Pretty Things

by Sarra Manning

Brie is in love with Lancôme Juicy Tubes, Louis Vuitton accessories, and her gay best friend Charlie, who is in love with 1960s pop art, 1980s teen movies, and serial heartbreaker Walker, who has ever only been in love with his VW Bug, until he meets Daisy . . . who is too busy hating everyone to know what love is. Set in London, this girl-loves-boy-loves-boy-loves-girl romp is set against a theatrical production of The Taming of the Shrew, and features enough on- and off-stage drama to satisfy teens looking for a beach read—or a read all year round.

Genres: Young Adult, Romance, Contemporary, Fiction, LGBT, Teen, Queer

272 pages, Paperback

First published January 13, 2005

About the author

Sarra Manning is a teen queen extraordinaire. She spent five years working on the now sadly defunct J17, first as a writer and then as Entertainment Editor. She then joined the launch team of teen fashion bible Ellegirl, which she later went on to edit and has consulted on a wide range of youth titles including Bliss, The Face and More.

Sarra is now editor of What To Wear magazine. She's also been a regular contributor to ELLE, The Guardian, ES Magazine, Seventeen, Details and Heat and wrote the Shop Bitch column for Time Out. Sarra lives in North London with her dog Miss Betsy

Reviews

[Agatha Donkar Lund · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wasn't sure I was going to enjoy this one when I started, but it turned out to be a real page-turner for me. Four British teenagers working on a summer production of The Taming of the Shrew, and Brie is in love with her gay best friend Charlie, Charlie is in love with straight boy Walker, and Walker is in love with Daisy, who's a lesbian. From there the standard hijinks ensue, but I ended up really enjoying Brie, Charlie and Walker (Daisy not so much) and I found myself pulling for them to all get what they wanted, even though it wouldn't have been *possible* for all of them to get their desires.

The voices are sharp and very sweet, and the ending is pat but suitable to the rest of the book in such a way that it didn't bother me. Glad I got this one from ILL.

[Bex · Rating 1 out of 5]

Yeah, this one was... not great. None of the characters were likeable, not in a cool complex way, just in a... wow, I really hate you kind of way. The fatphobia, ableism & classism was beyond belief, and there was a lot of homophobia too, plus a healthy dose of misogyny. Sometimes it was checked- Daisy called out a lot of Walker's rampant sexism- but other times it wasn't, and also the characters calling it out were often made out to be angry and over-reacting. I am all up for books that look at fluidity of identity, but this one didn't handle it at all well in either of the cases and it made me feel suuuuper uncomfortable. Essentially Walker got the girl because he was persistent? Ew. I got excited cos I thought it was going to look at polyamory too, but nah, it was just cheating and icky relationships. Overall, did not like this book, I'm sorry.

[Morgan F · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nah. I wasn't a fan of the book. I thought it would be more interesting and funnier, but it just pissed me off. The plot was very thin, the only real resolution was Brie gaining convidence. The only thing that happened over the course of the novel was that all the teens managed to get really drunk, sleep with each other, and get really really angry at one another. Half the book was just the characters complaining and using a lot of bad language. It didn't bring about any earth-shattering realizations about homosexuals, and made it seem that one can choose their sexuality. There are better books than this one, and I don't recommend it.

But if you did read this book and enjoyed it, you might want to try Guitar Girl by the same author.

[Punk · Rating 3 out of 5]

YA Fiction. Four teenagers spend their summer putting on a production of The Taming of the Shrew. The chapters alternate between their POVs as they fuck around and treat each other terribly, think Sex and the City with London teenagers -- just as concerned with appearances, and just as superficial. But, like SatC, it grew on me. I ended up liking three of the four narrators, and even started to care about their tiny teenaged disasters. Of the four, we've got the straight girl who wishes her gay boy wasn't gay, her gay boy who has a crush on the straight boy, and the straight boy who has a crush on the lesbian. There's lots of sexual tension, lots of drama and heartbreak, and even some growing up in there too.

[Nkisha · Rating 2 out of 5]

My first ever low rating for a Sarra Manning what is the world coming to!!

[Rosie Ellen · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice light read, I'd have loved it as a teenager. Not sure how I missed this author in my devouring of mid 00s YA lit.

