Review: Uses For Boys by Erica Lorraine Scheidt

Title: Uses For Boys

Author: Erica Lorraine Scheidt

Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Publication date: January 15th, 2013

Source: NetGalley

Format: eBook

Pages: 240

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Anna remembers a time before boys, when she was little and everything made sense. When she and her mom were a family, just the two of them against the world. But now her mom is gone most of the time, chasing the next marriage, bringing home the next stepfather. Anna is left on her own—until she discovers that she can make boys her family. From Desmond to Joey, Todd to Sam, Anna learns that if you give boys what they want, you can get what you need. But the price is high—the other kids make fun of her; the girls call her a slut. Anna's new friend, Toy, seems to have found a way around the loneliness, but Toy has her own secrets that even Anna can't know.

Then comes Sam. When Anna actually meets a boy who is more than just useful, whose family eats dinner together, laughs, and tells stories, the truth about love becomes clear. And she finally learns how it feels to have something to lose—and something to offer.

Don't judge a book by its cover... or synopsis. That was the lesson learnt in reading Uses For Boys. Are you expecting a short and cute contemporary? well I must warn you, this book is not for you. What started off as an innocent girl who never fit in anywhere, soon dramatically escalated into a girl jumping from one boy to another in a disturbing pace. Uses For Boys, in my opinion, is mislabeled. I do know some people who would appreciate the underlying point the author wanted to make through this book, I know I got it, but it was an uncomfortable experience, especially knowing that young teens might pick this up and read it. 

The writing of this novel is different. It isn't really told from any POVs, first, second, or third, and there is barely any dialogue, which I usually find annoying, but I actually enjoyed here. The writing style of Scheidt is different and unique and I found myself immersed in it and flipping the pages at a fast rate.. then we get to the disturbing over explicit scenes. I do not know why these scenes were needed, what point they were trying to make, reinforce the plot? I honestly wished these scenes were omitted. Also, throughout most of the novel there is this very discomforting feeling towards Anna and her daddy issues. I was also enraged at her mother's behavior; maybe because I could never imagine my mother being anything but selfless towards her children, I couldn't stand her mother's lack of interest towards her only child. 

Even with all of that, my confused feelings towards the book, I still wanted to continue reading it to find out what happens in the end. Anna does mature and grow up towards the end of the novel, salvage whatever was left of her daughter-mother relationship, and finally accept herself for who she is and become confident in her independence and her not needing a guy to define her. I give Scheidt points for keeping me interested through it all. I would recommend it to mature teens and ones who want to read something different.