This book is my new bosom sister. I adored Mary and her bookish view on the world, but more importantly I love how much Sellet leaned into the tropes that make these books so beloved instead of shying away from them. The narrative also felt much more friendship-based than romance-based while still having moments of pure swoon, a rare balance that I enjoyed immensely. Fans of Jane Austen and the Bronte sisters, look no further for a perfect contemporary comp that promises to be a favorite!

Let's go over why I love this book: it's abundantly bookish (so many fantastic references!), there are awesome friendships, siblings that are actually cool, it's emotional, it's REAL, and I honestly wish this book had existed when I was a teenager!

Mary is *very* bookish as in always carries a book with her, knows maybe a little too much about 19th-century literature (though that can't be helped with parents that are professors), and attributes aspects of real-life to occurrences that have happened in books, which I think is a fun quality, but maybe isn't the best way to go through life. As her brother Jasper says, she's "perhaps a Catherine Morland, whose mind is warped by reading too much." 

Mary befriends three rad girls at her new school because she's smart and knows about literature, so she helps them figure out which boys, who are reminiscent of the rakish men in her books, to avoid. Such a fun premise! Arden, Lydia, and Terry take Mary under their wing and after dealing with too guys that aren't who they seem, the four of them start writing the Scoundrel Survival Guide. 

I really related to this book and to Mary because in high school I was that bookish girl who read too much (though not 19th-century literature yet, that came later), had no clue about guys or how to figure them out, and felt invisible most of the time, sometimes even to my friends. That's what felt so realistic about this book to me: Mary mostly keeps to herself, is quiet, feels a little invisible at times, and very, very realistically doesn't want to ruffle any feathers. I was like YASSS while reading this book! Whether it was Mary herself making the mistakes or her friend being in the wrong, Mary didn't say anything at first because when you're a quiet teenager saying something feels like the worst thing in the world, like under no circumstances can you bring it up EVER. Better to never speak of it and avoid your friends. Reading this now as an adult, I'm like, girl go say something, go do something! But I know in my heart that as a teenager I would've done the same thing and bit my tongue and made myself invisible. I'm being intentionally vague so as not to spoil anything, but I just wanted to say how much I admire Mary being the realistic teenager that I was. 

Anyway, I also loved Mary's literature-loving, supportive, funny, close-knit family and how they helped her to grow. Her younger brother, Jasper, especially was my favorite. Maybe it's because I have two younger brothers that I think the world of. 

And the writing! OMG! Much like Mary's favorite tomes, the writing in By The Book flows so beautifully and I couldn't help but get swept up in it all. Mary's imagination is so poetic and lovely and I also used to imagine how life would be if the world were a novel. 

One of my favorite lines:
"Maybe today's piano playing had been suffused with melancholy grandeur, a storm of angry notes with an undercurrent of yearning?"

As someone who studies 19th-century literature in college, I really loved all of the references throughout the book.

And the romance! I have to talk about that! I love a good don't-really-hate to love slow-burn romance where things keep going wrong and the signals keep getting missed. Ugh so cute. 

Jane Austen lovers like me, this one is for you!

This book starts slow, it was difficult for me to get through the first few chapters as it felt like the setup for the novel was over detailed and difficult to plough through. However once I started reading, I became engrossed in Mary and her absolute obsession with classic novels. I loved all the references and the silly puns throughout the novel. Mary tries to guide through her life with just her book knowledge and it just doesn’t always work out for her. I wanted Mary to be a little more street smart than she was, but otherwise I enjoyed her character.

I would recommend this book to a Austen loving, Bronte seeking someone looking for a YA read that would fulfill that love. I also believe this book could make a cute movie. 

The publisher Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Children's Book Group generously provided me with a copy of the book upon request on NetGalley. The rating, ideas and opinions shared are my own.

This book was a cute YA story about a girl that is starting public high school for the first time.  It's a bit of culture shock as her previous school was a super tiny private school run by grad students at the college where  her parents teach.

The main character, Mary Porter-Malcolm, is a huge reader of the classics.  She relates basically all of her life back to the classics, and with her new group of friends, creates a guide (the Scoundrel Survival Guide) to help her friends avoid literary "scoundrels".  Well of course, she befriends the biggest supposed scoundrel of them all, and lo and behold, ends up falling for him.  Which. in turn, causes lots of teenage drama and angst in her life.

I think I would have enjoyed this more if I were younger, but it was a fun and quick read.  I did enjoy all of the shout outs to the classics, and the guide at the end saying which book went with which description.

3.5 stars, rounded to 4.

