Jump to ratings and reviews
Rate this book

Pretty Funny #2

Pretty Rude for a Girl

Rate this book
Fifteen-year-old Haylah Swinton is gaining popularity on her comedy YouTube channel, but the jokes she's telling are starting to ruffle feathers in real life. Prepare to snort, guffaw, and cringe through Rebecca Elliott's hilarious companion to Pretty Funny for a Girl.

Big, bold, and funnier than a cat in a onesie playing bagpipes, Haylah's been busy with her online comedy material. But life on the internet comes with its own can of trolls and proving she's funny is tougher than Haylah thought it'd be! Plus, her new boyfriend Dylan hasn't even tried kissing her yet, and when her deadbeat dad decides to turn up, life as she's known it is tossed into one big, colossal mess.

So, what better way to vent, than to spill the tea to her newly found audience? But when friends and family discover Haylah's ranting videos on the web, Haylah finds herself with a lot of explaining to do.

Rebecca Elliott's contemporary YA rom-com stars a strong, memorable heroine and features a story full of heart, humor, and relatable themes of body image, self-esteem, relationship building, and taking ownership of mistakes. A laugh-out-loud, binge-worthy read.

352 pages, ebook

Published October 1, 2021

3 people are currently reading
162 people want to read

About the author

Rebecca Elliott

211 books299 followers
Rebecca Elliott is the author and illustrator of the best-selling Owl Diaries series (Scholastic US) & over 20 picture books including Just Because, Sometimes, Naked Trevor and Zoo Girl, for which she was nominated for the 2012 Kate Greenaway Medal.
Her new series The Unicorn Diaries (Scholastic US) & her first YA novel 'Pretty Funny ' (Penguin Random House) are out now.

Ratings & Reviews

What do you think?
Rate this book

Friends & Following

Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!

Community Reviews

5 stars
18 (20%)
4 stars
35 (40%)
3 stars
24 (27%)
2 stars
7 (8%)
1 star
3 (3%)
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
Profile Image for Dianne.
1,845 reviews158 followers
August 29, 2021
It is a tad difficult for me to write this review. I pride myself on loving books of all genres, and YA is usually right up my alley, but this book ...there was just something about it that didn't ring quite true for me. I admit that I am not a 15-year-old girl, so my perception is a tad skewed, but I don't think anyone in this age bracket would be as naive as Haylah.

How could someone of this age not realize just how her rants would affect her friends and family? And why would she never believe that anyone else is reading what she is putting out on the 'net? How can a 15-year-old be so naive about relationships?

It just does not come off as believable. Her feminist rants ...well...been there - done that. Although it is nice to see a new generation take up the reins of what was started a century and a half ago, the way Haylah goes about is a little overboard sometimes, maybe even just a bit mocking of what she is trying to prove.

+ARC Supplied by the publisher, the author, and ATTL/Edelweiss.
Profile Image for Jordan.
551 reviews32 followers
April 29, 2021
This book was a fun, lighthearted read, that could still tug on the heartstrings. I found this book to be so relatable and enjoyed the situations that Rebecca had written her characters in. The humour was quirky and fast paced which I loved and earned me some funny looks from people as I laughed out loud while reading this book on my bus journey. I recommend this book to anyone who's up for a laugh and enjoys a bit of teenage drama.
Profile Image for Samantha (WLABB).
4,249 reviews278 followers
September 27, 2021
Haylah is back, and this time, she found an audience via her comedic rants about her life. However, when her family and friends discovered her videos, Haylah had a lot of explaining to do.

I adored meeting Haylah in Pretty Funny for a Girl and was excited to catch up with her. This time around, Haylah was dealing with a lot of big life changes. She was worried about her budding romance, while her mother was taking next steps to advance her own relationship. At the same time, her long absent father returned, and she discovered that her besties had been keeping some pretty big secrets from her. What’s a girl to do in a situation like that? Rant to strangers on the internet, of course.

Haylah’s video monologues were hilarious. The humor, however, wrapped up all the big emotions she was wrestling with. It was nice packaging for these issues that other teens may be dealing with, and I liked that they eventually led to meaningful discussions with the important people in her life.

I enjoyed getting to know Haylah even more this time around. The previous book was all about her learning to believe in and love herself. This time, she obviously had more self-confidence, and that growth she experienced still showed. But Hay was fifteen, and she had doubts about many things in her life too. It was great the way this was all explored, and same as before, it was done with lots of humor.

I loved all these characters when I first met them, and I loved them even more this time around. Each was special and enhanced my enjoyment of the story. Still, a few stood out. As before, I was utterly taken by Haylah’s little brother Noah. His youthful innocence and exuberance never failed to delight me. Though I grew to like him a lot before, getting to know Dylan in the book endeared him even more to me.

