –' she ignored the giggles '– something that has a moral element, something that implies that you're overcoming the thing that is holding you back, that you're a new and better person by the end of it.' Zoe raised her fist in the air. 'It's about freedom – freedom to become somebody different!'
'You sound like you're talking about a new political movement, not getting laid,' laughed Mala.
From there we follow the girls’ individual journeys through year twelve, on their missions to lose ‘it’.
We meet Zoe – a science geek with an inconvenient penchant for muscle-bound jocks. For a few years now Zoe has been quietly stewing over the fact that her best friend, Bree, seemingly turned into a glamazonian hottie over night … leaving the rest of the GeeGees to pale in comparison. Zoe is especially frustrated at having to watch Bree parading around with her gym buddies – handsome older guys with bulging pectorals and drool-worthy arms. In a fit of frustration Zoe turns to Matty, honorary brother-like GeeGees member and Zoe’s science partner. It’s not love, it’s not even lust… and the back of a Yaris is hardly the place to get amorous. But a girl’s gotta lose what a girl’s gotta lose – and Zoe is hell-bent on losing her V-plates while she’s trying to get her P-plates.
Abby is a good Christian girl whose faith in love was rocked when her Youth Group sweetie got cold feet and chose abstinence over her virginity. Abby is struggling to get close to anyone since her first romantic disaster, and she doubts she’ll even be in the virginity competition. Putting a further dampener on her cherry-popping is the reappearance of her terrible, atheist older brother, Zeke. He’s back from the wheatbelt and he has a few revelations to share with the family…
Mala is a good, dutiful daughter with an impossible crush on her cousin, Mo. From an early age she knew that Mo was the one for her – but what’s acceptable in the old country is considered incest in Australia… and Mala has to put aside her romantic notions about the beautiful and dark-eyed Mo.
Finally, Bree is the St. Michael’s Anglican College resident ice queen. All the girls want to be her, and all the boys want to get in her pants… but nobody knows what really makes Bree tick. The St. Michael’s boys don’t interest her, and she envies her friend’s crushes and flirtations – their enviable lust leaves Bree feeling like a late-bloomer. But all that changes when she has a revelation at the gym one day.
First off, I should say that ‘Losing It’ is not Julia Lawrinson writing a lengthy and raunchy advocacy of promiscuity. The GeeGees are not entering into this ‘competition’ for one-upmanship or to participate in any of those rainbow party type shenanigans that ‘Today Tonight’ so likes to scare parents with. The girls enter into the ‘competition’, rather blindly, simply because they want to get the task of losing their virginity over and done with … and since they are not thrilled with the statistic that predicts they’ll most likely lose it at Schoolies week, they decide to do the deed beforehand. Now, if you’re tut-tutting and shaking your head at this naiveté, then never fear!… Lawrinson explores the myriad of ways that all four girls realize the pitfalls of their plan.
I really liked the fact that Lawrinson didn’t preach in this book. Readers, and the GeeGees, all have to come to the realization that losing your virginity to a competitive timeline is probably not the smartest move. All of the girls have mini-breakthroughs about themselves in the course of ‘Losing It’… but Lawrinson doesn’t shove these life lessons down reader’s throats. She doesn’t make situations too easy on her female characters either. Like Abby, who thought she had her brother all figured out until he shocked her with his reappearance. Or Bree, who everyone else has all figured out until we read her point of view and realize how wrong they are. This really is Lawrinson inviting readers into the secret world of girls (whether to commiserate or learn a little something) and she doesn’t pull punches or write an easy way out for her protagonist’s tricky situations. I liked that, a lot.
Really, all of the girl’s individual stories were juicy enough to warrant a book all to themselves. I really wished some girl’s stories had been longer (or stand alones) in particular, Bree & Abby’s – whose revelations (both personal and familial) really intrigued me, and by the end of the book I was wishing we’d been able to spend more time with those two girls in particular. I would have especially liked to read the fallout and ramifications of their situations…
I also wish the book had focused more on the GeeGees friendship group. We don’t really get many scenes with the foursome – and for that reason it felt like their talked about camaraderie was missing, not really shown. In the beginning I was concerned that the ‘losing it’ competition was made in spite – that these girls weren’t really close friends and the comp was a bit of sabotage by some of the girls in the group. But as the novel progresses and we read each of their perspectives, we do come to understand that the girls do care about each other and value their friendship. I just think that might have been a bit clearer though, if we had more scenes with the GeeGees hanging out together. On the other hand, each of the girls has secondary characters that become big players in their individual stories… science geek, Matty, was a particular favourite!
Funny and endearing, Julia Lawrinson has written an unflinching and hilarious journey through the momentous time in four girl’s lives when they decide to lose ‘it’, on their own terms.
Bree is the glamazon of their group – she turns boy’s heads but has a reputation as an ice queen.
Abby is a sweet Christian girl – but don’t be fooled, because it’s the quiet ones you’ve got to look out for.
Mala is the dutiful daughter who is slowly being suffocated by her lovingly over-protective family.
And Zoe is trying to control her insatiable love of men’s muscly arms, and trying to keep her jealousy of Bree in check.
All four girls are currently still in possession of their V-plates (aka ‘virginity’) but all that’s about to change… Schoolies week is, statistically speaking, the time in a young girl’s life when she is most likely to pop her cherry. But losing it on a sandy beach surrounded by boozing teenagers and empty bottles does not sound overly romantic. So the GeeGees have made a pact to lose ‘it’ before Schoolies.
Four girls.
One challenge.
Potential catastrophe.
Game on.
‘Losing It’ is the new YA novel by Australian author Julia Lawrinson.
For some readers, ‘Losing It’ will be a head-nodding, cathartic and hilarious read that will either trigger memories of your own befuddling experience, or act as a ‘what not to do’ as you navigate the treacherous terrain of virginity. And then for a few other readers, ‘Losing It’ will no doubt be a special glimpse into the secret world of girls … and all our neurotically romanticized ways.
When we meet the GeeGees – Bree, Abby, Mala and Zoe – they are formulating a plan to avoid a dreaded Schoolies week cherry-popping;
'Okay,' Zoe said. 'Here's a better idea. Why don't we still have the rules, but also say that nobody's forced to participate if they don't want to.'
'What's the point of that?' Bree said. 'We may as well just leave it to chance.'
'Well, no,' Zoe said. 'It could be a challenge, instead of a bet.'
'What's the difference?' Bree asked.
'A bet is something juvenile, shallow, something you do with no thought. A challenge, on the other hand, is something you rise to, so to speak –' she ignored the giggles '– something that has a moral element, something that implies that you're overcoming the thing that is holding you back, that you're a new and better person by the end of it.' Zoe raised her fist in the air. 'It's about freedom – freedom to become somebody different!'
'You sound like you're talking about a new political movement, not getting laid,' laughed Mala.
From there we follow the girls’ individual journeys through year twelve, on their missions to lose ‘it’.
We meet Zoe – a science geek with an inconvenient penchant for muscle-bound jocks. For a few years now Zoe has been quietly stewing over the fact that her best friend, Bree, seemingly turned into a glamazonian hottie over night … leaving the rest of the GeeGees to pale in comparison. Zoe is especially frustrated at having to watch Bree parading around with her gym buddies – handsome older guys with bulging pectorals and drool-worthy arms. In a fit of frustration Zoe turns to Matty, honorary brother-like GeeGees member and Zoe’s science partner. It’s not love, it’s not even lust… and the back of a Yaris is hardly the place to get amorous. But a girl’s gotta lose what a girl’s gotta lose – and Zoe is hell-bent on losing her V-plates while she’s trying to get her P-plates.
Abby is a good Christian girl whose faith in love was rocked when her Youth Group sweetie got cold feet and chose abstinence over her virginity. Abby is struggling to get close to anyone since her first romantic disaster, and she doubts she’ll even be in the virginity competition. Putting a further dampener on her cherry-popping is the reappearance of her terrible, atheist older brother, Zeke. He’s back from the wheatbelt and he has a few revelations to share with the family…
Mala is a good, dutiful daughter with an impossible crush on her cousin, Mo. From an early age she knew that Mo was the one for her – but what’s acceptable in the old country is considered incest in Australia… and Mala has to put aside her romantic notions about the beautiful and dark-eyed Mo.
