Author: Mary H.K. Choi
Genre: Young Adult, romance
Published on: March 27, 2018 by Simon & Schuster
From debut author Mary H.K. Choi comes a
compulsively readable novel that shows young love in all its awkward
glory—perfect for fans of Eleanor & Park and To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before.
For Penny Lee, high school was a total nonevent. Her friends were okay, her grades were fine, and while she’d somehow landed a boyfriend, they never managed to know much about each other. Now Penny is heading to college in Austin, Texas, to learn how to become a writer. It’s seventy-nine miles and a zillion light years away from everything she can’t wait to leave behind.
Sam’s stuck. Literally, figuratively, emotionally, financially. He works at a cafĂ© and sleeps there too, on a mattress on the floor of an empty storage room upstairs. He knows that this is the god-awful chapter of his life that will serve as inspiration for when he’s a famous movie director but right this second the seventeen bucks in his checking account and his dying laptop are really testing him.
When Sam and Penny cross paths it’s less meet-cute and more a collision of unbearable awkwardness. Still, they swap numbers and stay in touch—via text—and soon become digitally inseparable, sharing their deepest anxieties and secret dreams without the humiliating weirdness of having to, you know, see each other.
For Penny Lee, high school was a total nonevent. Her friends were okay, her grades were fine, and while she’d somehow landed a boyfriend, they never managed to know much about each other. Now Penny is heading to college in Austin, Texas, to learn how to become a writer. It’s seventy-nine miles and a zillion light years away from everything she can’t wait to leave behind.
Sam’s stuck. Literally, figuratively, emotionally, financially. He works at a cafĂ© and sleeps there too, on a mattress on the floor of an empty storage room upstairs. He knows that this is the god-awful chapter of his life that will serve as inspiration for when he’s a famous movie director but right this second the seventeen bucks in his checking account and his dying laptop are really testing him.
When Sam and Penny cross paths it’s less meet-cute and more a collision of unbearable awkwardness. Still, they swap numbers and stay in touch—via text—and soon become digitally inseparable, sharing their deepest anxieties and secret dreams without the humiliating weirdness of having to, you know, see each other.
Lately (I’m writing this review in early 2021) I’ve been borrowing Kindle ebooks from my public library. I’ve never done it before because I like to buy my books. It’s why I haven’t subscribed to something like Kindle Unlimited. I don’t see the point, even though it'd be worth it for me seeing how many books I read every month. But the pandemic has hit me rather hard, like it has done to many people. So I’ve turned to borrowing ebooks, especially ones that I’m not 100% sure I’ll like. Did Emergency Contact turn out to be a good read?
This is an unconventional romance novel written by an Asian author. The main characters are Penny Lee, an Asian college freshman, and Sam Becker, an employee at a small restaurant. Their story takes place in Austin, Texas, one of my favorite cities. Penny is a highly memorable character: she’s incredibly smart yet rather socially inept. While I was reading, Penny felt a little bit like a Carrie Pilby kind of girl. I didn’t like Pilby, so I was apprehensive. I ended up liking Penny very much, way more than Carrie. Whereas Pilby was exasperating to me due to her cluelessness, Penny just felt adorable.
Sam is much like Penny. He doesn’t seem as intelligent, but he acts and thinks a lot like Penny does. They meet after Penny moves to Austin for college. Penny’s roommate is a fun girl named Jude Lange. Sam happens to be her uncle, even though they’re almost the same age (you’ll have to read the book to learn why they’re related). Penny helps Sam through a rough spot, after which they exchange numbers. They designate each other as their “emergency contact”. It’s a sort of therapist arrangement, but it’s not as awkward as it sounds. Penny and Sam soon find themselves confiding things in each other they wouldn’t yet share with other people.
As I mentioned, Penny has a curious way of thinking. She often finds herself in uncomfortable situations, and the way she handles them is amusing. Penny comes up with a mental checklist of possible responses to the situation. It’s like her brain runs some sort of cutting-edge AI. I didn’t know anyone did that, and I find it hilarious. Just imagine if Emergency Contact was a movie and Penny’s checklists showed up in front of her vision, HUD-style. That would be a riot. But there were a few times when Penny’s thoughts were over the top or just plain weird. This turned off many readers, from some reviews that I perused.
Emergency Contact has the looks of a popular YA romance, such as The Sun is Also a Star or The Upside of Unrequited. While it’s quite entertaining and often amusing, that’s all there’s to it. This book wasn’t as good as it appeared to be. Maybe it’s because I’m not the target demographic. Emergency Contact didn’t leave me wowed, but at least it wasn’t boring. If you’re looking for a novel to just pass time with, this will fit the bill. Look elsewhere if you prefer more interesting characters or a story where there’s an actual antagonist.
This is an unconventional romance novel written by an Asian author. The main characters are Penny Lee, an Asian college freshman, and Sam Becker, an employee at a small restaurant. Their story takes place in Austin, Texas, one of my favorite cities. Penny is a highly memorable character: she’s incredibly smart yet rather socially inept. While I was reading, Penny felt a little bit like a Carrie Pilby kind of girl. I didn’t like Pilby, so I was apprehensive. I ended up liking Penny very much, way more than Carrie. Whereas Pilby was exasperating to me due to her cluelessness, Penny just felt adorable.
Sam is much like Penny. He doesn’t seem as intelligent, but he acts and thinks a lot like Penny does. They meet after Penny moves to Austin for college. Penny’s roommate is a fun girl named Jude Lange. Sam happens to be her uncle, even though they’re almost the same age (you’ll have to read the book to learn why they’re related). Penny helps Sam through a rough spot, after which they exchange numbers. They designate each other as their “emergency contact”. It’s a sort of therapist arrangement, but it’s not as awkward as it sounds. Penny and Sam soon find themselves confiding things in each other they wouldn’t yet share with other people.
As I mentioned, Penny has a curious way of thinking. She often finds herself in uncomfortable situations, and the way she handles them is amusing. Penny comes up with a mental checklist of possible responses to the situation. It’s like her brain runs some sort of cutting-edge AI. I didn’t know anyone did that, and I find it hilarious. Just imagine if Emergency Contact was a movie and Penny’s checklists showed up in front of her vision, HUD-style. That would be a riot. But there were a few times when Penny’s thoughts were over the top or just plain weird. This turned off many readers, from some reviews that I perused.
Emergency Contact has the looks of a popular YA romance, such as The Sun is Also a Star or The Upside of Unrequited. While it’s quite entertaining and often amusing, that’s all there’s to it. This book wasn’t as good as it appeared to be. Maybe it’s because I’m not the target demographic. Emergency Contact didn’t leave me wowed, but at least it wasn’t boring. If you’re looking for a novel to just pass time with, this will fit the bill. Look elsewhere if you prefer more interesting characters or a story where there’s an actual antagonist.
My rating: ★★★ 1/2
3.5 stars - It's pretty good!
No comments:
Post a Comment