Haylah learned a lot of life lessons while she was faced with many life changes. First love, friendship, and family were the focus, and as with the previous book, there was lots of humor and heart.

*ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

BLOG | INSTAGRAM |TWITTER | BLOGLOVIN | FRIEND ME ON GOODREADS
Profile Image for Amy.
384 reviews28 followers
April 30, 2021
Firstly a huge thank you to @tandemcollectiveuk @penguinrandomhouse and @rebecca_elliott_author for my gifted copy of Pretty Rude, it's been a fun and laughable ride!

Pretty Rude is the 2nd book in the series about Haylah Swinton. Haylah is a 15yo teen who wants nothing more to be a comedian. Haylah is a plus size teen with a lot of teenage drama. From her two oversharing best friends, her boyfriend acting more like a mate than a boyfy, her mum dating again and her bumbag of a Dad trying to get back into her life. But chaos and drama make great comedy material right!? Hmmm maybe not...

So I really enjoyed this book, I was laughing throughout and it's a very quick and easy read. You probably wondering why the 3 stars though. That is not saying I didn't like the book, because I really did and have no faults. It's 3 stars purely because I'm completely the wrong audience for it in my opinion. I'm no longer a teenager, I'm a 30yr old single mum, whose humour is as bad as a pile of poop. If I was in my teens or late teens I'd be absolutely obsessed with this book but I'm not, so I found that it wasn't overly a book I could completely comprehend with as I don't have those kind of emotions and feelings at my age. There were certain aspects where I was reading where I felt really my age!

But regardless of that, honestly I enjoyed it. Haylah is hillsrious and her humour is amazing, I was constantly chuckling away at the book. I also felt the topics that were brought up in this book was done so well for that age range (12-17). We are talking about being a bigger girl and the bullying that comes with it. The fashion guru's telling plus sized what they can and can't wear, which in fact is prejudice. Theres talks of separated families and how kids deal with divorce in different ways. Relationships and what they should and shouldn't intel and also learning about being a lesbian. There are some deep important topics and I really appreciated them and think for teenagers especially girls would benefit a lot from this book. (Tbc in comments...)

Throughout the story theres the hidden message that you should never change who you are for anyone, and if that person cares for you, loves you they'll accept who you are inside and out. I felt this was such an important message for absolutely anyone and any age. It certainly made me go "here here" and it's something I've only recently sorted out myself. I was always making myself someone I'm not. So this topic was so well done and I appreciated it.

Elliot certainly knows how to write and keep the readers emgaged. You're left with so many feelings but also it's carefree and funny.
I really think teenagers will love this and I hope reading it they'll get the hidden messages and it will resonate with them.
Honestly a super quick, joyful read.
Profile Image for whatbooknext.
1,276 reviews48 followers
April 9, 2022
Haylah Swinton has done it. She is a bona fide comedian, after nailing a set on stage live in front of an audience. The embarrassing finale
wasn't quite what she'd planned but hey, everyone said she was brilliant.

Now Haylah is posting direct to the public through her Youtube channel. She hasn't got many subscribers, but she enjoys doing it anyway. Who would've thought she would have a real life boyfriend too, after all, her nickname at school has been Pig for years. But Haylah has brushed all of that aside (see Pretty Funny for more about that), and embraced her body, her love affair with Kit Kats, feminism, and her quirky sense of style.

The only problem is, her said 'boyfriend' seems just that. A boy. A friend. Dylan hasn't even held her hand, let alone kissed her, and it's doing her head in. Is he embarrassed about that stuff? About her?

A curveball in the shape of her errant-left-her-mum-five-years-ago dad knocks her for a six, turning up when she least expects it. Now what? When she gets over the shock and finally stops sobbing all over her besties Chloe and Kas, she lets her father have it. Both barrels loaded with five years of hurt.

Now he wants to spend time with her. No way...    maybe...    she'll think about it...   But how to tell her Mum? Mum has a boyfriend, but though Haylah was only ten when Dad left, and she remembers the fallout and her mum's misery.

To top things off, Chloe and Kas have some news of their own. With everything else that's going on, Haylah is a bundle of confusion. She falls back on what always makes her feel better - comedy. Spilling her thoughts onto Youtube. Her subscribers go up, but her popularity at home plummets. Can things get any worse?




Haylah Swinton is definitely one of my favourite book characters ever!

Like the first book in this series (They say I'm Pretty Funny for a Girl), Am I Really Pretty Rude for a Girl? is full of one liners, and great banter between Haylah and her mum. So much is changing for Haylah - friends, relationships inside and outside her home, and her thoughts as she tries to deal with it all are authentic and funny.

I laughed out loud all the way through the book, and the get-Dylan-back scene made me laugh so hard, I was wiping my eyes. Pretty Rude is sweet, funny, realistic, and full of many challenges teens will face in their lives.

