Synopsis
Ruthie Bayer learns that finding yourself may only be a matter of looking in the right place at the right time. Ruthie Bayer is stuck. Her mom is totally overprotective, her dad is nonexistent, and her best friends can't help her now when she needs them most: Out of the blue, Ruthie has fallen in love with the boy next door, Perry. Perry has suddenly grown up and made her heart go 'thwang', and Ruthie has no idea what to do about it. Then a new girl shows up at school, and Ruthie realizes she has to do something, and fast.
Jenna is perfect, from her perfectly straight hair to her perfectly manicured toes. Perry's noticed her, too, and worse, Jenna has noticed him right back. Ruthie knows she has to call her aunt, New York's "Goddess of Love." If Aunt Marty, romance columnist and woman of the world, can't turn Ruthie into a perfect girl, no one can...but she might also turn Ruthie's entire world upside down.
KLIATT
To quote the review of the hardcover in KLIATT, March 2007: The perfect girl of the title has only a walk-on part in this novel. She's who 14-year-old Ruth from tiny Odessa, Delaware, wants to be so that she can enthrall Perry, the boy next door since they were both in diapers, into falling in love with her as she has with him. She is cursed with a seriously uncool (i.e., neurotic, fat and single) mother; her father is an unknown strand of DNA, and her only other living relative, her glamorous Aunt Marty, seems to be off-limits by her mom's decree. Fortunately, Ruthie is blessed with three best friends, and when she calls her aunt on the sly, the aunt comes to town to take control. Family secrets spill out (though not enough to fill all the plot holes). Ruthie tries to learn from "Martine" how to become "the perfect girl," with limited success. An adventure in Washington, DC, at the Smithsonian and an unexpected death propel her further into maturity—as mature as a 14-year-old girl with no serious problems can be. Eventually, all her fantasies come true. The novel is supposed to be funny and appealing. The themes are about what makes a true family and how girls can best interact with boys. All of the advice is good and there are some humorous moments, but no issue is explored too deeply here. For instance, do 14-year-old girls really need to know (or be told) that silk underpants will make them more sensual and confident because they are wearing a delicious secret? One stunning insight is reiterated: sex between 14-year-olds is never a good idea. Reviewer: Myrna Marler