Finally, Bree is the St. Michael’s Anglican College resident ice queen. All the girls want to be her, and all the boys want to get in her pants… but nobody knows what really makes Bree tick. The St. Michael’s boys don’t interest her, and she envies her friend’s crushes and flirtations – their enviable lust leaves Bree feeling like a late-bloomer. But all that changes when she has a revelation at the gym one day.
First off, I should say that ‘Losing It’ is not Julia Lawrinson writing a lengthy and raunchy advocacy of promiscuity. The GeeGees are not entering into this ‘competition’ for one-upmanship or to participate in any of those rainbow party type shenanigans that ‘Today Tonight’ so likes to scare parents with. The girls enter into the ‘competition’, rather blindly, simply because they want to get the task of losing their virginity over and done with … and since they are not thrilled with the statistic that predicts they’ll most likely lose it at Schoolies week, they decide to do the deed beforehand. Now, if you’re tut-tutting and shaking your head at this naiveté, then never fear!… Lawrinson explores the myriad of ways that all four girls realize the pitfalls of their plan.
I really liked the fact that Lawrinson didn’t preach in this book. Readers, and the GeeGees, all have to come to the realization that losing your virginity to a competitive timeline is probably not the smartest move. All of the girls have mini-breakthroughs about themselves in the course of ‘Losing It’… but Lawrinson doesn’t shove these life lessons down reader’s throats. She doesn’t make situations too easy on her female characters either. Like Abby, who thought she had her brother all figured out until he shocked her with his reappearance. Or Bree, who everyone else has all figured out until we read her point of view and realize how wrong they are. This really is Lawrinson inviting readers into the secret world of girls (whether to commiserate or learn a little something) and she doesn’t pull punches or write an easy way out for her protagonist’s tricky situations. I liked that, a lot.
Really, all of the girl’s individual stories were juicy enough to warrant a book all to themselves. I really wished some girl’s stories had been longer (or stand alones) in particular, Bree & Abby’s – whose revelations (both personal and familial) really intrigued me, and by the end of the book I was wishing we’d been able to spend more time with those two girls in particular. I would have especially liked to read the fallout and ramifications of their situations…
I also wish the book had focused more on the GeeGees friendship group. We don’t really get many scenes with the foursome – and for that reason it felt like their talked about camaraderie was missing, not really shown. In the beginning I was concerned that the ‘losing it’ competition was made in spite – that these girls weren’t really close friends and the comp was a bit of sabotage by some of the girls in the group. But as the novel progresses and we read each of their perspectives, we do come to understand that the girls do care about each other and value their friendship. I just think that might have been a bit clearer though, if we had more scenes with the GeeGees hanging out together. On the other hand, each of the girls has secondary characters that become big players in their individual stories… science geek, Matty, was a particular favourite!
Funny and endearing, Julia Lawrinson has written an unflinching and hilarious journey through the momentous time in four girl’s lives when they decide to lose ‘it’, on their own terms.
February 12, 2018
had to sleep on my opinion of this one, but here it goes.
I originally picked up this title in a Booktopia Easter weekend sale and as it's been sitting on my shelf fairly untouched for the past two years, I thought it was about time I picked it up. My tastes have changed a bit since I got it, and a book about four girls who challenge each other to lose their virginities before 'schoolies' week wasn't something I was keen on.
I was wrong. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It consists of four stories of girls exploring their sexualities bookended by the creation of the challenge at the start and the culmination of the challenge at the end. The stories take place in chronological order of the challenge-induced sexual activity, and they also look at the friendship dynamic up to their final year of school. It has characters from different family structures, ethnic backgrounds and sexualities. I originally thought that the narrative voices would be too similar, but that wasn't the case at all, with each character reading so completely differently.
This is the bit where I talk about the issues I had.
Firstly, there was some really glaring editing issues. This book was initially published in 2012, and I got this copy in 2016, so I would have thought that perhaps things like that would have been cleaned up already. Secondly, I started thinking about half-way through that this book was set in Western Australia, and I got confirmation of that right at the end when they mentioned both Scotch College and PLC in the same sentence, and I still had to double check by googling the author. It's extremely clear that this book has been edited for an Eastern States audience. The target audience at the time of publication would have started high school in Year Eight, not year Seven, which explains some later discrepancies in terms of character age at the start of HS (Mala being 13, for instance). In WA, we also call the week-long celebration at the end of school 'leavers', which is another reason it took me so long to figure out. So yeah, my main issues with this book is that the editing made it far more accessible to the Eastern States rather than, you know, the people in the state where it's set. But I'll leave that for now and go back to things that I like.
Overall, I thought this was a really heartwarming story about friendship and exploring sexuality. I don't think I could say I'd have enjoyed this book more when I was in high school, but I definitely think I would have benefited from having read this earlier in my life. There are some trigger warnings for both rape and incest, but these aren't explicit and they're only suggested at in terms of side characters (but they're still there). I enjoyed this far more than I thought I would, and I'm looking forward to picking up more of Lawrinson's work in the future.
I originally picked up this title in a Booktopia Easter weekend sale and as it's been sitting on my shelf fairly untouched for the past two years, I thought it was about time I picked it up. My tastes have changed a bit since I got it, and a book about four girls who challenge each other to lose their virginities before 'schoolies' week wasn't something I was keen on.
I was wrong. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It consists of four stories of girls exploring their sexualities bookended by the creation of the challenge at the start and the culmination of the challenge at the end. The stories take place in chronological order of the challenge-induced sexual activity, and they also look at the friendship dynamic up to their final year of school. It has characters from different family structures, ethnic backgrounds and sexualities. I originally thought that the narrative voices would be too similar, but that wasn't the case at all, with each character reading so completely differently.
This is the bit where I talk about the issues I had.
Firstly, there was some really glaring editing issues. This book was initially published in 2012, and I got this copy in 2016, so I would have thought that perhaps things like that would have been cleaned up already. Secondly, I started thinking about half-way through that this book was set in Western Australia, and I got confirmation of that right at the end when they mentioned both Scotch College and PLC in the same sentence, and I still had to double check by googling the author. It's extremely clear that this book has been edited for an Eastern States audience. The target audience at the time of publication would have started high school in Year Eight, not year Seven, which explains some later discrepancies in terms of character age at the start of HS (Mala being 13, for instance). In WA, we also call the week-long celebration at the end of school 'leavers', which is another reason it took me so long to figure out. So yeah, my main issues with this book is that the editing made it far more accessible to the Eastern States rather than, you know, the people in the state where it's set. But I'll leave that for now and go back to things that I like.
Overall, I thought this was a really heartwarming story about friendship and exploring sexuality. I don't think I could say I'd have enjoyed this book more when I was in high school, but I definitely think I would have benefited from having read this earlier in my life. There are some trigger warnings for both rape and incest, but these aren't explicit and they're only suggested at in terms of side characters (but they're still there). I enjoyed this far more than I thought I would, and I'm looking forward to picking up more of Lawrinson's work in the future.
October 5, 2017
When I first got this book, I actually liked the cover (red cover with the hearts). I thought it was going to just a YA contemporary read. Well, it wasn’t exactly what I expected.
While reading the first few chapters, I grew interested in the 4 girls who are actually quite different. I finished the books in half a day and I really enjoyed reading it.
I liked the way the book was written. It was as though I was actually reading 4 stories of 4 girls which made me being able to feel connected to the girls.
I’m not sure if I would recommend this book to younger teens though (being from a very traditional family). I would recommend parents to read the book first before making a decision to have your teenager read it. :)
While reading the first few chapters, I grew interested in the 4 girls who are actually quite different. I finished the books in half a day and I really enjoyed reading it.
I liked the way the book was written. It was as though I was actually reading 4 stories of 4 girls which made me being able to feel connected to the girls.
