A Groundhog Day meets Pretty in Pink mashup that tells the tale of a shy, introverted high school girl who must relive the first day of school over and over again until her first kiss can break the curse … she hopes. Andie is the type of girl who always comes up with the perfect thing to say … after it’s too late to say it. She’s addicted to romance movies–okay, all movies–but has yet to … movies–but has yet to experience her first kiss. After a move to Punxsutawney, PA, for her senior year, she gets caught in an endless loop of her first day at her new school, reliving those 24 hours again and again.
Convinced the curse will be broken when she meets her true love, Andie embarks on a mission: infiltrating the various cliques–from the jocks to the nerds to the misfits–to find the one boy who can break the spell. What she discovers along the way is that people who seem completely different can often share the very same hopes, dreams, and hang-ups. And that even a day that has been lived over and over can be filled with unexpected connections and plenty of happy endings.
Pretty in Punxsutawney:
- Addresses topical issues of self-discovery, navigating cliques, and ignoring stereotypes
- Is an homage to beloved 80s movies, such as John Hughes’ The Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles, and Pretty in Pink
- Is the perfect gift for birthdays and high school or college graduation
- Will captivate young adult readers of all ages with its universal coming-of-age themes about struggling to fit in, navigating the tough high school years, first kisses, and first crushes
- 2020 YALSA Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adult Readers
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My rating is 4.5 stars
Groundhog Day meets Pretty in Pink. In high school! Does that thought make you shudder?
Andie has been raised on a steady diet of movies. The fact that she was familiar with movies from most eras and genres probably allowed her to quickly figure out what happened when she woke up on the pink couch her mom had purchased at the thrift store, wearing the same pink dress with white polka dots that her mom had her try on the night before school began, to the soundtrack of Pretty in Pink the second day in a row.
While there were hints of what was to come, they were not so overt as to make the story boring or predictable. The author wisely chose to share only Andie’s perspective so while I had a hunch about who her romantic interest would be (and I will say that I was right), it wasn’t confirmed until it happened.
Ironically, on her first day of school, her English teacher started teaching about Greek mythology and specifically about King Sisyphus, who as punishment from Zeus ended up with a never-ending task. Andie couldn’t be sure whether this loop she was stuck in was a punishment or an opportunity.
Despite Andie believing that she needed to be kissed by her true love to be able to break out of this nightmare, the story was less about romance and more about her finding her voice and learning what is truly important. Her many failed attempts to keep the attention of the football co-captain led her to improve herself in ways that she would have never imagined. Learning to walk on heels without falling over, how to apply makeup – specifically eyeliner, and so many other things occupied her déjà vu days. Some of her attempts were humorous and some had her make the mistake of being too good and therefore suspicious.
What I loved about the book is that Andie learned to see people differently – to see value in those society would have ignored and even to love the unlovable.
One thought that went through my mind when Andie did some especially ridiculous and even stupid thing was “what if tomorrow actually comes after this disaster?” And actually, the things that do happen on her last first day of school will be rather interesting for her to live down or to try to explain.
The movie quotes and references in the book were a lot of fun. It was a satisfying read overall and is completely appropriate for high-schoolers and even fun enough for this way past high-schooler to enjoy as well.
I’m looking forward to reading more by this new-to-me-author.
Read with a Preview at AmongTheReads.net
I was given a copy of this book for free. I was not required to give a favorable review nor was any money received for this review. All comments and opinions are my own.
Very cool GROUNDHOG DAY YA, although it also pulls so much from other films, like THE BREAKFAST CLUB and PRETTY IN PINK, that you can’t really pigeonhole it. We’ve had some great “replay the day” stories out lately, HAPPY DEATH DAY being one of my favs, so I was really looking forward to this.
The main character, who’s named after Andie from PRETTY IN PINK, thinks she’s figured out the secret to stopping her repeating-day time loop thing–true love’s kiss. Since this is a play on PRETTY IN PINK, of course it’s not going to be that simple (love triangle). As she goes through months and months of the same day, she grows as a character, as you would expect her to, but as she ponders the big WHY behind her looping, she starts to realize that it might not be about her personal development. She might be a tool for something bigger, which I thought was a clever twist on the original story.
