{"id":2684,"date":"2021-02-12T16:09:00","date_gmt":"2021-02-12T16:09:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/kildarelibrariesblog.com\/?p=2684"},"modified":"2021-02-12T16:09:00","modified_gmt":"2021-02-12T16:09:00","slug":"love-bomb","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/blog\/love-bomb\/","title":{"rendered":"Love Bomb"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Author<\/strong> Jenny McLachlan <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Genre<\/strong> Young Adult Fiction <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Review<\/strong> by Orla O\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 Brien Kildare Town Library <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Synopsis <\/strong>Perfect for fans of Geek Girl and Louise Rennison.
Betty Plum has never been in love. She’s never even kissed a boy. But when H.O.T. Toby starts school it’s like Betty has been hit with a thousand of Cupid’s arrows. It’s like a bomb has exploded – a love bomb!
More than ever Betty wishes her mum hadn’t died when Betty was a baby. She really needs her mum here to ask her advice. And that’s when she finds hidden letters for just these moments. Letters about what your first kiss should feel like and what real love is all about! Is Betty ready to fall in love? Will she finally have her first kiss?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Review\u00c2\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This book deals with the trials and tribulations of teenage angst. We are reminded, by Betty\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s self-deprecating internal dialogue, that it is not easy being a teenager. When hormones are bubbling to the surface love can be a confusing terrain to navigate. This book fully embraces what it is like being a teenager. We are shown that school is not just a factory, churning out excellent exam results, but an institution that helps to shape and mould students for their future. Friendship and loyalty are valued highly, and relationships have been tested throughout the book.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 It also challenges the status quo of love in the movies versus reality. This book explores how impulsive teenagers can be consumed with thoughts of their first kiss. Betty\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s expectations of love don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t quite live up to the fantasy inside her head. She has created a daydream where love runs smoothly without any obstacles. This book highlights the heartbreak and anguish of unrequited love. Everything Betty knows about love has been thrown up in the air. There are also harsh lessons to be learned such as not judging people by the way they look. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although Betty\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Dad is amazing and cool the reader can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t help but notice the gaping hole left by the absence of Betty\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s mother. She has grown up with a void in her life, having lost her Mum to cancer at the tender age of two. Betty is anchored by reading her late mother\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s letters in the attic. Her mother anticipated that Betty would need advice long after she was gone. The heart wrenching letters add depth and tackles the issues of grief and loss. One of the triumphs of the book is witnessing Betty evolve into a mature, self-assured independent young lady.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This book is a real treat to read. Words and characters are stitched seamlessly together. It is a real page turner, sprinkled with love quotes and heartfelt humour. The author has an English degree and has worked as a secondary school teacher.  She shows warmth, empathy and compassion for what it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s like to be a teenager. Her lingo and spontaneity engage the reader. You don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t need to be a teenager to enjoy this book!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Available to borrow on Bolinda Borrowbox here<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Author Jenny McLachlan  Genre Young Adult Fiction  Review by Orla O\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 Brien Kildare Town Library  Synopsis Perfect for fans of Geek Girl and Louise Rennison.Betty Plum has never been in love. She’s never even kissed a boy. But when H.O.T. Toby starts school it’s like Betty has been hit with a thousand of Cupid’s arrows. It’s like a bomb […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":182174489,"featured_media":299,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6925997],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2684","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-book-reviews-and-recommendations"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2684","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/182174489"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2684"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2684\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2688,"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2684\/revisions\/2688"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/299"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2684"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2684"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2684"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}