Boys R Us Review

What is an alpha to do without her clique? Better yet, what is a clique to do without their alpha? Lisi Harrison’s Boys R Us pushes these problems on the Pretty Committee and shows how they deal. This book was fun to read and very easy to relate to.

Boys R Us tales place after Massie Block disbands her clique the Pretty Committee. Much to her surprise, the other members Kristen, Alicia, and Dylan are quick to leave. Clare, however, hates to see her friends torn apart, so she decides to stay neutral. Alicia, the old “beta” of the Pretty Committee, sees endless possibilities. Since Massie was the only girl without a beau, she insisted that the other girls ditch boys. Without Massie as their alpha, the girls can do whatever they want. Alicia starts a new clique called the Soul M-8s, the first boy-girl clique in the history of the school. Massie decides to take charge and start her own dominant clique that she calls MAC, or Massie And Crew. Too bad everyone has heard of Massie’s over-controlling tendencies because no one is jumping at the chance to join. Instead, Massie hires gorgeous but brainless models to play her new friends. Can the girls get over their problems to come back together as the Pretty Committee once more?

After reading the book, I determined that the theme for this book is the same as that of the other books in the Clique Series. That is that being popular or having the best clothes, best looking friends, or best boyfriend is not important. Instead, the most important is to have good friends that really care about you.

Lisi Harrison writes this book from the point of view of all five members of the Pretty Committee. She writes in a very easy to read way that sounds like what a teenager would think or say. Some passages include text conversations, IM conversations, notes, or written lists. These different styles add variety to the book.

The main characters in the book are very easy to imagine. They are well described. I can even see characteristics of myself, my friends, or other people I know in them. It is interesting to see how the characters act in different situations. For example, at school, Massie is a confident alpha with impeccable style. When she’s at home or with her friends, she is insecure. Each character has different characteristics that sum up what they are all about.

The setting of Boys R Us is New York. Each scene is described to that the reader can clearly see what the characters see. Lisi Harrison describes everything, including what each girl is wearing, in great detail.

Because of the characters, Boys R Us is very easy to connect to. Any teen aged girl can relate to the problems that the Pretty Committee goes through. The characters think and feel like we do when put in situations, and even though we may not live lives like theirs, we can imagine how we would respond.

As always, I loved this book. I say as always because I really like all of the books in the Clique Series. They are easy to read, but they are still entertaining. I would recommend this book for every teenage girl.

320 Pages