The Sisterhood Of The Traveling Pants (2001) - Plot & Excerpts
Disclaimer: I did not read the whole book. I read about 75% of it and then just skipped to the end. My thoughts on this book are a reflection of the portions I did read (which was most of it, trolls, so back off.) Hmmm. Well, this was a curious little book indeed. I'm not sure if I was surprised or disappointed; I was a mix of both. My feelings for this book can be summed up in one word: meh. The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants was a book for book club. As soon as I heard the name "Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants", I was like: Yeah. I mean, c'mon. Does that title look particularly grabbing? The synopsis was even worse. Four girls, tied by EFFING PANTS THAT ALL FIT THEM? Whoa, magic. Morgan Freeman knows my thoughts exactly! Now that's magic...Moving on then...So the book focuses on four girls: Lena, Tibby, Bridget, and Carmen, and their first summer apart. However, they are able to sort of...connect?...because of a pair of pants that fits them all (even though Tibby is super small, Bridget is tall and slim, Carmen is curvy, and Lena is...whatever). They decide that even though they will be in different places (Lena in Greece, Carmen in South Carolina, Bridget in Mexico, and Tibby at home), they will send the pants to each other and it will be a way of feeling their presence, if you will. Lena What I liked about Lena's chapters was that Lena was aware that she was beautiful. Her friends constantly referred to her as the beauty, and Lena was confident that she was pretty. I liked that a lot.But Lena herself was a bland character. Okay, so she likes to paint. And is wary of love and boys and all that. Cool. And...? I just didn't get a good enough feel for Lena's character, and I wasn't emotionally connected to her. I didn't care if she and Kostos hit it off. I didn't care about her awkwardness with her bapi (grandfather.) I just didn't care.I also didn't particularly look forward to Lena's chapters because they were boy-centric. They focused on the romance between Lena and a Greek boy named Kostos (who is a pretty lovely young man, I must admit.) I, simply, am not interested in those story lines.The setting of Greece was portrayed well; I could feel the atmosphere and all of the places Lena went to. I just wished I could've seen more. Carmen I liked her chapters, and I liked Carmen. Carmen snaps. She loses her temper. She hates people who don't deserve her hate. She is just so flawed, and I freaking loved her. Carmen's story: she is visiting her dad, Al, who is divorced. She can't wait to spend a summer with him since she doesn't get to see him, but soon learns that Al has a new blonde (Carmen is Puerto Rican), perfect family: he's getting married.Carmen's alienation, her feeling of being invisible, her resentment towards her new family and her refusal to be mad at her dad is handled so realistically and so well. Carmen's story was my favorite, IMO. The way she interacted with her stepfamily, her stepfamily trying so hard to be nice to Carmen, to be cordial to Carmen. I really liked Carmen and her chapters. Tibby Tibby's staying at home, working at Wallman's. As she says, she's dying a "slow death at Wallman's." She decides that during her summer, she's going to make a suckamentary (a documentary of a bunch of weird and/or boring people that chronicles how much Tibby's summer sucked.) But her whole summer changes when she meets Bailey, a twelve-year-old girl diagnosed with leukemia.What I really liked is that Bailey is not typically likable when Tibby first meets her. In fact, Tibby shouts at Bailey when Bailey accuses her of stealing money from her wallet. And when Tibby first hangs out with Bailey, she only does so because: "Are you just being nice to me because I have cancer?" she asked over her shoulder.Tibby considered this for a moment. She could lie some more. Or not. She shrugged. "Yeah, I guess so." I liked Tibby also, though not nearly as much as I loved Carmen. She's a pretty strong character, and you get a grasp on her personality: she's direct, ruthless, rebellious, but much more than that. Bridget I saved Bridget's for last because I have a lot to say about this one. Let me just say it straight: I. DID. NOT. LIKE. BRIDGET. I didn't. I hated reading her chapters. Bridget is in Baja California, Mexico, at an all-girls' soccer camp. When she gets there, she immediately falls in love with a coach...Eric. And so all of Bridget's chapters are pretty much devoted to Bridget pursuing Eric. Does that seem like something that would interest me?Bridget is reckless. She's impulsive. She doesn't think. She is literally falling in head-over-heels insta-love with a coach, whom she's not allowed to start a romantic relationship with. Ooh, star-crossed love! *rolls eyes* She keeps trying to have sex with Eric, even though HE'S A COACH AND SHE'S FIFTEEN. Not only does she disregard the rules, she keeps putting Eric in danger of losing his job. If she really loved him, she would not keep pursuing him. Now, I love when characters make mistakes and when they learn from them (which Bridget ultimately did), but I did not like following Bridget.Here's the thing about Bridget: we are told that Bridget is athletic and loves soccer. Yet when Bridget does well at camp, it's all motivated by Eric. Eric is her driving force. What about her ambition? Her love for sports? The thing that disappointed me was that Bridget's story had a lot of potential. Her mother died (and it is hinted that it is because of suicide, depression, mental illness, you get the picture.) Yet NONE of that is explored. The whole story is devoted to Bridget and Eric. Other things: The writing? Okay. There was one instance where Brashares described Baja as having "protective mountains." Try drawing that. I dare you. Also, just something you should know: the book starts with a first-person prologue from Carmen and ends with a first-person epilogue from Carmen. In between, it shifts between the four characters...in third-person. It's a bit jarring at first.There was one quote (I can't find it) where Carmen pretty much labels all her friends (Bridget the athlete, Tibby the rebel, Lena the beauty) and comments that she can't seem to categorize herself. I wanted to scream, "YOU CANNOT CATEGORIZE YOURSELF, YOU CANNOT CATEGORIZE ANYONE!" People do not just live in neat little labels. I didn't hate Sisterhood; I didn't. But I can't give it more than a two stars because it was just meh. Perhaps it could've gotten a three stars had Bridget's chapters not annoyed me so much. It was more substantial than I expected, yet I felt had so much more potential than it explored.
Carmen got the jeans at a thrift shop. They didn’t look all that great: they were worn, dirty, and speckled with bleach. On the night before she and her friends part for the summer, Carmen decides to toss them. But Tibby says they’re great. She'd love to have them. Lena and Bridget also think they’re fabulous. Lena decides that they should all try them on. Whoever they fit best will get them. Nobody knows why, but the pants fit everyone perfectly. Even Carmen (who never thinks she looks good in anything) thinks she looks good in the pants. Over a few bags of cheese puffs, they decide to form a sisterhood and take the vow of the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants . . . the next morning, they say good-bye. And then the journey of the pants — and the most memorable summer of their lives — begins. After starting the first book, I found there was a lot different between the movie and the book. What I love about the movie, did not translate well in the book. I understand the movie will not always be the same as the book, so my review will only be on what I thought about the book itself.I was quite dissapointed with book one. Going in, I had high hopes for this one but I felt let down. I found all of the characters annoying and frustrating, the plot was cliché, and it just didn't intrigue me at all. Keep reading to find out my thoughts on each character. Carmen: For the summer, Carmen is visiting her Dad who lives up in South Carolina. She rarely gets to see him, so spending the summer with him is extremely exciting for her. What she doesn't expect to see is a blonde lady with two kids waiting at the house for her.I really didn't like Carmen's chapters. She had a terrible temper and it annoyed me sometimes. If I were in her situation, sure, I would be pretty ticked off and hurt. But she over reacted on some occasions and sometimes was uncessarly rude to her step family. All of it just felt..well fake. Her stepfamily trying so hard to be nice, and Carmen trying to do the same but just coming off as a biatch. Carmen was an okay character, but she wasn't my favorite.Tibby: While her three best friend are off to travel the world, Tibby is stuck at home working at Wallmans. She decides to make a suckamentary - a video document of boring people for Tibby to prove how much her summer sucked- On her first day work, she meets this girl Bailey, a twelve year old girl diagnosed with luekemia and it changes her whole summer. I didn't hate Tibby's character, nor did I like her. I felt like she was a whiny teenager that just needed to get over herself. She had the whole 'I hate the world attitude' and it frustated me. If you want to do something for the summer, then get a fun job, do something new, take risks, whatever! But she needed to get over herself. Bridget: For the summer, Bridget is travelling down to Baja California, Mexico for an all girls soccer camp. When she gets there, her eyes are set on one of the teams coaches, Eric. Immediately, she wants him.Bridget was impuslive, reckless and just didn't think things through. When all the girls were getting assigned to their teams, Bridget spots Eric, one of the coaches who is a few years older than her. Bridget can't help but want him, so she does everything in her power to get his attention. Let the wind flow through her hair while she's looking at him, follow him to a bar with a few of friends of hers and dance agaisnt him and other things that just came off as annoying. It made me want to reach inside the book, grab her by the shoulders and yell, "What the fluff is wrong with