Virgins

Virgins #1

by Caryl Rivers

For the seniors at Immaculate Heart High, hormones triumphed over the State of Grace - and everyone's vocation was to DO IT. The Map of Forbidden Sexual Delights extended its boundaries nightly in the back seats of tail-finned cars. And nothing - not even the Anti-Smut League - could keep the boys and the girls from a rowdy, raunchy romp through those heart-stopping, heart-wrenching days of growing up!

Genres: Fiction, Young Adult, Coming Of Age, Humor, Romance, Chick Lit, Contemporary

256 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 1, 1984

About the author

Caryl Rivers has been called “one of the brightest voices in contemporary fiction.” Her novel VIRGINS was an international critical success, published in the US, UK, Sweden, Germany and Japan. It was on many best seller lists and in paperback (Pocket Books) sold more than a million copies. Her novels deal with American women trying to find a foothold in a rapidly changing world.

She is a nationally known author, journalist, media critic and professor of Journalism at Boston University. In 2007 She was awarded the Helen Thomas Lifetime Achievement Award from the Society of Professional Journalists for distinguished journalism. She is the author of four novels and four works of non-fiction, all critically acclaimed. Her books have been selections of the Book of the Month Club, Literary Guild, Doubleday Book Club and Troll Book club. With her late husband, Boston Globe columnist Alan Lupo, she penned a funny account of modern parenting, “For Better, For Worse.”

“Reading this book is like multiplying Woody Allen by two. Marriage isn’t supposed to be this funny.”
—The Philadelphia Inquirer, on “For Better, For Worse”

Her articles have appeared in the New York Times magazine, Daily Beast, Huffington post, Salon, The Nation, Saturday Review, Ms., Mother Jones, Dissent, McCalls, Glamour, Redbook, Rolling Stone, Ladies Home Journal and many others. She writes frequent commentary for the Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Boston Globe, Chicago Tribune and Womensenews. Of Her book “Selling Anxiety: How the News Media Scare Women” Gloria Steinem says it “will save the sanity of media watchers enraged or bewildered by the distance between image and reality.”

She has co-authored four books with Dr. Rosalind Barnett, senior scientist at the Women’s Studies Research Center at Brandeis—the latest (2011) being “The Truth About Girls and Boys: Confronting Toxic Stereotypes About Our Children.” Articles based on the book won a Casey medal for distinguished journalism about children and families and a special citation from the National Education Writers association. The Editorial Board of the Boston Globe voted their book “Same Difference” one of the best books of the year in 2004. The New York Times called their book “She Works, He Works” a bold new framing of the story of the American family, and praised its lucid prose. The Sloan Foundation cited their book “Lifeprints” as a “classic book” from the work-family canon that has made “a significant contribution and stood the test of time.”

Caryl Rivers also wrote THE CHEATS, an ABC afterschool special about the lives of high school seniors embroiled in a cheating scandal. It won the AFTRA American scene award for its treatment of minority characters. She also wrote A MATTER OF PRINCIPAL, syndicated by Hearst television, a drama about an urban school principal starring Loretta Swit. The drama won the prestigious GABRIEL award in l990 as the best locally produced television program in the U.S. Ms. Rivers was creative consultant for JENNY’S SONG, the first made for television drama to be syndicated nationally by Westinghouse television, starring Ben Vereen and Jessica Walter.

Reviews

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

Raunchy and funny novel about Catholic high school students in the 1950s. It's set in a DC suburb, not the one in which I grew up, but it's still funny how Proustian the simple words "Peoples drug store" can be. It reminded me a little of something Florence King might have written had she grown up Catholic. Will definitely read the sequel, which apparently takes the same characters into adulthood.

[Kelly]

I don't find myself laughing out loud at many books, but this one had me cackling that way more than once. Rivers's novel is about a girl named Peggy -- this is set in the 50s -- during her senior year of high school as she navigates what she'll be doing after graduation, her desire to have sex with her best friend/neighbor Sean, her dreams with best friend Connie, and her Catholic schooling and upbringing. There's a scene in here where Sean's father, who is a devout priest, invites an organization over that believes in modest clothing and they perform an exorcism in a department store's junior section because the clothing is So Scandalous and I was roaring. Roaring.

It's surprising how well this one holds up, even 35 years after its publication. It'd be a YA novel now, I think, but published as adult, this one has tremendous crossover appeal.