A book about a girl who seeks guidance for navigating high school life from classic novels...Count me in!

In this adorable story, Mary begins a new school and gains a new set of friends who seek her advice on boys based on the knowledge she has gleaned from books the likes of Anna Karenina and Jane Eyre. Mary's take on several of the males at Millville High leads to the creation of the Scoundrel Survival Guide. But along the way, Mary finds herself actually enjoying the company of the main scoundrel, Alex. She has to face the fact that maybe the classic novels have led her down the wrong path. Maybe men aren't such scoundrels and cads.

I think the concept of this book is fun and entertaining. I love all of the references to the classic novels and their characters. There are many witty comments and fun banter between Mary and Alex. The characters are all very likable and sweet, even those that are thought originally to be terrible. If there was a Mary in my high school, I would have enjoyed being her friend.

As an educator in middle and high schools, I would definitely recommend this book to students. I also think that many adults, like myself, will enjoy this read. It is light and fun and makes the reader feel hopeful about life and love.

This book was a heartwarming book, and it was very enjoyable! I felt as though I could easily connect to the characters, and it was all written in such a brilliant way. I would definitely recommend it!

It was the best of books, it was the worst most delightful of books. And this one had me at the that perfectly punny tagline. 

Off the bat I have got to admit that I was a little confused by what exactly the plot was for the first half. Why were these characters doing what they were doing? But by that point I was so engrossed and amused that I genuinely didn't care. Of course, I know now. I got it, and it's perfect! I'm chalking my confusion up to this being an ARC and I started reading it at 1 AM. Zero regrets about that, since I finished it in two days!

Our protagonist, Mary Porter-Malcom, is a delight. I mean, girl, I too love those old classic novels. I quite regularly reread my favourite Jane Austen's and constantly re-watch my favourite adaptations. The works of authors long passed is what Mary has essentially absorbed into her bloodstream. With professors as parents and a very small social sphere, it's no wonder. But when she is placed in public school, how she sees this new modern world through that old-fashioned lens is very entertaining. She is somehow both naive and very worldly all at once, and it was a wonderful combination that made me laugh out loud. Especially when it came to her new friends looking to her on what to do with boys with the Scoundrel's Guide. And did I mention she's sassy AF? I was blown away by how well she held her own in all these new social settings.

I'm probably going to come off like a big fat hypocrite, since I said in my last YA contemporary book review that I don't like it when authors rely heavily on references to other things. It's often lazy and doesn't always mean the same thing to different people. However, that applies only to pop culture references. In this case, this story is chock-full of references to old classic books. The Bronte sisters, Jane Austen, and so many more I've actually never read but definitely will now. And I loved them! They were used perfectly, taking the dumb villains and ridiculous rakes from them and applying it to boys the girls know now. It was so unbelievably amusing the examples Mary would throw out. "One chapter she's getting kissed in a carriage and the next she's having a baby and naming it Sorrow."

What really made this book shine was the female friend circle Mary finds herself welcomed into. It really brought out a warm and fuzzy feeling in me, how these girls get along so well. Of Mary's three friends, Terri is my absolute favourite. She's very beautiful but also ridiculously shy. She's as socially new to some of these things as Mary is, but has a different way of thinking about it. See, Terri wants to be a forensic analyst, and she drops amazing lines like don't get into a car to go to an undisclosed location because that's where they'll leave your body.

Now, it's hardly a surprise who the love interest in this. You know from the get-go that Alex Ritter is going to be the one for Mary, and I loved them together so much! Their relationship was never insta-love, and they built up a friendship that I adored to see. While I would have loved to see more of the two of them together, I thought it was really sweet how it went. Mary doesn't for one second think he's into her. She chooses to see everything he says and does in reference to some other girl. Because he's a rake, obviously. Until ta-dah, we kiss! You like it! It's a funny twist on one of my favourite tropes in YA, actually. You know the one, when the main character is so worried about everyone else getting picked for something that she has to be nudged to look up and see that it's her!

Honestly, adorable contemporary books like this are what I live for. Very few can meet the standards I set for enjoying them, so whenever I find one I like I hold it dear to my hear. This will absolutely be one of those shoved in the face of everyone I meet.

Excited to join the blog tour May 8!

This book was just so CHARMING. As a book lover, I fell in love with it so quickly. I loved the literary references. I liked the dynamics between characters as well. Such a wonderful YA romance!

This is perfect for booklovers/librarians/litmajors etc. so many great literature references. Love it.

