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lazygal's review
2.0
This is one of those books that I'm sure that my age is preventing me from appreciating. The pop cultural references, the ironic noir tone and the clicquier-than-thou school just didn't do it for me.
Dalton's career as a private dick means he transfers into and out of schools regularly (neither of his parents seem to do much in the way of what we now call parenting); Salt River is the latest. Everything there costs - even the nurse has a credit card machine. The mystery of who killed Wesley Payne doesn't get solved satisfactorily, but eventually it does get solved after many crosses and double-crosses and the unpeeling of high school layers.
The clique chart at the start of the book and the glossary at the end were supposed to be both helpful and humorous; I just found them too intricate and too belabored. Teen readers may find they appreciate this more.
ARC provided by publisher.
Dalton's career as a private dick means he transfers into and out of schools regularly (neither of his parents seem to do much in the way of what we now call parenting); Salt River is the latest. Everything there costs - even the nurse has a credit card machine. The mystery of who killed Wesley Payne doesn't get solved satisfactorily, but eventually it does get solved after many crosses and double-crosses and the unpeeling of high school layers.
The clique chart at the start of the book and the glossary at the end were supposed to be both helpful and humorous; I just found them too intricate and too belabored. Teen readers may find they appreciate this more.
ARC provided by publisher.
lydiahephzibah's review
DNF. I bought this when it came out 11 years ago and finally decided to read it but it is totally incomprehensible. I literally have no fucking clue what's going on.
adunnells's review
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
stollhofen's review
5.0
Wow! You Killed Wesley Payne will be the book to beat this year. I'm hesitantly naming it my #1 Read for Both Genders in 2011. Excellent!
This is probably my favourite male narrator novel I've ever read, mainly because Dalton was such a relatable and realistic character. His Nancy-Drew-like mindset made you laugh while his passionate and brotherly motivation made you stop and pause. Rarely are male protagonists portrayed with such depth as most authors prefer to write them as the "jock", "cute guy", or "nerd" rather than a complex human like most female characters.
I was hesitant after a few chapters about whether or not this was an MG read because it seemed to mimic the TV show Filmore exactly. Instead Sean Beaudoin was just gearing up for the fast-paced smart chapters following the introduction. Most YA novels about teen suicide are depressing and emotional but instead You Killed Wesley Payne was full of teen romance, police corruption, student snipers, cliques, and car chases. Definitely not your typical YA read.
If you love Mean Girls, West Side Story, Grease, or anything by Jaclyn Moriarty or Agatha Christie this novel was written especially for you. The old-fashioned noir feeling juxtaposition with a modern technological setting in Sean's blatant mockery of adult mystery novels and soap operas will have you laughing for hours. I especially loved how Sean created his own universe with hilarious new slang and cliques.
This is probably my favourite male narrator novel I've ever read, mainly because Dalton was such a relatable and realistic character. His Nancy-Drew-like mindset made you laugh while his passionate and brotherly motivation made you stop and pause. Rarely are male protagonists portrayed with such depth as most authors prefer to write them as the "jock", "cute guy", or "nerd" rather than a complex human like most female characters.
I was hesitant after a few chapters about whether or not this was an MG read because it seemed to mimic the TV show Filmore exactly. Instead Sean Beaudoin was just gearing up for the fast-paced smart chapters following the introduction. Most YA novels about teen suicide are depressing and emotional but instead You Killed Wesley Payne was full of teen romance, police corruption, student snipers, cliques, and car chases. Definitely not your typical YA read.
If you love Mean Girls, West Side Story, Grease, or anything by Jaclyn Moriarty or Agatha Christie this novel was written especially for you. The old-fashioned noir feeling juxtaposition with a modern technological setting in Sean's blatant mockery of adult mystery novels and soap operas will have you laughing for hours. I especially loved how Sean created his own universe with hilarious new slang and cliques.
nerfherder86's review
4.0
Great mystery, likeable main character, and funny one-liners, as well as plot twists and red herrings abound in this spoof of hardboiled detective novels/film noir. 17 tear old Dalton is a private detective, and he's been hired by a student at Salt River High to find out who killed her brother and hung him from the goalposts on the football field. Dalton is beyond joining any of the cliques at the school, but he's totally in tune to them, giving each its own clever nickname (there's even a chart listing them all, from the "Sis Boom Bahs" (cheerleaders) to the "Crowdarounds" (hangerson who love to watch but not get involved) to "The Balls" (the jocks). Dalton gets beat up and betrayed, falls for the wrong girl, and generally has a tough time of it, but perseveres throughout--after all, he's got his own Private Dick Handbook to see him through the toughest case. This was my favorite part of the book, how his thoughts were relayed as hilarious "Private Dick Handbook Rules"--like, "Rule #42: Never be ashamed to take the back door like a thief, hide in the woods like a coward, and let heroes explain bail to their own parents." Great book!
