Review: The Summer I Became a Nerd

Title: The Summer I Became a Nerd

Author: Leah Rae Miller
Source: Won from a blog giveaway! (Hooray!!!)
Challenge: Standalone Reading Challenge

Summary & Cover:

On the outside, seventeen-year-old Madelyne Summers looks like your typical blond cheerleader—perky, popular, and dating the star quarterback. But inside, Maddie spends more time agonizing over what will happen in the next issue of her favorite comic book than planning pep rallies with her squad. That she’s a nerd hiding in a popular girl's body isn’t just unknown, it's anti-known. And she needs to keep it that way.

Summer is the only time Maddie lets her real self out to play, but when she slips up and the adorkable guy behind the local comic shop’s counter uncovers her secret, she’s busted. Before she can shake a pom-pom, Maddie’s whisked into Logan’s world of comic conventions, live-action role-playing, and first-person-shooter video games. And she loves it. But the more she denies who she really is, the deeper her lies become…and the more she risks losing Logan forever.

Thoughts:
Straight up? I adored this book!!! These sweet, coming of age, figuring out yourself, loving the adorable boy books are totally up my alley!

Maddie was a great main character. In the beginning of the book, she found out just how hard it would be to be a nerd growing up through middle and high school. So she'd never be made to feel awful about her love for comics and all things nerdy, she became what she thought she had to be: a popular cheerleader hanging with other cheerleaders and dating the football player.

When Maddie ran into Logan, they instantly had that thing. That connection. That whatever you want to call it. It wasn't instant love. No, no. Even though Maddie dated the football player, she knew who Logan was and had always thought he was "adorkable" and cute. Likewise, Logan had liked her since 9th grade, when he moved to Natchitoches.

Logan went along with her hiding herself from who she really was, but helped her embrace it by inviting her into his life and activities. She fit right in and loved it! But how was she supposed to enjoy doing all of those things, and hang out with this super adorkable boy while she was avoiding her friends and her boyfriend? How could she be a nerd, but stay popular and not become a laughing stock?

The path of figuring out who she was and who she wanted to be was hard for her. She figured herself out and had some great advice from her parents, brother, Logan's mom, and his friend, Dan. (Dan was funny!)

Rating:

Completely my kind of book: nerds and adorableness adorkableness!