This new YA release reminded me of a scavenger hunt. As Mary painstakingly picks her way through her first year in a public high school, she smugly assumes she can avoid the pitfalls that she has read about in books. Surely she will not fall into the traps that lead to misery. While giving advice to some girls she runs into after school, she finds herself cast as the fixer/literary expert. They begin to rely on her and that makes it even more difficult for Mary to realize when she might be on the wrong track. She is oblivious to her "Emma" tendencies. What I appreciated about most about this book was the reminder than when you are IRL, you will make mistakes. Feeling remorse and making things right is how we grow ourselves and our relationships. The book is filled with endearing characters and moments when you want to reach into the book and give Mary advice. I especially loved the Appendix with the "answers" to all the veiled book references throughout. I had guessed some, but not all and perhaps I will to add some of the ones I did not recognize to my TBR list. 

Thank you to Houghton Mifflin and NetGalley for a DRC in exchange for an honest review.

This book was absolutely sweet and heartwarming! I finished it within a day and it was everything that I needed. The characters were dynamic and I loved all the different kinds of relationships present throughout the story. The banter between the protagonist and the love interesting was on fire! Super cute and fast read, I can't wait to read more from Amanda Sellet.

My only concern with "By the Book" is if you don't want to be spoiled about the ending of MANY popular and classic romantic novels, read with caution. This book is filled with spoilers to major twists and ending to classic romantic literature. I didn't mind it at all, but I know others may. Just be aware!

I was pleasantly surprised at how much I liked this book! It was smart, well written, and literary.  It had references to numerous classics, which as a bibliophile, I really enjoyed.

Navigating the ups and downs of public high school proves to be difficult for bookish Mary Porter-Malcolm.  On the first day of school, Mary is dumped by her only friend for not being ‘cool’ enough to hang out with anymore.  But then suddenly Mary finds herself with a new group of friends.  These friends come to rely on Mary’s book knowledge to develop the Scoundrel Survival Guide, full of literary rogues to avoid.  Everything is going well until one of those “rogues” doesn’t appear so roguish anymore to Mary.

Thank you to NetGalley for another great read!

Charming, feel-good story with smarts! One of those fast reads that instantly transports you for a moment, and then you feel better after reading it. 
I love this cover, and the story did not disappoint. If you are a lover of literary things, you are going to want to meet Mary. Mary is 15 and is trying to navigate her way through her Sophmore year of high school with the help and advice from all her favorite classic novels. 
This story was refreshing, it was a wonderful story of freindship!

I really wanted to like this book because the premise is what really sold me. But as you can see by the rating, this book fell flat for me. My main issues with the book was that there were too many characters for me and that the romance wasn't really there. Maybe it's just me, you might have a completely different opinion and that's great. Half the time I had to pause and think about who is who  whenever a name is mentioned. The romance was basically nonexistent for more than half of the book and I didn't really get to know Alex that well.

Besides those things, I enjoyed the writing and the incorporation of classic books in the story. I probably would have rated this book higher if I read more classic books, idk.

This was a really fun and relatable read for people who love books, like me! Mary is definitely me in middle school/high school - very introverted, loves reading, tries to use the lessons from the books she reads to navigate life, and has a hard time making friends. Her new found friend group kind of falls into her lap and they are just a lot of fun. Arden, Terry, and Lydia help Mary navigate high school and Mary helps them stay away from the scoundrel boys that act just like the men in her classic romances (aside from a few plot points).

This book was enjoyable and breathes new life and love into old classic novels. The romance is slow burn and easy the way all first loves should be. I found myself reading this one slowly to really enjoy the story.

A cute, light ya romance. Sometimes the dialogue felt forced between the friend group, and a lot of the literary mentions seem a little much, and the vocabulary gets a little out of hand, but I think the romance is actually very fresh and kept my attention the most. I felt this was where the dialogue really shone. I would recommend to any teen who loves reading the classics and also loves romance, otherwise it might feel a little overbearing with all the literary mentions.

I had really high hopes for this book, but unfortunately it fell flat for me. There are a ton of characters and it is hard to keep track of all of them. Along with that, if I found my mind wandering for even a couple sentences I was thoroughly confused as to what was happening. They also referenced a lot of classic books, which other than Jane Austen I have never read. There were just a lot of factors in this book that did not work for me. 
There were aspects of the book that were cute and drew me in, but overall I just found myself not really caring about the characters or what happened in the ebook. 

2.5 stars
I received this book for free in return for an honest review.

