Audrey, Wait!

Audrey, Wait!
by Robin Benway
YA fiction. 313 pp.
Razor BIll. 2008.

flap copy:

Audrey, Cuttler's life hasn't been the same since that song, "Audrey, Wait!" hit the airwaves. All she wants to do is go to concerts, hang out with her friends, and maybe score a date with the cute boy who works with her at the Scooper Dooper.

But now, her ex-boyfriend's song about their breakup is at the top of the charts and she's suddenly famous! The paparazzi won't leave her alone, the tabloids are trying to make into some kind of rock goddess, and the Internet is documenting her every move!

Will Audrey ever be able to have a normal life again? Get ready to find out, because it's time for Audrey to tell her side of the story

I'm torn on how much I actually enjoyed this book. Let me explain . . . While I was reading this book, I was proofreading a book that also deals with a rocker and his best friend who happens to be his muse and he writes many songs about her not loving him and blah blah blah. Anyway, Audrey is clearly such a better book.* But I'm unsure if I liked Audrey on its own merits or on its comparative merits.

I like the premise. I like Audrey's voice. I like the final resolution. I like the boy Audrey starts dating over the course of the novel.

For much of the book, I really don't like Audrey; too much sulking and woe-be-me-ing. I really don't like her best friend or the fact that when Victoria abuses Audrey's popularity and meets with producers and agents on her behalf and behind her back when Audrey has explicitly said she's not interested Audrey still apologizes to Victoria for not falling all over her and thanking her for making her life suck just a little bit more.

So I may or may not have liked this book. I guess we'll really know in a few months. Regardless, every other review I've read has showered nothing but praise on it, so maybe you want to visit some of those.

Other reviews:
Becky's Book Reviews
Interactive Reader
The Ya Ya Yas

*A choice moment from the other novel:
The main character discovers that his wife is having an affair with a younger, tattoo-covered rocker and tells his brother. His brother's response: "'No!' [Brother] gasped and put a hand over the center of his chest as if he actually felt pain. 'I can't believe it.'" Yes, this book has unintentionally coded the main character's brother as gay. I mean, really, clutching his pearls at the horrifying news? Oh. And did I mention that the brother is the drummer in his rock band? And he's mid-thirties? And single? And we've never seen or heard of him going on a single date? Ever. Not in this book. Or the previous one.