Of All the Stupid Things

Dec 22, 2012 Sarah Sammis rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: borrowed, read-in-2011

Though presented as a teen LGBT romance, Of All the Stupid Things by Alexandra Diaz is a story of the long term friendship of three girls, nearly torn apart by rumor and the entry of a new girl into the mix. The three friends are Tara — the popular girl and health nut, Whitney Blaire — the wealthy snob, and Pinkie — the girl who keeps everyone together.

The book opens with the same shocker as Tips on Having a Gay (ex) Boyfriend by Carrie Jones — Tara's popular, jock boyfriend is said to have been...more

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Feb 06, 2010 Kristi (The Story Siren) rated it 3 of 5 stars

Three words; enlightening, intriguing & scandalous.

This was an interesting debut from author Alexandra Diaz. Diaz was able to accurately capture the voices of three teenage girls, teenage girls that are dealing with issues that I know even I faced or knew someone that is currently facing as a teen. I had a hard time connecting to one character over the others with the alternating chapters between the three girls, but still I enjoyed the insight to each character.

On the other hand, due to the...more

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Jun 12, 2012 Liviania rated it 3 of 5 stars

OF ALL THE STUPID THINGS is the story of three friends: Tara, Whitney Blaire, and Pinkie. Each of them have issues that could fill a book alone, so it's surprising that they come together in such a slim volume. For the most part, it works. On the other hand, OF ALL THE STUPID THINGS tends to be too shallow.

I found Pinkie to be the hardest to relate too. She's desperate, calling the guy she likes and her friends constantly. Of course, she doesn't realize the guy (an older club advisor) isn't wort...more OF ALL THE STUPID THINGS is the story of three friends: Tara, Whitney Blaire, and Pinkie. Each of them have issues that could fill a book alone, so it's surprising that they come together in such a slim volume. For the most part, it works. On the other hand, OF ALL THE STUPID THINGS tends to be too shallow.

I found Pinkie to be the hardest to relate too. She's desperate, calling the guy she likes and her friends constantly. Of course, she doesn't realize the guy (an older club advisor) isn't worth it, despite the fact he never once returns her calls. Now, she does begin to pull herself together and act like a sane person. But we're in her head the least, so her reasons for suddenly changing seems arbitrary. I'm all for the changes she makes in her life, but it felt more like Pinkie was following the path a reader would want her to take than acting as a fully realized character.

Whitney Blaire was an interesting protagonist: impulsive, mean, and manipulating. She's the mean girl who is secrectly looking out for her friends as well as herself. Alexandra Diaz created a character who is an interesting mix of self-interest and good intentions, who needs her relationship with her friends to stay the same since she doesn't have one with her parents. Unfortunately, Tara is nominally the main protagonist so much of Whitney Blaire's story is focused on what Tara is doing and how she feels about Tara instead of her relationships with herself, her parents, and David.

The problem with Tara is that she's a little boring. She does have father issues, since her father abandoned his family. At one point she runs into him accidentally, which leads to emotional fallout. Unfortunately, most of the fallout occurs off-page. A novel about Tara and her mother going off-the-grid to recover from the sudden encounter would be more interesting. Instead, the focus is on her boring relationship issues. She breaks it off with her boyfriend because of a rumor. She (late in the book, but the blurb gives it away) starts going out with a girl without much angst.

To be honest, it all comes back to the issue of shallowness. With less than 300 pages and three narrators and multiple issues for each narrator, OF ALL THE STUPID THINGS tends to lack drama. There isn't enough time to really get into a character's head in order to deeply empathize with what they have going on. I understood what I should be feeling throughout their troubles, but Diaz never made me felt it. As things stand, OF ALL THE STUPID things wasn't terrible. It was a good distraction for an hour. But there were glimpses of books that I'd much prefer to read within it.(less)

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Apr 28, 2011 Donna rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: best-bitten