This was a book I randomly bought at a used bookstore for a coworker, who loved it so much she sent it back to me to read. I'm not sad about it. My instincts just KNEW this was a good one.

[Giselle · Rating 3 out of 5]

An Electronic Advanced Reader Copy was provided by the publisher for review. Quotes have been pulled from an ARC and may be subject to change.

The book includes white supremacists, mild racial slurs, and casual sexual acts.

Peggy walks the fine line of being a good Catholic school girl and a young woman who wants to become independent and live her own life, instead of the one that is taught by the strict Catholic church. It makes it that much harder on Peggy when her girl best friend Con is a confident flirt with boys, and her childhood best friend Sean starts to become more than just her friend. When Sean promises to go into the priesthood, what happens to Peggy?

I would have loved to have this one as a teenager, and writing an essay about it would have been indeed wonderful since I am Catholic and went to a Catholic school. Boy has society changed! Set in the 1950s, the book has the old school way of thinking where the woman stays at home and makes everything comfortable for the husband (*vomits*). Virgins also brought a lot of other themes into being, like religion being such a huge part of anyone's life, and its restrictions. How does one struggle with their religion's beliefs and live a life where they have to do everything the Bible says? There's a certain amount of close-minded thinking that some Catholics in this book think about and I can't help but get angry at it. For example, everyone who isn't Catholic will go straight to hell. People will believe what they want to believe. I always had a problem with narrow-minded people, and if I ever came across a person like Mr. McCaffrey in person, a healthy debate will ensue. The point of my rant: forcing religion upon someone is morally wrong.

The characters in this book are fully developed and their personalties emerge straight off the page. Peggy, as any young teenage girl is suddenly induated with teenage hormones, and being Catholic makes it that much harder for to stay within the Church's teachings. She ends up questioning a lot about her sexuality, and her thoughts are understandable and highly relatable for any teenage girl. Sean is a character who is wise beyond his years. His quotes were beautiful and I found myself agreeing with him whole heartedly. His faith in God and what He claims to do, is just so beautifully written. I found his character the easiest to like and fall in love with. These characters get into such crazy acts and say the funniest things that I couldn't help but quote some of them. I find them quite hilarious, even being Catholic myself. Mr. McCaffrey, Sean's close-minded father is rather unlikeable and I felt myself wanting to slap him at some points. I have society to thank that times have changed, and women are no longer just housewives who cater to the whim of every male that we encounter. I do pity the people who think like this character and hope for the best that they can respect other people's religions and beliefs.

In this humourous parody on the Catholic Church, this coming-of-age story will get your panties in a twist, and make you laugh and cry. Highly recommended for people who want a good laugh and can poke fun at religion. Not recommended for people who are wishing for a plot, because I don't believe there is one except the lesson that our main character learns.

[Leslie]

Virgins ("The Outrageous Bestseller About Well-Bred Ladies On The Brink of Going All The Way") was fun while it lasted (171 pages!), but still I've abandoned the ghost.

I purchased this book as a Savers goof, drawn in by the cover art (three identical bottle-tanned leg sets in matching anklets and loafers, hands clasped, knees shut tight) and promotional blurbs (see above and also "Across the Country, Critics LOVE 'Virgins'!"). I didn't know what to expect. When I began reading, I found myself in the squeaky clean zone: a 1950s Catholic high school. High jinks ensue . . . CATHOLIC high jinks. Example: A Catholic Crusader for Modesty (Rivers' phrasing, not mine) exorcises a frock deemed "unmarylike." He casts it right on the teen miss linoleum. Raised Catholic myself, I found the churchy bits captivating. In the end, I grew bored with the book's structure--a sequence of gags (with a few sentimental scenes tossed in). This girl can only take so much pining for simpler times (and so many cast-iron maidenheads!).

Summed up in a sentence: Virgins is a chaster Porky's for "girls."

[*The Angry Reader* · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantabulous!

This was like Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood. Except Catholic. And better. This is a book for women - to remind us of where we came from and where we're going. And how we got here.

A memoir of a senior year at a Catholic high school in a small town in the 1950s. Hysterically funny. Sad. Moving. Meaningful. Absolutely perfect. It felt like reading those golden summer nights when you drove with all the windows down just to be going somewhere. Just to be moving.