heykellyjensen's review
Gave it 200 pages, which is more than half before deciding that the style killed the story too much. I got the biting social commentary and the whole noir/hard boiled aspects of it, but in doing it so heavily, there is no story. It's buried. There were too many characters and none mattered. The book tried too hard.
queenb13's review
3.0
I give this book 2.5 stars. It was...quirky. That's honestly the best way to describe it. And for the most part, I enjoyed it. The main character was likeable and the book was extremely funny. The author created his own high school jargon and social stratification so complex, the book comes with a glossary and chart to help you navigate the inner workings of the high school. While it got a little old having to flip out of a conversation to look up the word somebody said, it was interesting and showed the extent of the thought the author put into the book. So why didn't I like it you ask? It was just so implausible. I couldn't picture most of it actually happening. I know it wasn't supposed to be grounded in reality or based on a real high school or whatever, but I had a hard time really loving the book when the entire time I'm going, "Yeah, that would never happen." The motives for the people to do what they did made little sense. Another thing that bothered me was the answer to the book's great mystery: who killed Wesley Payne? It just felt...anticlimactic, honestly. And a bit stupid and pointless. Overall, it was a good summer read. I would probably recommend it to friends who like lighter, funnier books.
Spoiler
The whole thing is about some stupid war between the cliques for control of the high school??? Seriously? Most of those characters were seniors, at best, juniors. They're not going to be there to control the school! They're graduating! Control of the town or something would at least make it more believable but anyway, I digress.Spoiler
Wesley killed himself to protest how uncaring, self-absorbed, and money-driven the student body had become? If the problem is they don't care, why would a suicide change that? THEY DON'T CARE. It made no sense.bookishbethie's review
4.0
I sooo, sooo dig this book. I love old school, pulp, detective novels and movies, and this book is definitely a modern take on that style and genre. The main character, Dalton, fancies himself a detective, and takes a case where he has to solve the mystery of who killed Wesley Payne, a student at Salt River High, which is basically the scariest sounding high school I've ever heard of--everyone is part of a clique that not only has a specific angle, but also a racket, and is comprised of smooth-talkin', cold, business-only kind of teenagers. The girls fall into two categories: kick ass femme fatales and doe-eyed blondes with a secret, and the guys are all just crooked--not one of them is genuine and nice. (Okay, well maybe two of them are.)
The main character, Dalton, is a weird mix between Jason Schwartzman' s character on Bored to Death and Joseph Gordon-Levitt's character in Brick. He has good instincts, but he relies on fictional detective novels to guide him in his investigation. However, the kid has cajones and the ability to make himself believe that he's confident and tough. As he learns, this will get him pretty far.
The most striking thing about the book is the language. It evokes the prose in old school pulp fiction novels, full of sass, gumption, and cheekily subtle turns of phrase. And for those of you who aren't as familiar with the vocab, never fear! There's a glossary in the back.
But language isn't the only throwback in this novel. The book follows the typical pulp fiction story arc, full of melancholia, disappointments, twists, turns, surprises, and double-crossings. It's a fun read that ends very differently than you think it will and keeps you guessing and surprised the entire time.
The main character, Dalton, is a weird mix between Jason Schwartzman' s character on Bored to Death and Joseph Gordon-Levitt's character in Brick. He has good instincts, but he relies on fictional detective novels to guide him in his investigation. However, the kid has cajones and the ability to make himself believe that he's confident and tough. As he learns, this will get him pretty far.
The most striking thing about the book is the language. It evokes the prose in old school pulp fiction novels, full of sass, gumption, and cheekily subtle turns of phrase. And for those of you who aren't as familiar with the vocab, never fear! There's a glossary in the back.
But language isn't the only throwback in this novel. The book follows the typical pulp fiction story arc, full of melancholia, disappointments, twists, turns, surprises, and double-crossings. It's a fun read that ends very differently than you think it will and keeps you guessing and surprised the entire time.