Sean Griswold's Head

Overall Rating: 8 out of 10
In Sean Griswold's Head, The tragic hero takes the form of Payton, a witty freshman girl with a knack for over-analyzing every situation.
Payton was living the life until she came home from school one day only to hear that her dad was suffering from MS...and that the whole family had known for months known except for her. Crushed by the news, and feeling betrayed, Payton lets her life spiral into ruins. She quits the basketball team, pushes her best friend, Jac, away, and gives her family the ultimate silent treatment. It seems as if all is lost...that is, until Payton's guidance counselor steps in and decides to give her a project: choose a focus object, observe it, analyze it, and, well, focus on it. It'll take Payton's mind off of the mess that has become her life, and maybe even help her open up about her problems. Payton embraces the project with enthusiasm, and chooses the most stable focus object she knows of: Sean Griswold's head. The head that she is forever destined to look at every morning during homeroom (due to very similar last names). Payton's focus object soons turns into a full-blown crush, and soon life gets messier than ever.
One of the reasons I primarily enjoyed this book was Payton's character. She was funny, witty, and the ultimate heroine.  An excerpt from her focus object blog captures it all:
Feb 9
Topic: Cold Hard Facts learned based upon five questions experiment.
1. Sean is an only child. So we do not know who answered the phone when Jac called.
2. He pops pills because he gets headaches.
3. He wants to be the next Ironman.
4. He likes to feel in control.
5. I still don't know where the scar came from. Although, I wasn't focusing on it much once his jacket came off.* Hello, arm muscles.

*Sorry, I'm dehydrated and the searing pain in my buns is causing me to not think straight. I shouldn't objectify Sean like that, although he is a Focus OBJECT so maybe...).
Sorry again, fatigue driven delirium is setting in.

But besides her witty voice, the book also contains a deep plot. There's romance, friendship, first love, growing up, and dealing with her father's illness. There's catfights, underwear shopping, and seventy-five mile long bike marathon.
This book's got it all. However, some questions are left unresolved, which does leave the reader unsatisfied. Also, the plot does have some slow points where you have to grit your teeth and pull through                                                                                                               ,but those are few and far between.
In general, a good read. Not too crazy. Not too out of this world. But good, nonetheless.
For those who enjoy Ally Carter's Gallagher Girls novels, or Mostly Good Girls by Leila Sales.