THESE BOOKS ARE ADDICTING

The fact that our main character in this book was so much like me that it made the book all the more enjoy able. Rory Swenson is turning 12 and has a list of things she is looking forward to. She actually has a list of all the things her parents have promised her over the years. "When your twelve" is the constant refrain. But the beginning of the story starts with Rory and her class on a field trip to the town water source. She somehow gets stuck in a drain pipe and gets helped out by an old l

Lots of hilarious moments, cute story overall.

Okay, I was really disappointed with this one. I liked "11 Birthdays" and loved "Every Soul a Star" so I expected to like this one too. Not so much. First of all, I didn't really think that the items on Rory's list were especially ambitious. I am an overprotective parent. Her parents were whack-jobs. Okay, whatever. They set their parameters and they stuck to them. I can accept that. However. You don't go from helicopter parent to totally cutting your kid loose overnight just because she turns 1...

I'm a fan of Wendy Mass, but unfortunately, her talents seem to have gone to waste here. The whole book was an uncomfortably heavy-handed lesson about how selfish teenagers can be and how they need to learn to appreciate life's core values. The main character, Rory, got reward after reward for her twelfth birthday, and every single one was ruined in the most contrived way possible. Never once was it stated why wanting these things was so bad. Sure, her wishes were materialistic, but since she di...

Finally is a part of the Willow Falls series, but the character from the first book 11 Birthdays are background characters you don't interact with too much until the end. Rory is having a bit of a hard time and just when her school is being a part of a teenage film - she ends up cast as an extra but all sorts of things start going wrong - she has an allergic reaction to gold earrings, natural make up and her new pet bunny is trying to kill her. I really love the message of these books and the li...

This review is also available on my blog, Read Till Dawn.Hopefully you will have read my review of 11 Birthdays, the first book in the Willow Falls series, before reading this review. I am reviewing all four of the books in the series because I started rereading all of them when I was recovering from wrist surgery (side note: physical therapy is going well!). While I love the first book, I haven't actually purchased it yet. I don't really know why, but I've always just thought that if I wanted t...

haha i read this like 4 years ago or something and didn't even know it was the 2nd book in a series; it's the only one i read whoops

Maybe it's sad to admit, but I couldn't get through this book. It bored me to tears. The pacing was too slow, I mean come on Wendy-- ten whole pages stuck in a drainage pipe?! Ten pages! Who has the patience for this?And maybe it's because things were different when I turned 12, or because I'm not 12 now . . . I don't know. But I just couldn't feel sorry for this girl and how her life hadn't "begun" when she had a nice family who cared for her, a cute little brother, a couple of friends who were...

I didn't expect to enjoy this book so much! Better than 11 Birthdays. It had me laughing with tears in my eyes - growing up was just like this. And what a great thread running behind the story, not forced or preachy but so wise.There are a few wincing moments - Rory is always managing to injure herself and you really feel her pain - so it's not for a squeamish young reader. And while Rory has a beautiful simplicity and is courageously independent (at least by the end of the book) the behavio

I had loved 11 Birthdays and so was especially disappointed with this pseudo-sequel (really, pretty much a completely independent story). Much of it takes place in a mall, following the main character who has finally turned 12 and will now get to do a whole list of things her family said she had to wait until she was 12 to do - like get a pet, get her ears pierced, etc (all activities that are accomplished by going to the mall, pretty much). Her list is lame, her parents are lame, and there are

finally finished it!

Rory wants to be 12 like yesterday because her utterly-overprotective parents will FINALLY let her shave her legs, drink coffee, wear make-up, get a pet, go to boy-girl parties, and best of all, get her a cell phone. When the big day finally arrives, Rory makes a chart filled with all her deepest desires and proudly displays it in the living room. Tired of being blah and boring, Rory is set on standing out a little more. When news that teen heart-throb Jake Harrison will be filming a movie at Ro...

Finally was a great book with the classic lesson, don't rush to grow up. Have fun while it lasts because when you grow up later, you might realize it's not fun being older and you wish you were younger but like they say, there's no turning back now. I would recommend this book to any good reader who loves an interesting story and I'm excited to read more from Wendy Mass! Amazing Book :)

My husband smiles as he hears the ruckus coming from my daughter’s room. She and I are lying on her bed, howling with laughter, tears running down our faces. And so it was every night as I read Finally by Wendy Mass to my 8 year-old daughter. Needless to say, we have become instant fans of this new to us author.The story is about Rory Swenson who upon turning twelve has a wish list of things she is now allowed to do and has wanted to do for so long, such as getting a cell phone, drinking coffee,...

Summary Rory is turning twelve and in her eleven years she made a list of things her parents promised her she could do when she turned twelve. On her birthday she gave a presentation to her parents about each thing on the list and how important it was to her. At Rory's school her best friend Annabelle told her that the famous teenage movie star was going to star in a movie that was shooting at their school. Annabelle and Rory tried out for extras and made it! The whole week Rory's mom decided to...

I write middle grade novels and consequently my editor recommended this to me. She said she thought there werr similarities. At first I didn't agree but as the book progressed there were more and more parts that reminded me of my book.I feel encouraged as I seek representation because I feel certain that the same kids that enjoy Finally will also enjoy True Colors.

Reviewed by Sally Kruger aka "Readingjunky" for TeensReadToo.comDo you remember when your parents used to tell you "wait until you're 12" or "wait until you're 16"? You were, no doubt, just like Rory Swenson and created a list of things you would "someday" be able to do or have. FINALLY, that day has arrived for Rory.Being 12 means being on the edge of her teen years. Rory can hardly sleep the night before. She's thinking of her list - getting a cell phone, getting her ears pierced, getting a pe...

I thought this book was really good. It has a serious of unfortunate events. This book kept the reader's on their feet. The book was somewhat suspenseful to see what was going to happen next. I recommend for people to read this book.

Rory Swenson has been waiting forever to turn twelve. It feels like that's the year she'll finally be able to do everything she's been waiting for. Buying a cell phone...getting her ears pierced...going to a boy-girl party. She's about to have everything she's ever wanted.Except that everything she's ever wanted manages to go horribly, horribly wrong in the funniest ways possible. FINALLY had me laughing out loud over and over again. It's written in that fantastic, trademark Mass voice -- the on...