What Boys Really Want

Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read. Want to Read saving…. Want to Read Currently Reading Read. Refresh and try again. Open Preview See a Problem? Thanks for telling us about the problem. Return to Book Page. National Book Award winning author Pete Hautman lets us in on the secret. Lita is the writer. Adam is the entrepreneur. So Adam would never sell copies of a self-help book before he'd even written it. And Lita would never try to break up Adam's relationship with Blair, the skankiest girl at school.

They'd never sabotage their friends Emily and Dennis. Lita would never date a guy related to a girl she can't stand. They'd never steal each other's blog posts. And Adam would never end up in a fist fight with Lita's boyfriend. Adam and Lita might never agree on what happened, but in this hilarious story from Pete Hautman, they manage to give the world a little more insight into what boys and girls are really looking for.

Hardcover , pages.

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up. To ask other readers questions about What Boys Really Want , please sign up. This question contains spoilers… view spoiler [who have read this book? See 1 question about What Boys Really Want…. Lists with This Book. May 08, Kaethe marked it as abandoned Shelves: Bailed on account of both "skank" and "slut" early on.

I have pretty much zero-tolerance for slut-shaming. I generally like Hautman, though, so I'm giving the benefit of the doubt that this is just a single tone-deaf book. Certainly the cover image of four girls with identical hair in four different colors looks cheesy and generic, racially "balanced" like a cover of the Babysitters Club, and that reinforces the tone-deaf vibe.

So, I'm gonna pass. Jan 13, Jenny rated it liked it. What Boys Really Want is a cute story that superficially illustrates a few of the fundamental differences in the way men and women think in a light, humorous way using two teenagers as the token representatives for their gender. There are no groundbreaking or overly astute observations and analyses of gender relations, but nor are there meant to be, instead we get to enjoy a quick romp through a world of misunderstandings and drama created by the lack of effective communication from one person t What Boys Really Want is a cute story that superficially illustrates a few of the fundamental differences in the way men and women think in a light, humorous way using two teenagers as the token representatives for their gender.

There are no groundbreaking or overly astute observations and analyses of gender relations, but nor are there meant to be, instead we get to enjoy a quick romp through a world of misunderstandings and drama created by the lack of effective communication from one person to the next. Lita is a meddler, constantly insinuating herself into the lives and happenings of others whether invited or not, dispensing snarky advice and generally focusing outward instead of dwelling on her own life.

Adam, on the other hand, is distinctively more internal, often in his own little world and slightly oblivious to the thoughts and actions of those around him which causes him no shortage of trouble with both best friend Lita and with life in general. This book is akin to an episode of Seinfeld: Feb 04, Jim rated it did not like it. This one was a chore. Defying the old adage, in this case, we really can judge a book by its cover. The cover image implies that the girls simply cannot suppress their curiosity about the true nature of male desire—and this heteronormative, male-centered premise permeates the novel, along with countless other sexist assumptions and stereotypes that motivate the one-dimensional characters.

As for the young women who appear on the cover, three of them are undoubtedly upper middle class, suburban, privileged, white icons of the dominant culture. They are interchangeable, and any or all of them could easily represent any one of the three primary white female characters in the novel. One of the young women who appears on the cover is black—but this is quite misleading, since the only person of color who appears in the novel does so briefly, and she spends no amount of time associating with the three white women.

Upon encountering her, the female protagonist Lita describes her Chelsea as follows: And this is just the most obvious of the offensive stereotypes that appear in this book. The novel might hold a small degree of appeal for teens who resemble these forgettable and uninteresting characters, but adolescents who possess any level of literary sophistication will surely dismiss this as not worth their time or energy. Dec 17, Amy Diop rated it it was ok Shelves: Adam and Lita are best friends.

Adam wants to write a book about what boys want. Lita gets jealous because she is the one who mostly cares about books and writing. When Adams book does really well Lita gets all jealous. Lita has a blog named "Miz Fitz" on this blog people ask her questions about relationships and boys and girls. Adam copies most of the stuff from Miz Fitz just changes the words. Explains to Adam that she is Miz Fitz and that he copied all her advice.

