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3.54 AVERAGE
3.54 AVERAGE
Meh. I had trouble connecting to the main characters. Their story together - and separately - had a lot of potential, but was only ever explored superficially, so it was hard to get into their mindsets. I didn't really buy the student/teacher struggles that much, because they didnt really seem to have any other than in their own heads.
MY UNTEACHABLE REVIEW
"There's something so beautiful waiting for you. Don't run from it. Run toward it."
"There's something so beautiful waiting for you. Don't run from it. Run toward it."
Lana Del Rey's songs are perfect for this book.
The description made it sound like a good book, but it really wasn’t. There wasn’t a story line aside from a teacher and student messing it around.
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
medium-paced
Upon finishing Unteachable late last night, I fell asleep struggling to work out what exactly I was going to say here. This is my second "New Adult" novel, but the first I consciously chose to read based on it's glowing reviews. I'm now asking myself, is it the genre I don't like? Or was this book just not for me?
Maise is freshly eighteen, and a new senior in high school (well, almost). She meets a handsome older stranger at the fair one night, and oh-me-oh-my they hook up in his beat up car. After she flees the scene, she tries to move on in preparation for her senior year, her last year at home before she leaves for good. But wouldn't you know it, that handsome stranger is her teacher! Ok, so I knew this going into the book, and I could see the whole "forbidden love" vibe working for fiction like this. But I guess that just isn't my fantasy. In fact, it kind of had the opposite effect.
I'll start with Maise.She's beautiful, she knows it. But she's natural and mature, unlike all the other high schoolers that try too hard in her eyes. This, I suppose, is what makes her so appealing to all men and boys alike. But she's not just a pretty face. She's had to raise herself due to her Mother's addiction and unfortunate profession.While this evoked some sympathy for her character, it was by no means enough for me. I don't need to relate to a protagonist to want to read more about them, but as the book continued I felt my sympathy and interest deflate. Maise was certainly kickass in her own way, but she was also a terrible friend with unrealistic expectations. It didn't help that I'm not a big Terrence Malick fan either.
Evan. Where do I start? I have no problem with age differences, I don't think they matter, especially as you get older. But why would a 33 year old man want to date a high school girl? It wasn't sexy for me to read. I kept thinking, "So, what do women his age see that he can easily hide from younger women?" (There is an answer to this question, and it ruined the story for me even more) It creeped me out. I don't know why, but even if she was a year older and they were in a college setting instead I would have found it more appealing. I remember feeling more mature than some of my peers in high school, but looking back, I wasn't. You're not even close to being who you're going to be when you're that age. If any of my teachers even so much as hit on me in high school, as flattering as it might have been then, looking back on it would make me sickeningly sad because I was such a kid.
Perhaps that's why I didn't relate. I couldn't help but juxtapose my high school self into the story. Me, the brooding art nerd with terrible fashion and brittle flat ironed hair, watching the mature Maise successfully date a teacher. I'd be thinking she was part of that other crowd, as different as she was from them, the crowd that burns bright in high school but dies out fast after. Oh man, I sound bitter. I'm going to focus on the positives now.
Despite my negativity, I want to point out that this is a well written novel. Though I had my reservations, Maise had some appealing wit, and the dialog was well done. I'm not surprised this book has good reviews. It's more of a me-not-you kind of situation.
Wesley was the only character that I genuinely liked. I pictured a younger Adam from GIRLS, and I almost believe the author did too... He was interesting, and a realistic high school boy. I was rooting for him the entire time, even after he made some big mistakes. His character fell flat towards the end, but I liked the space his family provided for Maise.
I'm not going to say I don't like the new adult genre. I think the backdrop just wasn't appealing to me, and since the whole plot revolves around the romance, it would have been a crucial aspect to try and relate to. Give me a lazy, neurotic, lactose intolerant, introverted, hippie, book nerd in a new adult setting and perhaps I'll be head over heels. But sorry guys, this just wasn't my bag.
Maise is freshly eighteen, and a new senior in high school (well, almost). She meets a handsome older stranger at the fair one night, and oh-me-oh-my they hook up in his beat up car. After she flees the scene, she tries to move on in preparation for her senior year, her last year at home before she leaves for good. But wouldn't you know it, that handsome stranger is her teacher! Ok, so I knew this going into the book, and I could see the whole "forbidden love" vibe working for fiction like this. But I guess that just isn't my fantasy. In fact, it kind of had the opposite effect.
I'll start with Maise.She's beautiful, she knows it. But she's natural and mature, unlike all the other high schoolers that try too hard in her eyes. This, I suppose, is what makes her so appealing to all men and boys alike. But she's not just a pretty face. She's had to raise herself due to her Mother's addiction and unfortunate profession.While this evoked some sympathy for her character, it was by no means enough for me. I don't need to relate to a protagonist to want to read more about them, but as the book continued I felt my sympathy and interest deflate. Maise was certainly kickass in her own way, but she was also a terrible friend with unrealistic expectations. It didn't help that I'm not a big Terrence Malick fan either.
