Perfect Book Review

Perfect

Written by: Ellen Hopkins
Number of pages: 622

Average Rating: 4.35/5 stars
My Rating: 4/5 stars

Published: September 13, 2011
Read in March 2016


Summary according to Goodreads 

Everyone has something, someone, somewhere else that they'd rather be. For four high-school seniors, their goals of perfection are just as different as the paths they take to get there. For Cara, perfect means rejecting her parents ideals to take a chance on a new kind of love. Kendra covets the perfect face and body - no matter what surgeries and drugs she needs to get there. To score his perfect home run - on the field and off - Sean will sacrifice more than he can ever win back. And Andre realizes that to follow his heart and achieve his perfect performance, he'll be living a life his ancestors would never understand. 

Everyone wants to be perfect, but when perfection loses its meaning, how far will you go? What would you give up to be perfect?


My Thoughts

It is important to note that Perfect is a sequel/companion to Impulse, and I would recommend reading that novel before this. There are a lot of references to Cara's brother Conner, whose story is told in Impulse, and sets the tone for this story and their family.

Impulse was a fantastic read, and is one of my favourites both by Ellen Hopkins, and favourable overall. I had very high expectations for this companion, which were met but not exceeded. It was captivating right from the beginning, and I struggled to put it down. Thankfully I read this during my March Break from university, and was able to get completely absorbed in this story.

The four main characters in this novel were written so well, I could believe that I was reading real high school students. I connected to each one on an emotional level, and felt for their struggles and hoped they would all end up healed. However, the character that I identified with the most was Kendra and her need to be perfect and impress everyone. We both share self-esteem issues and body shaming, and it was her character that I wanted to see get the most help. Unfortunately my least favourite character was Jenna, Kendra's younger sister, as she was very selfish and manipulative, and overall a negative person. 

As with Ellen Hopkins other novels, this one is no exception to grabbing a hold of your emotions, and not letting go until the story is over. I found myself in tears reading this novel, both through joy and heartbreak. 

Overall, I am very happy I picked this novel up, and hope to own my own copy soon (I read this one from the library). This is not a story for young readers, as it deals with mature content - but is something I would recommend reading. Ellen Hopkins is an amazing storyteller, as she makes the plot and characters real. This will not be the last of her books that I read.