Absolutely loved it. I so wish there was another in the series...
Profile Image for thewoollygeek (tea, cake, crochet & books).
2,811 reviews117 followers
February 2, 2022
A fun read that after reading I was delighted to find will have a sequel. This is quick paced, soooo funny, and fabulous and relatable characters , thoroughly recommended to make you laugh

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion
Profile Image for bee.
205 reviews3 followers
August 3, 2021
Pretty Rude for a Girl is a fantastic follow-up to Elliott's first novel, Pretty Funny for a Girl. This book delivers on all accounts, from family stressors to boy drama, and the work it takes to be a female comedian.
A quick rundown: Haylah Swinton is back and funnier than ever. She's proving herself worthy of the title "female comedian" through her Youtube channel. This is a bigger challenge than Haylah anticipates, but she works to meet it head-on. As if that isn't stressful enough, her boyfriend Dylan hasn't kissed her yet, and her long-missing (aka: deadbeat) dad shows up, her life is thrown into turmoil. Haylah finds solace in posting rant videos on Youtube. When her friends and family find these videos, Haylah has a lot of work ahead of her to explain them.

My thoughts: I was interested in this book right away. It seemed right up my alley, and my instinct was not wrong. While most of it was lighthearted and fun, there were also very poignant moments of deep emotion. I was a little nervous to read this, as Haylah is only 15 and that period of my life feels so far away from me currently. Elliott managed to mostly squash those fears and I binged the hell out of this book. I did find certain moments aimed a little younger than YA, maybe Middle Grade, but it wasn't bad. It was fast-paced, but not overwhelmingly so. This book and its predecessor Pretty Funny for a Girl, are definitely worth the read if you want something quick to binge.

Overall rating: 4/5

Pretty Rude for a Girl will be available for purchase on October 1st. Be sure to add it to your Goodreads shelf. Also, be sure to check out Rebecca Elliott’s website!
I was lucky enough to be able to read this Advanced Reader's Copy through my partnership with NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
Profile Image for Larissa.
913 reviews1 follower
October 1, 2021
Haylah is not afraid to tell it like it is. That is why she loves comedy. When her life starts to take a lot of big turns. Haylah turns to comedy to help her work through some big emotions. Does her "boyfriend" actually want to be with her? Can you rebuild a relationship with a father who has had very little contact with you in the past five years? What do you do when your mom has a new someone in their life? Will comedy be able to help her or will it end up ruining everything.

I love that this book shows Haylah's raw teenage emotions. That she turns to YouTube to get out her stress and frustration, and that it eventually comes back and causes problems, is also such a great lesson in being careful what you put out on the internet. I also love that Haylah knows her worth. She for the most part embraces who she is and what she looks like. Though you can tell she is still trying to figure out how she fits in. Overall this is a just a fun book.
207 reviews
July 30, 2021
Haylah Swinton is a teen girl who wants to be a comedian. She starts a Youtube channel and is getting great feedback! Unfortunately there's a lot of drama in her personal life that is causing her problems...including a boyfriend her won't kiss her and the return of her dad. When her two worlds collide how will Haylah handle things?

I thought this book was pretty cute. Haylah's struggles and triumphs were things very easy to relate to and cheer on. The only thing I would say is that I thought this was a YA book, but I think it's geared towards a much younger audience. And I could have done without all potty humor. But overall Haylah is a girl who other girls can learn from and strive to be more like.

I was given this book in exchange for my honest opinion. Thank you to NetGalley and Peachtree Publishing Company for this ARC.
Profile Image for Al Pagnotta.
95 reviews1 follower
August 10, 2021
Alright so I really didn't like this book but like it was pretty good?

Like I have really mixed emotions.

I think a big thing is the copy I was provided was definitely missing pages so I didn't feel like I was getting the whole story but also like it was just so heavily stereotyped?

The feminism felt so forced, the jokes weren't really funny and there was so much potty humor and the characters were really one dimensional and honestly Haylah was just flat out annoying? She didn't really have depth. She just complained a lot.

Overall the writing was pretty strong, and the plot was definitely strong it just didn't hit for me.

However I'm giving it 3 stars instead of 2 cause I realized afterwards it was a sequel but the books worked as standalones but maybe they didn't lmao 😂
Profile Image for Lauren.
553 reviews27 followers
August 14, 2021
First off, I enjoyed this much more than Pretty Funny. I think the writing has definitely improved from book 1, and the subplot with Hay's dad was nicely done. It was interesting to see how Hay's confidence in her stand-up abilities has grown.

However, I find it difficult to connect with Hay. Her actions are often immature and shortsighted and I never got the sense that she ever felt genuinely remorseful for how she treated her friends in this one. I think most teenagers today would have enough online literacy to be aware of how quickly things online can go viral, so it was frustrating that Hay never considered this a possibility.

