Book Review: Fifteen by Beverly Cleary

Welcome back to Musings of an Arthritic Artist! Today I am going to be doing another book review, this one a review of Fifteen by Beverly Cleary.

This review is spoiler free.

With that aside, let's get into the review!

Fifteen is about a plain girl named Jane Purdy. This is a YA first love romance novel that was written in the 1950s. Jane meets Stan Crandall, a horse meat delivery boy.

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This story was so cute. I read this back in January 2019, when I was actually 15 myself. I had been reading a different book (a Love Inspired romance), but my mother wanted me to read something about characters who were around my age instead of in their 20s so I could relate to them more. My mom and I found this one, and my mother suggested I read Fifteen. I have a feeling she suggested I read it because it's by Beverly Cleary, one of my mother's favorite childhood authors.

This was my first full dive into YA contemporary romance, and while it isn't 2000s-2020s contemporary, it is quite obvious that this would've been considered contemporary at the time if the genre had been completely around. 

While there were a few things that dated this book (rotary phones, drive-ins [I miss going to those], and small diners [few exist like the ones that did in old photos I've seen from the 50s-60s]), it was largely relatable, even for me, a homeschooled girl who has never dated in her life. I did, after all, have a major crush on a boy I was friends with during my brief voyage to 1st grade public school around my middle school age, despite not seeing him often, nor actually going to the same school he did. Because of that, I could definitely relate to some of the feelings Jane experienced.

This book was a very quick read for me. I started and finished it in the same day. The plot and writing were so engaging to me that I finished it very quickly. I remember reading this on my Amazon Fire 7 tablet in the front yard of my old house. I finished reading it that night while lying in bed. I remember sitting on the sidewalk of my old house the next day, still thinking about the book, and how much I had a crush on Stan.

It was a fun time. It was a simple time, that was a very enjoyable experience. I love this romance. I love Jane, and I love Stan.

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Overall, I really enjoyed Fifteen, and I'd definitely re-read it. It's a nice clean, first love romance that has nothing suggestive. It was a perfect read for me at the time, and it's a book I genuinely love. It's been three years since I read this book, and I still love it. I'd definitely recommend it, but it's definitely not for everyone. 

This book is very old-fashioned, but that's one of the things I found so charming about it. I do realize though, that not everyone likes old-fashioned romance and societal romantic norms.

I gave this book 5 out of 5 stars on Goodreads when I read it because I just enjoyed it that much. It was definitely worth my time.

That's it for this review! I hope you enjoyed it! 

See you Thusday, 

Lexi K🖌