Review: Smart Girls Get What They Want by Sarah Strohmeyer

Author: Sarah Strohmeyer

Publisher: Balzer + Bray

Page Count: 348 pages, Hardcover

Date Published: June 26th 2012

Find it on Goodreads: Smart Girls Get What They Want

Source: Gifted (Ebook)

Gigi, Bea, and Neerja are best friends and total overachievers. Even if they aren't the most popular girls in school, they aren't too worried. They know their real lives will begin once they get to their Ivy League colleges. There will be ivy, and there will be cute guys in the libraries (hopefully with English accents)! But when an unexpected event shows them they're missing out on the full high school experience, it's time to come out of the honors lounge and into the spotlight. They make a pact: They will each take on their greatest challenge—and they will totally rock it.
Gigi decides to run for student rep, but she'll have to get over her fear of public speaking—and go head-to-head with gorgeous California Will. Bea used to be one of the best skiers around, until she was derailed. It could be time for her to take the plunge again. And Neerja loves the drama club but has always stayed behind the scenes—until now.
These friends are determined to show the world that smart girls really can get what they want—but that could mean getting way more attention than they ever bargained for. . . .

Smart Girls Get What They Want was a quirky and fun book that I think is great as a lazy-day, summer read! It was cute and an easy read and it made me smile!

While this isn't the most memorable book I have ever read, I did enjoy it quite a bit. Gigi was a great protagonist who, while a 'nerd' in the most typical sense: school, was also well balanced in that she enjoyed other things as well as studying... As you probably know, I'm what most people would (and do) call a nerd and I'm proud of it. But that doesn't mean I'm 100% SCHOOL SCHOOL SCHOOL. I like other things, too! (Yes, most of them are stuff like reading, sci-fi, comics, etc. but still..) But anyways, Gigi still cared about how she looked, she went on dates and she had more on her mind than just academics. I really liked Gigi. She was a good friend, funny and she was very relatable.

I loved the fact that this book mostly chronicled the three friends' journey towards getting themselves out there and not hiding away in the library anymore. The characters changed and grew as the story went on and I really appreciated the fact that it wasn't a slow and flawless process. Gigi faced her fear of public speaking, which was an extremely hard thing for her to do, but she had the help of her friends to push her through. Bea confronted her past and told her parents that their fears couldn't hold her back from her passions anymore and I truly admired her for that. Neerja did what she loved while also attempting to get closer with her longtime crush and her besties held her up through it all. The romance was sweet, as it wasn't right off the bat that Gigi is interested in the main love interest. It takes time for her to see through his exterior and her stereotypes. I thought it interesting that the author originally introduces Will, who Gigi sees as her type of guy, but she eventually sees that what's on the outside isn't enough. I really loved the growth Gigi went through in this book!

Overall, this is a good summer read that has a bit of romance, but is mainly about the journey the three girls go through towards making memories in high school and chasing their dreams, while also facing their fears. I'd recommend it to anyone looking for a cute, girly read!

Happy reading!
~Kristy