Why I Let my Hair Grow Out

Why I Let my Hair Grow Outby Maryrose WoodI saw other book blogs talk about this book and even author Melissa Walker (Violet on the Runway, Violet by Design) was giving a copy away back in June. I guess I just didn't pay close enough attention to the summary of the book because I thought it was just about a girl who was dumped and gets sent away on a trip by her parents to get over it. So I never even picked it up in the store, nor did I put it on my wishlist.But last Tuesday it just showed up at my house all by itself! Seems my little book faerie had been up to it again! Kat sent me some pretty neat books this time around and Why I Let My Hair Grow Out was one of them. It forced me to take a second look at a book I had just brushed off as angsty chick-lit.What I didn't notice as I frequently brushed the book off as boring, was the fact that when Morgan goes away on her trip to get over her boyfriend, she goes to Ireland and after a fall off her bike ends up in a Faerie world. Well, now! Faeries! The book suddenly got more interesting!As I had just finished the book I had been reading I thought I would give this one a shot, after all it didn't look very long and if I didn't like it would be over soon.But I LOVED it. Morgan is written with such amazing humour that I even found myself chuckling out loud a few times. I certainly had a smile on my face for most of the book, it was fantastically sharp witted and amusing. The switch between the "real world" Ireland and Faerie world Ireland was done well and often due to some amusing reasons.You will find yourself silently cheering 16-year old Morgan on as she starts to come out of her funk and start to be comfortable in her own skin and realize that people like her for who she is. You want to know the answers to the three riddles to help the Faerie World townsfolk. You want to know what's going to happen with Colin, the hunky bike-tour guy.The author did something else in this story which endeared her to me. Morgan had this habit of calling things around the Irish countryside,  "Ye Olde Quaint Something-or-Other" and I often do that myself. Whether out of sarcasm or just for fun. I loved Morgans manner of speaking as I think it was close to my own.Only when I was telling Monkey about the book this week was I pointed in the direction of another book by Maryrose Wood, How I Found the Perfect Dress! Yet another book I just passed over thinking, "ugh". But I am going to have to pick it up now!