Adam gets an amazing offer to sell his book in a New York bookstore. He says yes but he lets Lita be the offer of the book. Dec 28, Carol rated it did not like it. Super sexist and it made me cringe multiple times. The female protagonist, Lita, while having good intentions to help her best friend tends to go about it in very superficial ways. Also, you'd think with how mature and how great of a friend she thinks she is with Adam, that she wouldn't snub him when he asks for help. The male protagonist, Adam, is very career driven but completely sexist when it comes to girls.

Guys only want meat and girls only want lettuce and tofu? I get that he's in Super sexist and it made me cringe multiple times. I get that he's in high school, but not many guys think like this still, do they?! The best part of the book was the last chapter and the epilogue.

Nov 22, AnQi rated it really liked it Shelves: Hautman perfects the he-said, she-said format in a book where both characters are immensely likable and distinct. The story adds on enjoyment with its true to life situations and is a quick and spunky read. Fans of Flipped will devour this well-written realistic fiction. Mar 08, Becky Pinson rated it really liked it. Yeah, so I adored this book! Yes, some of it is embellished a little, yet at the same time full of truths! The humor was great! Whenever I laugh out loud while reading, I can't help but give the book a good rating!

Jun 28, Miranda rated it it was amazing. Dec 13, Jdtolbertyahoo. I guess I was expecting more. The characters felt flat and some of them thrown in just to make sure there wasn't just two characters who didn't know how to speak to each other. You would think that two best friends from kindergarten would be able to speak in short intellegent sentences that got the point across instead of one person being angry and then refusing to explain the reasons why.

For example Adam decides to write a book "what boys really want" This pisses Lita off for a number of reason I guess I was expecting more. For example Adam decides to write a book "what boys really want" This pisses Lita off for a number of reasons. She hasn't told him that it is her blog so when he more than samples it she is pissed 1 because he finished his book 2 because he stole some of her quotes 3 he doesn't understand because she has been shutting him out. When it all comes out Adam doesn't get to sell additional copies of his book.

Family lawyer says that he needs Lita's permission. Lita finds herself in hot water because she has said a lot of uncensored things as the Mysterious Miz Fitz In the end, Adam asks Lita to be a co-author of the but for actual publication. Lita instantly forgives him and suddenly the world is the perfect place it should be once again. May 06, Isabelle rated it really liked it.

Would've liked to see Adam and Lita end up together, since that's what you'd expect from a relationship like theirs, especially once you hear that Lita's been sabotaging Adam's love life. Incredible, especially considering male authors generally suck at female characters. Nice balance between real, serious consequences and the lighthearted teenage frivolity of romance and gender rivalry. Feb 20, Evelyn rated it it was ok. I don't remember much from when I first read it, but it was lighthearted and funny, for the most part.

Feb 19, Paige rated it it was ok Shelves: In the past, I've read a few of Pete Hautman's other novels. His books are very sweet, contemporary books kind of stripped down to the essence. I enjoyed his other reads, and when I found out about his newest release, the romantic comedy What Boys Really Want , it was one of my must-haves for The story felt a little too heavily based on romance, but I enjoyed the read. Adam and Lita are friends. They've been best friends forever, both firmly in their own roles: Adam is the entr In the past, I've read a few of Pete Hautman's other novels.

Adam is the entrepreneur and Lita is the writer. Adam comes up with the idea to write a book, though, shaking up their roles and making both of them unsure of their identities. Adam decides he will write a book on what boys want -- hence the title of the novel -- and Lita turns her attention to matchmaking her friend Emily with her crush.

Their friendship becomes more and more distanced, though, as Adam becomes more and more engrossed in the book and people become more interested in reading his book.

What Boys Really Want by Pete Hautman

This book is really refreshing. I mean, a boy-girl friendship? Where neither of them are interested in dating the other or harboring a secret crush on the other? I love boy-girl friendships and I have lots of guy friends. I thought this was a really refreshing part of the story. The friendships are done very well, and they make up a large portion of the novel: Lita and her friends, Adam and his friends, and Adam and Lita's friendship are very prominent. The book is also really funny -- there are a lot of humorous moments and they all are realistic while being hilarious. So in some parts the book is really refreshing.

