This book is not what I expected, which may be why I didn't enjoy it very much. It reads like a teen girls diary with some footnotes here and there where the author lets us know what's happened to these people in the present. I guess I was expecting more of a story line and less of a memoir about growing up as a teen in the early 2000's with tons of brand-name drops. Just wasn't my cup of tea.

I don’t know how to feel about this book honestly. I was so excited to read this but got let down.. The writing felt a little dull to me. Also didn’t have much character development. It just was meh

A poignant coming of age story that will take you back to your teenage years and all of the misery they held. Brittany, one of the many, struggles with boys, drugs, drinking and changing friendships- most of us can and will relate to what she endures.

Was okay. I enjoyed the read, but the writing could have been better and character development, just okay for me.

Like everyone else on the planet, I’d rather eat a jean jacket than revisit my teenage years. Mine featured over-plucked, too-dark eyebrows, an accidental dye job from my natural dark blonde to bright ginger, and several pairs of ratty, slip-on Vans that will haunt me for the rest of my days.
Yet, taking a little detour down memory lane with Brittany Ackerman’s 2021 debut “The Brittanys” was well worth it.
Maybe not the most popular freshmen in school, the five Brittanys are known simply for their shared name and their unstoppable friend group. The fifth Brittany–who happens to be our narrator–wants the girls to shed their middle school selves and be somebody at their Florida prep school. But her best friend, Brittany Jensen, isn’t too keen on this transition into teenagers and adulthood. Alongside the pivotal people and events of her life, like her mother and going on her first date, readers are taken back to 2004 to relive Brittany #5’s teenage years and ultimately, life-changing moments.
As a 22-year-old, reading “The Brittanys” made me physically cringe as Ackerman recounted the horrendous 2000s fashion, awkward teenage dating, and the horrors of puberty. The honesty and accuracy of Ackerman’s writing brilliantly illustrate the inner-workings of teenage girls and the harsh coming-of-age moments we all encounter as young women. I can’t remember the last time I read a novel that so accurately portrayed the inner conflicts of teenage girls or the relationship dynamics of that age so well.
On top of Ackerman’s honest retelling of the dreaded teenage years, her poignant commentary on mother-daughter relationships, female friendships, and growing up shine through the diary-like, streams of consciousness the fifth Brittany recollects throughout the novel. Brittany #5’s commentary on her friendships with the Brittanys is terrifyingly relatable, especially for women growing up in the age of the Internet boom. There are moments where I question whether or not Ackerman read my mind as a teenager and put those thoughts onto paper–it’s that real.
Probably my only gripe with “The Brittanys” was how downplayed the main conflict between Brittany #5 and Jensen. I kept thinking to myself, “So when’s the big ‘uh-oh’ supposed to happen?” It was only until I had gotten to the Acknowledgements page I realized I had finished the book, leaving me wondering where the hell was the climax and ‘uh-oh’ moment?
Maybe I’m far too used to reading high-stakes, world-ending novels, but I was thoroughly disappointed with the anti-climatic climax and feeling like the conflict had been downplayed for the duration of the novel.
Although disappointed with the downplayed climax, the nostalgia and honest recollections of the dreaded teenage years are beautifully showcased with a no-holds-barred approach that’ll leave you walking down your own memory lane.

This novel revolves around the five Brittanys that attend prep school in Florida. Told from the point of view of one of the five, this novel looks at that moment where girls enter into adulthood and their whole worlds change. There’s not one moment, one inciting incident to follow that triggers the narrative, but instead, we are shown these moments, sometimes fleeting, sometimes pivotal, that influence their lives. If you can meander for a while with ninth graders on the precipice, then this is the book for you. Fans of Vendela Vida will enjoy this book. And if five Brittanys isn’t enough for you, even the author’s name is Brittany! Thank you to Knopf Doubleday for the advanced review copy.