By The Book is a  charming novel about a bookish teen who uses classic literature to help her new friends determine which guys are players in her new high school. Mary comes from a big family and she's always been happy to blend into the background both at home and in school. When she finds out she has to transfer to the public high school, her world is totally turned upside down and she has to make new friends for the first time. I love that this book features a strong group of friends who easily welcome Mary into their circle. It's nice to see realistic friend groups that support each other. This book has a rom-com vibe as it becomes obvious to the reader who Mary will end up with even though she seems blind to it. Teen fans of classics will love this fun take on literary boyfriends.

Call me out for “judging a book by its cover” but ever since the cover for this book was revealed, I have been dying to read it. Of course, the synopsis made me even more intrigued in picking it up. And the ARC gods were nice to me and granted me an early copy of this book.


I’ll start off by saying that this cover gives off a vibe that this book will be heavily a romance. And yeah, it is a romance. There is a main couple as well as a few side couples as well. But as I finished this book I realized something: yeah, romance is what carries the plot in many ways. But it’s not the main topic of this book at all. This book is about friendship. And funnily enough, it was one of my favorite things about it. 

I never am shy about my love for strong female friendships, and I gotta day I just loved the friendship between the 4 girls in this book so much. I felt like their personalities complemented each other so well, and they made for such a fun little group. Their interactions were one of my favorite things. 

I do want to say I loved the romance between Mary and Alex, and I kind of wish we could’ve gotten more scenes between them and a little more build up. They had so much chemistry, and their scenes were adorable. 


I think this falls into the “these characters are a little bit too young for my taste” category in YA contemporary though, and because of that I had a hard time connecting to the main character and the side characters, even though I felt like it was still a very cute book! Mary reminded me a bit of Lucie Herondale from Chain of Gold, with her love of books and the way she talks sometimes, and I enjoyed that about her. 


Overall, I feel like this was a cute book that was sweet and fluffy, but not something that will stay with me in the long run. If you’re looking for a fast paced and cute book with a great friendship between a few girls, I recommend!

A personal anecdote for you that, I swear, relates to this book: I work with a lot of ivy league graduates of the scholarly nature and our main character, Mary’s parents are so painfully, triggeringly, pin-point-perfectly depictive of those types of people.

I truly wondered if I would make it through this book with all the eye-twitching I had going on any time her parents spoke.

Mary’s parents have the uncanny ability to overcomplicate when communicating and they are in need of constant validation and awe with their usage of SAT words in normal conversation.

Honestly, that goes for everyone in Mary’s family. Including our narrator. I tolerated it  because her voice makes total sense given her upbringing and obsession with classic novels.

The narrator honest-to-goodness threw in the word “erstwhile.” As soon as I read that, my eye started twitching because I have a vivid experience at work in which my boss’s boss tried to come at us with a communication using that word, and we (in the marketing/communications department) immediately vetoed it.

As I hit the 50% mark, I began to find Mary charming, funny, and observant, which made for a great reading experience and I fell more and more in love with her big, quirky family. Yes, even her parents whose arms must hurt from all the self back-patting.

I grew up in a big family (3 siblings, lots of cousins) and seeing it depicted in books and movies always warms my heart - especially when done well. It’s why I tear up watching Little Women and why I adored To All the Boys I Loved Before. This was no different.

I say the following with both praise and warning:
The writing style is very nobody-talks-like-that-but-we-love-to-see-it Dawson’s Creek meets SAT prep with a lot of Gilmore Girls, but with classic literature references instead of pop culture references. There is even a glossary of literature references made at the end of the book. 

You know how there is a Rory Gilmore reading challenge? I totally could see a Mary Porter-Malcom reading challenge stemming from this book.

All that being said, I think this book is very self-aware. I believe (and hope) that it is meant to be tongue-in-cheek, in which case, it is done incredibly well. 
And now, I shall gush, because it’s what I do best:

I loved seeing how Mary’s world clashed with contemporary high school - how she interpreted everyday high school drama and how everyday high schoolers interpreted her. 

The friend group in this was so, so refreshing. All three girls has such vivid personalities with little focus on looks, which I so appreciated. I seriously WISH I had friends like those in high school. I’m many MANY years out of high school and I even wanted to hang out with them.

And who would I be if I didn’t talk about the romance in this book? YA romances can be pretty predictable, but I’m going to be honest, this one wasn’t nearly as predictable as most YA novels I read. There were SO many sweet, swoony moments. The type of tiny moments that are significant simply because of the build-up.

The inclusion of Mary’s diary entries were not extra fluff. They directed the story in significant, but subtle ways. They weren’t boringly long, they were short and sweet, but packed a punch.

When I closed this book (figuratively speaking because I read the eARC for this), I felt exactly how I hope to feel every time I open one… a little giddy, a little nostalgic, and a lot satisfied.