Friday, June 12, 2009

Week-END Treasure: I Love You, Beth Cooper by Larry Doyle

Welcome back for another installment of....hmmm, that sounds a bit to game show host. Let's see...how about we just jump right into the book choice for today, shall we? It may seem a bit strange, compared to my other postings thus far, but it's definitely worth a read and fits the "over-the-weekend" time schedule for completion. Today's week-END treasure is....



If you haven't heard of this title yet, you will be in the future. As with many of today's novels, this too has been turned into a movie soon to hit theaters near you. I believe it stars Hayden Panettiere and Paul Rust. Of course, reading the book first is ALWAYS recommended, at least by me, but to each his (or her) own.

Denis Cooverman is captain of the debate team, allergic to just about everything, and also happens to be class valedictorian. It is graduation day and the former seniors are being set loose on the world...so long as they make it through the ceremony being held in the 100 degree gymnasium, which is making everyone share the last momentous sweat session of their high school days. Denis however is sweating bullets due to more than just the heat. The speech he is about to deliver is not your typical "let's look to the future", or "congratulations, we did it" commencement approved writing. No, no, no. Cooverman is about to give one for the record books. He steps forward, careful not to trip on his gown, takes a deep breath, and then....well let's just say to sum it up, he thoroughly exposes the faults of several populars, labels his best bud as gay (Rich Munsch), and announces to the entire student body plus parents and staff that he loves Beth Cooper.

I can pretty much guess....your reaction is either on the "what the @#%$" side or the "awww shucks, that was romantic". I would normally veer towards the later half, however Beth Cooper pretty much has no idea he is alive. She is a popular, a head cheerleader.....did I mention the "owner" of a rather insane boyfriend in the military who can't handle a little nerd intimidation? The rest of the novel encompasses the 24 hours following his declaration. In this small window of time, Denis learns many things. He discovers a whole new level of pain, and fear in his struggle to outmaneuver Kevin, the psycho boyfriend. He unravels the perfectness that he has known as Beth Cooper, to discover there is a lot more (both good and bad) than his imagination lent to her image. In the end, Denis ends up adding many last minute memories of high school days before filing it away for storage.

'I Love You, Beth Cooper' reads as a cross between some of the big screen 'teen' movies of days gone by. If you take equal parts, 'She's All That', 'Fast Times At Ridgemont High', and 'Can't Hardly Wait'...stir gently, let it rest for 5 minutes, and then shake like H-E-L-......you'll get the right result. You get the graduation ceremony, sought after pro-creation between cliques, crazed boyfriends, loose-lipped friends, and innuendos galore. I do feel that I must include a warning to any younger readers out there...it is in the FICTION section, not Young Adult. Adult content is within the pages so be prepared...

Feel free to leave your comments or feedback!
Until next time...happy reading!

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