YES to Sassy, Curvy Women

Savannah AKA Savvy (how adorable is that nickname?) is one of my favorite kinds of leading lady.

Savvy is smart (YES!), snarky, driven, and curvy. I like seeing a female, teen protagonist who can get sh*t done instead of needing someone else to lead her around. Savvy is a senior in high school, thinking about college plans and how she'll survive the school year without her older sister, the buffer between Savvy and their weight-obsessed mother.

Despite her mother's questionable intentions, and much to her mother's dismay, Savvy is happy with her body. She's short, she's curvy, and she's unapologetic about it. She still wears cute dresses, knows how to do a smokey eye (I cannot master that), and can do killer fishtail braids. Martin creates a leading lady who doesn't hide behind giant baggy sweatshirts just because she's heavier than the average.

Even though Savvy has a healthy image of her body, the important question comes up- How do you reconcile what you see when you look in the mirror with what others push upon you? Savvy has to battle other people's demons in order to keep her own positivity strong. Like Savvy's sister tells her, Savvy is stronger than she thinks.

I think we need a lot more Savvy's out there. Girls, no matter their size, need role models that teach them that beauty has no size, and everyone is allowed (and encouraged) to find the beauty in themselves.

Along with Savvy and her family, we meet George and Grace. Grace is Savvy's longtime (and seemingly only) close friend, and George is Grace's cousin. Despite Savvy's insistence that boys are never interested in the girls "like her", George comes onto the scene as a potential love interest. Savvy and George's relationship is a little awkward, but their mutual enthusiasm (I totally want my own hype man, too) and lovable dork moments make them a cute match.

Wish List

If there's one thing I wish about To Be Honest, it's that it came in an extended edition. Martin gives us a lot of big issues: Savvy's relationship with both her mother and father (divorced), her mother's faltering parenting abilities and obsession with weight-loss, Savvy learning how to live without her sister, George & Savvy's relationship (will they? won't they?), and the school sports scandal that Savvy and Grace are investigating for their school's newspaper.

Despite all of these plot-lines (and god help me, they're ALL interesting) the book goes by way too fast. I wish there were another 100 pages, so each of them could get more page time and detail. I was particularly intrigued by the school sports scandal, but it took a backseat to all of the personal issues in Savvy's life; honestly, if something had to go, that would be a prime target. Although it's really cool to see that aspect of Savvy's interests and skills, I'd gladly read a version where that page time was donated to one of the other conflicts.

Overall, To Be Honest reminded me of Julie Murphy's Dumplin' (for once, the ads are right). Even though I think Dumplin' was more focused, stronger, To Be Honest was a fun read with some heartwarming moments between Savvy, her family, and friends.

Yes, body positivity. Yes, sassy women. Yes, intelligent, strong, brave girls.

I'd totally dig into more of Martin's books, any day.