Sloppy Firsts Review

Jessica Darling is the voice of the early 200s or Y2K generation as she refers to her and her high school classmates whom she despises and resents to varying degrees. But she has no one else to hang out with since her best friend, Hope moved so she settles for the “Clueless Club” to sit with as she zones out of their rapid monologuing of shopping, boys and dances.

I say she is the voice of the Y2K because much like Judy Blume, Mccafferty doesn’t shy away from the rawness and teenage angst in all its messy glory like Jessica’s selfishness, her existential crises, her judgyness, her earnestness and all the feelings in between. She’s in that awkward spot of being cognitively more mature than her peers but flat as a 12 year old (and her period has disappeared to boot). She’s so over the poseur high school scene but she plays into it as well because she doesn’t want to be alone. A bit hypocritical but uber relatable.

However, there is one classmate that seems to challenge her on an intellectual level and it totally freaks her out, Macrus Flautie, the school stoner. He doesn’t seem that smart but his able to see past her facade of normalcy and gets her deadpan, sarcasm. He also asks her to pee in a cup so he can pass a drug test. Yeah, intellectual, creative with a dash of danger. Marcus may not be an adorkable preppy boy but he’s got skills. No wonder he’s nickname is Krispy Kreme.

There’s mot much overarching plot as this is just journel entries over the course of Jessica’s sophmore year, detailing her opinions on everyone and everything and all the turmoil in between. There’s plenty of drama between Jessica’s outsider status in her family, the Clueless Club’s backstabbing friendship, and her denial over the exact feelings she has for Matt and whether he reciprocates. Like I said, it’s relatable and while it’s nothing, readers haven’t seen before Jessica’s voice is humorous and no frills that makes me compulsively read more.

It helps that much like her predecessor Blume, McCafferty hits at intensely universal feelings such as when Jessica can’t take her parents anymore. They’re tired of her moping and PMS-ing, telling her to get perspective. Okay, yes, she’s not dying or in a third world country but it just feels like everytime they tell her to get a better perspective, she has no real problems and just be happy, she feels like they’re dismissing her feelings. She does have problems, they feel big to her, can’t she get a little bit of sympathy?

Another great point, McCafferty explores is the problem with fixed impressions of people. People have nuance, they change and for all Jessica believes herself to be as a discerning individual, she gets played as easily as anyone else. Falling for the perception and her quick judgements of how people used to be as barometers for how they are now. Therefore, several characters end up surprising her in the long run.

I loved the intro to Jessica’s world and her rambling, slightly neurotic-depressive mind, bringing back the nostalgia of early 2000s. Even though I was only 4, I felt like I was there with the references to Britney Spears and The Real World in its dated glory. I can’t wait to see more, I highly recommend.

5 stars.