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3.45 AVERAGE
3.45 AVERAGE
Most of this book is Janie’s melodramatic inner monologue about what she should do once she finds out that her parents aren’t her biological parents. Throw in her first relationship (with the boy next door), and what emerges is a barely tolerable potpourri of teenage angst. I bet I would have really liked this book when I was 15 (and since that was only 3-4 years after this book was first published, it wouldn’t have seem so culturally dated...cassette tapes, haha!), but reading it as an adult had me rolling my eyes more than whizzing through the pages. As an adult reader, I’m also a little more tuned in to things like writing style and plot coherency...in terms of the plot, sometimes it seemed like Cooney whisks the reader from point A to point B with relatively little (or no) transition. For example, Janie goes from being relieved once her parents explain all the jazz about Hannah and the cult and Janie being a cult baby, blah, blah, blah to being convinced that her parent really did kidnap her to make up for losing Hannah. Janie really did seem to accept the story her parents told her, so it was jolting when all of a sudden she’s awake at 2am, drenched in sweat because she’s convinced her parents are criminals. There was no transition between those opposing convictions, which left me scratching my head. As for the writing style - it seems very stream-of-consciousness, and like it could have benefitted from some generous editing. Overwrought similes abound, as do sentences with 2+ semicolons (I didn’t even think you could do that...maybe you can’t and Caroline B. Cooney just makes up her own rules about sentence structure). The cliffhanger just made me mad because I kind of want to know what happens with Janie’s biological family, but not enough to actually read more books in this series. So I guess I’ll never know.
Even so, I finished this book in pretty close to one sitting, so I guess that counts for something. I’ve been having trouble settling into a book that really catches my interest, and I remembered how much I liked Code Orange, so I thought I’d give this a go. Plus I thought it might be a good recommendation for our teen readers at the library. But while I would recommend Code Orange to a wide variety of readers, I think I’d only recommend this one sparingly. The whole overwrought teenage romance angle pretty much makes it a no-go for most teen boys, and the whole self-obsessed melodramatic inner monologue approach made it kind of generally unappealing, in my opinion.
Even so, I finished this book in pretty close to one sitting, so I guess that counts for something. I’ve been having trouble settling into a book that really catches my interest, and I remembered how much I liked Code Orange, so I thought I’d give this a go. Plus I thought it might be a good recommendation for our teen readers at the library. But while I would recommend Code Orange to a wide variety of readers, I think I’d only recommend this one sparingly. The whole overwrought teenage romance angle pretty much makes it a no-go for most teen boys, and the whole self-obsessed melodramatic inner monologue approach made it kind of generally unappealing, in my opinion.
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was my favorite book in middle school, and I loved reading it again.
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I remember reading this as a young child. It had to have been good to stick with me all these years! It’s clearly intended for a younger audience and is definitely appropriate for said younger audience.
I enjoyed the book. It felt very young adult fiction, which I really needed. It’s a quick read, but unpacks a topic I was interested in reading about. Not sure I’ll go on to the rest of the series but enjoyed it for what it was.