Thanks to NetGalley for this arc!
Profile Image for Megan.
15 reviews2 followers
August 8, 2021
There were so many positive things about this book. It tackled societal expectations for beauty and what a “girl” should be like. The message presented of being proud of who you are and not trying to change was so important. Haylah’s thoughts and experiences were very real, from changing friendships, divorced parents, and life as a girl who isn’t what society expects her to be.

But as a whole, I found that I had trouble connecting with Haylah. I felt like there could have been more self-awareness or personal growth. And on a more personal note, the type of humor in this book is just not the type of humor that I find funny. I found myself cringing more than laughing. With that being said, many people will love the humor in this, so if you like slapstick, bathroom humor, this is the book for you!
395 reviews5 followers
February 10, 2022
Started this book as I had a paper arc, then paused to pick up the first book which isn’t necessary to follow what’s going on in this one. I liked the 1st Pretty Funny slightly better & probably enjoyed this one more when I came back to it.

I’d recommend to middle schoolers - reads too young for kids beyond 9th grade.

Funny, cute but something left me feeling meh ... too much boy talk, all the thoughts about looks ... even as the character knows she shouldn’t define herself by boys or looks ....

Still mulling it over
Profile Image for rohini.
161 reviews1 follower
April 20, 2021
Pretty Rude was a funny quick witted book about Haylah as she struggled through family drama and YouTube fame!

This book was hilarious and the writing was absolutely brilliant. I found Haylah a bit arrogant at times but she was very funny. I especially loved her rants!

The plot wasn't very unique but the writing and characterisation made up for it!

This book was a quick light read and I enjoyed it a lot! Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the E-arc!
167 reviews7 followers
March 6, 2022
I had to get myself in the mindset of the target audience for this one. A lot of the humor was juvenile and the lessons to be learned were hammered in and not subtle at all.

That being said, for a target demographic of young teenagers, this was really good. The characters were great. Haylah was relatable and funny. The overarching themes of what it means to be a feminist and accepting yourself for who you are were spot on. I would definitely recommend.
20 reviews
July 21, 2024
I don't want to hate on this book to bad but I was really disappointed by this book. Haylah, the protagonist was just quite an unlikeable character and normally I don't have a problem with this but I did with this one. Only because I think we were supposed to like her.

Posting on YouTube about people and thinking people will be fine about it...

I don't want to say don't read this book because you should. But maybe just realize this before reading.
Profile Image for Beth Livingston.
103 reviews6 followers
November 16, 2021
Thank to NetGalley for an ARC. Haylah Swinton is back in Pretty Rude for a Girl. This is a good follow up from Pretty Funny for a Girl. I liked how we see Haylah grow more in this book. The writing was good. Rebecca Elliott did a good job with the book. I would recommend this to anybody to read if you have read the first one. I give it a 3 out of 5. I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Profile Image for Zara Brumana.
492 reviews3 followers
March 30, 2023
2 1/2 stars, right in the middle. Not offensive enough to be considered bad, not interesting enough to be considered good but inoffensive for the most part. I find it interesting that the copy I got from the library is titled just "Pretty Rude for a Girl" & that Goodreads doesn't have that in their database.
Profile Image for Becca Harris.
290 reviews10 followers
April 26, 2021
This is such a fun coming of age feminist novel.

It was such a fun read and definitely one that I wouldn't have picked up in the store so it was very interesting to read.

This embodies everything a teenage girl goes through, from finding love, friendships and family life.
Profile Image for Slaa!!!.
728 reviews21 followers
August 19, 2021
I’ve really been enjoying these books, I hope they continue!!
Profile Image for Amanda.
1,260 reviews11 followers
July 1, 2021
Cute book that deals with choices in life and the consequences that come from our actions. It is well written and entertaining. Easy read and goes by quickly.
1 review
February 18, 2022
I am not at all a fan of this book!!!! Right from the begin even though they are supposed to be jokes they are fat shaming people ‘ you need to suck, tuck and punish your bodies ‘ like what the heck. Also this book is down right cringe ‘ I just want him to hold my hand ‘. Arg I just what her to stop complaining.
On the other hand this is a quick and easy book and only took me three days to and it made me chuckle in parts. There is a book out there for everyone, this isn’t the one for me.
934 reviews31 followers
May 25, 2021
Review copy courtesy of Edelweiss.

I echo my review of the first book: a great readalike for Louise Rennison, but the angst and stupidity of our comedian protagonist, Haylah, made this slightly less enjoyable than book one.
17 reviews
March 9, 2025
So good! I didn’t like the pansexual girl at the end but otherwise it was SO GOOD
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews

Can't find what you're looking for?

Get help and learn more about the design.