Rating: 
Summary: Save Time--Watch the Movie!
Review: Like A_reader from Albuquerque, NM, I found that the movie was much better than the book. In fact, I bought the book based on some questions brought up by the movie. Besides the title, I found nothing remotely interesting about the book. It KILLS me that I wasted my time and my money on this book!
Rating: 
Summary: A Quick Yet Inspiring Read
Review: Everyone knew a girl like Beverly Donofrio in school, completely and totally boy crazy. Well, things caught up to her during her senior year of highschool when she found herself pregnant and about to marry the father before even graduating.The marriage proved to be short-lived and Beverly and her son were out on their own. But Beverly continued to live her life, just dragging her son Jason along for the ride. She felt she was going to raise him right, unlike her parents had her. Soon enough all her friends had moved away and she needed more from life than what she was currently receiving. That is when she remembers her dream from childhood- to become a famous author. Through the help of a therapist, she finds aid and is sent to a college for troubled individuals. This is what she needed and she thrives on it. She works hard to keep her grade point average high and soon enough has earned herself a scholarship into Wesleyan University. After graduation she moves herself and her son to New York to become the star she knew she was destined to become. Time quickly passes and it is her son's turn to head off to college. Beverly is left alone to reflect on her life and what has brought her to that point. She even comes to realize that her son has been a blessing rather than the disaster she had previously always believed. A very charming story that all but speeds by.
Rating:
Summary: see the movie, skip the book
Review: Usually I enjoy the book far more than the movie, but in this case, the movie was much better (although that's not saying much). I couldn't even believe the movie was based on this book -- everything was different but the title! Anyway, about the book -- I read on in vain waiting for it to get better. It didn't. This was the most boring, dry, unimaginative, unoriginal, rehashed novel I have ever read. I don't doubt that it was good therapy for the author to write it, but it was torture for me to read it. A tip for future authors: don't publish your personal journals if all they consist of are welfare woes and relationship troubles. Been there, done that.
Rating: 
Summary: Someone Who Wrote A Book About My Life
Review: My mother was 17 when she had me too. I rented the movie and it was like seeing a mirror image of my life. Like Jason, I blamed my mother for everything that went bad in my life. I wanted Donna Reed for a mother and my mother told me that it was not happening and that image of a mother was fake. Beverly, like my mother, did the best she could and raised a nice young son. Likewise, my mother struggled so that I could obtain a college education too! I commend Beverly for writing a book because it is something that I can relate to. And when my mothers watches the movie, perhaps she can understand some of the things that I feel because it was not always easy being her daughter. A friend told me that every mother is not a mother. Well, I think Beverly and my mother are both mothers! Beverly could have put her son up for adoption and went on to college and had her dream life. But she, like my mother, went against the mores of society at that time and raised their children as single parents. Beverly, thank you for writing such a book because it was very theraputic for me.
Rating:
Summary: Quick book, lasting impression.
Review: I was dying to read this book when i heard about the movie. I had planned on reading before i saw the movie, but it never worked out that way. As usual, the movie varies greatly from Bev's novel. This is a really quick read that leaves a lasting impression on the reader. Bev is an outspoken rebelious girl who ends up pregnant the first time she has sex at the age of 17. What follows is a great story about her relationship with her family and her son. Like the sub title says, Bev was a bad girl who eventually made good. The reader finds inspiration through Bev's determination for a second chance. We see that because we screw up once does not mean we are doomed by our mistakes, but can turn our lives around and lead the life we always wanted. This is not simply a inspirational biography, but a novel with humor, quick wit, and great insight. I highly reccommend this one.
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Summary: Wnderful book
Review: I really enjoyed this Book. I have been a sheltered child my whole life. To read this book it brought my attention to some things that i really never thought of life long lessons i guess you could say.Stuff that my parents always told me and i obeyed because i just thought it was the right thing to do and not because i thought that they knew it was the right thing. underaged drinking and smoking i never knew could lead to the troubles that it can. Now after reading this book i realize the things my parents told me were wrong and i didn't believe them that they were as wrong to do as they thought, really are that wrong. Things like the drinking and the smoking just lead to trouble and this book really shows you the consequences of doing these things. Pregnancy, jail time, no trust with parents, and it gives you as a teen a bad name. If i were to recomend one book that teenage girls should read it would deffinately be "Riding in cars with Boys" To teach lessons make you laugh and feel the hurt and happieness that Beverley donofrio talks about.
Rating:
Summary: The movie is good and the book is better
Review: After renting the movie (it was a "keeper" that I then bought as a permanent addition to my collection,) and learning that it was based on a biographical book, I ordered up the book too. (I wonder, what did the cover of the book look like *before* Drew Barrymore and Penny Marshall's movie? ;-) This is a cautionary tale told with caustic wit of a "wild" adolescence and a girl, author Beverly Ann Donofrio, raising herself along with her son. "I wondered if ... it was [my destiny] to be linked with pregnancy and prematurely ended childhoods that last forever because they never were complete." The book is in the "Young Adult" section of the library. There are some portions possibly more "adult" than some parents of youngsters would prefer - but certainly much more tame than MTV. And there is a message: It demonstrates how NOT to careen through one's teen years, if the reader is willing to heed. Bev found her way through it, for her and her son, and offers insight and inspiration for others.
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Summary: This movie was good, the book was great!!
Review: When I saw the movie I really liked the storyline, and I wanted to learn more about Beverly Donofrio's life. When I was born my mom was only 20, so I kind of related to some of the things that went on in the movie. While reading the book, I decided that the movie could have been done a lot better. The book gives more detail (of course) and the events are told very differently than in the movie. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who can relate to being a single parent,a child of a single parent, or anyone that is interested in learning about a girl who grows into an adult along with her son and reaches her goal of becoming a successful writer. You go Bev!!
Rating:
Summary: GREAT BOOK !!!!
Review: I BOUGHT THIS BOOK LAST NIGHT AND I COULN'T PUT IT DOWN I WAS UP ALL NIGHT READING IT I JUST FINISHED IT I LOVED IT.THIS IS NOTHING LIKE THE MOVIE IT IS VERY DIFFERENT I MEAN THERE ARE SOME THINGS THAT ARE THE SAME BUT NOT A WHOLE LOT.BUY THE BOOK IT'S GREAT.
Rating:
Summary: A good book about a girl in "trouble"
Review: I was in the bookstore looking for a book to keep me busy. Drew Barrymore is one of my favorite actresses and seeing her on the cover is what inspired me to read the book. I hadn't seen the movie so I didn't really have a good idea of what to expect.
I'm really glad I read this book. It was quick, easy to read, and very interesting. It's about a girl who gets pregnant in high school, leading her to marriage and a family. I had a couple of friends that had babies in high school and it was NOT easy for them. Beverly is not your typical mother, but she seems to be a good one. She really cares for her son and they develop a close relationship. In the course of the book you really see Beverly grow: getting rid of her scumbag husband, getting an education, and following her dream of becoming a writer. Although her family tends to criticize her, there is no doubt that they love her; and it is great to see her relationship with them evolve.
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