Book Review: We are the Goldens by Dana Reinhardt

As an hardcore fan of An Education, I expected to We are the Goldens to be right up my alley. Unfortunately though, We are the Goldens was a few wrongturns away from the alley that I was thinking about. While there were many commendable things about Dana Reinhardt’s book, I could not overlook some of the less obvious flaws. However, don’t take this as a negative review! Take this as a comprehensive analysis of the entire book, and then GO BUY IT. I’m serious- I actually enjoyed reading We are the Goldens. Cross my heart.

We are the Goldens may be about sisters, and while it may be about a sister Layla’s romantic endeavors, it actually focuses on Nell. Meet Nell, devoted sister of the beautiful Layla. Nell and Layla have been close for quite a while, that is until Layla changes. High school freshman Nell must figure out the secret and figure out a way to come to terms with what Layla’s choices are. Even if it involve’s Layla’s teacher. Even if she can’t quite understand why in hell Layla would ever do what she did.

I’m not entirely sure what irked me the most- the almost formulaic plot or the almost formulaic plot. Yup, I think it’s the almost formulaic plot. Yes, this is a book about a relationship between a student and a teacher. Yes, this is a book about sisterhood and coming to age and coming to terms with life. THAT DOESN’T MEAN THAT IT’S NOT FORMULAIC THOUGH. An Education took a unique perspective on such relationships, whereas We are the Goldens took a more familiar approach. Make that a very predictable approach. You get what I mean.

However, I especially want to laud Dana Reinhardt’s amazing character Nell. Honestly, she’s definitely one of the realest protagonists I’ve encountered in quite some time. While she’s incredibly mature and thoughtful, she still smells like teen spirit acts like a teen. I should know, as I’m a teen myself. Nell may be in the cliched role of younger sister trying to live up to her older sister, but she still manages to come off as an incredibly unique and intelligent individual. That perhaps is my absolute favorite thing about the novel.

Of course, the whole entire story is so much more than just a plot and a main character. Dana Reinhardt’s novel is packed with finesse (okay I realize books can’t be packed with finesse, but just go with it!). I truly recommend it, not just because of it’s resemblance to my all time favorite movie, An Education, but also because it holds its own against all books in the YA genre. (Now you’re probably wondering why it only gets five stars. Take a look at my other ratings, and you realize it’s 67% better than what I usually give.)

Rating: 5 out of 10

Publisher: Wendy Lamb Books (May 27, 2014)

Source: Netgalley

Length: 208 pages (Hardcover)

ISBN #: 9780385742573