But there were also issues I had. The romance is obviously a key part of the book. I expected it to be a big part of the novel, and it is. There's a major subplot with Lita attempting to hook up her friend Emily, and both Adam and Lita gain love interests. I liked the love interests, Blair and Brett, but my issues were more with the love subplot. Throughout the entire book Lita had been fixtated on her plan, and she wanted to make sure Emily got the guy of her dreams.

But at the end, the subplot kind of fell apart. Emily started to date her crush, and while their relationship ended realisticly it seemed like a low ending. The entire book had been working up to some kind of interaction between them, and I expected it to end a little better. The two characters moved on so quickly it made me wonder why the author had even inserted the subplot. The other thing I want to note is that Adam does self-publish his book.

He had a character state that he disliked self-publishing, and another character who was published traditionally, and briefly explained the traditional publishing route writing the book, editing, getting a literary agent and then having the agent go on submission. I did think it would have been interesting to have more on this topic, and kind of make for some interesting parallels to Adam's way of publishing compared to the traditional way of publishing shown by Lita's mother.

Overall a strong plot and a good story with some confusing subplots and some things that could have been addressed better. The characters were fantastic.

MORE BY PETE HAUTMAN

Lita and Adam both had very distinct personalities and narrations. It was easy to tell that Adam was a boy and Lita was a girl, which doesn't always happen with double-gender POVs. The dialogue was very realistic and sounded like real teenagers. The other characters were also very developed, and the best friends -- a trope that sometimes creates flat characters -- were also developed. The love interests were both interesting, and I loved how Hautman broke down gender stereotypes with his love interests while still giving the interests their own personalities.

Brett was very into auto mechanics but also enjoyed English lit and Blair acted skanky but wasn't as skanky as she seemed. There's also a fun twist about Brett and Blair at the end but I won't give it away. Very strong, realistic characters. Hautman's writing is very realistic. His characters all sounded like teenagers, and that reflected in his writing as well; the narration sounded like how a teenager would speak and act. His writing's also very funny, and he's a very good humorous writer with a good sense of how teenagers act. If you enjoy contemporary YA this would be a good read for you, and if you're interested in romance and "he said, she said" stories you would probably also enjoy this read.

I had some issues with the book but it turned out to be a good story and I'm glad I chose to read it. Jan 03, InkBitten rated it liked it Shelves: Judged by a Cover: The girls on the cover look like regular teens, instead of plastic surgery advertisements and, I can even see fly away strands of hair. Lita and Ada Judged by a Cover: Lita and Adam have always been friends. Each of them has their roles in the friendship; Lita is the writer, and Adam has the crazy business plans.

So Adam would never write a novel without telling Lita, right? And Lita would never try to break Adam and his girlfriend up, right? I could almost see myself being friends with Adam. For one, he came up with these amazing, almost impossible plots, which reminded me a lot of myself. He is remarkable intelligent and mature for a teenage guy, and he even manages to see past the facades many people hide themselves behind.

That said, he was still an adolescent boy, and he could be so clueless. I started out the novel thinking that Lita could almost pass for my twin. The problem was, after the beginning, she spent the entire novel sulking and screaming at people. I would love to be her friend, as soon as she mellows a bit. Again, I wish The scenes between Lita and her love interest were at times some of the sweetest scenes with the funniest banter.

I have the same problem with their relationship as I did with Lita, her attitude. Still, after seeing Lita be so sulky, everything was pretty much spoiled for me. Clippings No matter what I thought of Lita, I loved her writing. Both her blogging under the pseudonym, and the writing she did for her novel were marvelous.

It was not jealousy that drove the Countess Ravisha to set fire to the hair of her 17th lover Guido Barkwallow, but rather an inclination to making separations as memorable and unambiguous as possible. Dear Miz Fitz, When do you just say to hell with it and give up? Not until he gets a restraining order Dear Miz Fitz: Just enough so that if I was bored enough of one person I could switch to another, but not so many that my head hurt trying to keep track of them.

