Have you ever found yourself standing in front of a shelf of books, wondering which one to read? I found myself in that position a while ago. I was searching through the teen section in my library, but nothing was really jumping out at me.
My brother was with me, and he was getting tired of waiting. Eventually, he just pulled out a book, handed it to me, and said, "This one."
I eyed the cover and read a little bit of the inside. It was by Sarra Manning, and was also her first novel. "Guitar Girl" was written out in pink sparkly letters on the front. Well, guitars plus girls equals good . . . right?
The book starts out in a high school in England where the main character, Molly Montgomery, and her friends, Jane and Tara, are hanging out in the music room. Jane comes across one of Molly's poems and starts singing it. A while after that, they decide to start a band together.
Molly learned to play the guitar she had gotten for Christmas a while back, Jane used her brother's bass, and Tara bought a drum kit. A couple of gigs later, it becomes pretty clear that they aren't very good. Although they had the whole rock and roll persona going for them (Molly even died her hair red), none of the girls can really play their instruments.
After playing a show at the local community center, the girls meet Dean. He seems to know more about music than any of them, and he also plays guitar. He convinces the girls to let he and his friend, T, (yeah, just T) join the band. T is a drummer, so Tara switches to keyboard.
They start practicing together, and it turns out that they're pretty good. Molly detests Dean because he's a control freak and kind of a jerk, but he certainly made the band better. After playing their first gig together, they get discovered. They catch the attention of a guy named Paul who wants to manage them.
Things start moving quickly for them. They start playing shows all over England, and even start recording an album after Molly finishes her exams (as her parents insisted).
Trouble starts after one of their shows. Paul had hired a stylist for Molly and changed her look completely. Dean decides that she's looking hot, and kisses her. Not only is it Molly's first kiss, but it's also the start of a complex relationship with Dean. Paul decides to try to cut off the relationship right away because inter-band relationships just never work out.
Paul continues to be manipulative after that, even for a manager. When Molly turns eighteen, he forces her to sign a contract (which really comes back to haunt her). Although he continues to set up shows for the band, Molly starts to like him less and less. Strangely, she starts to like Dean more and more.
The band tours America and becomes very popular. After their shows, they hang out at clubs. The whole concept of fame seems very cool and within reach to them. Sadly, with fame and money comes trouble. Jane becomes a problem drinker, and the other member of the band think she's on drugs as well. Dean and Molly start seeing each other secretly. Tara and T keep mostly to themselves, but they have to sit back and watch the whole thing start to fail.
I honestly couldn't believe that the book ended so abruptly after that. (Of course, I didn't tell you the whole story in case you wanted to read it for yourself.) The epilogue tells a little about Molly's life and the future of the band. Even so, there is still a major issue left suspended. Where I have no problem with a book leaving me thinking, it just seems incomplete.
With that being said, I still enjoyed this book a lot. It's not exactly a great work of literature, but I like how it's told from Molly's point of view. I think it makes it easier for the reader to connect with her, especially if the reader is a teenage girl like me.
I'm actually not so sure if I would recommend this book, though. It is very good, but there are certain things in the story that aren't very appropriate for younger readers. I, for one, got a little more than I bargained for with this book. However, if you're ok with PG-13 levels of content, Guitar Girl is definitely a great book to pick up.
-7stars
