06/12/14 - REREAD. So.... I didn't realize until the scene where Becca flashed her home schooled neighbor that I've already read this one! May as well finish it, but I'll just keep the review from 10/13 below... 
 What did I know about cancer? I knew one of my mom's best friends died from it. I also knew a couple of my mom's friends who lived through it. So that was encouraging: Not everyone with cancer dies... 
 When seventeen year old Alex learns that her best friend Becca has betrayed her by sleeping with her boyfriend on the night of her father's funeral, Alex is determined to spend the entire summer without letting Becca cross her mind. Since the girls have been best friends forever, Alex is positive that she will be ready to forgive Becca on the first day back to school -- but until then, it's time for Becca to be alone and to dwell on her wrongdoings and infidelity. 
 So, Alex is shocked when she learns that her best friend will actually not be joining her back to school -- because Becca has learned that she has cancer, and she will be spending her days getting chemotherapy and losing her hair, praying that the medicine that kills the cancer cells will not destroy all of the healthy ones as well. Now, how does a person approach a best friend who may have received a recent death sentence? Surely things like "I'm sorry" will never suffice in this situation, right? 
 Thus begins an existential crisis of sorts for Alex, as she struggles to determine what really matters in her life in light of her best friend's terrifying situation. Is there any point in pursuing a relationship with bad boy Leo, who shares Alex's passion for horror films and seems to be paying extra special attention to her lately? And what about her dreams of making her own scary film. Is there any purpose or meaning in the production of cheap thrills when Becca may not live to see the outcome? 
 When Becca produces a bucket list that she has been creating since early childhood, Alex decides that this is a way that she can finally uncover a sense of purpose in her friend's cancer. Rebranding the quest as a "Fuck it List" instead, Alex embarks on a journey to conquer a series of random and hilarious tasks, all with the goal of helping her friend accomplish what she is too weak to fulfill. 
 Does Becca have enough time to see the completion of Alex's new project? And can Alex find a comfortable compromise that allows her to mourn her friend without forsaking her own life entirely? 
 THE F-IT LIST really adds a new perspective to the subgenre of YA literature by providing the viewpoint of the best friend, rather than that of the girl actually suffering from the disease herself. It was actually pretty interesting to get a firsthand feel for the inner conflict of the best friend, who can't quite seem to figure out how much she is allow to enjoy her own life in the face of tragedy. 
 I think that the novel was well written and I was definitely intrigued enough to finish the book fairly quickly. I think I was expecting a tad more from the ending, and I can't deny that Alex's defeatist assertions that nothing in life has purpose tended to get a bit tiring -- although, I don't deny that her viewpoint was probably quite realistic given the situation. And, she did seem to come to a pretty level-headed stance on things by the last page, which was refreshing. 
 And, I have to give the author huge props for managing to integrate Damien from The West Memphis 3 into the narrative -- wasn't expecting that one in the least! 
 I appreciate the opportunity to receive a review copy of this novel, and I think F-IT LIST will find a plentiful audience of fans when it is released in November. 
 Please note that the quote was taken from the Advanced Reader's Copy, and it may be altered or eliminated in the release of the actual novel next month!