Loved it. I was hooked pretty much immediately. The book starts right at that moment when Tara finds out about Brent and it just keeps peddling from there. You watch as this once immovable friendship starts to crack and each of the three girls is chipping away at the glass, eroding its integrity. They all have the best of intentions but you know what road those are paved with. So those best intentions are the collection of hammers that ends up shattering the glass. But, in the end, at least some...more Loved it. I was hooked pretty much immediately. The book starts right at that moment when Tara finds out about Brent and it just keeps peddling from there. You watch as this once immovable friendship starts to crack and each of the three girls is chipping away at the glass, eroding its integrity. They all have the best of intentions but you know what road those are paved with. So those best intentions are the collection of hammers that ends up shattering the glass. But, in the end, at least someone's there that's willing to attempt to glue the pieces back together.

Tara I liked pretty much all the way through the story. I can't imagine what it would be like to hear a rumor that my boyfriend had cheated on me with another guy. Personally I expected to see a lot more self-doubt. You know, the kind of thoughts that go "did I turn him gay?" or others like it. It seems to be a natural reaction but Tara didn't have that. Instead she ran away, literally and figuratively. She ran until it hurt, she ran away from her friends and she ran to someone new and fresh that gave her a new lease on life. Someone else that she could relate to on a bunch of different levels. I liked Tara the most really because I thought she was the best character. I found her the most relatable and her story the most compelling.

Whitney (sorry, I refuse to call her by her full name, far too annoying), I didn't like her drama. Plus I thought she was too typical. The spoiled rich girl that gets everything she wants but what she really wants/needs are parents that love her. I was over it. I've been over it. While her drama to sabotage Riley kept me turning the pages rather quickly, I just didn't like her type. Her mould, I guess is what it would be. Her character was okay but she was a little too typical for me.

Pinkie got to a point where I just couldn't stand her. Overbearing, mothering, constantly apologizing. I can't stand those people. Spineless, weak-willed individuals that I want to just scream at. I will say, though, she did come around in the end. There is a redemption for Pinkie so if you find people/characters like this equally as grating, just wait it out. She gets a reprieve. She breaks the stranglehold she has on herself and realizes the type of person she is. Those types of people I love, even if they're new to it: self-realization. They have the ability to look at themselves from the outside and fix their shit. Pinkie gets there. Eventually.

Riley's just kind of there so I'm neither here nor there about her but her presence is what propels the plot. Riley really did shake up the threesome Tara, Whitney and Pinkie had. Without her, Tara would have just ran back to her friends like normal. Running to Riley was the catalyst of everyone's issues. Whitney's scheming rolls back to Riley. And because neither Tara nor Whitney are around, Pinkie is forced to stand on her own, something that she desperately needed.

I wanted something light and I definitely got it. It touches upon some pretty major issues but in a light way. Yeah, they can be major. But they don't have to be. Not everyone is going to throw feces at the fan when they get a wrench in their spokes. Some just brush themselves off and keep going. I'm glad this book didn't dive too deeply into what could have been some steep issues. It kept it light. Does that make it disingenuous? I don't necessarily think so. It just resolves the issues in a non-major way, since I'm sure that can be called realistic for some people. It had its dramarama moments, its blowout fights and its life-changing epiphanies. And I couldn't get enough of them. I swallowed them up and then greedily wanted more.

Yeah, it's a light read but it touches on subjects that a lot of teens are going through so I don't think it should be brushed aside as fanciful simply because it doesn't make you want to slit your wrists by the time you've finished reading it. It's a quick read but you'll remember a lot; about how the characters felt, how you felt reading them. I know they elicited some emotions in me. At work, of course. So if you're looking for something light, it's good for that. If you're looking for something realistic, it's good for that too. It's just an all around good book.(less)

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Jun 15, 2010 Jennifer rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: teen-queer, teen-reality

I met the author the other day in the library. I had to kick her out of the Teen Center because she was an adult using our computers but she took it in stride and when I asked if she needed help finding anything she just said she was looking up some of her friend’s books. I prodded and found out that she was also an author here in Seattle visiting friends. So cool that her new book was right there on display. I had to check it out immediately and read it.

