Review: The Anatomy of a Single Girl

Author: Daria Snadowsky
Date of Publication: January 8, 2013
Pages: 227
Source: Received from the Author for review
With Judy Blume-like honesty and insight, this sequel to Anatomy of a Boyfriend is about life after first love--romance, sex, friendship, family, and the ups and downs of life as a single girl.

After everything that happened—my first boyfriend, my first time, my first breakup—jumping back into the dating game seemed like the least healthy thing I could do. It’s not that I didn’t want to fall in love again, since that’s about the best feeling ever. But as a busy college premed still raw from heartbreak, which is the worst feeling ever, I figured I’d lie low for a while. Of course, as soon as I stopped looking for someone, an impossibly amazing—and devastatingly cute—guy came along, and I learned that having a new boyfriend is the quickest way to recover from losing your old one.

The moment we got together, all my preconceptions about romance and sex were turned upside down. I discovered physical and emotional firsts I never knew existed. I learned to let go of my past by living in the present. It was thrilling. It was hot. It was just what the doctor ordered.

But I couldn’t avoid my future forever.

In Daria Snadowsky’s daring follow-up to Anatomy of a Boyfriend, eighteen-year-old Dominique explores the relationship between love and lust, and the friendships that see us through.


Review: 

The Anatomy of a Single Girl is the story of  Dominique. She is fresh off her first year of pre-med, first boyfriend and first heartbreak. Now on vacation, all she wants is some down time with her best friend Amy and to shadow a doctor for her internship at the hospital. However, things don't always turn out the way one plans and Dom's summer of quiet turns quickly into one of firsts and lasts, highs and lows all leading to one important revelation.

If I was asked to describe The Anatomy of a Single Girl in one word I would say honest. Anyone who has read it will agree with me. Snadowsky did not refrain from being frank with her readers. Her frankness really set the tone for her writing and helped make the read more realistic. Almost every aspect of the book from the setting to the dialogue and more helped build the realism until I felt like I was reading someone's memoir or watching someone's life unfold in front of me.

Snadowsky's writing was very nice and clear. It sounded like an 18 year old girl speaking and not an adult. The dialogue was fun and quirky with the exception of some parts that I had to note. One in particular that I noticed was between the protagonist and a male friend. They decide on doing something together and so they exclaim "Yeah, let's do it!" Immediately after, they burst into giggles. Ugh no! Thankfully that is the only comment of its variety that I found in the novel so things turned up from that point!

I found Dom relatable. She was just a girl trying to find her place in the world; make friends and find love. She was really smart, as a pre-med should be, and I enjoyed her little medical or just random nerdy facts here and there. It made the read more unique in my opinion.

As for the other characters, I didn't learn much about them, which is one of the cons of the story. I found Dom's parents were always absent and didn't really get to have a dominant role in the story. Same goes for her friends, or lack there of.  Amy, who is basically her only friend, was not my type of person. I found her to be quite mean. The things she said were always put downs in disguise and then she would up and fly away for the next few chapters then pop back in.

Overall, despite some hitches here and there, I really enjoyed the book. It started out slow but picked up quickly and I was wondering what would happen next. I found some great lessons being taught as well which is always nice. It's just a very nice, fun story of a girl and a very wild summer. I recommend it to any one who wished to delve into a funny and drama packed read. Keep in mind though that this is new adult therefore sex and mild language is present.

-MARI

13 comments:

  1. This sounds generally light and quite well-rounded. I like books that are honest, and Dom seems like a relatable character. It's a shame that you couldn't connect with Amy as well; she sounds like an unpleasant character. I'm glad you enjoyed this one overall. Lovely review, Mari! :)

    Aa'Ishah @ Reading Under the Stars

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    1. Thanks, I'm glad you liked the review :)

      -Mari

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  2. Hello! ^-^" Nice to meet you!

    I haven't heard about this one before! But I love the honesty mentioned because frauds are a no-no for me. But my initial thoughts compared to what actually is mentioned in your lovely review totally blew me off! The cover just made me think something very fun but it's always pleasant when I book is much more.

    A big gigantic awkward glomp for the follow so I have followed you back! <33 I hope to get to know you better?

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    1. I'm glad you liked it. This one definitely is not just what it looks like. It still has the fun and craziness but it comes off as really realistic and not sugar coated by any means.

      Thanks for the follow and I would love to get to know better as well :)

      -Mari

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  3. This sounds really fun and I'm glad that overall it was a good read - I have this to read, too!

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    1. I hope you enjoy it as well. I'll be sure to check out your review :)

      -Mari

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  4. I've been seeing this one around. I haven't read the first book, but by your description it sounds a little like the Jessica Darling series, which I'm currently re-reading…
    Thanks so much for stopping by! Jen @ YA Romantics

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    1. I haven't read the Jessica Darling series so I can't say if they are similar or not. If you do want to check this one out, you don't have to read the first book, but it will spoil the first one for you.

      -Mari

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  5. Honest is definitely the word to describe this book! While I wasn't a big fan of Dom or really any of the characters, I did appreciate the honesty and frankly, I probably got more out of this book than I did from my seventh grade health class. I didn't like this one as much as Anatomy of a Boyfriend- probably due to the slow start as you mentioned - but it's still pretty good! :)

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    1. Haha that's very true! Some of the health lessons had my eyes popping out of my head. Thanks for dropping by :)

      -Mari

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  6. I love the sound of the setting of this one-through her first year of pre-med makes this sound like New Adult but like an NA book I might actually want to read. So many of them just seemed focused on sex and I would like a little bit more content in my stories.

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    1. There definitely were parts where it resembled the stereotypical NA novels, but instead of focusing on true love and romantic relationships this one was realistic and brought forth some life lessons like "you're not going to find your soul-mate in your first/second bf".

      -Mari

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  7. I read this book earlier in the year and loved it <3 I agree with you on some things like the characters, but overall it was good and felt real, in addition to the message it delivers :)

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