I’m not sure if I would recommend this book to younger teens though (being from a very traditional family). I would recommend parents to read the book first before making a decision to have your teenager read it. :)
November 13, 2012
Abby, Mala, Bree and Zoe are the Geek Girls at their exclusive private high school where they’re mostly there on scholarships. They bonded almost right away and have been friends ever since. Now, about to go in to year 12, the talk is suddenly about virginity and the losing of it.
Bree comes up with an idea – in order to avoid losing their collective virginity in drunken fumbles on the beach or behind a seedy club on schoolies week at the end of the year like a high proportion of their fellow students, she thinks they should make a pact to all ‘lose it’ during the year. Their terms, their choice, fully sober and not with someone that they won’t run from screaming in the morning. That way they’ll have no regrets about one of the most important moments in their young lives.
After an hour of debate they agree to make it a bet where nothing will be revealed between the friends regarding their success or failure with ‘losing it’ until they are actually at schoolies. Agreed were the following rules:
Has to take place before schoolies (8.5 months away)
They all had to lose it or at least make a genuine attempt
Absolute secrecy both with each other and everyone else, including any/all of the boys
Results to be written up in a diary-style confession
Big reveal at schoolies
The rules set the girls go their separate ways attempting to each fulfill the bet. They learn a lot about themselves, each other and what it is to really lose it.
I’ve implemented something recently that I call ‘Weekend Windback’ where each weekend I try to read books that have been languishing on my TBR pile for some time and this one was one of those reads. It came out early this year and I bought it almost right away because I’d heard good things about it at a Penguin Teen Aus promo event in late 2011 where they profiled their up coming releases for the first 6 months of 2012. However it ended up on the shelf and even though I read plenty of good reviews for it, I hadn’t had the chance to get to it. I decided to make it one of my first WW books.
After the first chapter outlining the making of the bet, the book then divides into 4 sections, each narrated by one of the girls. First up is Zoe. Zoe enjoys more freedom than her friends, raised by a single mother under the guise of trust is given until there is a reason for it not to be. She makes her choice for who she thinks the best candidate will be and sets about getting what she wants. Abby is the daughter of good Christians, her quiet life disrupted by the return of her rebellious older brother, who left home some years ago and has been a very distant figure ever since. Abby and her parents are both stunned by how changed he is when he returns and Abby is distracted from the bet by thoughts of the time she almost lost her virginity to a boy from her Christian youth group. Mala is suffocating under her family’s strict rules and constant hovering presence. She has been fooling around with her cousin since they were young and she thinks that he would be perfect and that they’re destined to be together until she’s devastated when he tells her that “Aussies just don’t do that”. And the last of the group is Bree, an ice queen with a parade of gym-junkie boyfriends but who is still searching to find out who she really is.
This book is quirky and fun and I think it’s an excellent example of a situation where revolving first person narrative works. The girls all have individual voices and you’re not chopping back and forth between them – you get Zoe’s story starting from the bet onwards, then Abby, then Mala, then Bree. Each section focuses on their attempts to lose their virginity and there’s relatively little interaction between the friends other than brief scenes. This way you get to know each girl and her situation well and you get to experience their journeys separately and individually which ends up being sort of funny when you get through a couple and realise exactly where the author is going with this ‘game’ and what is going to happen at the end when they all share their stories.
I don’t know anyone who made a pact to lose their virginity but I feel like the stories coming out of this book are mostly realistic, especially on the awkwardness of first time sex and negotiating things like contraception, trying to get alone time and exploring sexuality. I actually found Mala’s story most interesting – she’s of an ethnicity not specifically named and her parents are extremely strict. She barely gets any time alone to socialise, let alone see boys. The only time she does see boys is at family functions and she’s all related to them. At quite a young age, she had been fooling around with her cousin, exploring different things and she’s totally in the dark about the fact that in Australia, first cousins don’t date or marry (one of the girls claims it’s against the law but it actually isn’t. According to the Attorney-General’s department, you cannot marry an ancestor or descendant (ie a parent, grandparent, child, brother or sister) You can however legally marry an aunt, uncle, niece, nephew or cousin in Australia) however culturally “it’s not illegal…just frowned upon” whereas in Mala’s culture, it seemed quite the norm, even favoured. This was a hard adjustment for her to make as it seemed that she felt that Mo had been the one for her ever since she was little.
The ending is a little predictable and a touch unbelievable but this is still an enjoyable story. I like Julia Lawrinson’s style, she has a few more books and I’m definitely interested in reading them.
Bree comes up with an idea – in order to avoid losing their collective virginity in drunken fumbles on the beach or behind a seedy club on schoolies week at the end of the year like a high proportion of their fellow students, she thinks they should make a pact to all ‘lose it’ during the year. Their terms, their choice, fully sober and not with someone that they won’t run from screaming in the morning. That way they’ll have no regrets about one of the most important moments in their young lives.
After an hour of debate they agree to make it a bet where nothing will be revealed between the friends regarding their success or failure with ‘losing it’ until they are actually at schoolies. Agreed were the following rules:
Has to take place before schoolies (8.5 months away)
They all had to lose it or at least make a genuine attempt
Absolute secrecy both with each other and everyone else, including any/all of the boys
Results to be written up in a diary-style confession
Big reveal at schoolies
The rules set the girls go their separate ways attempting to each fulfill the bet. They learn a lot about themselves, each other and what it is to really lose it.
I’ve implemented something recently that I call ‘Weekend Windback’ where each weekend I try to read books that have been languishing on my TBR pile for some time and this one was one of those reads. It came out early this year and I bought it almost right away because I’d heard good things about it at a Penguin Teen Aus promo event in late 2011 where they profiled their up coming releases for the first 6 months of 2012. However it ended up on the shelf and even though I read plenty of good reviews for it, I hadn’t had the chance to get to it. I decided to make it one of my first WW books.
After the first chapter outlining the making of the bet, the book then divides into 4 sections, each narrated by one of the girls. First up is Zoe. Zoe enjoys more freedom than her friends, raised by a single mother under the guise of trust is given until there is a reason for it not to be. She makes her choice for who she thinks the best candidate will be and sets about getting what she wants. Abby is the daughter of good Christians, her quiet life disrupted by the return of her rebellious older brother, who left home some years ago and has been a very distant figure ever since. Abby and her parents are both stunned by how changed he is when he returns and Abby is distracted from the bet by thoughts of the time she almost lost her virginity to a boy from her Christian youth group. Mala is suffocating under her family’s strict rules and constant hovering presence. She has been fooling around with her cousin since they were young and she thinks that he would be perfect and that they’re destined to be together until she’s devastated when he tells her that “Aussies just don’t do that”. And the last of the group is Bree, an ice queen with a parade of gym-junkie boyfriends but who is still searching to find out who she really is.
This book is quirky and fun and I think it’s an excellent example of a situation where revolving first person narrative works. The girls all have individual voices and you’re not chopping back and forth between them – you get Zoe’s story starting from the bet onwards, then Abby, then Mala, then Bree. Each section focuses on their attempts to lose their virginity and there’s relatively little interaction between the friends other than brief scenes. This way you get to know each girl and her situation well and you get to experience their journeys separately and individually which ends up being sort of funny when you get through a couple and realise exactly where the author is going with this ‘game’ and what is going to happen at the end when they all share their stories.
I don’t know anyone who made a pact to lose their virginity but I feel like the stories coming out of this book are mostly realistic, especially on the awkwardness of first time sex and negotiating things like contraception, trying to get alone time and exploring sexuality. I actually found Mala’s story most interesting – she’s of an ethnicity not specifically named and her parents are extremely strict. She barely gets any time alone to socialise, let alone see boys. The only time she does see boys is at family functions and she’s all related to them. At quite a young age, she had been fooling around with her cousin, exploring different things and she’s totally in the dark about the fact that in Australia, first cousins don’t date or marry (one of the girls claims it’s against the law but it actually isn’t. According to the Attorney-General’s department, you cannot marry an ancestor or descendant (ie a parent, grandparent, child, brother or sister) You can however legally marry an aunt, uncle, niece, nephew or cousin in Australia) however culturally “it’s not illegal…just frowned upon” whereas in Mala’s culture, it seemed quite the norm, even favoured. This was a hard adjustment for her to make as it seemed that she felt that Mo had been the one for her ever since she was little.
