Life has not been the best thing for Nicole Sparks. Nicole or Colie for most of her life was fat. Her and her mom lived for traveling and eating junk food. Never staying anywhere more than a few months Colie was used to being the new fat kid. This was true until her mom met God. Or her type of God. Her God was a fitness guru who taught Colie’s mom into becoming Kiki Sparks a fitness guru. With her help Colie loses those extra 45 pounds and becomes a whole new person. The school’s slut. Yes it seems the weight is not the only thing dragging Colie down. With her mom doing a Kiki’s Sparks European Tour Colie is force to live with her aunt in Colby for the summer.

The summer of Colie in Colby is what the book is based off of. With no friends and low self-esteem Colie is shipped off angrily on a train heading for Colby. There she meets her aunt’s roommate Norman. Soon after she arrived she gets a job at Last Chance Colby’s bar and grill. There she meets fellow waitresses Isabel and Morgan. With Isabel and Morgan help, Colie learns who she is, and what friendship truly means.

Sarah Dessen can again turn our world inside out with her books. This one tops some of my list for once getting a guy is not the number one thing on Colie’s mind. It does happen for it is still Sarah Dessen; but it is not the number one thing in this book. This book also goes into the troubles of bullying, being fat, and not knowing who you are. You get to see fat Colie turn into slut Colie, into punk Colie with her lip ring and badly dyed hair into Colie who gets to come out during this book. In the end Colie learns how to stand up for herself and be proud of who she is.