Audrey, Wait! by Robin Benway

Published: April 8, 2008 by Razorbill
Received: bought from Barnes & Noble (per Jess Hearts Books recommendation)

When funny, charming, absolutely-normal Audrey Cuttler dumps her boyfriend Evan, he writes a song about her that becomes a number-one hit—and rockets Audrey to stardom!

Suddenly, tabloid paparazzi are on her tail and Audrey can barely hang with her friends at concerts or the movies without getting mobbed—let alone score a date with James, her adorable coworker at the Scooper Dooper. Her life will never be the same—at least, not until Audrey confronts Evan live on MTV and lets the world know exactly who she is!
{taken from goodreads.com}

Ever thought how cool it would be to have a song written about you?  Then to hear every teenage girl, middle-aged Dad, & retired Grandma singing along to it?  Well as glamorous as that sounds, Audrey knows firsthand the effects it can have on someone.  Evan, her ex-boyfriend, did just that.  He wrote a song about Audrey just after she broke up with him.  Now imagine everyone & their mom singing a song about that.  Yeah -- not so glamorous after all.

This book totally took me by surprise (well, sort of).  Jess from Jess Hearts Books told me that I needed to read this book.  She loved it & told me that I would too, especially for all the music references through out.  I took her advice & ordered myself a copy -- right then & there.  Yes, I trust my bookish friends rec's that much.  Then like every other book I get excited about, it sat in my book pile for a few weeks.  It somehow got lost among the pile & I didn't think to read it until I took a twitter poll asking which book should I read next?  Immediately everyone screamed Audrey, Wait! when I mentioned it as a possibility.   Again, I was told by those who had read the book that I would enjoy it because of all the music references.  I love how my bookish friends know me so well :-)

To say that I enjoyed the book is putting it lightly.

I loved it. SO MUCH.

{end review there.} Just kidding!!!

Seriously.  Where has Robin Benway been all my life?!  This author is beyond talent when it comes to young adult lit.  She knows the teenage voice, spot on.  From the amazingly lovable Audrey, to the out-spoken best friend Victoria, I could not get enough of this story.  And then the music. THE MUSIC.  Holy crap.  Each chapter is titled with a band & a lyric from one of their songs.  I saw everything from Radiohead's "Fake Plastic Trees" to Star's "Your Ex-Lover is Dead".  Can we just say that right there sold the book for me?!  I guess I should get back to the story for those reading this review that are not music junkies like myself.

Audrey is your typical teenage girl, living your typical teenage life.  She is an only-child of two very normal parents.  She has the most amazing best friend, & the fattest cat alive.  Audrey just happened to break up with her rocker-boyfriend Evan, which in turn wrote a song about it.  The Song is what turned Audrey's life in to everything not-so-typical.  She is recognized everywhere she goes.  From school, to her job at the ice cream shop, & even on the internet -- Audrey is being watched & talked about.  All because of a song that just so happened to be catchy & pretty amazing.  But how much can one teenage girl take before her new life that's being splashed across tabloid magazines explode in front of her?

The relationship between Audrey and her best friend Victoria was probably my favorite aspect of the story.  The two girls energy just fed off one another in such sync that made me want to be 16 again. I wanted to have an amazing best friend that understood everything about me & made me feel so comfortable at my most unbelievable moments in life.  Seriously though, the two of them are hilarious together.  I wish I had a Victoria (or Audrey!) when I was 16.  It would have made so much of my life, that much cooler.

And then the boy.  Evan you might ask?  No, not that douchebag.  I am talking about the dorky boy who works at the ice cream shop with Audrey.  The boy that gets over looked constantly, but somehow knows Audrey's hopes & dreams inside out.  The same boy who is so nervous to even talk to Audrey, yet by the end of the story has me laughing in tears at some of the phrases he throws at her.  Talk about character growth.  The charisma between Audrey & this boy named James kept the story grounded for me.  As Audrey had to dodge paparazzi & obsessed fans, it was the small moments with James where he touched her shoulder, or kissed the top of her head that kept me turning the pages.  I found myself rooting for their newly found relationship that was born among the chaos of Audrey's new starlight life -- a life she never asked for, keep in mind.

The message behind this hilarious story is one we can all identify with.  No, we aren't all famous & we all don't have a song written about us.  But in some ways I think we can all relate to what it feels like for others to think they know us & understand us.  I believe we all know how important it is to find our own voice & not be afraid to speak up.  Being 16 means making mistakes, plenty of them, but learning from them & growing from them.  As someone who is almost 30, I am still doing this.  Life is messy sometimes & we don't always say or do the right thing.  It's always more fun to make messes with people you know & love though.  Audrey, Wait! is full of so much enjoyment that I did not want her voice to stop speaking to me.  A little piece of me is curious to hear this song that started this roller coaster ride, I do have to admit.  I highly recommend this book -- I can't say that enough!