My book review: Carpe Diem

Vassar Spore had her whole life planned out for her: 5.3 GPA, Valadictorian of Seattle School of Academic Excellence, and get a ph.D from Vassar. As her mother being a life coach and extreme planner, why not start with her daughter, right? Vassar is in every AP and AAP she can be in as a Sophmore, and it's not because she's great at school, it's because she plans right, and is prepared for anything. Her life was going just the way she wanted...until the phone call. Vassar has never seen her grandmother before but her sixteenth birthday present form her is an expense-free trek through Malaysia. But, this trip is over the summer, and practically all summer, interfereing with her academic career, which means maybe dropping her 5.3 GPA and ultimatley losing her title of Valedictorian. Will Vassar take this "trip of a lifetime" with a woman she's never laid eyes on? Is it worth enough to maybe give up her life goals? Follow Vassar through a summer she thought she'd never have, filled with adventure, difficulty, learning about herself, romance, a secret bigger than the Empire State Building, and having to Live in the Moment.

The way Autumn Cornwell writes this novel is intriguing. She writes so any reader can see, smell, taste, hear, and touch what is going on; I felt like I was in the story, with the protagonist in every minute of her day. I can also connect with Vassar because she faces obstacles that any teenage girl( or really any person in high school) in high school will/ have had to face. I learned a couple facts about Malaysia too. I wouldn't recommend this story for men because I don't think after reading it I'd read it if I were a guy, but it is a great story of perseverence, determination, finding out who you truly are, and being able to walk outside the circle.