The ending is a little predictable and a touch unbelievable but this is still an enjoyable story. I like Julia Lawrinson’s style, she has a few more books and I’m definitely interested in reading them.
April 20, 2018
While I think it's nice and naive when it comes to high school girls and it is a quick read, it was a bit cringe worthy. I personally think most of the situations the characters were in were over dramatic and all of them were really one dimensional when it came to character development and backstory.
May 28, 2017
I ended up skimming through this because the writing and the characters didn't engage me. I was also disappointed to see how the pact played out - and Matty's role throughout the story. This had a lot of potential but it fell flat for me.
May 24, 2012
Review posted at
Amaterasu Reads
Everything started with a dare Bree suggested: lose your virginity before the schoolies. The GeeGee's (Geek Girls with scholarships) Abby, Mala and Zoe agreed with their friend, and all hell broke loose. Split into four parts, the story revolves around the conquests of Bree, the gorgeous, popular cool geek everyone likes, Abby, the conservative Christian girl, Mala, the girl who's obsessed with boys just because she can't be near them, and Zoe, raised by a single mom and was used to being independent and speaks out her mind. Lives begin to unravel, secrets that have long been kept come out and all four of these girls' journey into becoming a woman were filled with heartaches, pain, confusion and some of the most hilarious moments they will ever encounter in their life. Because losing it isn't as easy as they thought it would be.
It's all about that three letter word, and Julia Lawrinson tells it like it should in this story about four best friends and a pact that lead to a lot of hilarious and enlightening moments for all of them. Some people might think how shallow this novel is because of what it discusses but let me tell you, it's not. Julia Lawrinson explores sexuality and one's virginity through The GeeGees plan in a very good way. They realize that maybe losing it in a bet isn't the best way to do it. And this book is not just about sex, as it explores what's beyond the bet and shows us the different lives of the girls and the dilemmas and struggles they face as teens.
The book makes you take a second look not just at the mechanics of friendship, but the individuality of each characters. Through the competition, you get to examine what goes on between the ties that bond these girls. Envy, spite, secrets, this book has it all. You get to take a peek inside their lives and their families. Bree's story drew me out of my comfort zone as I try to understand her, and Abby's life colliding with religion and values and family dynamics intrigued me the most. There's a nice balance among all four stories and if that wasn't enough another interesting character is added, Matty, the geeky friend and the one caught in the middle of it all, who I really liked!
Losing It is not just a coming of age tale, but a venture into womanhood and what sex really means for teens today, much less for girls. The readers get to see the good, the bad and oftentimes, the ugly side of things with a good dose of humor. A lot of the younger kids these days think they are open minded, but this book can help further explain to teens a lot of things about their sexuality and the consequences of doing it just for the sake of losing it. What I liked most about this book is that it's edgy without being preachy. You take the lessons from each of the girls through their story unfolding right before your eyes and not one lesson is forced upon you.
You either hate this book or you love it, no in betweens. The theme of this book is far too important and relevant to read half heartedly. For some it might be a quick trip back in time when they finally lost it and for some it might be a guide to what and what not to do when you finally want to lose it. Julia Lawrinson's real and unflinching novel is a perfect read for today's teens. Sweet and funny, with catastrophic moments and a lesson or two we can all learn from, Losing It is an enjoyable read. Quite different, eye opening and refreshingly new. I'm gonna have to stick around and check Julia's other books because I loved this one!
Everything started with a dare Bree suggested: lose your virginity before the schoolies. The GeeGee's (Geek Girls with scholarships) Abby, Mala and Zoe agreed with their friend, and all hell broke loose. Split into four parts, the story revolves around the conquests of Bree, the gorgeous, popular cool geek everyone likes, Abby, the conservative Christian girl, Mala, the girl who's obsessed with boys just because she can't be near them, and Zoe, raised by a single mom and was used to being independent and speaks out her mind. Lives begin to unravel, secrets that have long been kept come out and all four of these girls' journey into becoming a woman were filled with heartaches, pain, confusion and some of the most hilarious moments they will ever encounter in their life. Because losing it isn't as easy as they thought it would be.
It's all about that three letter word, and Julia Lawrinson tells it like it should in this story about four best friends and a pact that lead to a lot of hilarious and enlightening moments for all of them. Some people might think how shallow this novel is because of what it discusses but let me tell you, it's not. Julia Lawrinson explores sexuality and one's virginity through The GeeGees plan in a very good way. They realize that maybe losing it in a bet isn't the best way to do it. And this book is not just about sex, as it explores what's beyond the bet and shows us the different lives of the girls and the dilemmas and struggles they face as teens.
The book makes you take a second look not just at the mechanics of friendship, but the individuality of each characters. Through the competition, you get to examine what goes on between the ties that bond these girls. Envy, spite, secrets, this book has it all. You get to take a peek inside their lives and their families. Bree's story drew me out of my comfort zone as I try to understand her, and Abby's life colliding with religion and values and family dynamics intrigued me the most. There's a nice balance among all four stories and if that wasn't enough another interesting character is added, Matty, the geeky friend and the one caught in the middle of it all, who I really liked!
Losing It is not just a coming of age tale, but a venture into womanhood and what sex really means for teens today, much less for girls. The readers get to see the good, the bad and oftentimes, the ugly side of things with a good dose of humor. A lot of the younger kids these days think they are open minded, but this book can help further explain to teens a lot of things about their sexuality and the consequences of doing it just for the sake of losing it. What I liked most about this book is that it's edgy without being preachy. You take the lessons from each of the girls through their story unfolding right before your eyes and not one lesson is forced upon you.
You either hate this book or you love it, no in betweens. The theme of this book is far too important and relevant to read half heartedly. For some it might be a quick trip back in time when they finally lost it and for some it might be a guide to what and what not to do when you finally want to lose it. Julia Lawrinson's real and unflinching novel is a perfect read for today's teens. Sweet and funny, with catastrophic moments and a lesson or two we can all learn from, Losing It is an enjoyable read. Quite different, eye opening and refreshingly new. I'm gonna have to stick around and check Julia's other books because I loved this one!
June 16, 2013
Well I totally wasn't expecting that. As soon as I found out the trend that was going on I became bored. I like the fact that this book is about development and not drama and gossip. These girls are relatable but the ones I felt like I understood the most were Zoe and Mala, I found myself bored by abby and Bree. Possibly because I thought abby needed to grow a backbone and Bree needed to be more true to herself. I understood how she felt and why she decided to cover everything up under her ice goddess persona. I myself act reserved but not for the sake of covering up a secret. As for abbey i think she is just a bit of a push over and all throughout her part of the story i was screaming at her to stand up to her parents. It wasn't until she started acting like a brat that I thought she was acting like a normal human should. I don't like the pressure these girls were under to do well in school and grades and mala's nana pi**ed me off so much. It's like these aussy parents are just using their kids as trophies to show off to other parents. I know all parents do that but it was just too extreme in this book. I guess they are scholars students after all so I shouldn't really be complaining, and I also know nothing about aissy culture. But its because i know what that pressure feels like and the reminder of it bothered me but also made the book more relatable. Zoe and Mala were my favourites by far. In reality I don't think anyone would be as gutsy or wreck-less as they were but I admired their girl balls and found their sex obsessed nature realistic and admittedly relatable. In fact the whole book was so simple that I found it more enjoyable . I like the idea of separate stories that all come together as one in a big reveal. This was like one of those chick flicks you need for a good laugh and I totally enjoyed it. There were plenty if things that just seemed too dramatic or coincidental to happen in real life but without them the book wouldn't have been as interesting. Matty for example is a guy i can hardly imagine being real, there is no way he could keep certain things to himself instead of bragging to other guys and he just pi**ed me off in general. Being nice but then a typical male at the same time. I suppose thats more realistic than the fantasy angels, vampires and werewolf guys in most YA fiction. The opening was hilarious and had me hooked onto zoe's story. All throughout I was on the same emotional roller coaster as these girls. The ending was a bit flat but it wasn't disappointing, heart wrenching or devastating at all. I feel like more emotion could have been expressed in the ending but as I said before this was like a chick flick and not a moving story. I am slightly older than the girls in this book so I've already been there and can understand them completely. I would definitely recommend this to girls my age but I'm not to sure about recommending it to girls also in their last year of school. It might give them bad ideas or help them make sensible decisions about sex and relationships. I don't think that early teen girls should be reading this simply because you have to be mature enough to understand what exactly these girls are going through and grasp the full effect of the story. However to the young curious mind this could be an emotional thriller that gives a somewhat realistic but brief overview of sexuality without giving too much explicit information.
