Me, Him, Them, and It
by Caela Carter
When Evelyn decided to piss off her parents with a bad reputation, she wasn't
planning to ruin her valedictorian status. She also wasn't planning to fall for
Todd-the guy she was just using for sex. And she definitely wasn't planning on
getting pregnant. When Todd turns his back on her, Evelyn's not sure where to
go. Can a distant mother, a cheating father, an angry best friend, and a
(thankfully) loving aunt with adopted daughters of her own help Evelyn make the
heart-wrenching decisions that follow? (decsription from Amazon.com)
This book was just what I needed to get me out of my mini reading funk. I think I'd read too many fantasy based book recently, so I knew I needed some good realistic fiction. Me, Him, Them, and It fit the bill perfectly!
Carter depicts a teenage girl who makes a mistake and then must pay the consequences for it. I really liked how Evelyn was not just some "bad" girl who accidentally winds up pregnant...she is a future valedictorian rebelling against her parents in the worst possible way. She felt like a hugely well-rounded character to me. In fact, I loved most of the characters. They were flawed and realistic and even if some might not have been fully developed, they at least represented a really varied cast of characters.
Seeing the confused and scared way that Evie reacts over the nine months felt "real." I couldn't imagine what I would have done in that situation and I thought Carter did an excellent job conveying all the emotional turmoil that erupted in Evie's life. This is a book that pulls no punches emotionally. I cried my way through the ending. Heartbroken, awed, and then optimistically, yet cautiously joyous.
I found myself comparing this book to Holly Cupala's Tell Me a Secret. They both cover an unexpected teen pregnancy in a very realistic and emotionally evocative way. If you liked that one, check this one out...and if you like this one, check out that one next!
Full disclosure: eARC received from Netgalley for review
