Sarah+H.

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 * My stepmother, my cousin, my father and I shared the best thing there is to share. Love and the laughter. **


 * But you know, sometimes I think in families where nothing has ever gone wrong, when even the littlest thing does go wrong, the families collapse. **


 * "We are not broken Aunt Maggie. Plates get broken. Glasses get broken. Legs get broken. Families do not get broken. And if anything is broken around here, it's your family," I said," And your too cowardly to admit it." **


 * I chose the first picture of what looks to me like a perfect family. Shelley's mom, dad, sister, brother and she are far from it. When they were asked to go to a family reunion Shelley was not excited. She described her other family members all perfect and rich. Yet, she described them mean. She said they always say things about her and her family just because her dad remarried twice and her mom left them. Later in the book though they find out that nobody is perfect, especially this family. Just because they look perfect and act perfect, it doesnt mean they are perfect. Everybody's lives have that one thing in common. In this picture, the family does look happy and rich and everything someone would want. But their lives are far from what they look like. **


 * // I chose the second picture of all the people because after telling their grandma and Aunt Maggie that their dad is not coming, her Aunt Maggie was in rage because this wasn’t just a family reunion. It was a surprise for Charlie (Shelley’s dad). Her Aunt Maggie had invited 99 people. Older friends of Charlie’s, Old teachers of Charlie’s, and family were coming to see him. She got very upset because she had already called them, some were on their way, and they were bringing presents and expecting to actually SEE Charlie. She also had already made arrangements for places where everyone could stay. If you read later on, you find out what happens. Does every person go home? Or does Charlie somehow get out of his job bonding and go? //**


 * I chose the video of Hannah Montana singing “Nobody’s Perfect” because in this book I think that is mainly the thing they are trying to reflect upon their readers. Shelley learns to forgive her mom and her family members learn to stop making rude comments about how Shelley and Angus's family is unstable. They learn by the end of the book, to not judge other's by their mistakes because not even you are perfect. Shelley, in the book stood up for herself telling her that famililies are never broken. They may make mistakes at time, but nobody is perfect and you got to love them anyways. That's when she thought of her mom and decided to go visit her. **

**//__I chose the first quote as a memorable quote because it's just a special part of the book that actually means something. It's saying no matter what mistakes they make, they all love each other and they will continue to live life and laugh at the mistakes they make, for they are a true family.

I chose the second quote because it is very true. What it is saying is when your so used to everything going right in your life, when one little thing goes wrong, your not used to that so it will cause conflicts, which causes your family to collapse.

I chose the third memorable quote because i liked it and i will remember it. Shelley never before really stuck up for her family because she just let things go. But when her Aunt Maggie says something about her family being broken, Shelley couldn't stand it any longer. After she said that, her Aunt Maggie realized she was right and everybody’s families have conflicts.__//**

From Publishers Weekly
One can see where Cooney's story is going from its early pages: Shelley, who has been through her parents' divorce and their subsequent remarriages views another, non-divorced family as perfect, before discovering that no one configuration of people means "family." But nothing else about the book is predictable. Shelley, her stepmother and embarrassingly obnoxious younger brother set off for a family reunion (with the "perfect family") in Iowa. Her father is on a business trip and her older sister is in Paris with their mother and stepfather. Afraid that she's about to meet her father's son by another woman, Shelley goes to the reunion full of expectations that mostly remain unfulfilled. Instead, she discovers the value of cousins and of imperfect family members, and witnesses her father's own coming to terms with his roots. Cooney sometimes second-guesses herself, introducing and retracting plot threads, not always to dramatic effect. But she tells her story with verve and instills in her characters realistic qualities to which readers will respond. Ages 12-up. Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc. //--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.//

From School Library Journal
Grade 6-10-- An amusing novel about a modern New York City family during a summer which includes a family reunion. On weekends, Father visits Vermont where 15-year-old Shelly, 12-year-old Angus, and new stepmother, Annette, enjoy the countryside. Older sister Joanna is visiting her mother in Paris, where she lives with her second husband. There is a certain amount of suspense about family history when they go to Iowa to visit the "Perfects," as they call their aunt's family. Much goes wrong at the reunion when the cousins turn out to be imperfect, regular teens. Shelly acquires her first two boyfriends and survives the embarrassing antics of her father and brother. This is not a problem novel but a realistic, humorous one about the changes which can occur in one summer. --Karlan Sick, New York Public Library Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc. //--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.//

“A realistic, sometimes hilarious picture of modern family life.”—//Kirkus Reviews// “Cooney’s gifts for humor and characterization are well blended here.”—//Kirkus Reviews//
 * Kirkus Reviews **