Love and Other Perishable Items by Laura Buzo
Love is awkward, Amelia should know.Publishes in US: Dec 11 2012
From the moment she sets eyes on Chris, she is a goner. Lost. Sunk. Head over heels infatuated with him. It's problematic, since Chris, 21, is a sophisticated university student, while Amelia, is 15.
Amelia isn't stupid. She knows it's not gonna happen. So she plays it cool around Chris—at least, as cool as she can. Working checkout together at the local supermarket, they strike up a friendship: swapping life stories, bantering about everything from classic books to B movies, and cataloging the many injustices of growing up. As time goes on, Amelia's crush doesn't seem so one-sided anymore. But if Chris likes her back, what then? Can two people in such different places in life really be together?
Through a year of befuddling firsts—first love, first job, first party, and first hangover—debut author Laura Buzo shows how the things that break your heart can still crack you up.
Source: Knopf via Netgalley
Series? no
The dual narrative worked well for this book though at first I wasn't so sold. But it gives a unique flavor to the book. I got a sense of both of the characters but not so much of how their stories meet. This was the point of the story that didn't have me enraptured. I didn't have the patience to really see how they connected at the beginning, it felt like I was slushing through, especially the sections from Chris.
Amelia showed us a young and impressionable mind but a setting one at that. I like that she had other interests and that she wanted to think for herself. As for Chris, getting in his mind was also entertaining. Seeing what he dealt with and how he processed things, as well as how he actually saw Amelia compared to how she thought he saw her.
I also like how this book captured being young and in love, especially in a love that you know you can't have.
You could see Amelia growing and learning in front of your eyes, and the character development was great to watch.
While this wasn't my favorite contemporary it was a pleasant enough read.
Have you ever fell for someone older than you?