Evan. Where do I start? I have no problem with age differences, I don't think they matter, especially as you get older. But why would a 33 year old man want to date a high school girl? It wasn't sexy for me to read. I kept thinking, "So, what do women his age see that he can easily hide from younger women?" (There is an answer to this question, and it ruined the story for me even more) It creeped me out. I don't know why, but even if she was a year older and they were in a college setting instead I would have found it more appealing. I remember feeling more mature than some of my peers in high school, but looking back, I wasn't. You're not even close to being who you're going to be when you're that age. If any of my teachers even so much as hit on me in high school, as flattering as it might have been then, looking back on it would make me sickeningly sad because I was such a kid.
Perhaps that's why I didn't relate. I couldn't help but juxtapose my high school self into the story. Me, the brooding art nerd with terrible fashion and brittle flat ironed hair, watching the mature Maise successfully date a teacher. I'd be thinking she was part of that other crowd, as different as she was from them, the crowd that burns bright in high school but dies out fast after. Oh man, I sound bitter. I'm going to focus on the positives now.
Despite my negativity, I want to point out that this is a well written novel. Though I had my reservations, Maise had some appealing wit, and the dialog was well done. I'm not surprised this book has good reviews. It's more of a me-not-you kind of situation.
Wesley was the only character that I genuinely liked. I pictured a younger Adam from GIRLS, and I almost believe the author did too... He was interesting, and a realistic high school boy. I was rooting for him the entire time, even after he made some big mistakes. His character fell flat towards the end, but I liked the space his family provided for Maise.
I'm not going to say I don't like the new adult genre. I think the backdrop just wasn't appealing to me, and since the whole plot revolves around the romance, it would have been a crucial aspect to try and relate to. Give me a lazy, neurotic, lactose intolerant, introverted, hippie, book nerd in a new adult setting and perhaps I'll be head over heels. But sorry guys, this just wasn't my bag.
Yesterday I thought this was five star, right after I finished it. Today, I'm still thinking about it, but there are some issues, so I'm bumping it back down.
This story is a page-turner for sure. It's well written, which is a blessing because I'd come to despair that well-written books are even being published anymore. The voice of our protagonist, Maise, is authentically teenaged. (I did have a moment at the beginning of the book where I wondered if she was going to work as a narrator. Her front of extreme self-confidence reads a bit strangely in the first few pages of the book.)
This is a "taboo" love story, but it's pretty tame in so far as the characters don't begin their romantic entanglement with the knowledge that it's taboo. It's an accident that they get together at first and pure coincidence that they are subsequently teacher and student. It's pretty romantic and a VERY steamy read if you're looking for something to get you out of your contemporary romance book slump.
My main issue with the book, which caused me to knock it a star, was with believability. Specifically regarding the twist towards the end.
Probably the most compelling part of the book was the exploration of Maise and Evan's relationship as it pertained to the taboo. Both of them questioned their attractive to one another repeatedly: would they want each other if it wasn't forbidden? They don't seem to be able to answer that question with any certainty and neither can the reader. Probably if you're reading the book it's because books about things that can't and don't happen in real life are more interesting than more plausible love stories.
It did definitely make me think about the motivation for doing things that you are "not supposed to do." Maise is a kid so we can understand her fascination with doing things that are against the rules. But what about Mr. Wilke? What about all adults? I don't know. Maybe we don't ever really grow out of that need to rebel we have when we are teenagers.
All in all, this was a good one and I recommend it.
This story is a page-turner for sure. It's well written, which is a blessing because I'd come to despair that well-written books are even being published anymore. The voice of our protagonist, Maise, is authentically teenaged. (I did have a moment at the beginning of the book where I wondered if she was going to work as a narrator. Her front of extreme self-confidence reads a bit strangely in the first few pages of the book.)
This is a "taboo" love story, but it's pretty tame in so far as the characters don't begin their romantic entanglement with the knowledge that it's taboo. It's an accident that they get together at first and pure coincidence that they are subsequently teacher and student. It's pretty romantic and a VERY steamy read if you're looking for something to get you out of your contemporary romance book slump.
My main issue with the book, which caused me to knock it a star, was with believability. Specifically regarding the twist towards the end.
Spoiler
Mr. Wilke sleeps with on high school girl before he meets and has sex with Maise. After that first incident which leaves the girl pregnant (she later miscarries, absolving him of responsibility, but still) he is able to find employment as a teacher again? There is no way. Name change or no. If it got so bad that he had to change his name that means people knew what had happened. You can't impregnate a student and continue to work in high schools. Not gonna happen. No dice.Probably the most compelling part of the book was the exploration of Maise and Evan's relationship as it pertained to the taboo. Both of them questioned their attractive to one another repeatedly: would they want each other if it wasn't forbidden? They don't seem to be able to answer that question with any certainty and neither can the reader. Probably if you're reading the book it's because books about things that can't and don't happen in real life are more interesting than more plausible love stories.
It did definitely make me think about the motivation for doing things that you are "not supposed to do." Maise is a kid so we can understand her fascination with doing things that are against the rules. But what about Mr. Wilke? What about all adults? I don't know. Maybe we don't ever really grow out of that need to rebel we have when we are teenagers.
All in all, this was a good one and I recommend it.
I'm always a sucker for a student/teacher romance (darn you, Mr. High School Science Teacher!). So naturally, I snatched this up. Definitely unlike any other student/teacher romance out there. There was a gritty undercurrent to it that while a bit over-the-top, it really kept you interested. Maise (awful name) was a great character but I still have no real character in my mind for Evan. He definitely fell flat for me.