Twelve (The Winnie Years, #3) by Lauren Myracle

Twelve (The Winnie Years, #3) Reviews

• 
  Shannon Alexander

  I think Lauren Myracle has stolen my diary. In this book, Winnie must brave the embarrassing world of becoming a woman. Ugh. The humor and spot on emotions of this book resonated with me, but more importantly, made my daughter comfortable enough to talk with me about the enormous subject matter of growing up as a girl. We both agree it kind of stinks. In all sincerity, thank you Ms. Myracle for making an icky subject something my daughter and I can share a laugh about. Knowing girls like Winnie have survived puberty gives my young lady hope that she can too.
• 
  Kallie Polk

  Book two: Winnie Perry just turned twelve! Now that that she is one step closer to being a teenager big changes are in the future. Winnie has to deal with getting her ears pierced,sleepaway camp,junior high,and a new boy that she calls Lars. When Lars and Winnie start dating everything changes,her life,her clothes,and personnal style.Instead of wearing baggy Mcdonalds t-shirts, she is wearing tight fitted normal 7th grade girl clothes.The worst change of all is that she develops, meaning bra shopping with her mom in public!!! Will Winnie survive 7th grade or will she fail in miserable doom?Read Twelve by Lauren Myracle to find out!
  
  I liked this book because it had alot of humor and everyday situations.I reccommend this book to all girls who are struggling to be who they want to be.
• 
  Adrianna Costello

  Along the lines of "Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret," by Judy Blume, "Twelve" is for today's pre-teens/tweens. Some words and phrases that may be objectionable to a certain segment of our patrons: hard-on, v-word, vagina, boobs, boobful, boobed, "with boob," etc.
  
  I thought it was a fun read, using real kid language in the dialog and capturing that whole adolescent angst-y feeling fabulously.
• 
  Heather

  Title(s): Eleven, Twelve and Thirteen
  Rating: A+
  
  Review: I decided to review all of these books together because, well, I read them all together. I read the first one on a whim, a decision to develop myself "professionally" (because I dream that, when I'm finished with my MLS program, that I'll be a kick-butt YA and children's services librarian in a public library who will help reluctant readers find the book that will help them turn the corner and develop a lifelong love of reading). I read plenty of YA and had recently started to dip my toes into MG (at the urging of my nephew), but needed a broader scope. I didn't intend to like these books because I'm not in their target audience.
  
  But you know the crazy thing?
  
  Even though I was reading them with, "I wonder what fifth- or sixth-grade girl I can recommend these to," in my mind, I loved them. Not for someone else, but for myself. They were really funny. I laughed out loud. And the lessons learned were poignant and spot-on for what girls that age struggle with (some of which are things that girls of all ages--even those of us who are well beyond the middle grades--struggle with). The voice of Winnie is so honest; she tries to be good, but she isn't always successful. She's just real.
  
  And that tends to be the way that Myracle writes all of her characters in all of her books. She's just really good at creating interesting characters. You might not absolutely love every single character in all of her books (I didn't love all the characters in this series), but you can always find someone you connect with. And that's what reading is all about--watching somebody else make life's mistakes in one way or another and learning from them.
  
  I have recommended this book to a very nice young sixth grader who I interact with in a volunteering role that I have and, after I explained the conflict of the first book, she was hooked. She can't wait for me to check with her mom to make sure it's okay for her to read these. And that's what's so great about Myracle: she writes books that you want to read.
  
  So, in summary, Myracle's positive qualities are:
  1. She writes characters that you can connect with.
  2. She writes books that you want to read.
  3. She's funny (which I might not have explicitly said, but is still true).
  
  Let me leave you with this snippet from a scene where Winnie (age 13) has gone to ask her older sister, Sandra (17), and her sister's boyfriend, Bo (also 17), for advice on kissing (page 55):

  "I was hoping we could discuss kissing," [I said:].
  "Oh, good God," Sandra said. "Winnie."
  I blushed, but the thing about Sandra and Bo (unless Sandra was in one of her moods) was that I could blush around them and still keep going.
  "I just don't understand what you do with your tongues," I said.
  "How many tongues do you have?" Bo asked.
  "Ha ha," I said. "One that belongs to me, one that belongs to someone else."

  And, since we're on the topic of funny (and a little bit sweet) things that happen in the book, let me share this, which isn't truly a spoiler (page 63):

  Lars looked at me. His face was right there, inches from mine, and I knew this was it: the moment of the first kiss.
  He leaned in. I giggled and drew back. My breathing grew shallow, and my heart drummed against my ribs, more out of nervousness than anticipation. Extreme, horrible, freak-out nervousness, the kind I occasionally experienced before having to give an oral presentation or introduce myself to a crowd of strangers.
  Lars tried again. I turned my head from his. I didn't mean to--I so didn't mean to--but it was too much, being in the actual moment and thinking, Oh, god, lips. His. Mine. Touching!
  An anxious laugh made a very strange sound coming out of me. I could feel my smile go rubbery.
  He learned in. I pulled back. He leaned in further. I did a bob and a duck maneuver. It was bad. Bad, bad, bad. And the worst part of it all was the doubt creeping into his eyes. He thought I didn't want him to kiss me, but I did!
  "Winnie?" he said.
  "Yes?" I squeaked. My cheeks burned.