I liked that you got the perspective on...more

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Jun 11, 2010 Kate rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-in-2010

Of All the Stupid Things is an exceptional look into how the smallest of rumors can have a large effect. Told through the perspectives of Tara, Whitney Blaire, and Pinkie, the reader gets to the heart of the rumor and discovers the truth of what friendships, and even love, means to each of them. At first glance, the three perspectives can seem a little much; however, I really enjoyed seeing every side of the story. It gave me a deeper look into the whole picture. If the novel had only been from...more

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Mar 07, 2010 Kari rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-teen, books-i-own

This was an interesting read- in all truth, there wasn't much real substance behind the plot and yet I enjoyed it and wanted to keep reading. This book is basically about 3 friends in high school, their drama and their relationships. Each have their own thing going on while trying to stick around with the others. If I had to give a summary of my own, all I could come up with would be drama.

Whitney Blaire is the self absorbed, bratty rich girl that is the character designed to be hated- and yeah,...more

This was an interesting read- in all truth, there wasn't much real substance behind the plot and yet I enjoyed it and wanted to keep reading. This book is basically about 3 friends in high school, their drama and their relationships. Each have their own thing going on while trying to stick around with the others. If I had to give a summary of my own, all I could come up with would be drama.

Whitney Blaire is the self absorbed, bratty rich girl that is the character designed to be hated- and yeah, at times I didn't like her, but Diaz did write her and her home life in a way that I didn't really hate her. Having a first person perspective on her most certainly helped. Maybe a lot of what she did was catty and stupid but her reasons for it were obvious.

Tara bothered me a lot of times in this one- particularly for why she got so upset with Brent and not just for him cheating on her, only to turn around and basically be the same. That never did seem to be really resolved- she was with someone but still felt weird, and that's just how it kind of seems to stay. However, her beliefs and feelings were very real and true and I did like watching the way she tried to handle everything.

Pinkie is the best friend you love but forget about- the one who tries to keep everyone together but is usually left out. I really felt for her and I really liked reading things in her perspective. She was a very nice addition to the book and I think she is the character who changed the most.

One downfall to this book was how the chapters switched in POV between the 3 girls. Many times, it was separate story lines being told haphazardly. There were moments were they overlapped and tied together but for the most part, things were completely separate which is part of why I felt the book as a whole didn't really have much plot. It was just them, trying to make it through high school.

I know absent parents are prevalent in YA novels but I find it kind of interesting that all 3 of these girls had some sort of broken home life. Whitney Blaire with her too busy for her but still married parents, Tara with her single mom because dad bolted and Pinkie with her dad and stepmom because she lost her birth mom at an early age. In some ways, I would have expected at least one of the three to have the standard, nice home life but their backgrounds also helped build all 3 of these girls and it just isn't the same for some big revelation to be made in light of having a very steady home life.

Overall, I give this one 3 stars. I did find myself liking the characters and it was an entertaining read but there wasn't anything particularly profound in the end. Even the ending was just that- an ending. It wasn't really memorable and this book isn't one that will stick with me for a long time though the overall subject is a good one, and one that is played out pretty well.(less)

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Feb 14, 2010 Shanyn (Chick Loves Lit) rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: signed-copies

If you took a moment to read the plot summary, you'll notice that the title of the book (Of All the Stupid Things) is referring to a boy individual in the book possibly making a decision to have a relationship with another boy. I did not appreciate this title reference from the get-go, but decided to continue reading.

All of the chapters are from different character's points of view, and I found it hard to decide which character I even liked. They each have their quirks (as they normally do), but...more

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Dec 21, 2011 ~ames~ rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011-read, contemporary, glbt, library-book, young-adult

I forget how this book came to my attention but I was intrigued because it features a girl coming out and most GLBT YA I've read has been about boys.

