Rennison, Louise. 2000. Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging: Confessions of Georgia Nicolson. New York: Harper Collins. ISBN 9780064472272
The Characters
Georgia Nicolson, a totally fab 14-year-old British girl, is the main character of Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging. Other characters include her 3-year-old sister, Libby, her parents, Mutti and Vati, her best friend, Jas, and her massive cat, Angus. Oh, and her sex-god of a love interest, Robbie. While the book is Georgia's diary, the other characters are what fill the diary with ridiculous problems and strategies for teen survival.
The Plot
Georgia writes about her life as a 14-year-old budding woman in this diary of a novel. She shares her ups (I am now nearly Robbie's girlfriend, hahahaha. Summer love, summer love!!! (234)) and downs (Eyebrows haven't grown back. (21)) and inner-most thoughts (Am I schizophrenic as well as a lesbian? (47)) in this hilarious diary. Will she make it through this year at school without completely embarassing herself? Probably not!
England
...Which is why there is a glossary and why none of the words will really make sense to a teenager outside of the UK reading this book. But that's what gives it so much charm!
The Theme
growing up while attempting to be normal
The Style
Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging is a diary of a fourteen year old girl with a crush, best friends and a giant cat. These sometimes fragmented entries full of thoughts and feelings are really what make the book special.
The Strengths and Weaknesses
The book is absolutely hilarious. Laugh out loud funny even. (I'd never say LOL.) I nearly cried when Georgia waxed off her eyebrows! Anyone who picks up this book should get a good laugh out of it. Definite strength.
The only weakness I can think of is that there is quite a lot of British slang in the book, but there's a glossary, so it shouldn't be a problem, really. Also, a lot of it is pretty easy to figure out. And all of us plain-ol' US folk should really pick up on that fancy way of British speaking anyway!
The Favorite Lines
"monday september 28
11:00 a.m.
At break I told Jas and Jools everything. They went, 'Ergghhhlack, that's truly disgusting. Your cousin? That is sad.' Jools said that she had actually seen her brother's 'how's your father' quite often. She said, 'It's quite nice, really, like a mouse.' She lives in a world of her own (thank God). Well bless us, Tiny Tim, one and all, I say" (66). Georgia's diary entry the day after her cousin tried to kiss her and what her friends thought.
The Reviews
Teri Lesesne (VOYA, June 2000 (Vol. 23, No. 2))
... Georgia is relentless in her journal entries, which come across as comic riffs. She questions all authority, wanting to know WHY and HOW and WHEN. It is Georgia's distinct voice that will capture readers and leave them wanting a sequel so they can find out how Georgia's budding relationship with Robbie pans out. The clever title and catchy cover surely will attract loads of readers. The only element that might keep this book from flying off the shelf is the preponderance of British slang in Georgia's journal entries and in the conversations among the main characters. Although the author includes a glossary at the end of the novel, some teens may not find using it repeatedly "double cool with knobs," but rather "poxy."
Michael Cart (Booklist, July 2000 (Vol. 96, No. 21))
American readers wondering what on earth "full-frontal snogging" is will find the answer in the helpful (and hilarious) glossary appended to this antic diary of a year in the life of an English girl named Georgia Nicolson.Snogging is, simply, "kissing with all the trimmings," and it's much on 14-year-old Georgia's mind these days. For even though she's still reeling from her devastatingly bad decision to go to a party dressed as a stuffed olive, she has fallen in love with an older man (he's 17), a Sex God named Robbie. The trouble is, S. G. is dating a girl named Lindsay who--brace yourself--wears a thong. Honestly, how wet (idiotic) can you get! In the meantime, life on the homefront is spinning out of control. Dad has gone to New Zealand in search of a better job, and pet cat Angus, who can usually be spotted stalking the neighbor's poodle, has gone missing. Although performer and comedy writer Rennison clearly owes a large debt to Helen Fielding's Bridget Jones's Diary (1998), her Georgia is a wonderful character whose misadventures are not only hysterically funny but universally recognizable. This "fabbity, fab, fab" novel will leave readers cheering, "Long live the teen!" and anxiously awaiting the promised sequel.
The Connection
A great way to connect teens to this book would be to have them write a diary of the everyday normal things that happen to them. They'd then realize that maybe some of their problems that they feel so terribly about maybe aren't all that bad. I'm sure Georgia thought it was absolutely dreadful when she shaved off her eyebrows, but later, if she were real anyway, she could laugh about it.
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