Also, as former teacher and as a parent who’s already shopping for books my little girl can read when she gets old enough, I liked that the book is age appropriate. As much as I personally love more edgy YA like A.S. King, some younger readers with an advanced reading level aren’t necessarily ready for the more adult concepts and language. The middle grade books are too easy for them, but a lot of the YA books often make them uncomfortable. It’s a tough developmental spot. I love that the Blink books (that’s the imprint this is published under) is all “PG-13,” so you know there’s not going to 50 F-bombs and a drug-filled rave right in the middle of it. Again, nothing “wrong” with those books, but I would recommend something with more edgy content for a more mature teen, not so much for those 13-year-olds I used to teach who’d pick up a book like that, get to page 5, and then put the book down with wide-eyed shock. Also, books like PIP don’t sacrifice the depth an advanced reader needs; it challenges worldview and pushes the reader to look at the traditional high school tropes with a new perspective.
The author made me realize something about GROUNDHOG DAY that I never thought about before.
(Spoiler alert)
One of the things that I never thought about before when watching GROUNDHOG DAY was the lack of consequences. The main character doesn’t have to deal with any consequences for his thievery, his womanizing, or his poor fashion choices. He just has to get it right for one glorious day. In PRETTY IN PUNXSUTAWNEY, Andie has a very different path. I’ll leave it a little vague like that so that I don’t give too much away, but I’ve got to say it made be ending awesome.
Can I give this more than 5 stars?
First I want to thank Netgalley and Blink Publishing for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this novel for an honest review.
This is the best book I have read so far this year! I like YA contemporary novels but my favorite style of books has been thriller so this is saying a lot considering I have read some good thrillers already this year. I am not sure if I loved this so much because it is a mash up of my favorite John Hughes Film “Pretty in Pink” and my favorite time loop movie “Groundhog Day” (okay and Happy Death Day but whatever!)or if I loved this so much because the main character agrees with me on whom Andie should end up with in “PIP” but I just adored this book. I just know that this book really got to me in the best of ways. If there was a feeling this book made me feel it. I loved the main character of Andie and I loved all of the other characters in this sweet and funny novel that is perfect for a Valentine’s Day read. Luckily it comes out just in time!
Now for the plot…. Andie is the new girl in Punxsutawney, Pa. Her Dad a therapist who made a living writing books has stopped selling as many so the family packs up and moves from the tiny town Andie grew up in to a different world. Sure Punxsutawney is not a huge city but it’s big enough for the high school to have every kind of clique you can imagine as well as the perfect boy she meets in the most perfect “meet cute” way. When Andie’s 80’s movie obsessed Mom insists on watching “Pretty in Pink” the day before the first day at school Andie is not happy. She loves the 80’s movies and she loves spending time with her Mom. She just was not impressed with the movie. How could movie Andie have picked boring Blane over fun, sweet and oh so loyal Duckie? So yeah, not impressed. Things get worse when she wakes up late and has to wear the terrible pink polka dot vintage dress her Mom had her try on the night before because she didn’t have a chance to change. The only bright spot? She gets to ride to school with her crush Colton and he is giving her a tour!
The culture shock of the cliques is the first thing that hits Andie and then there is the fact Colton’s heart seems to belong to a girl named Kaia. As Andie falls asleep that night disappointed in the way her first day went she can only hope things get better the next day. That is not to be as Andie’s day repeats itself. Caught in what seems to be a never ending loop Andi is convinced that her Mom must be correct and that true love’s kiss is the answer to getting her out of this mess. As she finds herself trying over and over to get her first kiss with Colton, Andie begins to realize that people are not defined by how they dress and what the enjoy and that just because you think you no someone you really don’t until you have walked a day in their shoes. Will kissing Colton end the loop? Is there someone else out there that is her true love or is this about so much more?
I saw that some think there there are really no cliques anymore so this book is behind in the times but I beg to differ. There are still cliques, heck take a look at social media and see who follows who on Instagram and say there are no cliques now!
This is a sweet and lovely romance and I am glad I got to read it. I found myself laughing and smiling and I even teared up a bit in the end. This is a must read for 80’s fans and true romantics!
I loved this book! This one is a Contemporary TA and not technically a Christian fiction. But it was still really clean. Andie is so funny and clumsy, she made me laugh out loud so many times. It was so fun to read a story like this. Where the day goes over and over and over. There are so many movies out there that do that, it was so fun to read a book with that theme. But even though this book had plenty of comical moments, my favorite part of this book was the aspect of the cliches. Or rather, getting rid of cliches. Andie has so many redos of the same day she starts spending time with each cliche. And realizes they are all just people. They are all difference sure, but asl the same. They (and we) don’t need to be separated by a certain cliche. Andie tries to break this barrier and get everyone together to meet each other and hang out. To break the stereotypes. It was awesome!
