"You just have to find the person who annoys you the least (at least according to Dr. Phil), or rather, annoys you in a way you can stand." (Jane Harris)
HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! That's what I did the whole time while reading Every Boy's Got One. This is the most hilarious book in the Boy series, but it's also the one that I least enjoyed reading.
Every Boy's Got One follows the same format as the previous Boy novels. It's told through emails, slips, passports, documents, a travel diary and PDA entries. I admire the effort and creativity involved in executing this book format and making it into a story. However, the second Boy novel, Boy Meets Girl, had a variety of written forms of communication which made it an extremely strong novel. Every Boy's Got One relies more on journal entries and less on other forms of communication.
In Every Boy's Got One, Holly and Mark are planning to elope in Italy because their parents don't approve of their marriage. They need two witnesses. Holly brings along her best friend and maid of honour, Jane Harris, whose cartoon "Wondercat" is published worldwide. Mark brings along his best friend and best man, Cal Langdon. Unfortunately, the best man and the maid of honour start off on the wrong foot.
Every Boy's Got One has a different setting from the other Boy stories. While the previous novels revolve around what goes on in The New York Journal and New York, Every Boy's Got One, takes place in Rome and a quaint and charming place, Le Marche, in Italy. I love books that have different settings and travelling!
Jane Harris is hilarious, sarcastic, obnoxious, one of those stereotypical American travelers and wears shoes that she can't walk in properly. Cal is an obnoxious and bossy jerk who always thinks he's right and doesn't believe in love and marriage. He is also trying to subtly discourage Mark from getting married to Holly and Jane won't won't have it.
Jane and Cal have a mutual dislike to love relationship and an "opposites attract" romance. These are two of my favourite romance tropes. In Every Boy's Got One it's interesting to see Jane and Cal's relationship unfold, but I expected more chemistry from them. I've also read much better hate-to-love and opposite attract romances than the one in Every Boy's Got One. Also, Cal's complete change of view from a guy who didn't believe in marriage and love to a guy who is willing to give love a chance, just because he met someone who he is attracted to, is out of the blue and based on his characterisation, unrealistic.
My favourite people in Every Boy's Got One is Mark and Holly. They are adorable and are meant for each other. The hijinks that occur on their Italian trip and the complications involving their elopement is humourous.
Every Boy's Got One is a chick-lit. It isn't a book that deals with serious topics, nor is it a book that's supposed to make you think about life and death and the way the world works. It's a book that meant to be make you laugh and make you feel better. Every Boy's Got One did exactly what it was supposed to do!
"Right. You know what I don't believe in? People who don't believe in TV." (Jane Harris)