In “A Little Sisterly Advice,” Julia is going away to college at Utah State University. After living with her socialite sister Bianca for the summer, she feels ready to hit the books and hit the keys, as well – a talented piano player, she’s going to major in music. It will be hard to leave home; she’ll miss her family, but they aren’t too far away and she can go home for weekends. However, that is something she’s been warned not to do. Bianca says she’ll get more dates if she stays on campus during the weekends. Bianca has, in fact, made Julia an entire set of cards with do’s and don’ts written all over them as a guide for Julia’s freshman year.
Julia’s first week, she runs right into the man of her dreams. As she regains her balance, she catches a whiff of a heavenly smell – combination of aftershave, soap, and just pure good-lookingness. After doing some private detective work, she discovers his name is Daniel, and she decides to catch his eye, no matter what it takes.
Meanwhile, her little sister Cathy and her friend Jed invite her to hang out with them, and she gets involved in her sister’s life. Jed is also a very fascinating young man, but she doesn’t want to get too involved there – after all, he’s Cathy’s friend and she wouldn’t want to intrude on her sister’s relationships. In the end, Cathy and Jed help her to achieve everything she’s ever wanted, and she realizes where her priorities should have been all along.
I did enjoy this LDS young adult novel. The dialogue was good, and the embarrassing predicaments Julia finds herself in are quite hilarious. I did find it unrealistic, however, that her roommate’s eating disorder wasn’t noticed immediately. (I noticed it, and I’m not even the girl’s roommate.) When the disorder was finally brought to life, it was solved too easily. Anorexia takes a lot of treatment and goes beyond a simple decision to just start eating. I wish the author had delved more into this aspect, as it is a very large issue for young women today. Overall, however, it was an enjoyable read.
(This book was published by Spring Creek in 2006.)
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