Charlie’s not like Coco.

So, when everything seems to be going wrong, she’s determined not to be a drama queen. But keeping all her frustrations inside turns out to be a less than perfect plan.

I like how Charlie insists on being herself, and love how she comes to evaluate what’s most important to her. I kind of wish, though, that at some point she’d let somebody close to her know how she was really feeling. At the end of this book, it seems like Charlie is just as likely to keep unpopular opinions to herself as she was at the beginning, and that feels a bit isolating and confining–as if she’s only allowing herself to feel things she’s supposed to feel .

Restraint can be both wise and kind, but repression?

This story raises some interesting questions–a kind of Sense and Sensibility for a modern era.

I’m just not sure Charlie’s central problem (which I saw as her unwillingness to be open with the people around her, even those who clearly loved her) is as resolved as she thinks it is.

Check out my review of the previous book in the series, Love and Muddy Puddles (about Coco) here.