By Danah Bialoruski
After first hearing that I was going to be reading a book called Anatomy of a Single Girl by Daria Snadowsky, I did not have the highest of expectations. I went into the book being a little weary of what was to come, but after getting through the first few pages, I was pleasantly surprised. The book is most definitely a book for girls, as the title suggests. The book claims to be for college girls but I viewed it as more of a book for girls between their junior and senior year of high school to their freshman and sophomore year of college.
The book is a sequel to Snadowsky’s first book, Anatomy of a Boyfriend. It is not necessary to read the first book before reading Anatomy of a Single Girl. The book revolves around a girl named Dominique, or Dom, whose high school boyfriend breaks up with her during winter break of their first semester in college. Dom struggles to cope with the pain of losing her first boyfriend.
Early on in the book, Dom explains how her friend Calvin is oh-so in love with her, but her feelings for him are not mutual. Her character comes off as excessively conceited. She repeatedly explains how Calvin is so in love with her and that she has tried to love him back but can not make it work. This leaves me more annoyed than intrigued. Once Calvin finds a new bae though, Dom gets jealous because she is not his main focus anymore. Calvin does not have a major part in the book since he only appears during the first couple of chapters and once again at the very end of the book. His main role, in my opinion, is to help describe the type of person Dom is.
Then there is Dom’s long time best friend, Amy. They are the typical archetype of best friends who are complete opposites. Amy is the party girl who hooks up with several guys every weekend while Dom is more conservative and is focused more on her studies. The story line really did not do much as far as changing the way I viewed Dom. It is obviously a neccessity to have a best friend character in any book, but the friendship was typical and not as fresh as I hoped it would be.
The major part of the book is Dom’s relationship with Guy. Their relationship was not much of an “I love you” relationship, but more of a “let’s hookup for the summer” relationship. And even though the relationship was more of a hook up relationship, Dom and Guy were really intellectually compatable. They both had a strong interest in science since Dom was studying Pre-Med while Guy was a science major. I thought this plot in the story gave the relationship a little twist since it showed that even though they were just booty calls for each other, they were still able to have an intellectual converstation.
During this relationship, Dom learns a lot about herself. At times, her idea of the relationship can seem very shallow and appear as if the female gender is only focused on being happy with a man. In the end, I think Dom presented a new view on hook up relationships and taking more risks. She was able to stay true to her core and values. The book does have some sex scenes, but appropriately written for the age group for whom it is being presented. I do not really find those parts of the book to be a big deal. In fact, Snadowsky’s style channels that of Judy Blume who was very popular with teen girls during the ‘70s and ‘80s.
After finishing this book, I was surprised with the outcome. Even though it was somewhat of a typical teenage love story, it still shined a different light on the kinds of relationships that teens encounter in this day and age. The ending is a twist that is not expected when reading the middle of the book. It really helped open the idea that it is okay for woman to want something other than feelings from a relationship.
I recommend this read to any girl who enjoys a good, somewhat sappy story that can help them open up to different sides of a relationships.