January 20, 2013
Losing it is a story of four girls who make a pledge to lose their virginity before schoolies. The story, told in four different parts, charts their year as they dodge the obstacles of driving tests, parents, older brothers and questions of sexuality to ‘Do It’
To be honest, I didn’t like this book. I’ve read a lot of reviews on it which rave about how great it is to see female sexuality and teenaged sexuality treated so well, and it is a very sexually liberated book. However, throughout the whole book it felt like the characters were two dimensional, defined by only a few things – one of which was always their virginity. Zoe is boy-mad, scattered and a virgin! Mala is boy-crazy, has over protective immigrant parents and is a virgin! Abby has overly christian parents, a difficult brother and is a virgin! Bree is beautiful and cool and is a virgin!
The idea that there was something essentially wrong with girls who hadn’t had a sexual experience by the time they finished high school, also annoyed me. While it’s a convenient set up for the book, there’s something really wrong with the idea that a girl must make the choice to have a sexual experience during her high school years, or she might get drunk and loose on schoolies and ‘do’ someone she regrets. Virginity is seen as an inconvenience or a burden, something which has to be ‘got rid of’ so that you can enter womenhood. And these (apparently) very smart girls, known at the Geek Girls, all automatically buy into that, without one of them saying – oh wait a minute, I can make my own choices about my body without anyone dictating to me what I need to do to become a woman!
Then there’s the slightly unbelievable part where not one of the girls has any regrets about becoming sexually active, even when it goes a bit pear shaped or they don’t have any kind of romantic feelings for the other person involved. I realise that this is the truth for some people, but I find it a little hard to believe that not one of them had any regrets at all.
There’s also the very convenient plot point, where the girls promise each other that they will keep any of their sexual exploits secret. Of course, by doing this they remove a vital support network (good thing none of them had any regrets then, since they had no one to turn to if they wanted to talk about it) and set up a painfully obvious plot twist.
Being sexually liberated doesn’t mean that girls have to lose their virginity early. It doesn’t mean that there’s something wrong with those who choose to wait until they’re older or something wrong with those who choose to find a partner that they have a connection with or even (gasp!) love. By having all four of the girls in this book participating in sexual activities without hesitation or regret, it makes it look like this is the only acceptable way to behave – that girls should be so sexually liberated that they’re not allowed to have feelings that a) sex at that age may not be for them b) sex with people they don’t love may not be for them or c) sex might actually have consequences. I’d hate to think a teenaged girl would come to this book and think that she’s ‘wrong’ when she thinks about sex, because she doesn’t meet the ‘sexually liberated’ style that is the only way portrayed in this book.
This review first appeared at Adventures of a Subversive Reader
To be honest, I didn’t like this book. I’ve read a lot of reviews on it which rave about how great it is to see female sexuality and teenaged sexuality treated so well, and it is a very sexually liberated book. However, throughout the whole book it felt like the characters were two dimensional, defined by only a few things – one of which was always their virginity. Zoe is boy-mad, scattered and a virgin! Mala is boy-crazy, has over protective immigrant parents and is a virgin! Abby has overly christian parents, a difficult brother and is a virgin! Bree is beautiful and cool and is a virgin!
The idea that there was something essentially wrong with girls who hadn’t had a sexual experience by the time they finished high school, also annoyed me. While it’s a convenient set up for the book, there’s something really wrong with the idea that a girl must make the choice to have a sexual experience during her high school years, or she might get drunk and loose on schoolies and ‘do’ someone she regrets. Virginity is seen as an inconvenience or a burden, something which has to be ‘got rid of’ so that you can enter womenhood. And these (apparently) very smart girls, known at the Geek Girls, all automatically buy into that, without one of them saying – oh wait a minute, I can make my own choices about my body without anyone dictating to me what I need to do to become a woman!
Then there’s the slightly unbelievable part where not one of the girls has any regrets about becoming sexually active, even when it goes a bit pear shaped or they don’t have any kind of romantic feelings for the other person involved. I realise that this is the truth for some people, but I find it a little hard to believe that not one of them had any regrets at all.
There’s also the very convenient plot point, where the girls promise each other that they will keep any of their sexual exploits secret. Of course, by doing this they remove a vital support network (good thing none of them had any regrets then, since they had no one to turn to if they wanted to talk about it) and set up a painfully obvious plot twist.
Being sexually liberated doesn’t mean that girls have to lose their virginity early. It doesn’t mean that there’s something wrong with those who choose to wait until they’re older or something wrong with those who choose to find a partner that they have a connection with or even (gasp!) love. By having all four of the girls in this book participating in sexual activities without hesitation or regret, it makes it look like this is the only acceptable way to behave – that girls should be so sexually liberated that they’re not allowed to have feelings that a) sex at that age may not be for them b) sex with people they don’t love may not be for them or c) sex might actually have consequences. I’d hate to think a teenaged girl would come to this book and think that she’s ‘wrong’ when she thinks about sex, because she doesn’t meet the ‘sexually liberated’ style that is the only way portrayed in this book.
This review first appeared at Adventures of a Subversive Reader
August 12, 2012
Originally posted here: http://bibliotekit.blogspot.co.uk/201...
Losing It centres on a pact made between four friends during Year Twelve, to lose their virginity before schoolies week, in the hope of doing it with someone they actually like (and, you know, getting rid of that pesky virginity thing). The book is split into four main sections, each focusing on one of the girls: Zoe, Abby, Mala and Bree. The girls have pretty varied backgrounds - Zoe lives with her mum, who is pretty easygoing and trusts Zoe to behave herself, more or less; model student Abby lives with her devoutly Christian parents and is dreading the return of her disruptive older brother Zeke; Mala is coddled by her parents and longs for some freedom; and Bree is both super confident and verging on full-blown popularity, and being vague and evasive with her friends. What links the four of them is their scholarship status at their school, and their collective existence as the GeeGees (Geek Girls).
Each section focuses on one of the girls' attempts to have sex, but in and around this are their broader issues with their families, friends, and themselves. Although the big mystery at the beginning is who will lose their virginity by the time the 'challenge' is up, and to whom, in actual fact this was only a small part of the story in the end, interwoven with the girls' struggles to define themselves in relation to everyone around them.
I particularly enjoyed Mala's section, which might also contain one of the funniest scenes I've read in a book for a while. Abby and Mala's stories in particular felt like they could have been books in themselves, and when each of them finished I was dying to know more about what happened next!
I enjoyed the fact that Losing It felt completely realistic throughout. The story starts off with the girls secretly drinking vodka in one of their bedrooms, which immediately struck me as being real rather than overly glossy or sensationalist. They talk about sex like you might expect a group of teenage girls to talk about sex. I don't think you could class Losing It as a romance, although there are some minor elements of that here and there, but I felt like this captured an essence of teenager-dom that I find unrealistic in some of the more kissing-in-the-moonlight-true-love-forever YA out there. (I might just be old and cynical. You never know.)