you? PULL YOURSELF TOGETHER!"She is freaking fifteen years old and he is nineteen. She is a student, and he's the coach. She could care less about him losing his job and her getting kicked out, oh but no, the only thing she cares about is doing the hanky panky with him!I wanted so bad for Bridget to be at the camp for her love for sports. Not for some random dude she just met. This character was a real big disappoint to me.Lena: For the summer, Lena is travelling to Greece to visit her grandparents. Lena is very shy and hates to show off her beauty. Her first few days there her grandmother sets her up with Kostos, a charming friend of the family. He tries his best to get to know her better, but, Lena is wary,and tries to avoid him as much as possible. Problems occur when an iccident happens between Kosto's and Lena, making things difficult between the two familes.I found Lena to be very dull. All she did was paint, sketch, or walk around the house and city. She just didn't draw me in. I was hoping the book would be like the movie. I hoped that she would talk to him, go on small adventures with him, and actually fall in love with him the right way. Not ignore him the whole summer, and then tell you love him when you're about to leave. I found that to be so idiotic. How can you fall in love with someone you don't even know?! Like all the other characters, I just wasn't interested.I'm thankful the movie came out better than the first book. I'm currently reading the second book, and so far it's okay.
What do You think about The Sisterhood Of The Traveling Pants (2001)?
My review of The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants.....I understood going into this book that is probably wasn't going to be the book for me. A story of four best friends and the lessons learned on the first summer they spent apart *cue the sappy ass rom-com music* Whatever!I could sit here and go on and on about all the disasters that happen in this book and why it terrifies me that these "coming of age" stories are so well received by teenage girls but someone has probably done that better than I. Also, I just don't see how venturing into the headspace of me as a 15 year old is going to be positive for anyone.... so, I'll give a brief synopsis on the four MCs, that I couldn't relate to in any real way, and what I think other girls may see and like in them. Bridget is athletic, energetic and goal oriented. She sees something and she just has to attain it, nothing can stand in her way..... even when it's a nineteen year-old coach at her soccer camp. Do.Not.Get.Me.Started.On.How.Stupid.This.Is! Bridget is completely reckless!! Single-minded AND self destructive! Carmen is peurto rican - get used to reading this, it is her excuse for all.the.things. - with a hair trigger temper and an absentee father. She feels abandoned and unloved, not surprising feelings, but is so quick to go on the offence that it is impossible to get close enough to care about her. Lena is bee-u-T-ful, like a goddess..... she is so beautiful, Oh-my-god .... and hates being seen as merely that. Trust me, I can understand hating being seen as only one aspect of your person but GET.OVER.YOURSELF and show the people another side of you.She gives evidence to the theory that shy girls are snobby girls, in a big way. Tibby is the lovechild of two parents who eventually grew up and decided they wanted to have a real family. Two siblings under 2 later, and a whole slew of other life changes, have left Tibby missing her previous hippesque lifestyle. I can understand why this could be an interesting story but it just wasn't for me. I found all the MCs voices annoying, not to mention all of their behaviour being self-destructive and crazy. Oh and don't forget insta-love and sappy solutions that make no sense!
—Karly *The Vampire Ninja & Luminescent Monster*
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants follows a group of friends Carmen, Lena, Tibby and Bridget as they spend their summers apart. The day before they part ways, they find a pair of pants that fit them all perfectly. What is this madness, you say? Thus begins the journey of the Pants from D.C to Santorini Greece, Charleston, Baja California and back. The girls experience an unforgettable summer and only the Pants know everything.TSotTP was a delightful read! I especially loved Tibby's journey and she was the one that stayed at their hometown! Her story was inspiring and made me teary but in a good way. I loved how the Pants gave each individual strength and courage when the other girls could not physically be there for them. The Pants really are magical!
—Christina
I saw the movie first and kind of liked it. So, of course I thought "Well the book is always better than the movie" so I decided to read it, even though its written for teens and I wasn't too sure I could relate. I guess I couldn't because this is one time I liked the movie a lot better than the book. I mean really, how many 15/16 year old girls do you know who's parents let them go trapezing all over the world (in Lena's case literally) and don't think twice about it. Come to think of it how ma
—Julie
