hug a book: the threads series

I recently read the last two books in the Threads trilogy/series, by Sophia Bennett, but unfortunately I read them too close together to write up individual reviews. (Also, sadly, only the first -- Sequins, Secrets, and Silver Linings, is out in the US -- the others are UK books.) So instead I'm going to tell you, once again, that these books are amazing. They're funny. They're sweet. The characters are wonderful. They fall easily into the category of "so cute," but surpass that category by leaps and bounds. The series mixes things like art, acting, and fashion with some very real issues like forced child labor (just for an example).

Nonie is a funny, frantic, totally winning narrator who reminds me of a slightly more frantic Anna Oliphant (yes, from Anna and the French Kiss). Her friends Edie, Jenny, and Crow are unique and brilliant in their own ways. Her older brother Harry is in the same category as Spencer Martin as far as wonderful-big-brothers-in-YA go. And all of the characters are crazy-talented. Yes, it's unrealistic, but it also gives another dimension to their very real personalities and mundane school-type things. It means they have to make some difficult choices while at the same time allowing for totally fun, fast-paced stories.

I love this series. It's so well-written, so beyond cute, so incredibly brilliant.