[Anna · Rating 2 out of 5]

On the one hand, I loved this book. I want to give it five stars. However…
On the other hand, I hated it.
I loved Charlie's character in general. I thought he was funny and smart. And I thought he deserved a way better friend than Brie. I personally hated Brie. Brie, the whiny. Brie, the stereotype. Brie, the annoying. Brie, the close-minded. Brie, who was utterly certain that Charlie was in love with her. Yes. I loathed, loathed, loathed her character. When Charlie had a momentary surge of lust for her I wanted to put the book down and never look at it again. I would have if it weren't so close to the end.
Then there was Daisy. I liked Daisy, if only because she was a lesbian. I felt it was unfair that she was portrayed as simply bitter and angry in the book's description. And most of all I hated that she was suddenly interested in guys just because Walker kissed her. Really? That was ALL it took? It made me furious. The book makes it seem like the characters are able to simply choose their sexuality. It was an almost painfully heterosexual point of view.
The book gets one star for Charlie, one star for Claire (who definitely had an unfair deal).

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Oh Sarra, what have you done? I adore Sarra Manning, but this book was a bit painful for me. Unlike all her other books, I didn't find anything about the characters or the storyline even a bit interesting. I get the whole teen sexual identity crisis thing, but with these characters I was thinking - who cares? So maybe I'm being generous with a 2 star because I know Sarra Manning is a very talented writer, but this was not, in my opinion, a shining example.

[app!e ♥ f!avour · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was really good and I really enjoyed at 1st when my freind grace recommeneded it to me I read the 1st page and I thought it was absolutely rubbish but then I really got into it and before I knew it I was sucked into the book itself!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Mary Ngo · Rating 1 out of 5]

If i could give this this a negative blown up star i would.
This book feels so inadequete. It's like being hungry, but only having a bag of chips to eat. Strangely empty, with a vapid after taste. I think i lost some brain cells.

[Mel Mel · Rating 1 out of 5]

I thought it was going to be so good. I was disappointed to say the least. There was so much going on that was just unrealistic and unbelievable it threw me straight out of the story. I wanted to like it. Really wanted to but at least the waterproof cover was a nice touch?

[Becket]

Still couldn't stand the characters after the first 50 pages. Back to the shelf!

[Courtney · Rating 1 out of 5]

it was good but didnt like it that much

[Poppy · Rating 4 out of 5]

hey,

I read this book quite quickly! To be honest I really wasn’t sure of it at first - that’s why I didn’t do updates - but to be honest I really like this book.

It is fun and interesting and very different to what I have read in the past.

I am glad I read it, the characters really changed in my opinion during the whole thing - my emotions changed with them throughout. This happens for me a lot in books but in this book it was very prominent in pretty things!

I don’t know how to describe it but the Sarra Manning has a good way of writing her characters as they would speak. I was fully engaged with the characters story as I believed they spoke how they would in real life. The different dialogues really suited their personalities!

It was very easy to see the changes in characters from their tone and the clear book markings. Also it wasn’t hard to pick up what they were saying and catch on quickly even though there was loads of different character views.

The story ending was very good In my opinion Because it didn’t end all lovey dovey and happy! It was clear and like normal life is. I was a little sad daisy and walker didn’t end up together.

I am glad Charlie and Brie made up. If I’m being honest sometimes I think Charlie was more of a complicated person than Brie but they both suited each other so well.

Brie as a character deserves her own paragraph, I love her. She may be basic and a bit needy sometimes but overall I think she struggled so much but had the most character development! She was low-key bullied for certain serious topics which were brushed over lightly. She seemed so good by the end and comfortable at the end. I think the fight with Charlie helped her to be honest, silver lining!

The whole part about finding your own way and not being controlled or described by who you like was so inspiring. I think it helped me in different ways, I really recommend to someone who feels like they don’t necessarily know who they are.

Overall I loved this book, very good and addictive! Loved reading! Highly recommend!
4/5 ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

[Larkin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely a book I would've enjoyed more and found less fault in if I had read it when I was younger. The friendships and relationships were all pretty toxic and only two sexualities exist in this book, so not great. I didn't catch that the quotes at the beginning of each of the chapters are song lyrics, but the author made a list at the end of the book and I always think that's pretty neat. So here it is: "She's My Best Friend" The Velvet Underground, "Expectations" Belle and Sebastian, "Toxic" Britney Spears, "Awful" Hole, "Speeding Motorcycle" Yo La Tengo, "Like a Motorway" St. Etienne, "Apple Blossom" The White Stripes, "Company Calls" Death Cab for Cutie, "For You to Notice" Dashboard Confessional, "Flower" Liz Phair, "Seeing Other People" Belle and Sebastian, "Be Your Own Girl" The Wallflowers, "It's True That We Love One Another" The White Stripes.