I read it in one sitting. Couldn't put it down. I loved every single moment of this book. I'm going straight into the next one.

[Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Still one of my very favourite 'comfort' books. I can blow through this one in a day or two and it's like visiting old friends. I seem to relate well to these characters--better than to most. Many folks who have read this on my say-so didn't think it was anything special, but I guess that's okay. For me, it's warm hearted, laugh out loud funny and well worth the few hours to escape. I loved the bittersweet ending to this book. It was just so damned... well. I love it. :)

[Kaitlyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book in the basement of my house in 1995 and read it in secret, because I was pretty sure it was my mom's book and probably a no-no topic. I laughed hysterically and then cried hysterically and pretty much loved this book, even though I'm not Catholic and therefore all the god-drama and school references weren't familiar. If you can find it in print, read it.

[Alan Cook · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay, I decided to read this book because it was on sale at Amazon Kindle and I vaguely remembered reading and enjoying a book by Caryl Rivers in the past and I thought it would be a fast and funny and sexy read through which I could relive my life in the fifties (when I was the same age as the characters in the book) the way I wished it had been instead of the way it actually was. The book fulfilled all those requirements. And more. It has a lot of depth to it. Peggy, the narrator, is a senior at a Catholic high school, but she doesn't like to be told what to do. Now all religions attempt to tell you what to do--and not do. And Peggy's boyfriend attends the boys' Catholic School next door and is destined to become a priest, but he also has issues about being told what to do, especially by his father who is drowning in religion. Out of these problems come many of the highlights of the book. Readers of all ages will recognize aspects of their own lives in its pages, and that is where much of its charm comes from.

[Mike Little · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not Catholic but I grew up in a neighborhood that was heavily Catholic. That was never a problem, but I did find it interesting when I got into high school. The Catholic school went only to the 8th grade and then those kids enrolled at the public school in our small town. There were rumors that the Catholic girls were wild around boys because they'd been repressed by the nuns. That was hopeful but I didn't see any signs of it. In fact, I didn't see a great deal of difference at all between Catholics and non-Catholics.
A good friend, who is still my friend decades later went off to seminary but dropped out after a couple of years when he "got laid". I dated a Catholic girl for years and she showed no signs of repression but we ended it when she began to pressure me to marry NOW and start a BIG family right away.
Anyway, I decided to read this book because of my early life. I enjoyed it for the most part and I even laughed aloud at times. It's the adventures and misadventures of two high school girls, both brilliant and a bit misbehaved, and a boy neighbor who is also a love interest for one of the girls. The story is sprinkled with some eccentric adults along with a few stereotypical adults. I'd rate this as a very good coming-of-age novel.

[Victoria Anthes · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a funny, feel-good read. Maybe a bit juvenile, but really enjoyable nonetheless :)

[Olivia Meyers · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5
"Father Clement elevated the dress above his head, almost as if he were raising the Host at Mass, then he waved it wildly above his head and threw in on the floor with a flourish. 'Spawn of Satan!' he cried."
Mood.

[BurgendyA · Rating 5 out of 5]

This beautiful heartfelt story was a wonderful read. It is a great coming of age tale of Peggy Morrison. She is a young 17 year old gal in her senior year at an all girls Catholic High School. Peg is a girl who is looking for more in life. She is pretty liberated and opend minded especially in the time she is in. The setting of the story takes place in the 50’s era. Her best friend, Con, has decided that they need to do something big to make their legend immortal, and while their exploits are entertaining &

Peggy has been in-love with the boy next door. Sean, has been the love of her life since they were five years old, and her of him but he’s had a calling, and will be leaving for the seminary after High School. Sean comes from a strict Catholic upbringing. To make matters worse Sean's father is so overbearing to give his son to God. The relationship of Peg & Sean was tender, sweet with it's innocence blooming into their desires. This journeys of self-discovery are well covered with high school high pranks, the witty humor, and the unforgettable true displays of friendship and love. I sware after reading this book will leave you remembering your youth/teen time when you first wondered to go beyound your limits, your first love, and of your first time. It may sound silly to some people, but I don't care. This novel left me feeling like it was just a beautiful memior of my young Catholic school times.