Tara, Whitney Blaire (I love that everyone says her whole name) and Pinkie have been best friends since first grade. And each girl couldn't be more different. Tara is a bit of a health/fitness nut, eating healthy and training for a marathon. Her father took off and never returned a while ago and barely remembers to keep in touch via cards at birthda...more I forget how this book came to my attention but I was intrigued because it features a girl coming out and most GLBT YA I've read has been about boys.

Tara, Whitney Blaire (I love that everyone says her whole name) and Pinkie have been best friends since first grade. And each girl couldn't be more different. Tara is a bit of a health/fitness nut, eating healthy and training for a marathon. Her father took off and never returned a while ago and barely remembers to keep in touch via cards at birthdays, etc. Whitney Blaire is raising herself basically. Her parents are career oriented and never home. So she's the poor little rich girl. Pinkie is OCD. Her mother died when she was younger and she is the mother hen to her friends. She's a bit obsessive about things...a bit too much in my opinion...like enough to need therapy.

So of All the Stupid Things starts when WB tells Tara that her hottest-guy-in-the-school boyfriend was caught with a male cheerleader in the boys locker room. Tara freaks out - even after WB hears that it was all a mistake. Tara can't get the image of Brent with a guy out of her head. So she wants a break from him. And then Riley comes to their school. Riley from the get-go starts a ripple effect between the three friends. First of all, Whitney Blaire hates her with a passion of a thousand burning suns. She saw Brent trying to flirt with Tara and being the good friend she is, she warned Riley away from him, in a very publicly embarrassing way. But then Tara starts to befriend Riley, because she's also an athletic girl and Tara just feels good when she's with her. Pinkie's need to mother goes overboard because she can feel her friends pulling apart from each other, and since she's always felt like the odd man out, this really freaks her out.

Ok, OAtST is told from all three girls' POV. This was good and bad. It was good to see the motivations for all three characters. But the depth for story suffered because of it. I definitely would have liked to know more about Tara's accepting of her attraction to Riley. To me, Tara was the most interesting character and I definitely wanted more from her perspective. As you can imagine, Whitney Blaire is the typical self-centered character who doesn't think too much about her motivations. And OMG Pinkie got on my nerves! Despite all these little complaints, I really enjoyed the story.(less)

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Jan 26, 2012 Jenni French rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: genre-contemporary-fiction, age-5-grades-9-12, lgbtqia-lit

Tara, Pinkie, and Whitney have been friends forever. There couldn't be three more different people, but somehow they manage to make it work. Then a rumor and an argument spiral out of control, and the three friends are separated, each trying to come to terms with the truth. Tara is dealing with an absent father, a cheating boyfriend, and possibly a new girlfriend; Pinkie is still grieving her mother's death, and Whitney doesn't know what to do with herself when she discovers she is not the cente...more

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Mar 20, 2013 Shi'Asia rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: badly-written

I love the fact that this was kind of a LGBQT book. I don't see enough of those. However, I think that was the only redeeming quality about this book. First of all, the book is told from three povs. Completely unnecessary because the girls aren't saying anything important by themselves. This could have easily been told from a 3rd person point of view and simplified a lot of things. Second, the characters are very one-dimensional ( well maybe except for David, but he is a little stupid at times)....more

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May 30, 2012 Rebecca Alora rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: books-i-hated, books-i-own, books-read-in-2012

I had to really take a while to review this book. At first it really irked me. I found the characters immature and spewing with vitrol at every chance they got. But after thinking about it, I can safely say that this is a realistic book.

I stumbled across this book while searching for LGBT content on my NOOK. It never occured to me just how realistic it would be.

