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    32 Candles: A Novel
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    32 Candles: A Novel
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    32 Candles: A Novel
    Ebook390 pages6 hours

    32 Candles: A Novel

    By Ernessa T. Carter

    4.5/5

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    About this ebook

    “32 cheers for Ernessa T. Carter! She’s created one of the freshest, funniest characters I’ve ever read….32 Candles is a charmer.”
    —Carleen Brice, author of Orange Mint and Honey

     

    32 Candles by exciting newcomer Ernessa T. Carter is the slightly twisted, utterly romantic, and deftly wry story of Davie Jones, who, if she doesn’t stand in her own way, just might get the man of her dreams.  For fans of John Hughes’s “Sixteen Candles”, 32 Candles is a fresh and fun fiction debut for every fan of romantic comedy.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperCollins
    Release dateJun 22, 2010
    ISBN9780062000057
    Author

    Ernessa T. Carter

    Nikki Walton is a licensed psychotherapist with a master's degree in psychology from the University of North Carolina and the founder of CurlyNikki.com. Born in St. Louis, she now resides in Pennsylvania. Coauthor Ernessa T. Carter, a graduate of Smith College with an master of fine arts from Carnegie Mellon, is the author of the novel 32 Candles and the founding editor of FierceandNerdy.com. She lives in Los Angeles.

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    Reviews for 32 Candles

    4.5/5

    73 ratings10 reviews

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    • 5/5
      First of all, I am glad that I didn't read the book summary here on goodreads before I bought this book. Whoever wrote the summary, I assume not the author, basically posted an opinionated review instead of just a summary, and along with giving out too much information it gives misinformation! I feel like the editor or random person that was allowed to write the summary on GR skimmed parts of the book. Same with the blurbs on Amazon that made it seem like JUST a rom-com; 32 Candles is so much more than a lighthearted comedy.