I was really looking forward to stepping into the lives of a few teenage girls from Florida, and as much as I wanted to love this book, I couldn't get into it. There were multiple points where I didn't really understand what the story was, and I also wasn't a fan of the writing style. The narration was a little choppy for me. I did enjoy the nostalgic element and definitely can relate to some of themThank you, NetGalley!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me an ARC of this book. DNF-40%. As excited as I was for this confection about a group of friends all with the same name, I had a hard time figuring out what the point of the story was. The narrator wasn’t a very engaging voice and I struggled with the “look back, but forward” parts in italics. It took awhile to figure out how these sidebars really fit into the story. I love me some fun, fluffy reads, but this one just didn’t click for me.

Yup this is what it’s like to be a teenager. Absolutely caught the emotions, relationships what it’s like to be a girl in the angst and anxiety of teen.

This book was a page turner from beginning to end. I literally couldn’t put this book down and finished in one reading. Following the lives of a impressionable group of teenage girls all named Brittany. You follow the highs and lows of a friendship and the loss as they grow apart. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

The author absolutely remembers what it was like to be a teen girl. I am a mental health therapist who often works with teens and I can tell you that these characters are spot on. The writing is vivid and the characters feel very real, sometimes painfully so. This story really brought me back in time. It’s a good read overall and was entertaining. I enjoy authors that focus on female relationships and what it’s like for teen girls to try to grow up. Thanks for doing the female experience some justice.

Admittedly at first, I didn’t think I would like this book. It felt like a bunch of privileged white girls doing the things they did without consequences, which essentially it is. But the more I read, the more I realized that I knew these girls; I KNOW these girls. I grew up with them, held their hair back while they puked at parties, slept over their houses, passed phones back and forth while blushing, listening to teen boys say things to us that we weren’t really sure how to take.. Maybe we didn’t have the same kind of money, but we had the same experiences, the same expectations. We figured things out in the same ways, and we had the same crazy, unexplainable friendships that were once everything until they became nothing. This is the book for girls on the cusp of womanhood, not too ready yo leave girlhood but still figuring it out. This book says “It’s ok, we’ve all been there. You’re going to survive.”. This book wasn’t about the Brittany’s; it was about us. Those of us in 2004, who thought we knew but now know we knew nothing; we still know nothing, but at least we can laugh about it.

This review is based on an ARC of The Brittanys, which I received courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher (Knopf Doubleday/Vintage).


"Back then, my life felt like it was about to start, not yet at the important part, but now I wish I had been mindful of the world around me and noticed it as much as possible. I wish I had found joy in that instead of rushing through it."

I'm not entirely sure what I was expecting when I started this novel. Angsty teenage antics, for sure, but beyond that, I was an open book to this book (har har). The cover drew me in; the idea of a cliqué of Brittanys had me hooked. Unfortunately, "The Brittanys" aren't nearly as much of a feature in this story as I had hoped. We see two, occasionally three, and very rarely all five of the Brittanys together at any time. For a book supposedly about the titular cliqué, I was expecting a lot more group activity and was disappointed by the lack thereof.

Now, for an early-2000s-centric story, the author hits the mark... Quite hard... Perhaps a little blatantly... Don't get me wrong: I loved the aesthetic; I loved the vibes. But it seems that the worldbuilding consists mainly of heavy-handed brand-dropping and pop culture references. This method suits the materialistic 14-year-old narrator, but it felt a little tedious.

On the subject of tedium: oh, my lord, how dull the tone of this book is. You'd think, for such a spirited narrator, that her words wouldn't come across so monotone, but oh, how they do. Even despite the ninth grade dramatics (trés repetitive and always, ultimately, inconsequential, by the way), the narration remains drab, unaffected.

Fabulously nostalgic and relatable as The Brittanys is, I can't help but feel that this story is purely a leisure read. There's nothing to make you think (at least as far as comparing this to a classic or nonfiction might go). Not that easy, readable, girly fluff is a problem. In fact, for me, right now, this book hit the spot. I couldn't put it down; I was up into the wee hours of the night (er, nine o'clock). So this isn't the best book ever written. Whatever. I still loved it while it lasted!

What an interesting novel and concept!!! This book reminds me of the movie Heathers. It’s sometimes dark sometimes comedic and always there’s truth. I highly recommend this one.