  You'll have to read the books to see how "the kiss" turns out.
  
  So, to make this long post a little bit longer, I only intended to read the first book, but whizzed right through it and promptly went back out and picked up the next two and buzzed right through them. I was actually quite disappointed to find out this was only a trilogy. I want more Winnie Perry.
  
  Recommendation: I recommend that you read absolutely everything by Lauren Myracle. Young Adult, Middle Grade, doesn't matter, just read it. (And add E. Lockhart while you're at it for good measure.)
• 
  Carmine

  I can see this one disturbing some patrons. Adolescence is messy. It has the most graphic description of tampon application I have ever read (and boy I could have really used reading it in 7th grade when one of my friends had a birthday party at Wild Waves. Why me! I still feel the embarrassment.) Overall, 'Twelve' read pretty pitch-perfect to me- the reluctance to admit that maybe your mom is right and you do need a bra, the borderline paranoia that people might notice you in a swimsuit, the shifting friendships, your first crush, etc. So much drama. Realizing that sometimes the big jerk is you and being big enough to admit it.
  
  
  Think of it as Blume's 'Are You There God? It's me, Margaret' for contemporary tweens.
  
  
• 
  Natalie

  I bought this for my niece, who's almost 13, but thought I should read it before I gave it to her to make sure that there's nothing she shouldn't read. So far it's just normal 12 year old drama, like buying your first bra. :-)
  
  *****
  There was one page that was questionable so I called my SIL and talked to her. Other than that, it was a really cute book about the trials and tribulations of being a girl who's hitting puberty. If I was 12 I'd have liked it a lot more, but even at 29 it was cute and brought up a lot of memories. We do all have an embarrassing period story. :-)
• 
  Kirsten (lush.lit.life)

  reads very much like a modern day judy blume novel - and the author cites JB as an influence.
  
  not my favorite genre - but I can see this as serving a useful purpose for some girls. in a perfect world parents lovingly and perfectly instruct and guide their children through coming-of-age milestones, but sometimes it can be nice (as a kid) to read about these experiences, written with a touch of humor, privately as well. it could effectively be used as a tool for discussion with your child (if all parties were warm to the idea) - but i'm trying to figure out the best age to introduce this. i think it depends on the child. some twelve year olds would be "too sophisticated" for this book - but i can think of aspects that would make my ten-year-old uncomfortable.
  
  
  
• 
  Jen

  I really like this series, which is funny because I'm not really a fan of Myracle's other stuff.
  
  I love the voice in the Winnie books - she's one of the few authors who can actually drag me back to that age when reading. She nails a lot of hard to nail feelings and situations.
  
  I read Eleven and liked it, and when a patron complained about content in "Twelve" I read it so that I could discuss it with her. It's true that (SPOILERS) Myracle writes about tampons, periods, and erections. But she does so with the utmost attention to context and how these sorts of things might have come across to a 12 year old. I actually found the whole erection passage (which is extremely short, a few sentences) to be informative and far from prurient.
• 
  Chloe Resendez

  This book was a very good one to read. First off, I would like to give my recommendations to this book. I would highly recommend this book to young adult women, and even though the front cover looks like for little kids, don't judge a book by its cover! I think the strength in this book is the drama the author put in. Lauren Myracle made me had a feeling of excitement of what is going to happen next. In the story, I could relate to the character Winnie. I was surprised at how her personalities were like mine. I am glad to read this book and will read the next one sooner or later!
• 
  Jade

  Funny, and very true! Love it!
• 
  rue mortensen

  i was rereading this to find out if it’s appropriate for my 12 year old sister. i remembered it being mostly appropriate. it was not /:
  
  (don’t read the list of content unless you’re over the age of 14 —- it’s not stuff you need in your mind)
  iffy content included 12 year olds skinny dipping with a seventeen year old, comments that theres a bite shaped bruise on the 17 year olds nipple, references to the book wifey, uhh honestly probably more that i don’t remember
• 
  Ella

  I’ll be honest, it has been a long time since I read this book, so I don’t know how qualified I am to write a review on it. However, it crossed my mind the other day, and I remembered how much I treasured this series. It was available in the elementary school library (I think I read it in fifth grade), which was great because I could hide the picture of the bra on the spine from my mom, in order to not bring up any awkward discussions. Just reading the summary now brought back gallons of the embarrassment of my adolescence, but all jokes aside, I probably read this book multiple times between the ages of ten and eleven. It was the best puberty talk I got, because it’s written in such a relatable way for a tween girl. I don’t remember much of the plot, but I do know that this book was super helpful for the coming years. So, mothers: buy this book for your daughter. Heck, buy the whole series. If memory serves, it will make your child’s life ten times less awkward.
  
