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roxyc's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Frankie is a beautifully flawed character. The story is well written. I liked that it was an Australian story with a familiar setting. Although her anger is understandable considering the emotional trauma of her youth, i feel that her character didn't fully grow and move through that anger as i was expecting. The steadiness, support, and impact of her aunt should have had more recognition from Frankie. I found Xavier to be a more compelling character so i was very dissatisfied with the ending.
Content Warnings
Minor: Abandonment
zzalisha's review against another edition
emotional
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
zombiecupcake29's review against another edition
5.0
Winning a copy of Frankie was one of the best things this year.
Frankie’s sassy attitude and troubled life made her relatable in a way that doesn’t happen too often. I laughed. I cried. I yelled. I believe this book elicited every possible emotion from me. With unique characters and a compelling, splendid story line Shivaun Plozza hit it out of the park with this book. I’ve never been big on contemporary ya novels, but Frankie has definitely made me think twice.
Frankie’s sassy attitude and troubled life made her relatable in a way that doesn’t happen too often. I laughed. I cried. I yelled. I believe this book elicited every possible emotion from me. With unique characters and a compelling, splendid story line Shivaun Plozza hit it out of the park with this book. I’ve never been big on contemporary ya novels, but Frankie has definitely made me think twice.
carolinethereader's review against another edition
2.0
I considered giving up on this book because I found it very disappointing but it was still nice and quick to read so wooh.
Frankie is an Aussie YA about a young, angry girl who (while suspended from school for hitting someone) finds out she has a half brother. Her brother goes missing pretty early in the story and it becomes a book about a girl searching for her new little brother at a time when she really should be searching for herself.
There were elements of this book that I enjoyed. I liked that it was Australian and that I could recognise Australian elements without them being forced into it. Frankie's aunt was a gem who did not deserve to be treated the way she was and I loved her so much. I also loved the family dynamic shown- it wasn't perfect but there were sweet moments.
My main problem with this book was Frankie. I don't feel like she grew as a character at all throughout the story. I almost feel like she wasn't a fully formed character; rather, she was just the embodiment of 'anger' or 'angst'. She is consistently rude to everyone around her, family and friends included, thinks people are assholes when they treat her in a similar fashion, storms off when called out on her behaviour and is just generally a frustrating character. I could've forgiven this if we got some further insight into her character, such as why she hit the boy at school. But these things remained hidden until the end and it left Frankie feeling like a very one-dimensional character to me.
I also feel like the story wrapped up too quickly. There's a lot of repetition throughout the book while they are searching and then at the end it's just over in a few pages? It was very sudden and not at all satisfying.
Frankie is an Aussie YA about a young, angry girl who (while suspended from school for hitting someone) finds out she has a half brother. Her brother goes missing pretty early in the story and it becomes a book about a girl searching for her new little brother at a time when she really should be searching for herself.
There were elements of this book that I enjoyed. I liked that it was Australian and that I could recognise Australian elements without them being forced into it. Frankie's aunt was a gem who did not deserve to be treated the way she was and I loved her so much. I also loved the family dynamic shown- it wasn't perfect but there were sweet moments.
My main problem with this book was Frankie. I don't feel like she grew as a character at all throughout the story. I almost feel like she wasn't a fully formed character; rather, she was just the embodiment of 'anger' or 'angst'. She is consistently rude to everyone around her, family and friends included, thinks people are assholes when they treat her in a similar fashion, storms off when called out on her behaviour and is just generally a frustrating character. I could've forgiven this if we got some further insight into her character, such as why she hit the boy at school. But these things remained hidden until the end and it left Frankie feeling like a very one-dimensional character to me.
I also feel like the story wrapped up too quickly. There's a lot of repetition throughout the book while they are searching and then at the end it's just over in a few pages? It was very sudden and not at all satisfying.
littleelfman's review against another edition
5.0
Fantastic voice and sense of place. Keeps you reading, needing to know more, know Frankie more.
tamj96's review against another edition
5.0
Frankie is by far my favourite book I’ve read this year. I never realised how much I needed an Aussie book that said four wheel drive and not SUV. That mentioned places in Melbourne and other Australian things.
I love love loved Frankie!! It had me smiling, laughing out loud and crying. I cannot recommend this book enough, everyone please read it!!
I love love loved Frankie!! It had me smiling, laughing out loud and crying. I cannot recommend this book enough, everyone please read it!!
fran's review against another edition
3.0
this was good but it was so so cruel?? the ending was just,, unsatisfying. the whole book was full of development and the way the ending just makes everything go back to the way it first was just didn't work for this particular story ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
rachebeck's review against another edition
4.0
My mom spilled carrot oil on the cover of my copy of Frankie, but that isn't as heartbreaking as the actual content of the book. Frankie was a beautifully flawed character, but she was real and she learned from her mistakes. She was such a humorous, sad, and interesting character, and I enjoyed getting to read her story.
babyleo's review against another edition
5.0
There's so much to love about Frankie. Plozza's story is filled with rawness, pain, heart warming moments, and soul crushing scenes. From its opening pages until the end we're taken on an amazing journey, not a very long one, or that grand in the scheme of things, but amazing none the less.
