Rules for Being a Girl by Candace Bushnell, Katie Cotugno Published: April 7, 2020
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It starts before you can even remember: You learn the rules for being a girl. . . .
Marin has always been good at navigating these unspoken guidelines. A star student and editor of the school paper, she dreams of getting into Brown University. Marin’s future seems bright—and her young, charismatic English teacher, Mr. Beckett, is always quick to admire her writing and talk books with her.
But when “Bex” takes things too far and comes on to Marin, she’s shocked and horrified. Had she somehow led him on? Was it her fault?
When Marin works up the courage to tell the administration what happened, no one believes her. She’s forced to face Bex in class every day. Except now, he has an ax to grind.
But Marin isn’t about to back down. She uses the school newspaper to fight back and she starts a feminist book club at school. She finds allies—and even romance—in the most unexpected people, like Gray Kendall, who she’d always dismissed as just another lacrosse bro.
As things heat up at school and in her personal life, Marin must figure out how to take back the power and write her own rules.
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Katie Cotugno told me over a year ago that she was writing a book with Candace Bushnell. I was so excited for her and the book. I knew it was going to be amazing even though I didn’t know what it was going to be about. Enter Rules for Being a Girl. As soon as I read the description I knew I was right and then I read it and I was more than right. Rules for Being a Girl was exactly what I expected to get from a powerhouse writing team and in the end I just wanted more.
Rules for Being a Girl is about Marin, a high school student that has always played by the rules and has had a plan.She is the editor of the school paper and has high aspirations to get into Brown University. Everything changes when Marin’s favorite teacher, popular Mr. Beckett (Bex), takes the student teacher relationship too far. Marin at first isn’t sure what to do but as some time passes she realizes she can’t stay quiet and brings it to the administration. Sadly no one believes her. But Marin refuses to backdown even when she has to see Bex in class everyday and her best friend doesn’t even have her back. Marin is alone, with one unlikely ally, but she is going to fight for herself and she doesn’t care what that means. All she knows is it is time to stop following the rules for being a girl.
I really really loved how well Cotugno and Bushnell handled the subject matter of Rules for Being a Girl. Marin 100% did the right thing. She did the hard thing. She did the unpopular thing. She broke the unspoken rules for being a girl and she paid the price for it and yet it still didn’t stop her. She wouldn’t be quieted down and I love that about her. And I loved how this horrible experience changed how she saw things and people in her life, like her unexpected ally Gray, who she had written if before. It showed Marin not only what other people are capable of but what she is capable of and who the world views people that dare to speak out.
In the end Rules for Being a Girl was a powerful story of what women can be subjected to. It’s a look at how people don’t always believe the victim and try to excuse away what they are saying. I loved every minute of this book. And truly it would have been a 5 star read if it was a little longer so I could have had some things tied up. But honestly this is a must read. Go and pick up a copy today.
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