‘Did you know you can marry yourself?’

Phoebe Davis is a sarcastic 15-year-old who records journal entries starting from New Year’s Day about most of the things that are happening in life, such as her first love and loss, failure and her parents.

Phoebe knows love is for losers, so she shows no enthusiasm for this experience and commits to never doing it. This was all after her best friend, Polly, meets her first love, dumping Phoebe behind. Her mother, who is a physician, declares that she is leaving for Syria for six months, again leaving Phoebe behind for her to live at her godmother’s house in London. Phoebe volunteers at her godmother’s thrift store where she becomes fond of the presence of the employees, especially the 16-year-old Emma. Soon everything about her decision shifts as Phoebe realises that not all love is for losers as she has fallen head-over-heels for Emma.

Beautifully written, Love Is For Losers is a humorous and simple story filled with self-discovery, exploration of sexuality, grief and family matters. It is definitely one of my favourite books as it is filled with excellent and relatable characters and I find many teenagers will relate to how Phoebe acts, sounds and the situation she encounters. Along the way, Phoebe does make many mistakes, but this makes her very authentic and human.

Through Brueggemann’s writing, this coming-of-age book makes the readers feel like they know all of Phoebe’s deepest secrets and are watching her grow, learn and change as a teenager growing up.

Reviewed by Louciana, Year 10
St Ursula’s College, Kingsgrove NSW
Age Guide 14+