Overall I just could not get into FIRSTS by Laurie Elizabeth Flynn. While I do love young
adult novels, I do not think this is one for me. The story is about a
seventeen-year-old girl named Mercedes. Her close friends call her by
her nickname, Mercy, because she hates the fact that she was named
after a car... The same kind of car her dad waved goodbye to her when
he left for good. She has no father and her mother could care less
about her, of course, there are going to be issues...
The part I do not like about this book is that it makes cheating to be a
good thing, and it's presented as a way for Mercy to "help" her friends.
I do not agree with this concept at all; cheating is cheating, no matter
what the reason. The book starts out with Mercedes thinking that she
is helping Evan's girlfriend by doing this favor. This isn't the first time
she has done this favor. She feels she is "paying it forward" by sleeping
with virgin boys so that they know what they are doing when they sleep
with their girlfriends for the first time.
FIRSTS is a difficult one for me to
review. While many have given this book great reviews, I am not so sure
this portrays young women in a good way. I mean there is a lot of girls
that are slut-shamed and this book makes it look like it is ok. I had a
very hard time reading this book. I am certain that there are people who
will read this book and be fine with it. I understand that you have your
opinion and I have mine. But overall, I am not sure about this book.
Seventeen-year-old Mercedes Ayres has an open-door policy
when it comes to her bedroom, but only if the guy fulfills a
specific criteria: he has to be a virgin. Mercedes lets the
boys get their awkward fumbling first times over with, and
all she asks in return is that they give their girlfriends
the perfect first time-the kind Mercedes never had herself.
Keeping what goes on in her bedroom a secret has been easy -
so far. Her mother isn't home nearly enough to know about
Mercedes' extracurricular activities, and her uber-religious
best friend, Angela, won't even say the word "sex" until she
gets married. But Mercedes doesn't bank on Angela's
boyfriend finding out about her services and wanting a turn
- or on Zach, who likes her for who she is instead of what
she can do in bed.
When Mercedes' perfect system falls apart, she has to find a
way to salvage her own reputation -and figure out where her
heart really belongs in the process. Funny, smart, and
true-to-life, Laurie Elizabeth Flynn's Firsts is a
one-of-a-kind young adult novel about growing up.