I thoroughly enjoyed Losing It - a great contemporary read and a great continuation of Australian young adult lit that I have been dipping into. My only gripe is that I wanted more from all the girls' stories, which isn't a complaint so much as wishful thinking, perhaps... :)
Overall rating: 8/10
Losing It centres on a pact made between four friends during Year Twelve, to lose their virginity before schoolies week, in the hope of doing it with someone they actually like (and, you know, getting rid of that pesky virginity thing). The book is split into four main sections, each focusing on one of the girls: Zoe, Abby, Mala and Bree. The girls have pretty varied backgrounds - Zoe lives with her mum, who is pretty easygoing and trusts Zoe to behave herself, more or less; model student Abby lives with her devoutly Christian parents and is dreading the return of her disruptive older brother Zeke; Mala is coddled by her parents and longs for some freedom; and Bree is both super confident and verging on full-blown popularity, and being vague and evasive with her friends. What links the four of them is their scholarship status at their school, and their collective existence as the GeeGees (Geek Girls).
Each section focuses on one of the girls' attempts to have sex, but in and around this are their broader issues with their families, friends, and themselves. Although the big mystery at the beginning is who will lose their virginity by the time the 'challenge' is up, and to whom, in actual fact this was only a small part of the story in the end, interwoven with the girls' struggles to define themselves in relation to everyone around them.
I particularly enjoyed Mala's section, which might also contain one of the funniest scenes I've read in a book for a while. Abby and Mala's stories in particular felt like they could have been books in themselves, and when each of them finished I was dying to know more about what happened next!
I enjoyed the fact that Losing It felt completely realistic throughout. The story starts off with the girls secretly drinking vodka in one of their bedrooms, which immediately struck me as being real rather than overly glossy or sensationalist. They talk about sex like you might expect a group of teenage girls to talk about sex. I don't think you could class Losing It as a romance, although there are some minor elements of that here and there, but I felt like this captured an essence of teenager-dom that I find unrealistic in some of the more kissing-in-the-moonlight-true-love-forever YA out there. (I might just be old and cynical. You never know.)
I thoroughly enjoyed Losing It - a great contemporary read and a great continuation of Australian young adult lit that I have been dipping into. My only gripe is that I wanted more from all the girls' stories, which isn't a complaint so much as wishful thinking, perhaps... :)
Overall rating: 8/10
April 20, 2012
Originally posted at Read Me Bookmark Me Love Me
In this story about getting an inconvenience out of the way and finally entering womanhood, four young girls realise that sex isn't all it's cracked up to be. But then again, how often is it when it's not with someone you're attracted to and only lasts ten seconds...? Thinking they'd rather be in control of their devirginisation without the ugly side effects of alcohol, Zoe, Abby, Mala and Bree create the Great Virginity Challenge in hopes of losing their V-cards by the end of the year. They vow not to tell each other about their progress until the Challenge ends, so how will they fare with the slim pickings being offered?
Losing It is told in five parts, the first being a short introduction to the Challenge, and the others all following the individual journeys of the four girls, giving us four unique stories in the one book! I thought this format was a brilliant choice and suited the novel extremely well, as the differences between them became startlingly obvious and were laid out bare for all to see! For such close friends (Group Nickname: the GeeGees), they really couldn't have been more different! Losing It is filled with short flashbacks and with each perspective, we see new takes on some of the same situations. Not only do we get to see the formation of their group many years ago, but also the obstacles they met along the way... This review is very difficult to write because I don't want to spoil anything. Even though it's a contemporary about teen sex, there's a good amount of mystery in it! What are the girls really like deep down? Who do they have sex with and how does it happen? It's highly enjoyable watching the story unfold! After a short while…you'll notice something fairly INTERESTING and well, you'll be rushing to the end from there. I know, I'm vague…… *grins*
I thought Losing It was a quick and light read that brought a sense of realism to the plate without being too serious. There are certainly some hilarious coincidences in the story that ratchet up the entertainment factor but essentially, we have four Australian teenagers with the common idea of "getting it over and done with". Some of these stories are sweet, some are sad and others are just plain awkward - "shut your eyes and pretend people can't see you if you can't see them" awkward - but all in all, I found the journey and the four main characters highly likeable! Lawrinson has done a great job tackling this sticky issue (excuse the pun...) so definitely give it a try if you get the chance!
In this story about getting an inconvenience out of the way and finally entering womanhood, four young girls realise that sex isn't all it's cracked up to be. But then again, how often is it when it's not with someone you're attracted to and only lasts ten seconds...? Thinking they'd rather be in control of their devirginisation without the ugly side effects of alcohol, Zoe, Abby, Mala and Bree create the Great Virginity Challenge in hopes of losing their V-cards by the end of the year. They vow not to tell each other about their progress until the Challenge ends, so how will they fare with the slim pickings being offered?
Losing It is told in five parts, the first being a short introduction to the Challenge, and the others all following the individual journeys of the four girls, giving us four unique stories in the one book! I thought this format was a brilliant choice and suited the novel extremely well, as the differences between them became startlingly obvious and were laid out bare for all to see! For such close friends (Group Nickname: the GeeGees), they really couldn't have been more different! Losing It is filled with short flashbacks and with each perspective, we see new takes on some of the same situations. Not only do we get to see the formation of their group many years ago, but also the obstacles they met along the way... This review is very difficult to write because I don't want to spoil anything. Even though it's a contemporary about teen sex, there's a good amount of mystery in it! What are the girls really like deep down? Who do they have sex with and how does it happen? It's highly enjoyable watching the story unfold! After a short while…you'll notice something fairly INTERESTING and well, you'll be rushing to the end from there. I know, I'm vague…… *grins*
I thought Losing It was a quick and light read that brought a sense of realism to the plate without being too serious. There are certainly some hilarious coincidences in the story that ratchet up the entertainment factor but essentially, we have four Australian teenagers with the common idea of "getting it over and done with". Some of these stories are sweet, some are sad and others are just plain awkward - "shut your eyes and pretend people can't see you if you can't see them" awkward - but all in all, I found the journey and the four main characters highly likeable! Lawrinson has done a great job tackling this sticky issue (excuse the pun...) so definitely give it a try if you get the chance!
August 21, 2013
There is no illusion as to what this book is going to be about. It's on the cover (heart shaped sperm) and in the title and on the blurb.
This book is about sex. That may put a lot of people off, mainly those selecting for school libraries. I must admit that I wasn't convinced I would like this book, I feared that a story of four teenage girls embarking on The Great Virginity Challenge might be too much for me to take. Too tacky or too confronting, but it wasn't what I expected at all.
Don't get me wrong, this book has sex, masturbation, drinking, swearing, lying to parents...all of those confronting elements, but it's actually a thoughtful and funny look into the lives of four very different girls.
The idea was simple, none of the girls wanted to lose their virginity in some drunken fumbling during Schoolies week, so they would all try to lose it at some point during their last year of high school. There is to be absolute secrecy, they are not to discuss their progress, and the results are to be written up in a diary style confession...and there we have the basis of this book. The book is told in 6 parts. the introduction, then Zoe's story, Abby's story, Mala's story, Bree's story and then the ending where they all reveal whether or not they did indeed lose their virginity. Each girl is different, Zoe lives with her Mum and has a reasonable amount of freedom, Abby's family is very religious, Mala's family are super protective and Bree is super smart, athletic and gorgeous. While the girls have been friends for 6 years, it's not until they take part in this challenge that they really get to know themselves and each other.
The book is funny, and at times makes you cringe, but the characters are strong and intelligent and each girl comes away from the experiences with a clarity about what they want, and what they don't want for themselves. I won't tell you anything about what happens to each of the characters, but be assured that nothing nasty happens to them (aside from the occasional heartbreak). There is also a very comical link between all of the stories that we as the readers are made aware of, but the characters know nothing about!
So it's a book about sex, and the way on which the girls have chosen to tackle the issue of their virginity may not sit well with some adult readers, but I suggest that you read the book before making any judgement.
This book is about sex. That may put a lot of people off, mainly those selecting for school libraries. I must admit that I wasn't convinced I would like this book, I feared that a story of four teenage girls embarking on The Great Virginity Challenge might be too much for me to take. Too tacky or too confronting, but it wasn't what I expected at all.