This is the first book I've read from Caryl Rivers. She has done marvalous writing. I know it wont be the last one either. So I give this book 5 stars. It totally deserves 10 stars. I would recommend this book to anyone to read. Especially young girl or boys growing up Catholic. =)~

[Beth Dufraine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Peggy Ann Morrison is a charming Catholic schoolgirl and Sean McCaffrey, a priest-to-be, is her boyfriend, with what else but raging hormones. The story deals with sexual curiosity and uses amusing situations to explain how they satisfy their urges. Miss Rivers uses her sharp wit for comic right from the start with her appealing characters.

I read Virgins back in 1986. In fact, I’d just switched schools that year and this book helped my transition. A new friend introduced me to it, and through Virgins, I soon made many more friends. So, thank you Val, for trusting the new girl with your “guilty pleasure”. I quickly found out what she meant by that. The book became a guilty pleasure that I had to hide from my mother who referred to it as smut.
To me, the book expressed what many of us girls were feeling at that time in our lives. It seemed to be written from an “experienced view” on life as a Catholic girl. I especially had this point of view after listening to stories from another friend of mine that actually came from a Catholic school to our public school. It was almost as if the book took a chapter right from her life. So of course, I offered to lend her the book as well.
I think it exchanged another 7 hands before it made its way back to Val. LOL
The following year I bought the sequel, Girls Forever Brave and True. That one got circulated around as well and I didn’t get it back until close to graduation!

[Deanna · Rating 3 out of 5]

First things first ignore the description !! It paints this novel as being a story of teenagers trying to lose their virginity and it being wild and crazy and that's NOT the case. The characters are highly religious, the whole book is highly religious, and only one character is really trying to "lose it" so to speak.

That out of the way - this is what the book is really about. Our main character, Peggy is kind of stuck. On the one hand she has a insane best friend who has sex on the brain and on the other, her semi boyfriend whose going to become a priest because of his father. She feels like she should start dating other guys because she knows she has no future with him but she can't see anyone else but him. The book is religious but kind of in a mocking way. It shows how insane religion can be and how dangerous as well.

The characters were so lovable, really, and what I found even funnier was that this book from (I believe) the 80s wrote teenagers better than authors can today. More realistic and on point than most of the YA garbage I've written lately, honestly. My one main problem was the book was the amount of fluff and filler in it, but other than that I really liked it and I was surprised I hadn't heard about it/that it wasn't bigger. No movie about it or anything?? There really should be.

[Bex · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this little book. I read it when I was a teenager and even though it's set during the 1950s and in Catholic School--two things I have no reference for--I just love these characters.

I think Caryl Rivers really nails what it feels like to be a teenage girl that longs for a bigger-than-life life while also clinging to that bittersweet time when you know you're growing up but there are things you never want to see end--and sometimes there is a very real deadline, whether it's the end of the school year or the end of the summer.

I love these characters and I love Peg's nutty daydreams. I love Peg's boyfriend. I love Peg's best friend's fierce bravado!

I am so happy I reread this book. It really felt like revisiting old friends. I can't wait to get the sequel off ebay! Stupid out of print books!

[Joanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

The title and tagline made me take this book out of the library. It was a very enjoyable read of Catholic school girls and some of their favorite guys and adventures in the 1950s. It is filled with the longing of doing “it” and the guilt of what the Catholic church and school nuns are telling the young women about saving themselves, but there are also some funny high school pranks and rites of passage – inventing a fake saint, stealing a banner off a high school and placing it on the Baptist church, the sex talk in the school gym and getting drunk for the first time. It is basically a coming of age with a Catholic twist, but light and engaging. It’s friends and expectations and also touching on the changing role of women where marriage is not just the goal after high school.

[Stay Fetters · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Who's the whore of Babylon? Maybe It's Jane Russell!"
Growing up, the catholic school kids were wilder and crazier than the normal school kids. They had the best booze, crazier hookups and the most amazing parties.
Browsing my local thrift store and this caught my eye. It looked ridiculous and sounded ridiculous and it was a must have for my book collection. At the time I didn't know that it would turn out to be such an amazing read. From the ridiculousness of catholic school, the silly pranks and still trying to keep the virgin outlook going, this was a great read.
Who knew that this would be one of my favorites this year....

