The List by Melanie Jacobson

I found this book from a Seagull Books ad and was intrigued by what it had to offer. I found it pretty good and humorous from a Mormon standpoint. Melanie does a very good job poking fun as the stereotypical college age group of mormons and their tactics and views on dating and marriage. It was fairly funny at times.

Ashley Barrett is our main character who goes to school at famous BYU where her whole family has gotten married when they were 19 and started having kids immediately. Sounds like a normal mormon view on life after highschool. Well, Ashley does not find this at all appealing since her sisters and mother seem to always be stressed out and missing out on life. They hurt financially and it seems to take a toll on their marriages. So to prevent this from happening to her, Ashley puts together The List. 25 things to do before getting married with things such as learn to surf, sky dive, learn to make sushi, get a masters, etc... So she finds herself in California staying with her cousins for the summer so she can learn how to surf and possibly mark off another couple things on her list such as internet dating and having a summer fling. She finds herself targeting Matt Gibson as her summer fling and surf instructor. It is entertaining to see them at ward activities and the typical blond haired girls that are super spiritual in order to try to get Matt's attention. Ashely, of course, is the opposite of all stereotypical Utah blonde, super spiritual females and so is able to help Melanie poke fun at the LDS social life. Unfortunately for Ashley, she finds herself falling in love with Matt and has to decide whether to forgo the last three items on her list for Matt or leave Matt behind. Bet you can't figure out what she chooses in the end? Overall, a very enjoyable read for an LDS targeted book.