      This novel was not what I expected, but I loved it so much. My heart broke so many times for Davie as she suffered through most of her childhood and adolescence in silence. The story continues as she finally finds her voice and moves forward with her life. Then she gets a second chance at her "Molly Ringwald Ending" but you know, as does Davie, that it can't possibly turn out the way it does in the movies. Ultimately the novel is redemptive for many of the characters and at last heartwarming.
    • 4/5
      32 Candles is a smart and warm romantic comedy that I think would appeal to males as much as females. The story is narrated by Davidia “Davie” Jones, who was brought up in poverty with in small, insular Glass, Mississippi. Her mother was an alcoholic and a prostitute, she had no father, and the kids in school made fun of her because of her dark skin, calling her Monkey Night and taunting her by making monkey sounds when she would pass by them. Even though she was in love (from afar) with the rich quarterback, James Farrell, he didn’t know she was alive, and so Davie watched Molly Ringwald movies and daydreamed about how it would be if she “got the guy.” But after a particularly brutal beating by her mother and a particularly awful humiliation by kids in school (led by James’ hoity-toity high-yellow sisters), she runs away, catching a ride with “Mama Jane,” a truck driver, to Los Angeles.In LA, Davie has the opportunity to remake herself, and become what she has always wanted to be. She has a fight on her hands, however, because the Davidia she was – timid, angry, and revengeful - is always trying to make a comeback. Discussion: I loved the honesty of this book. I adored the loving, lesbian mother-figure (Mama Jane) who takes care of Davie, and I loved Mama Jane’s hilarious miserly nephew who eventually becomes Davie’s father figure. Corey Mays, the clueless but sweet football player, is another well-drawn, appealing character. In fact, all the male characters are terrific, except, ironically, for the object of Davie’s obsession - James Farrell, who never gains much definition. He seems almost like the "American Graffiti" iconic figure of the tantalizing blonde in the T-Bird (played by Suzanne Somers in the movie), who no one really knows but who inspires the boys to be more than they are. For me though, the absolute best part about this book is that the heroine is a dark-skinned, non-hair-straightened black woman who, in spite of being picked on by other kids and growing up thinking she was ugly, ends up turning into the swan. Davie is far from saintly however, and this not only adds to her deliciously snarky in-your-face sass, but enables the author to send her, eventually, on a journey of self-awareness and atonement. Evaluation: This entertaining amalgam of The Ugly Ducking and the John Hughes/Molly Ringwald Eighties oeuvre of films is a delight.
    • 5/5
      A great story about finding yourself despite a rocky childhood and surviving questionable decisions that you make in adulthood. The link between 16 Candles and Carter's work is extraordinary. I love the movie 16 Candles and understand every girl's dream of being swept off her feet by the one she adores. The twists in this story is what makes it remarkable and gives the ending more meaning. We often see love stories but never the grit and pain involved in going for that happy ending. I love this book and even hugged it to my chest after reading the last word. It was refreshing and delightful.
    • 5/5
      Rating this book a five makes me regret some of the other fives that I've given out, seriously this book was that good!The whole thing is just so well put together, that you have to love it on the basis of plot development alone. Often when you read books that fall into a particular category they start to get formulaic and predictable but I can honestly say that this was a read that took my by surprise. The best coming of age story that I've read in a long time!Davie is so well developed, that you instantly connect with her and with character development normally I would B**** about how the mother is too mean to be realistic, or that James is too perfect- but in this story it just fits (especially considering the extra development to these characters that occurs in the latter portion of the book)! I'm recommending this book to all of my friends, it's just too good to pass up.
    • 4/5
      Davie, growing up in the South as an unattractive outsider in her black community, stopped talking after she was beaten by her mother when she was five. Nobody knew she could have talked if she'd wanted, or that she was crazy-in-love with James, the new, ultra-handsome, ultra-rich boy at her high school. Even her mother, and her mother's many "friends" who visited her bedroom each night, had no use for her.Her life changes, somewhat unbelievably, when she runs away from home and hitches a ride with a lesbian truck driver. Suddenly she is in LA, and working at a club as a singer. There she has an opportunity to meet all kinds of people, and maybe, just maybe, will have a chance at her Molly Ringwald ending (just like in 16 Candles) after all.Carter has created a likable character who is a very unreliable narrator. She just leaves out parts she doesn't want her audience to hear! All of the characters are well-drawn, from her mother to the truck driver to her boss and lover at the club.A very entertaining chick-kit read!
    • 5/5
      Growing up in small-town Mississippi with an abusive mother and classmates who make fun of her, midnight-skinned and wild-haired Davidia Jones makes her escape into Molly Ringwald films. Davidia dreams of her own Molly Ringwald Ending one day, in the form of the most popular boy in school and her crush, James Farrell of the Farrells of Farrell Fine Hair, sweeping her off her feet in front of the whole school. But after a particularly bad school joke, Davidia decides to head west, to LA, where she renames herself Davie and transforms into a sultry lounge singer.However, Davie’s past catches up with her in LA when, 16 years after high school, she crosses paths with James Farrell again. A lot has happened in the meantime. Will Davie’s history prevent her from ever getting her happy ending?I have been hearing unequivocal love for this book for, oh, about two years or so before I finally had the opportunity to participate in a blog tour for 32 CANDLES. First stop: dive into the book that a small but important contingent of the blogging population has been raving about ever since its publication. And I wasn’t disappointed. I so wasn’t disappointed, in fact, that 32 CANDLES is easily one of my favorite books of 2011 so far, and one of the most adorable books I have ever read.The star of the show is Davie Jones. Neurotic without going overboard, self-reflective without it getting in the way of pure entertainment, and unapologetically weird, Davie stands out from the slew of debilitatingly neurotic female protagonists that usually feature in romantic comedies. Davie is like a black Bridget Jones without the weight obsession, which, let’s admit it, got frustrating real quickly. Davie’s weight obsession equivalent is her endless fascination with James, which in her high school stage was admittedly a bit scary. But somehow Ernessa Carter, through the voice of Davie Jones, makes everything okay. We don’t judge Davie for her neuroses; we love her all the more for them.No romantic comedy is complete without a swoon-worthy romantic interest, and James has got the role down pat. He is a perfect black man, and yet somehow his perfection seems like a perfectly natural part of his character, instead of a fictional construct forced upon readers that screams “I am perfect! I am perfect!” without ever actually showing us why. So, another point in 32 CANDLES’ favor. Yay!I’m sure there are many other reasons I can go on and on about—how the secondary characters take on lives of their own; or how the plot, while twisty and turny, wraps itself up in the most delightful and unexpected of ways—but I hope it suffices to say that 32 CANDLES will retain a permanent position on my shelf, as something I will reread whenever I want a dose of a good ole romantic comedy that won’t ever fail me. Brava, Ernessa Carter, and I want more!
    • 4/5
      I didn't know what to expect with this book club pick, but I loved it! What a fun book! I read it in one sitting, staying up way later than my bedtime, lol. Now I need to see the movie Sixteen Candles again. I loved all the characters and I loved the story. This would make a great movie!
    • 5/5
      Love it! So relatable, brave, carefree and about letting go.
    • 5/5
      It was not what I was expecting at all. Not your typical love story, that's for sure. Just the right amount of comedy, drama, and romance. Loved it and def recommend! Really loved the protagonist. Some characters could have been developed a little more, but overall I think the story flowed well and all the puzzle pieces ended up fitting. Some parts at the end were a little unrealistic, but again.. great story and great twists!
    • 5/5
      Loved it from start to finish!