It was very hard for me to read through some of the bigotry that occured in this book. However, the truth is in those pages. When peopl...more

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Aug 16, 2011 Thorn MotherIssues rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-2011, lesbopalooza

I'm kind of glad other readers liked it, because I despised this book. The friendship at the core seemed totally implausible, not to mention borderline abusive. And then while it's true that people do suddenly finding themselves falling for people of the same gender, in my experience that generally leads to some kind of soul-searching and not just making out and coming out with no real repercusssions to it, especially in a story where the girlfriend who's already been out had to leave her whole...more

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Feb 28, 2010 Allison rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: reviewed, tour

This was certainly an interesting book, albeit not what I expected. Although I didn't entirely get a feel for who all of the girls were, I did notice that each of them had an extremely unique voice. That's always a really nice thing to see when there are alternating POVs; I was never unsure of who was narrating. On the other hand, each of them had their own set of strengths and weakness, and sometimes I felt like the weaknesses outweighed the flaws, making it harder for me to relate to them.

Each...more

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Dec 19, 2011 Bridgid Gallagher rated it 5 of 5 stars

OF ALL THE STUPID THINGS is written from the perspective of three friends. Tara, Pinkie, and Whitney Blaire have one of those friendships that began as a random bonding of little kids, but has carried them into high school without much thought or question - almost out of habit or comfort.

But when things start changing for the girls, they have to think about what role their friendship will play in their lives, and whether these are relationships they want.

Alexandra switches perspective from chapt...more

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Aug 16, 2010 McKenzie rated it 4 of 5 stars

Rumors are flying that Tara's boyfriend, Brent, cheated on her. With another guy. Scandalous, to say the least. Tara, Pinkie, and Whitney Blaire have always been an odd group of friends, but they've always been able to stick together. But with the addition of Riley, the sultry new girl, things aren't looking so good. Tara can't resist Riley, and she's incredibly confused by this attraction. Now she's questioning everything she's ever known about herself.

Of All the Stupid Things easily could have...more

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Mar 15, 2010 Kelsey rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: arcs

I started and finished Of All the Stupid Things in one day. Something about it just really kept me hooked. From the first page I was pulled into the characters stories. The three main characters (Tara, Pinkie, and Whitney Blair) each shared their stories in alternating chapters. Their first person narrations were personal and refreshing. Of All the Stupid Things was honest and very realistic. I liked how at the end all the characters were really struggling to find themselves and by the end they’...more I started and finished Of All the Stupid Things in one day. Something about it just really kept me hooked. From the first page I was pulled into the characters stories. The three main characters (Tara, Pinkie, and Whitney Blair) each shared their stories in alternating chapters. Their first person narrations were personal and refreshing. Of All the Stupid Things was honest and very realistic. I liked how at the end all the characters were really struggling to find themselves and by the end they’d discovered who they really were. I couldn’t choose a favorite narrator, but I really liked Pinkie. I understood her need to worry and her obsessions over calling everyone to make sure they were okay. I also felt for her when she felt left out when Tara and Whitney Blair were always together and left her out. At some point in their lives, everyone is always the odd one out and it’s not fun. Tara was also a great character. I hated how quickly she believed everything people told her and it was interesting to see how she dealt with her feelings for Riley. I haven’t read many books dealing with gay/lesbian characters and usually the gay character is kind of in the background. With Tara’s first person narration I could understand her feelings and how wanted everyone to except her. Whitney Blair was also a cool character. I hated how mean she was to David, the innocent, semi-nerdy boy who loved her, and wished she would give him a better chance. All in all I loved all the characters, and although I couldn’t really relate to a lot of them, Diaz brought the reader into the characters heads as if they were really there. The characters were really what made me love Of All the Stupid Things.

I not only really liked the characters, but the plot was original, too. It was fast paced and unique and dealt with friendship in a way I’ve never read about before. Tara, Pinkie, and Whitney Blair’s friendship was completely changed by the end of the novel and they all learned a lot of important lessons. I think all teenagers should read this, because it really made me rethink a lot of things I do. Pinkie’s nervousness about Tara being gay made me wonder- how would I react if my best friend revealed to me she was gay? Reading from both Pinkie and Tara’s perspectives made me realize how important it is to care about your friends no matter what their relationship status is. Not only does Of All the Stupid Things deal with bisexuality, it also dives deep into friendship and what it means to everyone involved. All in all I would highly recommend this book, and I can’t believe it was Alexandra Diaz’s debut novel!

