A Short History of the Girl Next Door by Jared Reck

Had not heard a thing about this book before it caught my eye on Blogging for Books, but it really grabbed my attention once I started reading it. Yes, it's YA, and has a lot of familiar elements, but there were some totally unexpected moments. It felt real. Matt's dilemmas with the girl next door/best friend and his passionate relationship with basketball all felt honest, even to woman of a certain age. (I'm not so old that I don't remember first love.) I loved the character of Mr Ellis, and wished I'd had him for an English teacher when I was a freshman. And thanks to this book, I'm going back and picking up Sherman Alexie's  The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, which I've started and stopped several times in the past. I need to read the tree scene, especially since I hd my own tree scene when hiking in the mountains last weekend.

Good job, Jared Reck.

Thank you to Blogging for Books and the publisher for sending me a copy.

From the publisher:
The unrequited love of the girl next door is the centerpiece of this fiercely funny, yet heart-breaking debut novel.

Fifteen-year-old Matt Wainwright is in turmoil. He can’t tell his lifelong best friend, Tabby, how he really feels about her; his promising basketball skills are being overshadowed by his attitude on the court, and the only place he feels normal is in English class, where he can express his inner thoughts in quirky poems and essays. Matt is desperately hoping that Tabby will reciprocate his feelings; but then Tabby starts dating Liam Branson, senior basketball star and all-around great guy. Losing Tabby to Branson is bad enough; but, as Matt soon discovers, he’s close to losing everything that matters most to him.