• 
  t

  ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
• 
  Moriah

  The begging is knida borining/weird, but it gets better!
  
  12.5.10 im on page 21
  Winnie just turned 12 and went out for a special dinner with her new best friend because her old best friend started acting wicked bratty, so she has a older sister named Sandra who is now 16 and is very impatient to get her drivers lisence but when her oprituntie comes she gets nervous and doesnt get her license. I think that this book is a little strange at the begging.This book is not for boys. And has a lot of "drama and girl stuff".
  But i cant figure out why Winnie's sister Sandra get her licence if she wanted to do it so bad?
  
  12.11.10 im on page 65
  Winnie has a little brother Ty, i have a little brother Jackson, sometimes i get fusterated with him like winnie does. but in the end Winnie always shows love for Ty.
  12.19.10 im on page 89
  I think that Winnie's old best friend Amanda is just using Winnie until Gale (Amanda's new best friend) gets back from her summer camp, and then Winnie is going to get "hurt" again like the first time Amanda dumped Winnie for Gale. I think Winnie shouldn't get to "obbsesd" in the friendship because Amanda seems like one of those people who will hang out with any one then be by herself. She is a person who cant handle not having a group around her. I think Winnie is going to realize that and then if Gale leaves again Winnie might reject Amanda.
  
  12.24.10 Im on page 167
  Winnie's class had a subsitute and her class decided that it woukd be funny if they "messed" the teacher up, they decided on the attendence that after the teacher called their name they would tell the teacher that the name on the attendence was wrong. For example, William said his name was Bill. Winnie got invited to a party and she went. Since her friend Dinah wasnt invited I think that they are going to not be as good friends, they dont do the same activities and are not in the same homerooms. It seems like Winnie's friend Cinnamon is "moving in" on Dinah's best friend spot. I think Dinah is going to have a new best friend (besides Winnie)named Vantia because she does Hip-hop club with her. In the book it says " Sometimes i felt jelous that Dinah had another friend besides me (not counting Cinnamon, who was friends with both of us)." This makes me think about if Winnie thinks that Dinah is capable of making other firneds besides her.
  
  12.25.10 I finished the book
  It was a good book filled with a lot of drama! Winnie and her friend Cinnamon call Dinah to see what she though about Winnie, then Cinnamon and Dinah did it to Winnie and Winnie was basically trash talking about Dinah and she heard everything that Winnie said. All in all i though this book was really different, i though it was a different type of writing but i liked it! :)
• 
  Kendall

  Hysterical. Sweet. Darling. Adorable. Heartbreaking. I love this book so much. I want every twelve-year-old girl who resembles Winnie to read it...so spot-on and exactly how it feels to be this age as a white, middle-class tween. Winnie is truly human and every bit of twelve. I love this series. I wish I could say that everyone would embrace it, but they won't. I'm not sure I can have it on my shelves...Some sixth grade parents may not be ready to address some of the topics that come up. Even though it's perfectly rooted in reality....puberty, language, references to sex, bras and body parts (typical Blume-like topics), this is the stuff that pushes some buttons. I will never really understand why many parents tend to accept morbid, over-the-top violence yet throw a fit when "boobs" enter the picture. It's a real shame.
• 
  Im.smoking.ouid.rn

  Very good book about growing up. This is the first Lauren Myracle book I've read and I hope to read more. Winnie is a very lovable character and her friends and very easy to like. I recommend this to anyone who is scared to get older and what happens to the body. This was a very well written book. I hope to read the rest of the Winnie Perry serie books.
  Rating: 7/10
  Parental Rating: 12+ (Mind that it does talk about what is going on during puberty to a girls body and in some spots; a boys)
• 
  Corynne G

  In the book twelve it was about a girl Winnie, starting the seventh grade and her birthday is coming up and she wants it to be the best one ever. She goes through lots of changes with school, boys and much more.
  I am giving this book 2 stars because it was a pretty short book and it wasn't my style. i would not recommend this book to anyone.l
• 
  Olivia

  This was a good book about a girl named winnie who just turned twelve. When a girl named Gail comes to her school she starts to lose her best friend Amanda. So winnie goes on and makes a new friend named Dina. Winnie also struggles with changes she is going through.
• 
  Alyssa

  I read this a while back, and loved every second of it. It showed the true journey of growing up.
• 
  Brittney

  A lot of things happen to Winnie as she is tweleve...
• 
  KC125

  It is kind of girly and a little silly.
• 
  Julia, a dog lover

  This was a very good book. I think Winnie does not appreciate Diana until the end and I liked how she finally did :)
• 
  Leah Middleberg

  LUV IT
  
• 
  Natoz!!!

  This was a good,funny book. Winnie is turning 12 and has to go through lots if changes. I recommend this book to 5 and 6th grade girls! It's a realistic fiction book and it a pretty easy read!
• 
  Banana Alexa Banana

  I LOVE this book so far but it scares to grow up AAAAHHHH!!!!!!!