Overall: 4.5 out of 5 stars(less)

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Feb 19, 2010 Anna rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: lesbian, young-adult

The book has three main characters: Pinkie, who lost her mother at a young age and is unable to restrain her own mother-hen instinct; Whitney Blaire, a beautiful and wealthy (but manipulative) girl who is always referred to by her first and last names; and Tara, who uses running to distance herself from her emotions, and the disturbing rumor that her boyfriend might be getting it on with another guy. These three lifelong friends are thrown into chaos by the arrival on the scene of the new girl,...more

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Feb 03, 2010 Carla rated it 3 of 5 stars

It kicks off with Tara hearing a rumour that her boyfriend Brent was doing the dirty on her with one of the cheerleaders. It sucks when your boyfriend cheats on you, but you know what makes it worse?? The fact that it was a male cheerleader. Tara decides to move on and leave Brent and the nasty rumour behind. Bu then new girl Riley shows up, and Tara starts to feel things for her that she’s never felt before, but she isn’t gay, so what does this mean? not only is Riley making Tara question her s...more It kicks off with Tara hearing a rumour that her boyfriend Brent was doing the dirty on her with one of the cheerleaders. It sucks when your boyfriend cheats on you, but you know what makes it worse?? The fact that it was a male cheerleader. Tara decides to move on and leave Brent and the nasty rumour behind. Bu then new girl Riley shows up, and Tara starts to feel things for her that she’s never felt before, but she isn’t gay, so what does this mean? not only is Riley making Tara question her sexuality but also her friendships, which are put to the test.

The story follows three best friends, Tara, Whitney Blaire and Pinkie, and we get to know each of them through the alternating perspectives. While they each have different characteristics, its not hard to see why they are so close friends. Tara is the athletic one with abandonment issues, Pinkie is the mother hen of the group, always making sure everyone is okay and Whitney Blaire is the spoilt rich kid used to getting her own way. At first I wasn’t too sure why they were friends as they seemed to have very little in common, but through the writing and alternating perspectives you get to see why they’re such good friends.

Alexandra did a really good job of explaining the new feelings Tara was having towards Riley. I haven’t read a book so far where the main love interest was a member of the same sex, so how it was handled in such a perfect way really intrigued me. I never once doubted their feelings towards each other, and it all seemed very real, the emotions strong and raw.

My favourite character had to be pinkie, the mother hen, also known as the paranoid friend. There are a few scenes where she calls a guy she likes over and over, even drives past his work to see if he was still alive. These scenes were my favourite, as they perfectly captured that teenage feeling of rejection and worry, plus, they made me laugh so hard at long forgotten memories. I however think even through the different perspectives were a really nice touch, it made me feel that the characters were not developed enough to really stand out of the pages and make their mark.

One thing this book does well at is the love drama, god, girls just love the drama. It displays how effectively Chinese whispers and rumours can destroy lifelong friendships, and how nasty some teenage girls can be, it was like being teleported back into high school. The premise of the book was really original and the messages displayed are really powerful, how its easy to judge other people for the path that they may have chosen, but how thing are suddenly so different when your on the same path. I really enjoyed this book.
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Jan 29, 2010 Laura rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-2009

Tara, Pinkie, and Whitney Blaire have been friends since they were children and Tara saved Whitney Blaire from where she was stuck in a tree. Thus their bond was created and they all play a vital role.

Pinkie is the mother hen who is always checking up on the well-being of her chicks due to the fact that she lost her own mother at a very young age. Tara is the dependable and independent one who does what she is supposed to and trains hard for her marathon because she is running from the truth. Wh...more Tara, Pinkie, and Whitney Blaire have been friends since they were children and Tara saved Whitney Blaire from where she was stuck in a tree. Thus their bond was created and they all play a vital role.