[Love_lost_black_rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think I also read this in middle school.. like maybe my when i was 12 or 13
My mom actualy bought this book for me @ a second hand store, she had read it when she was younger but I dont think she had remember all the things that were in it becuase im pretty sure she wouldnt have let me read it over all it was a great book.. and i can relate because i did go to a catholic school but it wasnt all girls

[Terri Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of those little books that you might overlook, but it should be treasured. It is charming and witty and silly and thoughtful. It is a coming of age story with a true glimpse of Catholic youth in the 1970's. It is not to be missed. Many funny scenes still remain in my memory, such as the 'Roadmap of Sin'. Good stuff. If you ever have a chance to read the adorable book don't pass it up.

[Celeste · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another all time favorite book. A great re-read.

[Anam Ali · Rating 5 out of 5]

Apr 2025. I read this when I was in high school. Twenty years later it is still as hilarious as it was back then.

[Carla · Rating 4 out of 5]

this book is absolutely hilarious. a coming of age novel that explores a good Catholic upbringing with tongue firmly in cheek.

[Audreezy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was so fucking hilarious

[Drennan Spitzer · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Virgins, Caryl Rivers depicts the coming-of-age of Peggy Morrison, a Catholic schoolgirl, in Maryland sometime in the late 1950s or early 1960s. Rivers creates a story that is both comic and poignant, as Peg, our first-person narrator, recounts the highlights of her senior year of high school. Peg and her friend Con engage in hijinks and pranks at their all-girls Catholic school, while Peg navigates a relationship with her neighbor and would-be boyfriend Sean. Sean, however, is headed for seminary and the priesthood right after high school graduation, which casts a pall over what is otherwise a touching and deeply-felt relationship between him and Peggy. At times, Rivers’s novel reads like a satire of the Catholic Church and particularly of fundamentalist splinter groups within the church; at times, it reads like a traditional coming-of-age story, one that focuses on the difficulties of negotiating a variety of inter-personal relationships as Peg and her friends approach graduation. Originally published in the 1980s when it made the New York Times bestseller list, Virgins has recently been reissued as an eBook.

Although it has been labeled a Young Adult work, Virgins reads much more like a fictionalized memoir. While I am not claiming that this is, in point of fact, memoir, the tone of the piece and the voice of the narrator give the impression that we have an adult narrator looking back over the events of her youth, recalling these events from a slightly sentimentalized perspective. This is in contrast to current trends in Young Adult fiction in which we tend to see an adolescent narrator who gives the impression of experiencing and often even narrating the events of the story in real time with a kind of clear immediacy, rather than from a more adult perspective looking back over things. Maybe Suzanne Collins’s The Hunger Games is a good, timely example of this kind of narration and narrative point of view. Rivers offers something that is, I think, more mature and literary in tone; thus, she has more to offer the adult reader than what is often found in contemporary Young Adult fiction.

Rivers creates a novel that shifts between being laugh-out-loud funny in her depictions of Catholicism gone awry and between the poignant realities of relationships, both friendships and romantic relationships, as perceived by 17 year olds. While the representations of Catholicism, particularly Catholic fundamentalism, seem far-fetched and over-the-top, these depictions are entertaining. In this way, Virgins works as satire, a genre that works to point out abuses and problems by blowing them out of proportion for comic effect: think a Saturday Night Live sketch with rebel priests crusading against immodesty by storming the juniors section of a local department store. The depictions, however, of the relationships that exist between Peggy, the main character, and her friend Con, the voice of liberation and women’s rights, and Peg’s neighbor, friend, and boyfriend Sean, read as particularly real and believable. It is this mix, I think, of comic and real that makes the novel a success.

Rivers is a journalist by profession. And her writing is marked by a kind of crispness and attention to detail that we might expect from a particularly fine journalist. The dialogue is particularly realistic, and the individuality of each character is conveyed through the way that each speaks. There is something particularly effortless about Rivers’s style. Not overly literary, River’s writing is so clear that one remains mostly unaware of the style. This transparency of style is the hallmark of particularly fine writing. Rivers is also a master of pacing. This is particularly evident in the comic sections of the novel. One might say that this work lacks a definite plot, that there is little overarching dramatic structure. And I certainly don’t intend that as a criticism. Each chapter reads like a short vignette, a picture into the life of Peggy and her friends. This seems to control the overall structure of the work and almost makes it feel like a set of short stories, rather than a novel, although there are certainly threads that connect each chapter. This structure—a set of loosely connected episodes rather than a single, overarching plot—also contributes to the sense that this is not a typical Young Adult work but rather something a bit closer to memoir, as though an older narrator is recounting significant moments in her own earlier life. This structure is both compelling and somehow a realistic recreation of the experience of memory and may be the single element that makes this novel work.

