Title: Paper or Plastic
Author: Vivi Barnes
Genre: YA Contemporary
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble
Received via NetGalley
Busted. Alexis Dubois just got caught shoplifting a cheap tube of lipstick at the local SmartMart. She doesn’t know what’s worse—disappointing her overbearing beauty-pageant-obsessed mother for the zillionth time…or her punishment. Because Lex is forced to spend her summer working at the store, where the only things stranger than the staff are the customers.
Now Lex is stuck in the bizarro world of big-box retail. Coupon cutters, jerk customers, and learning exactly what a “Code B” really is (ew). And for added awkwardness, her new supervisor is the totally cute—and adorably geeky—Noah Grayson. Trying to balance her out-of-control mother, her pitching position on the softball team, and her secret crush on the school geek makes for one crazy summer. But ultimately, could the worst job in the world be the best thing that ever happened to her.
This was a cute book. It was the perfect light, fluffy read. Lex just got caught shoplifting. In exchange for not reporting her, the manager agrees to let her work there. Except, SmartMart is where the losers work. And that ruins ALL her plans for the summer--softball and volunteering. Nothing she does will please her high-maintenance mother anyway.
Lex starts off the book as not very likable. She's entitled, rude, and kind of snobby. She goes through a lot of growth, though. She spends way too much time caring about what her friends would think, although that starts to change. Throughout the book, we see her put aside what she first thought, and what her friends would think to befriend Ruthie, the "strange" greeter, make friends at work, and even fall for the adorkable geek boy, Noah.
Noah. Ah, Noah. Definitely cute and geeky. Although Noah has been ostracized in their high school for "tattling" on Lex's best friend Bryce two years ago. Bryce has it out for Noah, which means Lex can't tell him when she and Noah become friends…and then more than friends. Noah himself has some secrets. But finding out who the real Noah is with Lex was part of the fun.
We see the real Lex the most when it comes to her grandmother, who has Alzheimer's. Also the way she became friends with Ruthie, and you could tell she really cared for her now. Of course, there were still the normal cliches, but it was still cute. My only lingering issue was her attitude towards Miller, when he confessed what he did. Frankly, that was between him and Noah, and Noah can make his own decisions. Even after she realized she did the same thing to Noah, she was still such a jerk to Miller. I don't know, I just felt like it was hypocritical, especially about something that didn't even concern her.
All in all, this was such a cute book. It was a pretty fast read, and although light and fluffy, still dealt with many deeper issues. I would definitely recommend this for any contemporary fans.
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