Pinkie is the mother hen who is always checking up on the well-being of her chicks due to the fact that she lost her own mother at a very young age. Tara is the dependable and independent one who does what she is supposed to and trains hard for her marathon because she is running from the truth. Whitney Blaire is kind of the wild card because she is accustomed to getting what she wants and knows just how to work her assets, until they backfire on her.

Everything was chugging along just fine until Whitney Blaire heard an unsavory story about Tara's beefy jock boyfriend Brent. It turns out he was cheating on Tara with one of the cheerleaders. Correction, one of the guy cheerleaders. This one incident changes the friendship between these three girls in ways they could never imagine. Tara loses herself to her training and in doing so finds herself drawn to the new girl in school Riley. This drives Whitney Blaire insane and causes catfights between her and the new girl. As a result, Tara shies away from her longtime friends. This sends Pinkie into an absolute tizzy and she feels the need to worry needlessly about every little thing.

As the story moves through these hardships, the girls grow up in a sense and their relationships change with everyone in their lives.

I have to say, the premise sounded really good to me. A story about three friends who go through a tumultuous time in their lives and come out on the other side sounds really interesting. Unfortunately the execution could have been better. I felt like the only character who really changed or grew at all as a person was Tara. She realized her own worth and stood up for what made her happy.

Pinkie still gave in to being a momma's girl, even though her mother has long been dead. Whitney Blaire is just as despicable at the end of the novel as she was at the beginning. Brent was no better really, although his storyline faded into the background and we never really found out what really happened to him. The parents of these children were no better either. Most of them seemed over the top dramatic and unrealistic to me. I know that parents like these exist, but they just seemed too "cookie-cutter" for me.

I really wanted to like this book, but it just left a sour taste in my mouth and unresolved issues at the end of the novel. It just fizzled for me.(less)

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Dec 03, 2009 Eleni ( La Femme Readers ) rated it 4 of 5 stars

Alexandra's debut novel Of All the Stupid Things is enticingly fierce. Her writing is subtle yet powerful. The suspense hooked me from the first page until the end. I especially loved the first sentence, "Of all the stupid things he could have done, Brent Staple had to go and do that." I was immediately intrigued and wanted to find out who this Brent was and what did he do? There are three friends, Tara, Whitney Blaire and Pinkie, which I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know. Pinkie, who I quickly...more

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Dec 27, 2009 Alea rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-for-review

Some of my favorite books involve alternating perspectives and a group of best friends so Off All The Stupid Things at first glance would be right up my alley. And while I did enjoy reading it, it wasn't focused enough for me to love it.

I enjoyed all the characters and their basic story lines and how different they were from each other. They were almost so different it was hard to understand why they were friends, but that does get somewhat explained in the book. I love how quickly they came to...more

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Nov 08, 2012 Jennifer Wardrip rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: trt-posted-reviews

Reviewed by McKenzie Tritt for TeensReadToo.com

Rumors are flying that Tara's boyfriend, Brent, cheated on her. With another guy.

Scandalous, to say the least.

Tara, Pinkie, and Whitney Blaire have always been an odd group of friends, but they've been able to stick together. But with the addition of Riley, the sultry new girl, things aren't looking so good. Tara can't resist Riley, and she's incredibly confused by this attraction. Now, she's questioning everything she's ever known about herself.

OF...more

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Sep 06, 2010 Aileen rated it 2 of 5 stars

This book starts off with one of the characters, Tara, and soon after the first few pages you realize that her boyfriend, Brent has been having sex with a guy, Chris Sanchez, one of the male cheerleaders. This "rumor" does more then just hurt Tara, it starts breaking up a previously inseparable trio, Tara, Whitney Blaire, and Pinky. Whitney Blaire has a male friend, David, who is in love with Whitney Blaire, but Whitney Blaire just can't seem to fall in love with him back. She seems much more in...more

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Nov 27, 2009 Lauren rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: own

After seeing ( and falling in love) with the cover of Of All the Stupid Things, I couldn't wait to dive right into it when it arrived. Sadly, while it was an cute and adorable read, it lacked in some key aspects.