From the start you are invested in these characters and their lives. The ongoing mystery about what Steve Sparrow said to Frankie isn't the only hook, nor is her newly discovered half brother. Her life with her aunt and her abandonment by her mother is a captivating and painful tale that connects in all the right places. Plozza makes you empathise so much with Frankie and what she deals with.
I'm not entirely sure if it's healthy, but I got Frankie. I agreed with her philosophies and I admired her, even when she was doing wrong. Her determination is admirable and while your heart pounds and you personally feel the guilt when she disobeys her aunt, I loved her still. I love her attitude and her fierceness, plus her attempt to do the right thing in a world that hasn't been that kind. Her love and respect for her aunt is beautiful and contrasted perfectly with her desire and urge to do things that aren't always right. There is a definite emotional tug-of-war that never lets up.
There is a view that Frankie doesn't accept the chances she's given; she is provided so many chances to right her wrongs that she doesn't take for one reason or another. But while it seems like she is her own worst enemy, seeing her decisions and thought process from her point of view, you forgive her. You understand her anger comes from a real place, something that can't be fixed overnight. You see her desire to find her brother and do something when no one else seems to be. Her uncontrollable temper gets her into trouble and her attitude aggravates others, but seeing it through Frankie's eyes makes it understandable. The fact that Frankie tries so hard to be good breaks your heart, and seeing her struggle and fight those helping her is torture.
Every single one of Plozza's characters are divine. She has created such a diverse range of people all mixed up in this one story. They have their own stories to tell, they are cheeky and boorish, innocent and misguided. Their life stories can be sussed out in the simplest comment or in their silence. You fall in love with so many so easily and watching them make mistakes and have victories and turmoil is one of the best parts about reading this.
Plozza tells this fantastic story with heart and style and humour that highlights truths and realities of an imperfect world and brings flawed people to life. It isn't a story of heightened teen angst or drama, it's real and it's honest, and it's a powerful story about the realities in life and the good and bad it contains. And it will crush your soul in the process. It's brilliant.
A longer version of this review was published on my blog https://lostinagoodbk.wordpress.com/2016/03/23/frankie-by-shivaun-plozza/
From the start you are invested in these characters and their lives. The ongoing mystery about what Steve Sparrow said to Frankie isn't the only hook, nor is her newly discovered half brother. Her life with her aunt and her abandonment by her mother is a captivating and painful tale that connects in all the right places. Plozza makes you empathise so much with Frankie and what she deals with.
I'm not entirely sure if it's healthy, but I got Frankie. I agreed with her philosophies and I admired her, even when she was doing wrong. Her determination is admirable and while your heart pounds and you personally feel the guilt when she disobeys her aunt, I loved her still. I love her attitude and her fierceness, plus her attempt to do the right thing in a world that hasn't been that kind. Her love and respect for her aunt is beautiful and contrasted perfectly with her desire and urge to do things that aren't always right. There is a definite emotional tug-of-war that never lets up.
There is a view that Frankie doesn't accept the chances she's given; she is provided so many chances to right her wrongs that she doesn't take for one reason or another. But while it seems like she is her own worst enemy, seeing her decisions and thought process from her point of view, you forgive her. You understand her anger comes from a real place, something that can't be fixed overnight. You see her desire to find her brother and do something when no one else seems to be. Her uncontrollable temper gets her into trouble and her attitude aggravates others, but seeing it through Frankie's eyes makes it understandable. The fact that Frankie tries so hard to be good breaks your heart, and seeing her struggle and fight those helping her is torture.
Every single one of Plozza's characters are divine. She has created such a diverse range of people all mixed up in this one story. They have their own stories to tell, they are cheeky and boorish, innocent and misguided. Their life stories can be sussed out in the simplest comment or in their silence. You fall in love with so many so easily and watching them make mistakes and have victories and turmoil is one of the best parts about reading this.
Plozza tells this fantastic story with heart and style and humour that highlights truths and realities of an imperfect world and brings flawed people to life. It isn't a story of heightened teen angst or drama, it's real and it's honest, and it's a powerful story about the realities in life and the good and bad it contains. And it will crush your soul in the process. It's brilliant.
A longer version of this review was published on my blog https://lostinagoodbk.wordpress.com/2016/03/23/frankie-by-shivaun-plozza/