[Moongurl🍂🌚 · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book once before but for some reason didn’t think it was that good. I found it the other day, and now I’m older I found it was one of the best books I’ve read for a while. It wasn’t extraordinary, but the simple plot I hadn’t been drawn to before actually ended up captivating me so I never wanted it put it down. It’s never said, but I think this book serves to remind us of all the beauty in the world and how each character represents each human that is beautiful, even when they’re annoying (which they all were at at least one point, you’ve got to admit). Would definitely read again, 100x over.

~ Freya
X

[Spencer · Rating 2 out of 5]

2025

Idk maybe I'll try to give this another try in a few years,but this just wasn't for me. Maybe because I didn't really care for the majority of the main characters. I like Charlie. And sometimes I liked Walker (I've been friends with some man-whores in my life and have a soft spot for them). But Daisy was mostly unlikable. And Brie was primarily annoying.

[Vandermolen Aurélie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Je n ai pas du tout apprécié ma lecture. Ce livre traîne dans ma bibliothèque depuis des années et il me fallait une couverture avec du rose pour un challenge de lecture sur un groupe Facebook.
L écriture était très bien mais je suis trop vieille pour apprécier ce genre de lecture. D ailleurs il va finir dans la bibliothèque de ma filleule qui elle devrait l apprécier.

[Samantha Gallant · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was good, but not great. As someone who lives in the U.S. a lot of cultural stuff was just very different. There also was a lot of sex and references in the book. With all this being said, I did appreciate how the chapters alternated between the characters to get different points of view

[Thea · Rating 5 out of 5]

such an incredible book read it so so quick loved every second of it. characters are so lovable and relatable. i really relate to brie on a level i cant even comprehend. loved it so much definite must read🫶💗

[Nicole Palumbo Davies · Rating 3 out of 5]

A love square involving four teenagers attending a summer drama program in London. At one point or another, all four are unlikeable, which was pretty realistic. The ending was a little rushed, but overall it was honest and diverting.

[Amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story was outstanding!! I fell in love with the characters and their backstories! I didn't think I would really like the book but it ended up not being boring. I love it!!

[Nicole Erasmus · Rating 2 out of 5]

it was ok

[Sasha ★ · Rating 2 out of 5]

The only person in this book who is redeemable is Brie. All the others are total assholes.

[Reader · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not enjoyable
Was hoping for something like “skins” the show/novel nothing like it

[Meredith Hill · Rating 1 out of 5]

this was a weird book. not sure how i feel about two gay characters “becoming straight” when two straight people fell in love with them. thats not how this works.

this book fucking sucks

[Joanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Originally posted on Once Upon a Bookcase.

I've been a fan of Sarra Manning's for a while, but hadn't yet got to Pretty Things, so was excited to see when doing my research for LGBTQ Month that Pretty Things fit the bill, especially as it was already on my shelf. And just the other Manning novels I've read, Pretty Things is amazing!

The blurb makes it sound complicated, but it's not. Each of the four teens narrates the story in alternating chapters. Obsessed with fashion and make-up, and known for not being the brightest spark, Brie is thought of as a bit of an air-headed bimbo, but underneath the clothes and cosmetics, she has hazardously low self-esteem. Charlie, her best friend, is the only person that really knows the girl behind costume and understands her, the only one who'll really give her the time of day, and she's in love with him - even if he does force her to join the summer drama club. Charlie, however is gay, and has had difficulty finding a guy he really likes, and so when he does finally fall for someone at drama club, Walker, is pretty crestfallen to discover that he's straight. Walker is known for his promiscuity, and is loathed for how he treats girls, but what no-one knows is that he is constantly being disappointed and having his heartbroken by girls, finding out that were never the people they alluded to be. But then he meets Daisy at the drama club, who is so much more than just her beauty, and everything Walker has always wanted. But Daisy is a lesbian, a card-caring feminist, and has strong views about gay rights - though she's not as sure of herself as she seems.

