The Year of Secret Assignments

by Jaclyn Moriarty

[clementine]

The only book I can possibly have read more times than this one is The Phantom Tollbooth. I marked this down as my seventh read, but I'm not really sure how many times I've read it. A lot.

It's such a fast, fun, and engaging read, entirely told through letters, diary entries, emails, etc. Sometimes that format can be a bit gimmicky, but Jaclyn Moriarty does it so well. She uses it as a really great vehicle to paint a vivid picture of her characters, all of whom are distinct, interesting, and likeable without being perfect. This book is funny, but it's also touching. And it's even better when you read the others in the series and see how she pulls in the focus characters from the other books.

At this point I know I'm just really emotionally attached to this book since I've read it about a million times starting from when I was 11 or so, but I really do think it's fantastic, fantastic YA. It's one of the first books I remember really loving, and for good reason. It's intelligent, hilarious, and well-constructed. The story is great, and the characters are wonderful, but I think the format is what makes it so fantastic. The same can be said for the others in this series (which can all be read independently and out of order - I've read them all, some more than others, but this is the one I always come back to even though technically it's #2).

Seriously, if you like YA and you haven't read this series, please get to it. I'd probably start with Feeling Sorry For Celia, but if you're not terribly bothered with reading them in order this one is a good place to start. I think Cassie, Emily, and Lydia are probably Moriarty's best characters.