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Slightly Burnt Popcorn I loved the entire premise of this book, especially because I hope to publish my own book someday. The author had an excellent writing style, and the plot flowed naturally. The only small thing I have to nit-pick about is how absolutely annoying Lisa could get at times. Other than that, I loved the book, and want to extend my best wishes to the author for allowing it to be my first ARC!

Feb 06, Katsumi rated it it was amazing. To read the original review and others, go to: Lita and Adam are best friends and have a rather violent relationship when they first met she hit him with a lunchbox. Lita has always wanted to be a published author, like her mother. How could h To read the original review and others, go to: How could he be taking her dream away? And Adam has his own problems, with figuring out how to publish his book and of course, what he wants. What Boys Want was surprisingly good!

Despite the awful cover I will get to that later , I decided to read it because I had read another book by Pete Hautman. The plot of this story is quick paced, interesting, and humorous. There were so many times that I found myself LOLing at the hilarious events and things these characters said. The dialogue is very real, and I can imagine teenagers actually saying those things.

All the characters were really funny and lovable. Even the minor characters like Blair are likable. The idea of this book is really cool too because I learned more about the book publishing process. It was interesting to see all the different relationships between people unfold. And I really appreciated how Adam and Lita never liked each other and that they were seriously just friends. One thing I must says is how I think Pete needs to get a new publisher. I think this is a wonderful read, but the amazingness is taken away because of the presentation.

First of all is the title. Next is the cover. I do not like seeing people on the cover of my books. I do not like this cover. And the last thing is the inside flap. And the event they are talking about happens in the last 20 pages. Therefore, I think Pete needs to get a new publisher who will actually read the book before the jacket and cover are designed.

How can you put the wrong name in your description??? Anyway, despite my ranting I really did like this book. It was funny, realistic, and a great light read. Jan 16, Sherry Thompson rated it really liked it. Lita Wold and Adam Merchant have been friends since they were very young, and now they are juniors at Wellstone High School. Lita, who is working on a romance novel, aspires to be a writer like her famous author mother.

Unbeknownst to anyone, Lita also secretly writes an advice blog under the alias, Miz Fitz, doling out answers on dating and boys. Adam, on the other hand, has no interest in writing, so Lita is surprised, but also a little upset, when Adam announces his intentions to write a book Lita Wold and Adam Merchant have been friends since they were very young, and now they are juniors at Wellstone High School.

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Adam, on the other hand, has no interest in writing, so Lita is surprised, but also a little upset, when Adam announces his intentions to write a book on what boys really want from their relationships with girls. Writing a book turns out to be a lot of work, so Adam ends up obtaining much of his book from material he finds online. What Boys Really Want is a quick, playful read about relationships built on a book about relationships! There is a lot of humor in the book; I found myself laughing out loud at some of the scenes in the novel!

I loved both Lita and Adam. Lita is a sarcastic, tough realist; she tells it like it is. Adam is exactly the opposite; he is easy-going, fun-loving, and happy-go-lucky. This is one of the warmest and sweetest books I've read for absolutely ages. I can't think of the last time I found one where every teen, and even most of the adults, were likeable!

This also makes it a really good mixture of the predictable - it's fairly clear that Lita will end up finding out about Adam's plagiarism - and the unexpected - there were several plot twists which I definitely didn't see coming but were subtly signposted when you thought back. It's also very, very funny, particularly Lita's snarky narration.

There's also fabulous character development, with Adam in particularly really growing wonderfully through the story, while both his voice and Lita's are clear and fresh. The developing romances are great, with the way Lita's friend Emily goes after Adam's friend Dennis being a fantastic sub-plot. In addition, teens reading may get some sort of an insight into the dark and mysterious enigma that is what boys - and perhaps even girls - really want!

Strong recommendation, I've never read any of Pete Hautman's books before but will definitely check out some of his others! For another teen read with an outstanding pair of narrators, Skin Deep by Laura Jarratt is one of my favourites of the year. If you're looking for another really funny and warm teen book with fabulous character development, Lottie Biggs is Not Mad by Hayley Long is superb.