October Uppercase Box review: If & Then by Emma Mills

October Uppercase Box Review

When I signed up for Uppercase Box I didn't know what to expect.  I thought that it would be a gimmick, but I was so excited when it got here.  I may not use the tattoos until next summer, but I love them!  The Alice in Wonderland is a fun treat, and so are the tin of mints.  They will be nice to keep in my purse.  

First & Then.  This is a book that I have never heard of.  I didn't know what to expect with this book.  However, I was pleasantly surprised!  There were extra insights that you get through uppercase.  There are little sticky notes throughout the book to let you have extras.  Turned out to be fun addition to the book.  

The author wrote part of this while she was still in high school.  So of coarse this book was based in a high school setting.  It kept a strong female character throughout, and tied in a bit of Jane Austin into it.  I found the Jane Austin bits to be trivial and not necessary for the story.

Yet other aspects of the story resonated deeply within me.  We all had those awkward crushes in high school, and I just happened to relate to this particular dynamic a ton!  It talks a lot of the girl being smitten with her best friend, and I was cursed with this.

The author did include a lot of curses, but for some reason it didn't bother me with this book.  Perhaps it was just the fact that it is high school.

One thing that seemed dated to me was the author brought it watching Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure.  That is something my generation (30's) would know, but not high schoolers today.  Since this book is written in a high school lifestyle, it should have correct references.  Teenagers today have probably never heard of Bill and Ted's excellent adventure.

I really liked this book.