Ok, that does sound complicated, but they all interact with each other and become "friends" with each other at the club, so with them all hanging out, it's easy to keep up.

Pretty Things is one of those books that deceptively looks like it's light and fluffy, but actually covers some serious issues in a way that is completely accessible. Manning has a wonderful way of channelling the teenage voice and using humour and sarcasm that makes it fun read rather than a serious issue book. It's awesome that Pretty Things can get readers thinking about such subjects without going down heavy paths.

And I suppose that's partly down to the fact that, despite there being two protagonists who are gay and another two straight ones who are in love with them, this isn't a book that is about sexuality. Sure, some characters struggle with the sexuality of others. And, ok, there are times when characters question their own sexuality. And yes, moments of experimentation. But Pretty Things is about four individuals and their experience with love - discovering love, working out what love is, unrequited love, basically romantic love in all it's forms - and their self-identity. In the author's note, Manning wrote:

"This is probably the bit where I say that Pretty Things is a serious story about the quest for sexual identity in four emotionally stunted youths. But it's so not. It's about love and how it bops you over the head when you least expect it."

And that's exactly how the story comes across. It doesn't matter what their gender is, what their sexuality is, or the gender of the person they fall for, it's about their feelings and their relationships with each other, and, as I said, about the characters as individuals. As Charlie says, "...being gay is not all I am. Why should who you sleep with define you?" (p106), something Daisy is just starting to figure out: "Maybe I should stop defining myself through the people I sleep with and trying to work out who the hell I actually am because I don't have a clue." (p312 - emphasis mine, not the author's.)

LGBTQ themes are not the only thing this book covers, I could have read it for Sex in Teen Lit Month and Body Image and Self-Perception Month as well as LGBTQ YA Month. Each character has their own issues with themselves, and varying views on sex - whatever their sexuality, and to have so many things covered makes for really interesting reading.

A fantastic novel, Pretty Things is a fun and sensitive story of love and self-discovery, and one I highly recommend.

[Gabrielle · Rating 4 out of 5]

The weirdest thing about novels set in England or Australia or somewhere like that is you can’t hear their lovely accents. Seriously – if it wasn’t for the occasional ‘bloody’ and cues like that, you’d never even know where the book was set. Anyway….

I don’t really understand how the title relates to the book. “Pretty Things”? It has nothing to do with gay people or plays or unreturned love or anything else. Nothing that’s actually in the book draws it in. I just don’t get it.

Here’s a description of the book from the book so you sort of know what I’m rambling about.



BRIE is in love with Lancôme Juicy Tubes, Louis Vuitton accessories, and Charlie, her gay best friend.

CHARLIE is in love with his low-top All Stars, 1980s teen movies, and serial heartbreaker Walker.

WALKER has only ever been in love with his VW Bug, until he meets Daisy.

And DAISY is too busy hating everyone to know what love is.

Backstage dramas are the real show during a summer-theater production of The Taming of the Shrew. Four alternation voices reveal delicious secret thoughts and expose the naked truth that there’s always more to the real person underneath the pretty-perfect exterior.

From the author of Guitar Girl, a hip, funny, and fabulously outfitted girl-meets-boy-meets-boy-meets-girl tale about finding love and friendship when you least expect it.



I really really enjoyed this book. Each of the four perspectives was adorable and interesting and annoying in its own special way. Strangely, I didn’t get specifically attached to any of the characters, but was more interested in figuring out what happened to all of them. Normally I choose favorites, and I’m not sure if my lack of preference is because I loved all four of the characters equally or because I didn’t fall in love with any of them.

The “this is okay” barrier must be generally different in England. I mean, maybe I’m just sheltered, but normally people don’t sleep in the same bed with people who they know are attracted to them if they don’t like them back. And normally parents want to know when their children disappear for a night. And normally parents don’t want their children sleeping in the same bed with someone in their house even if they know he’s gay. Maybe that’s just me.

I’m not ruining any surprises for anyone since it explained the love rectangle in the summary, so just so we’re clear – THERE IS A LOVE RECTANGLE. Cool. Normally love triangles/rectangles bother me to some degree, but I literally didn’t know who was going to end up with whom. Daisy could go straight/bisexual and end up with Walker… or she could twist Brie and they could end up together. Charlie could end up with Brie… or Walker. It was really strange having no idea how the book was going to end. It seemed like no matter what, either the homosexuals or the heterosexuals were going to bend, and I didn’t know which.