Additionally, Rivers’s writing of character is particularly effective. Peggy’s character is particularly believable, and she and Sean share a tender relationship. However, I find the character of Con (short for Constance) to be especially compelling and a bit sad. She is Peggy’s best friend, aside from Sean, and functions as a voice for women’s liberation in a conservative culture that would relegate woman to a life of domestic servitude to her Catholic husband. Con urges Peggy to transgress all kinds of boundaries in ways that seem to be healthy for Peggy, urging Peggy to date, go to college, and pursue a career, rather than marry young and have babies. Con is also the voice of sexual experience. But at the end of the novel, Con ends up marrying right out of high school, abandoning the dream she and Peggy share of going to college and eventually becoming roommates and writers in New York. For all her moxie, Con ends up doing and being the very thing she originally opposes. Somehow, I suppose I was hoping for a different ending for Con.

While I quibble with Virgins being simply labeled “Young Adult,” I intend that as a compliment. Rivers manages to write a novel that transcends this designation in that she seems to write from a perspective that is both more mature and more full than what I’d expect in a contemporary young adult novel. Additionally, because the work is set somewhere in the late 1950s to early 1960s, it provides a kind of nostalgia for a past that is both desirable and stifling all at the same time. As the title suggests, Virgins deals with the strictures of the Roman Catholic Church as the teenage characters are exploring sexual interaction and maturity. Rivers presents the tensions that Peggy faces with both humor and sensitivity.

NOTE: This review originally posted at my website Speaking of Books, http://drennanspitzer.com Please visit me there!

[Zombie_Phreak · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book in 1998 in college and I have to say it blew me away. I picked it up off the shelf of the college library because the title caught my eye and I thought it might be erotica. So of course 18 year old me picked it up and ran back to my dorm room to read it.

Instead of erotica, I found a story about a some young girls in a Catholic school who were finding themselves. They were so innocent and learning about the world around them, and their sexuality. The main character fell in love and I actually cried for her when her true love went off to become a priest, pretty much sealing the deal that he would never be with her as he was going to take a vow of celibacy.

I cannot say enough good things about this book. I loved it, plain and simple!

[Michelé · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a perfect blend of funny, sexy, and naive.

Being the writer I am, there are elements of this book I could criticize. Characters being plot devises and whatnot. But I don't feel like it because ultimately the book was a lot of fun. Peggy had a great voice and it was an enjoyable read all the way through. Its a quirky coming-of-age story with extra hilarity for those of us also raised in the dying Catholic faith. The pacing was wonderful, the characters were genuine, and the story was real.

[Datta Groover · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very well-written, engaging book with a lot of great take-aways. Author has a very unique, yet transparent style. Great sense of humor throughout, without trying too hard.

This book as a lot of insight on relationships (intimate and otherwise), purpose in life, sex, and other meaningful topics. None of it comes across as preachy or heavy-handed.

This book was a delight to read. Highly recommended!

[Merida Johns · Rating 5 out of 5]

A delightful read that takes a deep dive into the search for autonomy and self-determination in a restrictive, controlling world using satire and humor as the vehicle for storytelling. The story rings with the elements of positive psychology, yet unidentified in 1984 when the book was published, that produce a flourishing life—positive emotions, engagement, positive relationships, and a search for meaning and accomplishment. I laughed, and I cried at the story’s truth-telling.

[Kristy McRae · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wasn't sure about this one at first. A novel from the viewpoint of a Catholic high school girl....not something in my realm of experience! It ended up being pretty humorous--some of the mischief these "good clean Catholic teenagers" get up to left me practically in tears from laughing. There were some serious aspects of the story as well, which were well-written. By the end, I did want to know what happened after they all graduated. I may just have to check out the sequel! :)

[Billy Coughlan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read and reread this book in the ‘90’s, back when I was a virgin and rebellious teenager. I lent it to all my mates, so desperate was I to discuss it with my peers. To this day I can quote huge passages and I still feel all Peggy’s heartbreaks and heartlifts. The characters have always stayed with me. This is my go-to book. Read it, keep it, share it. Early feminism at its funniest