Don't get me wrong, this book has sex, masturbation, drinking, swearing, lying to parents...all of those confronting elements, but it's actually a thoughtful and funny look into the lives of four very different girls.
The idea was simple, none of the girls wanted to lose their virginity in some drunken fumbling during Schoolies week, so they would all try to lose it at some point during their last year of high school. There is to be absolute secrecy, they are not to discuss their progress, and the results are to be written up in a diary style confession...and there we have the basis of this book. The book is told in 6 parts. the introduction, then Zoe's story, Abby's story, Mala's story, Bree's story and then the ending where they all reveal whether or not they did indeed lose their virginity. Each girl is different, Zoe lives with her Mum and has a reasonable amount of freedom, Abby's family is very religious, Mala's family are super protective and Bree is super smart, athletic and gorgeous. While the girls have been friends for 6 years, it's not until they take part in this challenge that they really get to know themselves and each other.
The book is funny, and at times makes you cringe, but the characters are strong and intelligent and each girl comes away from the experiences with a clarity about what they want, and what they don't want for themselves. I won't tell you anything about what happens to each of the characters, but be assured that nothing nasty happens to them (aside from the occasional heartbreak). There is also a very comical link between all of the stories that we as the readers are made aware of, but the characters know nothing about!
So it's a book about sex, and the way on which the girls have chosen to tackle the issue of their virginity may not sit well with some adult readers, but I suggest that you read the book before making any judgement.
September 28, 2017
Titel: Viermal große Liebe mit Sahne
Autor: JUlia Lawrinson
Erscheinungstermin: 13.06.2017
Seitenanzahl: 352 Seiten
Verlag:cbj
Preis:9,99
Inhalt
Kurz vor dem Beginn der 12.Klasse starten die vier beste Freundinnen Zoe,Abby,Mala und Bree ein Liebesexperiment.Es geht darum ihre Jungfräuchlichkeit vor der Abschlussfahrt zu verlieren.Darum dessen erzählt jedes einzelne Mädchen ihre persönliche Geschichte über Probleme,Jungs, Religion hinzu nach der eigenen Identität zu suchen
Meine Meinung
Cover:Das Cover finde ich wirklich sehr schön gestaltet, da es wie eine schöne,leichte und unterhaltsame Sommerlektüre aussieht.
Handlung:Die Hnadlung der Gesichte war sehr eintönig.Es ging nur darum seine Jungfräuchlichkeit bis zur Abschlussfahrt zu verlieren.
Schreibstil:Der Schreibstil der Autroin war leicht und flüssig, wodurch sich das buch sehr gut lesen lassen hat.Jedoch kam nicht wirklich Spannung war, wozu das fürchte, dass das Buch mich nicht richtig fesseln konnte.
Charaktere:Die Charaktere kommen sehr nett und freundlich rüber.Trotzdem konnte ich mich nicht richtig mit den Charakteren anfreuden, was daran legen kann das man über jede Person ca. 70 Seiten lang etwas erfährt und dann anschließend mit dem nächsten Charakter los ging.Jedoch konnte mich positiv überraschen Bree.Bree fan ich sehr sympathisch und sehr freundlich.Ihr liebevolle Art mochte ich, da ich gedacht habe das Bree das Mädchen ist, wo alle JUngs drauf abfahren.
Fazit
Große Liebe mit Sahne ist eine Liebesgeschichte für zwischendurch die aber mich nicht überzeugen konnte.die Geschichte ist sehr oberflächlig und nicht tiefgründig was dazu geführt hat das ich nicht richtig in die Geschichte kam.
Autor: JUlia Lawrinson
Erscheinungstermin: 13.06.2017
Seitenanzahl: 352 Seiten
Verlag:cbj
Preis:9,99
Inhalt
Kurz vor dem Beginn der 12.Klasse starten die vier beste Freundinnen Zoe,Abby,Mala und Bree ein Liebesexperiment.Es geht darum ihre Jungfräuchlichkeit vor der Abschlussfahrt zu verlieren.Darum dessen erzählt jedes einzelne Mädchen ihre persönliche Geschichte über Probleme,Jungs, Religion hinzu nach der eigenen Identität zu suchen
Meine Meinung
Cover:Das Cover finde ich wirklich sehr schön gestaltet, da es wie eine schöne,leichte und unterhaltsame Sommerlektüre aussieht.
Handlung:Die Hnadlung der Gesichte war sehr eintönig.Es ging nur darum seine Jungfräuchlichkeit bis zur Abschlussfahrt zu verlieren.
Schreibstil:Der Schreibstil der Autroin war leicht und flüssig, wodurch sich das buch sehr gut lesen lassen hat.Jedoch kam nicht wirklich Spannung war, wozu das fürchte, dass das Buch mich nicht richtig fesseln konnte.
Charaktere:Die Charaktere kommen sehr nett und freundlich rüber.Trotzdem konnte ich mich nicht richtig mit den Charakteren anfreuden, was daran legen kann das man über jede Person ca. 70 Seiten lang etwas erfährt und dann anschließend mit dem nächsten Charakter los ging.Jedoch konnte mich positiv überraschen Bree.Bree fan ich sehr sympathisch und sehr freundlich.Ihr liebevolle Art mochte ich, da ich gedacht habe das Bree das Mädchen ist, wo alle JUngs drauf abfahren.
Fazit
Große Liebe mit Sahne ist eine Liebesgeschichte für zwischendurch die aber mich nicht überzeugen konnte.die Geschichte ist sehr oberflächlig und nicht tiefgründig was dazu geführt hat das ich nicht richtig in die Geschichte kam.
February 1, 2016
I can't remember when I finished or started this book, but I read it in the holidays last year when I saw it and found it funny, so I decided to read it to make fun of girls' virginity *smirks*
***
*exhales* I don't know. When I borrowed the book I didn't clearly see the cover properly or what it suggested or even meant. And then when I got home and my sister just gave me a weird look when she saw the cover of the book, let's just say that I'm lucky that she didn't know the full concept of having no virginity vs losing it. (I laughed when she asked why all the love hearts had tails and were all going towards the big love heart- I think I cried from how much I laughed that time)
These four teenage friends all plan to lose their virginity before they graduate which is weird but, I guess that's what the author was implying about Australian girls going through their HSC. The first thing for them to do is trying to lose their virginity before they finish school.
The turn of events is hilarious. The book is set out in all four of the girls' perspectives on how they each and individually lost their or tried to lose their virginity. With all of these things going on, I don't think there wasn't a time during reading each perspective that I hadn't even laughed. It just made things worse and for others maybe even better.
The ending of the story was bittersweet. Actually, now that I think about it, it was kinda sweet more than bitter. Each girl got what they wanted (for others sort of) but it ended well. It wasn't one of those endings where their virginity was like just something that was thrown out their to any guy that would do the deed with them. The book was ok, interesting and humorous.
***
I think that was the first book that I've read that had civilised explicit content in it... I guess there is always a first:)
***
*exhales* I don't know. When I borrowed the book I didn't clearly see the cover properly or what it suggested or even meant. And then when I got home and my sister just gave me a weird look when she saw the cover of the book, let's just say that I'm lucky that she didn't know the full concept of having no virginity vs losing it. (I laughed when she asked why all the love hearts had tails and were all going towards the big love heart- I think I cried from how much I laughed that time)
These four teenage friends all plan to lose their virginity before they graduate which is weird but, I guess that's what the author was implying about Australian girls going through their HSC. The first thing for them to do is trying to lose their virginity before they finish school.
The turn of events is hilarious. The book is set out in all four of the girls' perspectives on how they each and individually lost their or tried to lose their virginity. With all of these things going on, I don't think there wasn't a time during reading each perspective that I hadn't even laughed. It just made things worse and for others maybe even better.
The ending of the story was bittersweet. Actually, now that I think about it, it was kinda sweet more than bitter. Each girl got what they wanted (for others sort of) but it ended well. It wasn't one of those endings where their virginity was like just something that was thrown out their to any guy that would do the deed with them. The book was ok, interesting and humorous.
