Alex, Approximately
Jenn Bennett
Simon Pulse
Published April 4, 2017
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Indiebound | Goodreads
About Alex, Approximately
Classic movie buff Bailey “Mink” Rydell has spent months crushing on a witty film geek she only knows online by “Alex.” Two coasts separate the teens until Bailey moves in with her dad, who lives in the same California surfing town as her online crush.
Faced with doubts (what if he’s a creep in real life—or worse?), Bailey doesn’t tell Alex she’s moved to his hometown. Or that she’s landed a job at the local tourist-trap museum. Or that she’s being heckled daily by the irritatingly hot museum security guard, Porter Roth—a.k.a. her new arch-nemesis. But life is whole lot messier than the movies, especially when Bailey discovers that tricky fine line between hate, love, and whatever-it-is she’s starting to feel for Porter.
And as the summer months go by, Bailey must choose whether to cling to a dreamy online fantasy in Alex or take a risk on an imperfect reality with Porter. The choice is both simpler and more complicated than she realizes, because Porter Roth is hiding a secret of his own: Porter is Alex…Approximately.
My Review
This is another book that’s been on my shelf for a while, and the second book by Jenn Bennett that I’ve read. I remember hoping to get a pre-release copy when I heard about this book, but I wasn’t able to. At some point I bought the e-book, and it’s been sitting in my Kindle app patiently waiting for me to finally sit down and read it.
Which I did! I read ALEX, APPROXIMATELY right after reading P.S. I LIKE YOU by Kasie West, which might sound weird because it’s a really similar plot line. What can I say? Zero regrets!
I really enjoyed the characters and the cheesy museum workplace. I remember this book being compared to the movie YOU’VE GOT MAIL, and I hoped for a cool reveal moment like that. Happily, I will say that the book delivered on those hopes.
The classic movie references were also awesome. I knew most of them, so it definitely let me feel like I was in on the story a bit more, though I think it’d be plenty enjoyable without understanding the references.
Apparently I love Rom Com. Who knew? This makes two in a row that I really enjoyed and lifted my mood. I liked it a lot.
If you’re new to Jenn Bennett’s books, you may also want to check out my review of STARRY EYES.
Content Notes for Alex Approximately
Recommended for Ages 14 up.
Representation
Porter’s mom is Hawaiian (Chinese and Polynesian).
Profanity/Crude Language Content
Extreme profanity used pretty infrequently.
Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing and making out between boy and girl. Reference to masturbation and brief description of sex.
Spiritual Content
None.
Violent Content
Description of a brutal shark attack. A character shares a childhood memory of getting shot. Boys get into a brutal fistfight twice.
Drug Content
References to drug use. Bailey notes that teens drink alcohol and smoke pot at a big beach party.
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