the sequel to Peaches is heartfelt and starting to develop, not as a summer book, but a coming-of-age story. everything in Bridgewater, GA, is somewhat manageable and more difficult to comprehend, but understandable. This summer everything changes for our 3 georgia peaches. Leeda has been named the Pecan Queen and feels even more resentment and anger towards her mother, but as you read in the story, you can see that she is the way she was when she was little and how everyone around her considered her as a "'monster'" as Leeda's Mom would say about herself. Also, she finds herself in a journey of self-discovery and accepts her mother for who she is (even though she doesn't want anything to do with her) and most importantly: herself; she finds things about herself that she never knew before and discovers them little by little. And lands herself in guilt after she killed Birdie's dog, Honey Babe and wounding Majestic. she feels even more alienated from her family her school friends and her best friends too. she now discovers what it feels like to hold you ground and do something the way that she wants to do and not follow anyone else's orders. Murphy is changing because she applies to NYU and doesn't know where she should stay, because this is the first time that she wants to be rooted somewhere, which terrifies her to death. she and rex are still in love with each other, even though they're too proud to admit it. when she finds out that she's deferred, she feels like the world's about to collapse and destroy itself. rex feels that he's holding her back and Murphy feels the same way, but what she discovers in the end is that the only one holding herself back is Murphy. she also meets rex's father for the first time and knows what it feels like to have a boyfriend's parent love you for who you are and makes you feel like part of a family. i wonder what's going to happen in the third book when they reunite together. And last, but not least, Birdie. in this book, she discovers that she's now growing up and opening her eyes to what the world really is. her father and her housekeeper, Poopie, are in love with each other and they don't know how to break it to her gently, but she understands their relationship (she's relieved, but not sure if she's happy or not) and accepts it. her relationship with her boyfriend Enrico goes a little steamier, since they finally take their relationship to the next level and she doesn't know whether or not she should be happy or depressed. her mother is still annoying as ever, but i think that the reason why she left was because that she found out about poopie and her husband and couldn't stand in the way of that. also, birdie feels a lot of grief over the lose of Honey Babe and Majestic being in 2 leg casts because of Leeda, and discovers that maybe there might be something better out there. this tale of these 3 georgia peaches are finally coming to an end and can't wait to see how they turned out. LOVE IT AND DEFINITELY RECOMMEND IT!!!!
Murphy, Leeda, and Birdie try to hold on to their friendship while navigating their last year of high school. Murphy is determined to get herself into New York University and leave Bridgewater behind her. In the process of cutting her ties with the small town, she pushes her boyfriend away and hurts her friends. Leeda is undecided on her future, and still trying to gain her mother's approval. As her mother pushes her into being Pecan Queen, she also begins to push Leeda out of her life. Birdie isn't all that concerned about college since going to a local community college and taking over the family peach orchard has always seemed to be in the cards. Keeping up a long-distance relationship with a boy going to school in Mexico and a change in the housekeeper's behavior throw her for a loop, though, and she wonders if there could be more for her.This is the second book in the Peaches trilogy and I was nervous since I loved the first one, but this one was just as good if not better. It can completely stand on it's own without the first book although I wouldn't recommend not reading the first one. I really love the different characters because they are each so unique and are going through different trials. There are more opportunities for the reader to connect that way and to become invested in the girls' stories. This book has a lot of great messages and is overall just a fun read. It is definitely geared towards teenage girls and I loved it. I would recommend it to most girls just because it has great examples of friendship and how to deal with conflict and problems at home.Content: Sexual themes, mild drinking & smoking, language
What do You think about The Secrets Of Peaches (2008)?
Reviewed by Harmony for TeensReadToo.comTHE SECRETS OF PEACHES takes place where it's prequel, PEACHES, left off. Birdie, Murphy, and Leeda are all beginning their senior year of high school and each facing their own struggles. Birdie is dealing with a long-distance relationship, now that Enrico has gone back to Mexico, as well as worrying about her housekeeper. Murphy is trying to deal with actually having a serious boyfriend and worrying about where she's going to college. Leeda is dealing with a mother who pays more attention to her older sister instead of her and starts becoming more and more distant from everyone, friends included. The friends and family drama are what keep this novel moving. I truly think that the friendship of Leeda, Birdie, and Murphy is one of the strongest and most realistic one you'll find in YA fiction. If you enjoyed PEACHES, I'm sure you'll like this one, although it does share the one problem from the previous book - it drags horribly in the middle. Other than that, I definitely recommend it, especially if you enjoyed the first title.
—Jennifer Wardrip
It's the girls last year of school, and they have some choices to make. Murphy is going to NYU after making the tough desision of leaving the love of her life Rex behind. Birdie went down to Mexico to spend some time with Enrico after having a little fun in the cider house. She also has to start running things around the orchard since she's going to inherit it. And Leeda is this years pecan queen and is fed up with her mother, she's going to Columbia in New York and has promised her that she is not coming back.I like this book because you never know what chapter is going to be about what girl, and who will be in it. Like in some chapters the girls are all together, or there's two of them.It's a good book about friends, lovers, and choices. I don't recomend this book to guys considering that it's kind of a chick flick.
—Kate
The Short:I didn't like this as much as the first book, but that is usually the case with second books in trilogies. This was just melancholy, and was just kind of sad.The Good:I really like and connect to the characters in this series. I really like the three main girls, and hope that they stay friends through the third book.The setting was fun, and well done, and I think I liked it more because I am familiar with Georgia.I love all the times spent at the peach orchard. I think it is the perfect sweet, summery setting for this story.Murphy is so funny, and snarky. She is probably the best character.The Bad:Leeda was annoying is this book. For a good majority of the story, she was at a disconnect, and it didn't make much sense to me.The whole story seemed sad. I thought the first book was fun and happy, but this was just kind of disappointing.
—Noa Bash
