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review - save the date by morgan matson // chaotic family fun

hello everyone! i'm back with another post *waves awkwardly* over the past week i've been really busy with schoolwork so i didn't have time to read as much as before. i haven't done a review post in a while, and i think now would be the perfect time to do one!

 

Save the Date

by Morgan Matson

Charlie Grant’s older sister is getting married this weekend at their family home, and Charlie can’t wait—for the first time in years, all four of her older siblings will be under one roof. Charlie is desperate for one last perfect weekend, before the house is sold and everything changes. The house will be filled with jokes and games and laughs again. Making decisions about things like what college to attend and reuniting with longstanding crush Jesse Foster—all that can wait. She wants to focus on making the weekend perfect. The only problem? The weekend is shaping up to be an absolute disaster. There’s the unexpected dog with a penchant for howling, house alarm that won’t stop going off, and a papergirl with a grudge. There are the relatives who aren’t speaking, the (awful) girl her favorite brother brought home unannounced, and a missing tuxedo. Not to mention the neighbor who seems to be bent on sabotage and a storm that is bent on drenching everything. The justice of the peace is missing. The band will only play covers. The guests are all crazy. And the wedding planner’s nephew is unexpectedly, distractingly…cute. Over the course of three ridiculously chaotic days, Charlie will learn more than she ever expected about the family she thought she knew by heart. And she’ll realize that sometimes, trying to keep everything like it was in the past means missing out on the future.

 

I looked at my brothers, and Linnie, and Rodney, and felt something within me that had been clenched tight start to loosen a little. So maybe I wasn't just the youngest, the one who didn't get told things. I was also the one who came to help, who tried to make things work, who they called when they were in trouble.

this book is just like the grown-up version of the film cheaper by the dozen. here's a little note for those who haven't watched it before - it's about a family with twelve not-so-well-behaved children, and they create chaos all. the. time. just like charlie's siblings.

charlie's sister linnie is getting married, and charlie's whole family as well as some family friends are all going to be there. during their stay, they all create trouble and mess up the wedding preparations in some way of their own, and i didn't know whether i should feel bad for poor charlie (because she is trying her best to fix everything and the other people keep making things harder for her) or amused (the things they do are so ridiculously funny). in the end, i decided on the latter, because oh my goodness, everything is just hilarious, and the chaos never once stopped - i was hooked from start to finish!

i also really liked that the author included some snippets of charlie's mother's newspaper comic strip in between chapters. the funny pages has always been my favorite newspaper section, and i was so surprised, in a good way, when i read that charlie's mother draws a newspaper comic strip based on their family. this is the first time i've ever come across a comic artist in a ya novel, and i'm so glad that the author included one in this book.

oh, and have i mentioned how much i loved charlie's family? i love them so much - this sounds cheesy but each of her siblings are amazing in their own way, but it's clear that they all love charlie and enjoy being together as a family (well, in the end at least). among all the grant siblings, my favorite was jj. he's weird and childish, but i feel the author spent a lot of time making him stand out in this family - from his habit of scoffing by saying the word "scoff" to his obsession with DJ-ing (he even called himself "DJJJ").

the one thing i didn't like about this book was JESSE FOSTER. yes, jesse foster - charlie's longtime crush. it's evident that the affection between them is one-sided, and that jesse is just using charlie for *cough* quick sex. and i think that charlie deserves someone better. maybe, say, the young wedding planning assistant who dances with her in a walmart when getting a substitute wedding cake? ;)

this was a great read about family, love and change. i really liked it, and i'll definitely check out morgan matson's other books in the future!

my rating:

★★★★.5​

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