***
I think that was the first book that I've read that had civilised explicit content in it... I guess there is always a first:)
August 25, 2012
Picked this book up on a whim (as a do with most books)and I read the first introductory chapter and was like "Whut? REALLY?" These group of 4 friends make up a challenge to lose their virginity before Schoolies week (which I still don't entirely know what it is) and they can't tell each other if they've succeeded or failed until the week before schoolies.
I've forgotten their names already. Wait. Let me access my memory from last night.
Bree - gorgeous girl who is the object of lust of every dude in school
Mala - never made clear where exactly she's from, but the main thing that differentiates her is her constant complaining of how strict her parents are because they are immigrants. Way to perpetuate every stereotype of immigrants being study-loving, medicine-pushing knobs who refuse to give their daughters any freedom
Zoe and the other girl have completely slipped my mind, but you know they were in the realm of vapid high school girls shrieking over the school's star jock.
This review sounds negative. But the above criticisms are in jest. The writing was readable enough to finish the entire book, for which I give it props. I lose interest in most books. The plot is quite preditable, halfway through the book I already had the ending pegged, thought I didn't see
Overall, just average. Read if you want. But as the cover suggests, this book is all about SEX SEX SEX SEX.
I've forgotten their names already. Wait. Let me access my memory from last night.
Bree - gorgeous girl who is the object of lust of every dude in school
Mala - never made clear where exactly she's from, but the main thing that differentiates her is her constant complaining of how strict her parents are because they are immigrants. Way to perpetuate every stereotype of immigrants being study-loving, medicine-pushing knobs who refuse to give their daughters any freedom
Zoe and the other girl have completely slipped my mind, but you know they were in the realm of vapid high school girls shrieking over the school's star jock.
This review sounds negative. But the above criticisms are in jest. The writing was readable enough to finish the entire book, for which I give it props. I lose interest in most books. The plot is quite preditable, halfway through the book I already had the ending pegged, thought I didn't see
Overall, just average. Read if you want. But as the cover suggests, this book is all about SEX SEX SEX SEX.
July 2, 2012
What Malcolm Burgess's Doing It does for a young male readership, Julia Lawrinson does for young women in the field of adolescent sexual experiment, while readers of both sexes will be kept both informed and entertained. Early sexual experiences are usually not funny at the time but both writers use humour to keep things in perspective. Lawrinson depicts four teenaged girls who make a pact to lose their virginity before the year 12 formal, keep their activities secret and compare notes in schoolies week at the end of the year. As they agree,this somewhat radical step, especially for Mala whose parents won't let her out of the house for anything other than community weddings and celebrations would be better than losing it while drunk after the formal or out of it during schoolies.
Lawrinson balances the serious with the humorous using the four voices of the girls and only going over the top once or twice, especially with a hilarious account of an assignation straight from Romeo & Juliet. In those schools fortunate enough to have their librarian buy this book, students may well find themselves better informed about sexual relationships while they enjoy the read. If you are such a librarian, buy extra copies as this book is going to be stolen. My only regret is that it carries the same title as Lizzie Wilcock's excellent Losing It.
Lawrinson balances the serious with the humorous using the four voices of the girls and only going over the top once or twice, especially with a hilarious account of an assignation straight from Romeo & Juliet. In those schools fortunate enough to have their librarian buy this book, students may well find themselves better informed about sexual relationships while they enjoy the read. If you are such a librarian, buy extra copies as this book is going to be stolen. My only regret is that it carries the same title as Lizzie Wilcock's excellent Losing It.
December 4, 2012
This has got to be at about number three on my "dirtiest books I have ever read" list. A friend of mine had read it and said that although it was a bit innapropriate, it was a really good book. So I read it and was surprised. By reading the back cover I thought "this is going to be interesting" and wasnt't really sure what to expect. The shocking twists and turns kept me interested and I read it in a couple of hours. Whilst reading it I kept thinking "I know how this is going to end", but I never guessed what exactly happened.
Although some parts in the book were EXTREMELY weird, it was a fantasttic read. It would be one of those books I could read again. Just one last thing: KIDS, DON'T LET YOUR PARENTS KNOW YOU ARE READING IT!
FOr more book recommendations, please head to http://reads4teens.edublogs.org
Although some parts in the book were EXTREMELY weird, it was a fantasttic read. It would be one of those books I could read again. Just one last thing: KIDS, DON'T LET YOUR PARENTS KNOW YOU ARE READING IT!
FOr more book recommendations, please head to http://reads4teens.edublogs.org
October 25, 2013
I have two words for this book. HOLY. SHIT.
I don't think a book has ever amused me this much. I thought it was brilliantly written for the plot and it takes some real talent to write so may fucked up situations in only a certain amount of pages.
If you are not into teen trash then i don't recommend this book, because it just won't tickle your fancy at all ! I found it really interesting how a person who i presume has had sex before, can write about it as if they haven't, and i can just imagine trying to write something like that myself and knowing that i can do better than the words i'm writing.
While for the most part all teen trash is basically the same, i thought this one was reall interesting and i just couldn't wait to finish it. I was telling my friends about it for weeks and i still love it.
I don't think a book has ever amused me this much. I thought it was brilliantly written for the plot and it takes some real talent to write so may fucked up situations in only a certain amount of pages.
If you are not into teen trash then i don't recommend this book, because it just won't tickle your fancy at all ! I found it really interesting how a person who i presume has had sex before, can write about it as if they haven't, and i can just imagine trying to write something like that myself and knowing that i can do better than the words i'm writing.
While for the most part all teen trash is basically the same, i thought this one was reall interesting and i just couldn't wait to finish it. I was telling my friends about it for weeks and i still love it.
July 31, 2012
Really liked it. Liked that it was about girls wanting to lose their virginity. Liked that the girls are strong and make their own decisions about what they will and won't do. Liked that the characters were real and interesting. didn't like the ending so much. LOVE Julia Lawrinson.
April 3, 2012
I was afraid reading this would be too much like my own Year 12 experiences. That it would shame me by appearing in front of me in black and white print. Fortunately, Julia Lawrinson includes a plot-warp that left me off the hook. Enjoyable, a quick read, but just a little peculiar. Refreshingly, it wasn't the whole, "you can lose it when you're in love with that one person" message like I thought it might turn out to be.
April 6, 2012
I love that Lawrinson is tackling a contemporary setting (again?).
The four girls have distinct voices, divergent problems but there is a clear, connecting thread weaving its way through the separate narratives, and Lawrinson navigates the delicate topic with humour and insight.
Really enjoyed this very funny, but very warm-hearted novel.
The four girls have distinct voices, divergent problems but there is a clear, connecting thread weaving its way through the separate narratives, and Lawrinson navigates the delicate topic with humour and insight.
Really enjoyed this very funny, but very warm-hearted novel.
May 3, 2012
This book is so, so much better than its cover. It's also bound to end up on more than a few Banned Books lists for the on-screen sex, which has been bleached out of a lot of other YA books. The concept is rather blah, but the book rises above it. Check it out - it's worth it, for genuinely likable characters, authentic and complicated teenage female sexuality, and a warmth at its heart.
August 6, 2012
This is why I generally avoid contemporary young adult. This book makes me think the author is stuck in the 1970s or when it was popular to write about losing virginity. I thought modern literature for teens had evolved past Judy Blume. Not my cup of tea, sorry. I like my books a little more progressive.
January 28, 2013
A bit ho hum chick flick - so about that expression, but really. The focus is a group of year 12 girls who set themselves the goal of losing their virginity before schoolies. The redeeming feature was that at least one of the girls sees the folly in this and shows a bit more depth in her personality.
January 27, 2015
This book was so Aussie I had to laugh! It was a easy read, really funny, it had realistic likable characters and a good ending.
January 3, 2013
Really enjoyed this book, even the cringe-worthy moments! Well-written with good characters. Not likely to recommend it to the under-16s though...
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