4 out of 4 stars
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Growing up Carrie is a second novel written by E.D. Massey. This beautiful story starts off with a young girl sending a message to a man using an online gaming app. The message states: “My mom is sick. Please call 602-431-1500.” After debating with himself, he gives in and makes the call. He had never met this girl's mother in person but had spent many hours chatting via online messages with her. They had never spoken by telephone. Little did he know this one message was about to change his life.
I was intrigued with the story from the beginning. I could not put the book down until I had read the last page. It made me sad when I reached the end of the book because I wanted it to continue. I wanted to be part of these characters lives just a while longer. This book had me laughing and crying. Sometimes those emotions occurred together.
I fell in love with the main characters, Edward and Carrie. The secondary characters were just as likable. It was a joy getting to know each of the characters within the book. I especially liked Leonard and Karen. I thought Barbara and Barry were adorable. I was impressed with Edward’s willingness to drop everything to visit Carrie’s mother in her time of need. I loved that this was a feel-good book. There seemed to be a good moral to the story. The ending brought out my emotions.
The story is primarily told from Edward’s viewpoint. A few scenes are told from Carrie’s viewpoint. The transition between Edward and Carrie’s viewpoints are smooth and flawless. There were no obvious grammatical or spelling errors. The few minor errors found were easily overlooked, and the book was easy to read. There was only one error I noticed. The telephone number at the beginning of the story uses an Arizona area code. This makes little sense as Edward lives in Arizona and Carrie lives in West Virginia. Again, this error has little impact on the story, and it was a breeze to read.
This book has a strong appeal to young adults and to those who are young at heart. It’s a coming of age story about a girl who is raised by her step-dad. The book has the right combination of romance and humor. The story is compelling and beautifully written. The characters are also well developed. The reader gains the sense of each of their personalities right away. It makes the characters relatable. New readers of the book will instantly love the characters as much as I did. I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars.
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growing up Carrie
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