by Martha Freeman ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 15, 2007
Sixteen-year-old Jane has had it with boys. After she discovers her boyfriend Eliot making out with another girl in the cooler at the bagel store where they both work, she decides that she will pen her manifesto—“a thousand reasons never to kiss a boy.” Jane recounts the relationship’s past occurrences and stumbles upon its undoing, which should be no surprise to the reader; though Jane is blind to Eliot’s glaring faults, even a marginally perceptive reader will immediately pick up his less-than-honorable intentions. Jane’s relationship with Eliot is fairly typical; Eliot is a stereotypical teenaged male character who is only interested in himself and “one thing.” Jane struggles to make the choice to bend to peer pressure and “do it,” and wrestles introspectively about her impending choice. This solid chick-lit submission is predictably formulaic, from its pedestrian plot to its calculable characters. Nonetheless, it’s a wholesome read that will undoubtedly be popular with female teen readers. (Fiction. 12-16)
Pub Date: June 15, 2007
ISBN: 978-0-8234-2044-5
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2007
Share your opinion of this book
More by Martha Freeman
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
by Martha Freeman ; illustrated by Marta Sevilla
by John Boyne ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 12, 2006
Certain to provoke controversy and difficult to see as a book for children, who could easily miss the painful point.
After Hitler appoints Bruno’s father commandant of Auschwitz, Bruno (nine) is unhappy with his new surroundings compared to the luxury of his home in Berlin.
The literal-minded Bruno, with amazingly little political and social awareness, never gains comprehension of the prisoners (all in “striped pajamas”) or the malignant nature of the death camp. He overcomes loneliness and isolation only when he discovers another boy, Shmuel, on the other side of the camp’s fence. For months, the two meet, becoming secret best friends even though they can never play together. Although Bruno’s family corrects him, he childishly calls the camp “Out-With” and the Fuhrer “Fury.” As a literary device, it could be said to be credibly rooted in Bruno’s consistent, guileless characterization, though it’s difficult to believe in reality. The tragic story’s point of view is unique: the corrosive effect of brutality on Nazi family life as seen through the eyes of a naïf. Some will believe that the fable form, in which the illogical may serve the objective of moral instruction, succeeds in Boyne’s narrative; others will believe it was the wrong choice.
Certain to provoke controversy and difficult to see as a book for children, who could easily miss the painful point. (Fiction. 12-14)Pub Date: Sept. 12, 2006
ISBN: 0-385-75106-0
Page Count: 224
Publisher: David Fickling/Random
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2006
Share your opinion of this book
More by John Boyne
BOOK REVIEW
by John Boyne
BOOK REVIEW
by John Boyne
BOOK REVIEW
by John Boyne
More About This Book
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
by Jenny Han ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 5, 2009
The wish-fulfilling title and sun-washed, catalog-beautiful teens on the cover will be enticing for girls looking for a...
Han’s leisurely paced, somewhat somber narrative revisits several beach-house summers in flashback through the eyes of now 15-year-old Isabel, known to all as Belly.
Belly measures her growing self by these summers and by her lifelong relationship with the older boys, her brother and her mother’s best friend’s two sons. Belly’s dawning awareness of her sexuality and that of the boys is a strong theme, as is the sense of summer as a separate and reflective time and place: Readers get glimpses of kisses on the beach, her best friend’s flirtations during one summer’s visit, a first date. In the background the two mothers renew their friendship each year, and Lauren, Belly’s mother, provides support for her friend—if not, unfortunately, for the children—in Susannah’s losing battle with breast cancer. Besides the mostly off-stage issue of a parent’s severe illness there’s not much here to challenge most readers—driving, beer-drinking, divorce, a moment of surprise at the mothers smoking medicinal pot together.
The wish-fulfilling title and sun-washed, catalog-beautiful teens on the cover will be enticing for girls looking for a diversion. (Fiction. 12-14)Pub Date: May 5, 2009
ISBN: 978-1-4169-6823-8
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2009
Share your opinion of this book
More by Jenny Han
BOOK REVIEW
by Jenny Han
BOOK REVIEW
by Jenny Han
BOOK REVIEW
by Jenny Han ; Siobhan Vivian
More About This Book
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Hey there, book lover.
We’re glad you found a book that interests you!
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Don’t fret. We’ll find you.