First off, I want to start with the things that I liked and/ or loved.

Tara, Whitney Blaire, and Pinkie were three girls who were a mix of very different characteristics, making it easy to find at least one to relate to in some way or the other. Also, each girl, I felt, had the voice and...more After seeing ( and falling in love) with the cover of Of All the Stupid Things, I couldn't wait to dive right into it when it arrived. Sadly, while it was an cute and adorable read, it lacked in some key aspects.

First off, I want to start with the things that I liked and/ or loved.

Tara, Whitney Blaire, and Pinkie were three girls who were a mix of very different characteristics, making it easy to find at least one to relate to in some way or the other. Also, each girl, I felt, had the voice and tone of a true teenage girl. My personally favorite character would probably be a tie between Pinkie or Tara because both were kind of mix of me because of their smarts among others.

Also, I liked how each discovered something key about themselves by the end. Since, it made Of All The Stupid Things interesting and a read that flew by in a heartbeat.

On the flip side, the first twenty or thirty first so pages were a bit too awkward and clunky for my liking, simply because of Alexandra using the same character's name in every other sentence. For example, within the first couple of chapters it went like this, " Whitney Blair waves....Whitney Blair points......Whitney Blair shifts...." and so on. Thankfully, once I got past got past this the rest improved drastically. Leaving me to enjoy reading Alexandra's writing by the end. Secondly, I felt that because of the constant switching between Whitney Blaire, Tara, and Pinkie, there was some much needed character development cut out, leaving the girls to never quite jump of the page and come to life. I don't necessarily blame Alexandra for this one, as much as I do as the switching between three different first person narratives.

Don't get me wrong, though, with saying the above, because other then those two complaints, I really did enjoy this book and the message of "accepting one's self and living life in the moment" that came from it.

In all, Alexandra's debut novel shows promise of some better and greater things in the future that I can't wait to see.

Grade: C+/ B- (less)

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Feb 09, 2011 Anne rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011, realistic-fiction, young-adult

Tara, Whitney Blaire, and Pinkie have been friends ever since grade school. Now they are in high school and an interwoven set of issues threatens to tear them apart. Not the least of these is new girl Riley since it appears Tara has a crush on her even though she just broke up with her boyfriend.

Not the best writing ever, but pretty realistic handling of the LGBT theme and consequent reactions from students and most of the adults.

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Jul 28, 2011 Sarah added it

Shelves: ya, novel, queer, realistic, romance

While the set up for this book is interesting, the ending is a bit of a sloppy mess. Tara comes too quickly to grips with her sexual orientation and Riley has nearly no personality of her own. Whitney Blaire is a raging bitch and I still don't understand what happened to her at the end. Pinkie is probably the best character but even she isn't enough to save this book. Which is too bad because it had a lot of potential.

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Sep 13, 2010 Trisha rated it 2 of 5 stars

Of All the Stupid Things is narrated by three girls, each with their own parental issue: absent father, unconcerned parents, dead mother. While the situations and voices used in the story were interesting, I was disappointed with the lack of a central focus which would have allowed for full development. I am looking forward to future works by Diaz, however, because I think she has the potential for truly unique stories.

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Apr 06, 2010 Anna rated it 3 of 5 stars

PROSs: Lots of drama if you like that sort of stuff; the multicultural bisexual love triangle is something ya don't see everyday; and, last, but not least, the uber cool knod to 1980's hair metal cover art! CONS: Disjointed narration, lack of character depth, and, given the rich subject matter, suprising overall bore factor (but I've read worse).

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Dec 02, 2010 Michelle rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult-fiction

I heard this author at YALSA and was very excited to read the book. However, I wasn't very impressed with what I read. It was uneven and choppy and there wasn't, in my view, a clear plot. I did like how the author addressed a sexual orientation issue (wow, how formal was that!!) in what I perceived as a realistic way.

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