Grease meets Groundhog’s Day meets the angst of every high school blunder ever.
Andie and her mother are major movie buffs. Andie’s range of flicks is any movie while her mother seems to be stuck in the 80s and knows that every life problem can be solved by John Hughes.
This book was really cute. I couldn’t put it down. It’s definitely ‘Groundhog’s Day,’ just not on Groundhog’s Day. Instead, it is the first day of Andie’s senior year of high school in a new school. It’s that same frustrating feeling of trying to figure out what is going to get you to ‘tomorrow’ on top of dealing with navigating through the harsh seas of high school scrutiny. Who knows if it’s a blessing or a curse to be able to redo an entire day. (Although, I think people would probably prefer to not live a high school day over and over.)
This book has good messages about finding you and your place in the grand scheme of things and looking outside the box of cliques that naturally form in our society.
I think that Punxsutawney Phil must have some kind of curse on newcomers…
This book started out really sweet, and continued in the same manner all the way through. As someone who was a teenager in the 80s and still loves all things 80s, especially the movies from that time period. Sixteen Candles and Weird Science, as well as Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, were staples from my middle and high school years. The movies that I watched over and over. While I did watch The Breakfast Club and Pretty in Pink, the first I enjoyed more when I got older, and the second, well, I’m not actually the biggest fan of that movie. So the fact that the main character in this book, Andie, isn’t as thrilled with it either, won me over to her right away. Not to mention her thoughts on the prom dress that Molly Ringwald’s character remade in the movie Pretty in Pink totally mirror my own. Of course the awkwardness of Andie’s “meet-cute” with Colton, and Tom, is something that sounds like my kind of luck as well.
I also am a fan of the movie Groundhog Day, and I loved that this one was a teen version. The references to movies that Andie pulls to try to help with her experiences is so me, and something I would do, or something my family would do. So to me, this was a perfect story. I liked how she learned that different cliques weren’t always the way we stereotype them, and that she kind of started with a group that is almost always vilified, the cheerleaders. The fact that they were such a great bunch of girls really, and the whole Maya house thing, that was awesome! I enjoyed how she seemed to try different groups at first. When she figured out that she wasn’t maybe meant to be what she’d originally wanted, or that was at least not the way to get out of her time loop, she went to the goths. And I love that she chose a costume from Beetlejuice! Again, the movie nerd in me loved it. In theh end, the way that she finally ended up breaking the cycle was perfect. It wasn’t too easy, or simple, and it took a lot to really get it the right way. A lot of things that she thought that didn’t work out the way she planned and led into the perfect night, or ending you might say.
Now, I do wonder if really she would have caught on and tried for a different type of ending earlier, before going with the goths, but if she had, that would have led to a much shorter story, or at least she wouldn’t have learned quite all that she did about the different groups. That leads me to another point. I loved how she ended up realizing that the group of people who didn’t quite fit into any group, was just as bad, or worse at times, at stereotyping the others. I’ve seen that. The people that felt picked on, but all I ever saw was them making fun of, or picking on the very people that they said acted that way to them.
I really hope or guess I could say that I would LOVE to see this as a movie. If only John Hughes was still around, because he’d be perfect to make this one.
Laurie Boyle Crompton delivers a story that examines the social constrictions of high school with a nod (and big wink) and some iconic 80s movies such as Pretty in Pink, The Breakfast Club, and Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.
As Andie relieves her first day as a senior at a new high school repeatedly, she is convinced that true love’s first kiss will break the cycle. gets an insider view into the groups to see the hearts of the individuals. When she takes her focus from herself and gets to know her new classmates, she sees an issue with grouping individuals into categories.
With heart and humor, Pretty in Punxsutawney reminds readers that there is more to people than appearance, that friendships should not be limited to one social group, and that high school is hard—especially when you have to live the same day over and over.
Disclosure statement:
I receive complimentary books from publishers, publicists, and/or authors, including NetGalley. I am not required to write positive reviews. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
I was completely engrossed by this fun read which had many references from Pretty In Pink and at times had me reliving some of my high school days as I was a teen in the 80’s. The characters leapt off the pages and had me cracking up and the feels from this read were warm and inviting.
I loved this fast paced storyline that kept me captivated from beginning to end and it left me wishing I could go back and do high school all over again!!
(I requested a copy for reviewing purposes and made no guarantee of a favorable review. The opinions expressed herein are unbiased and my own).