The F-It List by Julie Halpern

I've been neglecting this little blog more than I ever intended to lately. I work for a courier company, and December is definitely our busiest month. Most nights I get home from a 9+ hour shift and collapse in bed with a book, with absolutely no thought of blogging! That being said, I have read some really great books lately, and can't wait to share my thoughts on them.

The F-It List by Julie Halpern
From Goodreads: Alex’s father recently died in a car accident. And on the night of his funeral, her best friend Becca slept with Alex’s boyfriend. So things aren’t great. Alex steps away from her friendship with Becca and focuses on her family.

But when Alex finally decides to forgive Becca, she finds out something that will change her world again—Becca has cancer.

So what do you do when your best friend has cancer? You help her shave her head. And then you take her bucket list and try to fulfill it on her behalf. Because if that’s all you can do to help your ailing friend—you do it.

Alex and Becca were exactly the types of people I would have been friends with in high school. Sarcastic, a little insecure, quite pervy, but overall kind hearted. After not speaking for an entire summer, Alex finds out Becca has cancer and immediately forgives her for sleeping with her boyfriend. Becca shows Alex a bucket list that she'd been working on for years, and begs Alex to help with her with it. And, as the synopsis says, when your best friend has cancer, you do what she asks.

Alex sets out to complete as much of the newly deemed F-It List as she can, while still dealing with her father's death. If that's not enough to deal with, enter Leo. The mystery guy that suddenly seems into Alex. I loved the relationship between Leo and Alex. It was far from perfect, but it was genuine. Leo seems to be just what Alex needs, even if she can't see it.

The fact that none of the characters were perfect is exactly why this book worked so well. They were flawed, and (mostly) unapologetic in their flaws, which is what more people need to be. It was also funny, but be warned, if you don't like crude humor, then you won't like this book. Imagine spending a few hours talking to a teenager. If that thought doesn't make you want to run away screaming, then I think you'll like this book.

This book has been compared to John Green's The Fault in Our Stars, but that's not a fair comparison. Both are great books dealing with cancer, but they're completely different. Don't go into this book expecting another TFIOS, but don't let that stop you from reading it.

Four out of five stars based on Goodreads rating system.