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3.68 AVERAGE
3.68 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
So weird. Bunch of high school students who are extraordinary living ordinary lives. Zombies. Gods. WTH.
This is probably not a book that everyone will enjoy, but I thought it was absolutely wonderful and weird and adorable. It's basically a realistic fiction novel about friendship and family, but it pokes fun at the paranormal YA genre.
I really don't know where to start with this one. I just have so much love for this book. It really dealt with some issues and stereotypes of the YA genre. And the narrator, James Fouhley(sp?), was fantastic! Where to start...
1 star - I felt the idea for this book was really original. The book plays off of tropes of other popular YA fads (vampires, the undead, immortal creatures, monsters, etc.). Every so often, the cycle of things/monster attacks on the town starts and it's up to the indie kids to stop them. Each chapter checks in with the indie kids, but then we return to Mikey and friends- who represent the rest of us. It's such a fun idea. And don't worry, minor
2 stars - Jared. This guy deserved an entire star because he was my favourite character from the book. There were many to choose from, but so much to love about him. Non-spoiler-y stuff that was awesome about Jared is that he loves math (he's going to college for it), he plays football, and he's gay. There is some other interesting stuff about Jared, that I'm not sure is spoiler-y or not, so... Anyways, Jared holds some secrets from Mikey and this causes some tension between them. They have such a healthy male-male relationship that this can be disheartening at times, but I think it demonstrates that every relationship has hurdles- especially a month before going to college.
3 stars - This book has open conversations about sex and sexuality, and I'm grateful for that. I think this book speaks to many youths on this topic. It's not straightforward, it can be messy. In the case of our narrator, Mikey fools around with one of his friends but continues to be just friends. It isn't weird, its just fun. We have a semi-open gay character, an explorational female who doesn't know which boy she wants (and is okay with that), and several versions of heterosexual relationships varying in degree of success: Mel and Call Me Steve, Mel/Meredith/& Mikey's parents, etc. And they talk about their issues too, though they might not be resolved and that's okay.
4 stars - At one point, or narrator begins to show us that he suffers from mental illness. Mikey has OCD, it had gone away for a while but (because of his mom's job and many other impacting things he is working through) it comes back. At one point in the story, Mikey admits he needs help. That is HUGE. Showing a character, a teen, being able to confide in another person communicates to teen readers that they can find bravery too. On top of that, we see a therapy session. It's just one, but they discuss where his real issues lie and talk about going on medication. Not everything is solved, but again, this starts a conversation and may spark ideas for teen readers.
5 stars - The cast of characters was very diverse. I already mentioned Jared & Mikey, but there are a few other cool characters too. Mel, Meredith, Henna, Nathan- to name a few. And of course, the Finns, the Dylans, and the Satchels.
The book overall felt like a much needed addition to 2015-2016 publications. I highly recommend it for reading as well as purchasing for your home or library collection.
1 star - I felt the idea for this book was really original. The book plays off of tropes of other popular YA fads (vampires, the undead, immortal creatures, monsters, etc.). Every so often, the cycle of things/monster attacks on the town starts and it's up to the indie kids to stop them. Each chapter checks in with the indie kids, but then we return to Mikey and friends- who represent the rest of us. It's such a fun idea. And don't worry, minor
Spoiler
the indie kids eventually interact with our group, and our group learns a few lessons about the indie kids- like compassion and acceptance.2 stars - Jared. This guy deserved an entire star because he was my favourite character from the book. There were many to choose from, but so much to love about him. Non-spoiler-y stuff that was awesome about Jared is that he loves math (he's going to college for it), he plays football, and he's gay.
Spoiler
He's part cat-god and cats everywhere love him. And he loves them back.Spoiler
Jared and Mikey fooled around, sexually, as younger teens- and they're both cool with it. As Mikey points out, friends are family you get to choose which means you get to choose how to love them.3 stars - This book has open conversations about sex and sexuality, and I'm grateful for that. I think this book speaks to many youths on this topic. It's not straightforward, it can be messy. In the case of our narrator, Mikey fools around with one of his friends but continues to be just friends. It isn't weird, its just fun. We have a semi-open gay character, an explorational female who doesn't know which boy she wants (and is okay with that), and several versions of heterosexual relationships varying in degree of success: Mel and Call Me Steve, Mel/Meredith/& Mikey's parents, etc. And they talk about their issues too, though they might not be resolved and that's okay.
4 stars - At one point, or narrator begins to show us that he suffers from mental illness. Mikey has OCD, it had gone away for a while but (because of his mom's job and many other impacting things he is working through) it comes back. At one point in the story, Mikey admits he needs help. That is HUGE. Showing a character, a teen, being able to confide in another person communicates to teen readers that they can find bravery too. On top of that, we see a therapy session. It's just one, but they discuss where his real issues lie and talk about going on medication. Not everything is solved, but again, this starts a conversation and may spark ideas for teen readers.
5 stars - The cast of characters was very diverse. I already mentioned Jared & Mikey, but there are a few other cool characters too. Mel, Meredith, Henna, Nathan- to name a few. And of course, the Finns, the Dylans, and the Satchels.
The book overall felt like a much needed addition to 2015-2016 publications. I highly recommend it for reading as well as purchasing for your home or library collection.
I was drawn by the concept of this story but thought it felt pretty flat. Though I DNFd so perhaps things picked up.
The main reason I DNFd was due to the unexpected mention of OCD-type thought spirals and ED. If I'd known of these triggers I probably wouldn't have picked it up in the first place.
The main reason I DNFd was due to the unexpected mention of OCD-type thought spirals and ED. If I'd known of these triggers I probably wouldn't have picked it up in the first place.
adventurous
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
hopeful
lighthearted
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I initially chose to read this book as I had heard some wonderful things about the author and I loved the cover and design of the book itself, however I had no idea what it was actually about.
Frankly, until about halfway in I had no idea what was going on most of the time. The introductory aspects of each chapter, that detailed what was going on with the "Indie kids" just seemed so out of place. Although the "Indie Kids" were basically at the core of all that was going wrong for the other characters they didn't really feature much throughout.
The thing that made me personally dislike this book the most was just the supernatural drama. I was not expecting vampires and ghosts from the past, a teenager that is a God of cats and Immortals that were trying to destroy everything, which had no real context or introduction.
The book just seemed very overwhelmed with a lot of issues (the supernatural, politics, mental health, love), that it just seemed to become maybe a bit of a "try-hard" to fit in as many YA cliches as possible.
Personally, it was all a bit too much for me, but maybe just not my taste..
Frankly, until about halfway in I had no idea what was going on most of the time. The introductory aspects of each chapter, that detailed what was going on with the "Indie kids" just seemed so out of place. Although the "Indie Kids" were basically at the core of all that was going wrong for the other characters they didn't really feature much throughout.
The thing that made me personally dislike this book the most was just the supernatural drama. I was not expecting vampires and ghosts from the past, a teenager that is a God of cats and Immortals that were trying to destroy everything, which had no real context or introduction.
The book just seemed very overwhelmed with a lot of issues (the supernatural, politics, mental health, love), that it just seemed to become maybe a bit of a "try-hard" to fit in as many YA cliches as possible.
Personally, it was all a bit too much for me, but maybe just not my taste..
Approximate guess at when I stopped reading. Just wasn’t enjoying it as much as I thought I would and it was due at the library.
funny
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes