I Like Me Better by Robby Weber is about Zack Martin’s summer plans going awry after he makes a split second decision. Zack is excited for the summer to begin. He is a junior at school and is a soccer all star. His mentor, Ryan, is graduating which means Zack might be the next soccer captain. It was something he’s worked his entire life for.
He feels that soccer is the only thing he is good at. It is also the only time his family shows up for him and don’t bicker at each other. So, when Ryan pulls a prank and causes the whole soccer team to get in trouble, Zack decides to take the blame for the prank to prevent the whole team from being punished.
Zack thought that Ryan would admit to the prank before the summer ends and Zack would look like a savior and team player to the other players. He also thought it would give him the extra boost to get elected to team captain. All Zack needs to do is accept the punishment and wait until it’s a good time for Ryan to admit the truth, right?
As part of his punishment, he has to volunteer at a seaside conservation center. He crosses paths with another volunteer, Chip, who Zack thinks is cute. However, Chip, who turns out to be Ryan’s cousin, isn’t interested in being friends with Zack. Chip found out Zack pulled that prank and doesn’t want to be connected to anyone who treats animals like that. As Chip continues to pull away from Zack, Zack can’t help but fall for him.
Zack’s love life isn’t the only thing that isn’t going exactly to plan. While he is waiting for Ryan to admit the truth, he realizes his friends and fellow players are pulling away from him also. Zack is struggling to get his life back to the easy going way it was before he had taken the blame for the prank. Will Zack be able to get his life back on track?
I thought the book was an okay read. I didn’t really care for Zack at first but I eventually softened my stance on him a bit. His personality was hard to grasp as he was both the all star jock but then also shy. I felt that he didn’t really think through his impulsive decision and it cost him a lot more than he expected. He did have some character growth but I wish he reflected more on his decisions.
I felt that the book moved a bit slow at times and didn’t really have much going on. I did like reading about Chip’s and Zack’s budding friendship and their interactions. I thought they were cute and fun to read. If you like clean young adult novels, then you might like this one.