Here’s a quote I love: “I set all my phasers to stun….” I don’t know why that quote is so fabulous, but I love it. Maybe because it reminds me of the McGraw forum’s shirt or because it’s so wonderfully out of place. Anyway, it’s fabulous.

I give this book 4 out of 5 for sheer awesomeness. I refuse to give it 5 out of 5 because I’m probably going to forget its title by tomorrow.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a young adult book. It’s about four young adults who are going through the drama of relationships and love. The first character is Brie. She has a lot of issues to deal with throughout this book, but the main one is that she is in love with her best friend Charlie. There’s just one problem. Charlie’s gay. Along with this problem, Brie is super self conscious. She’s obsessed with her designer brands, fake tan, and calorie intake. Charlie is a care free kind of guy who tries to help Brie as much as he can without losing patients. He tries to help her out with some boys and get her to feel better about herself, but she’s just a mess. Like I said before, Charlie is gay, but he’s in love with the player of the book, Walker. This is kind of cute throughout the book because Walker obviously doesn’t like boys but Charlie still flirts with him and tries to get Walker anyway. Walker is the player of the book, and in fact, his nickname is “Shagger”. He doesn’t really like the nickname, though he feels like he deserves it. But Walker tries to loose his player ways when he meets Daisy, a lesbian. Of course she hates him because he thinks he’s all that, and that’s the very reason Walker wants her. She has no interest in him what-so-ever and he wants her to like him. Last is Daisy, a lesbian who hates everyone. She’s a very serious character and sometimes you just want her to lighten up. Even though she doesn’t show it, she is a little insecure. All of these characters meet each other at an acting camp.

I really enjoyed this story. After most chapters I wanted to keep reading and find out what was going to happen next. I loved the story line of “girl-loves-boy-loves-boy-loves girl” plot line. It just makes everything so much more complicated and dramatic. There wasn’t much that I didn’t like about this book. Sometimes the way the characters would act would make me feel like the author could’ve had them do something different or more interesting. Sarra Manning did a good job with describing the characters, but there’s always that one person you don’t like or wish they were a little different. In this story that’s Daisy, but I think that’s the way the author wanted you to feel towards her. I would recommend this book to a teenage or young adult girl. It’s definitely not a book for boys. It’s too giddy and emotional for men and I don’t think it was the authors intentions to have a male read it. I really enjoyed reading this book and will try to find other books written by this author.

[Ava · Rating 4 out of 5]

I must confess I do not remember how I came by this book. Did I buy this book off a second hand book stall? Did I order it off some online book shop? Was I gifted this book? My memory being what it is, I should go back to writing the and the venue of purchase on the fly leaf. It is a good habit that I have lost in recent times.

This novel is touted as a Splashproof beach read and has a 100% waterproof cover. By rights it should be something you read and feel faintly dissatisfied with. Or you should feel like you just wound up wasting a precious day or two of your life. But that does not happen.

Despite its ditzy appearance, the book gets to the core of the matter and keeps you chuckling and turning the pages with pleasure.

Brie, Charlie, Walker and Daisy are four 17 year old London kids. Charlie does not want to spend his summer watching inane television shows with his best pal Brie. So he joins a drama club for the summer and persuades Brie to go along. Walker is genuinely interested in movies as a career and feels the drama club will help him. Daisy is opting for this as she wants something good on her college application.

They get to train with Lavinia, who was big on the Stage at one time. She chooses The Taming of the Shrew to play and our foursome land the four lead parts. They start hanging out together and a chain of events is set in motion that changes (somewhat) their attitude towards life.
Brie has self-image issues. Charlie is gay but likes only straight people. Walker is nicknamed Shagger and Wanker but has fallen hard for Daisy. Which is no use as Daisy is the super-bitch Lesbian.

Brie, Charlie, Walker and Daisy get a chapter each by turns to describe the progress of the summer through their own eyes. As we can see, all these characters have a different voice and a different way of looking at things.

Despite the story being a teen-lit, it is not all fluff. The problems and the issues they face are real. The author maintains a light tone which is appropriate for a beach read and also manages to slip in enough seriousness to keep you engrossed. The language is very witty and she is really best at describing things comically.


If you are in the mood for a light read which is not aimed at airheads, this is a perfect book for you.

I re-read the book especially to be able to write about it.