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For a short explanation and the first Flashback of the Month post, go here. And, yes, I'm getting this in just in time - August is just about over.
After long battle with cancer, Betsy loses her mother and is left feeling lost in Tara Altebrando’s The Pursuit of Happiness. After the funeral, Betsy’s boyfriend dumps her and her best friend disappears from her life. As if things aren’t miserable enough, her summer plans include dressing like an early American to work at a colonial village (all her father’s fault, of course) along with the class freak, Liza. What begins as work soon turns into an escape for Betsy – from her judgmental classmates, from her breakup, from her mother’s death, and from her uncomfortably quiet home. With the help of her co-workers Liza and James, Betsy learns to work her way through the stages of grief and discover hope for normalcy in the future. While she is taught many colonial crafts and means of cooking, it seems that cutting silhouettes out of paper combined with a certain surfer’s woodcarvings are the perfect recipe for beginning to mend a broken heart.
Though sometimes it’s hard to look past the MTV logo, The Pursuit of Happiness is hardly a fluff novel. So, looking past the cover (and the corny “Declare your independence.”), Tara Altebrando’s novel will appeal to fans of Sarah Dessen, Elizabeth Scott, and Susane Colasanti. This is certainly one of the best young adult novels I’ve read that deals with overcoming grief. Betsy is easy to connect to as a reader (and respect, as she turns into a more proactive character), and Tara Altebrando truly succeeds in writing dialogue that sounds like it actually came out of a few teenagers’ mouths. I also love the setting, having always been fascinated by historical villages, and enjoyed this peak into what it could be like working at one. 9 out of 10.
1 Comments on Flashback of the Month V: The Pursuit of Happiness, last added: 9/1/2009
First, I just HAVE to share the captivating book trailer that Penguin released:
After tells the story of Devon, a girl who was once a completely normal teenager. Scratch that – Devon was never just normal. She was a hardworking straight-A student with an undeniable talent for soccer who as a high school student acted as mature as a college grad. Then one day a newborn baby appears abandoned in a dumpster – the same day that Devon is home sick. It’s not long before the connection is made, identifying the baby as Devon’s and leaving her with multiple criminal charges, the most serious of which being attempted homicide.
I’ve always been horrified and almost disgusted by the concept of dumpster babies, so After really opened my mind. I was incredibly impressed by Amy Efaw’s ability to make Devon a sympathetic character, especially considering that After isn’t even narrated directly by Devon. Amy Efaw creates a likeable though desperate protagonist who is not yet sixteen to make the issue far more complex than today’s media generally makes it out to be. Especially due to the emphasis put on intent, the courtroom scenes were fascinating, and as a reader it felt like you were there in the courtroom with Devon and Dom.
After makes great use of flashbacks to slowly reveal the entire story behind Devon’s pregnancy and her baby’s birth. These flashbacks truly contribute to the novel’s intensity without confusing the reader. Amy Efaw’s characters, especially Devon and her mother, felt very realistic, even when, in the case of Devon’s mother, they weren’t always likeable. I was really moved by the ending and impressed by Devon’s maturity, something you can hardly say about many the protagonists in many young adult novels. Though I only finished reading After a few hours before writing this review, I can say honestly say that I haven’t been able to get my mind off of the book since finishing it. The questions posed by After are incredibly thought provoking, and I expect to continue thinking it over for some time to come. I should warn you, though. After is a gritty novel about a sensitive subject and some of the excerpts are graphic. I believe readers need to approach After knowing you’re in for a serious read in order to really appreciate it. I give it a 9 out of 10.
P.S. Check back tomorrow for an interview with Amy Efaw!! P.P.S. Don’t you love the cover? The subtlety of the girl’s reflection is ingenious.
Want to get someone’s attention subconciously, want to get on someone’s nerves? You need to annoy them, and here is how you can do it.
1) Crack your knuckles/toes. Cracking your knuckles is easier and more common, but if you can crack your toes, that really gets their spine tingling. Not only is it not common, it sounds louder and more painful.
2) Bite your nails. Just the sound of that can drive some people insane.
3) Keep staring at a certain part of someone’s body. For instance, pretend you see a giant zit on someone’s cheek and keep staring at it to the point where they need to move away.
4) Be sloppy. Untuck your shirt halfway, have a milk mustache, and have long fingernails (if you’re a guy) all at the same time.
5) Last but not least, Talk! Talk about anything and everything. See an ant, talk about it. It must be touch for ants, huh? Is that a tree? What a nice tree. You’re nice; why are you so nice, it’s amazing! You know what’s amazing? Magicians. It’s not real magic though. It looks like it though, but it’s just tricks. Like in the song, you know, sing with me. “It’s tricky! It’s tricky!”. What you don’t like singing? It’s good for the heart….and so on.
Want to get someone’s attention subconciously, want to get on someone’s nerves? You need to annoy them, and here is how you can do it.
1) Crack your knuckles/toes. Cracking your knuckles is easier and more common, but if you can crack your toes, that really gets their spine tingling. Not only is it not common, it sounds louder and more painful.
2) Bite your nails. Just the sound of that can drive some people insane.
3) Keep staring at a certain part of someone’s body. For instance, pretend you see a giant zit on someone’s cheek and keep staring at it to the point where they need to move away.
4) Be sloppy. Untuck your shirt halfway, have a milk mustache, and have long fingernails (if you’re a guy) all at the same time.
5) Last but not least, Talk! Talk about anything and everything. See an ant, talk about it. It must be touch for ants, huh? Is that a tree? What a nice tree. You’re nice; why are you so nice, it’s amazing! You know what’s amazing? Magicians. It’s not real magic though. It looks like it though, but it’s just tricks. Like in the song, you know, sing with me. “It’s tricky! It’s tricky!”. What you don’t like singing? It’s good for the heart….and so on.
I really like the idea behind Flashback of the Month. Kudos. :)