Reviews

Zen and the Art of Faking It by Jordan Sonnenblick

outoftheblue14's review

3.0

Letto in italiano, "L'arte di sparare balle".
Divertente, leggero, piacevole.

protoman21's review

5.0

I had no expectations about this book and was pleasantly surprised! I immediately took to San and loved the way his mind works and the way he acts around other people. The way he got mixed up in a web of lies was very well set up and believable and it helped the reader sympathize with San. Woody was also a very appealing character who came off as sweet but independent and it was a joy to watch the two of them dance around each other. The zen element was handled brilliantly and really demonstrated the power of the ancient believes and how they can be applied to modern day life. A thoroughly enjoyable read!

christiana's review

3.0

Great 5th grade/early middle school boy read. San is a great Chinese-American narrator and the book deals with some hard issues in a very good way (San is adopted from China, San's dad is in jail so his mom is single parenting it, another character has a blended family) where I didn't even feel like it was an "issues book". Definitely recommend out-able.

lanica's review

5.0

SCHOOL LIBRARIAN REVIEW:
I think this would be a great book for any middle or high school library. It's a great plot, interesting characters and I love the interactions between adults and kids. Perfect voice, perfect tone. Loved it.

thebookhaze's review

4.0

This is a middle grade book, and it was surprisingly good. It was better than I expected, because I really liked how Zen and Buddhism were incorporated into the story without making it too "educational" and "informational" but rather a genuine part of the story. Also lots of wisdom to be gained. =)

kimball_hansen's review

2.0

This was a stupid book. Look at this snippet of dumb writing: "I turned to look at her like a rabbit looks into the blades of an approaching lawn tractor." Just say you were a deer in the headlights, dang it. The boy was annoying though. But that might have been because he reminded me a bit of myself when I was a youth. You ever notice that the things that irritate you in other people are usually the same tendencies you do/have yourself? If you haven't realized that yet then go home and take a good look at yourself and perhaps things will make more sense in life. It's pretty neat. There's some Zen right there.

And what kind of a name is Woody for a girl? And why did San initially start practicing free-throws? Since I've been learning Chinese in my spare time I recognized that his name means Three.

I thought the narrator was Wilt Chamberlain at first and got excited. I'm not a fan of this narrator though. He's not my favorite.

bookgirl4ever's review

3.0

A humorous account of an 8th grader who redefines himself at his new school as a traditional, Buddhist Chinese kid. The reality: San is Asian, but adopted by two white parents, one of which is in prison, and everything he knows about Zen Buddhism is from library books. San gains popularity as he digs himself deeper and deeper into the false identity.

Stargirl (Jerry Spinelli) readalike.

saidtheraina's review

3.0

Love the character - he's charmingly witty (especially for an eighth grader). San finds himself starting classes at another new school. This time, he needs to find a new niche. Sort of accidentally, he demonstrates his knowledge of Zen practice and, although he is adopted and thus only aware of Eastern thought through school, he becomes the school Zen guy.
Nice secondary characters, and some surprising twists. Although it contains some cringe-worthy cheesy scenes, San is surprisingly self-aware for a middle-schooler, and some of the conflicts seemed unncessary (lying about beliefs seems like a subjective concept - couldn't he have started belief as he studied...?), it ended as a likable book. 6th grade and up maybe, but probably jr. high, which is weird, since the character is in jr. high.

rlafleur85's review

3.0

You've read one, you've read them all. This book was your classic junior high underdog story. But who doesn't love that concept? San moved from Houston to Pennsylvania and with the move has hopes to reinvent himself as a Zen dude. This would be a great read for junior high kids. I've read one other book by Jordan Sonnenblick and really enjoyed it. There is great humor in this story and made me think back to my own middle school days. Take a trip back in time with San and his classmates and add some Zen to your life.

neekah's review

3.0

I expected more to be honest. I don't know what's with this "pretending to have a whole other persona" shtick, I never got that trope. But it is present in a lot of stories that take place in American high schools. I just don't see how a real person could come to the conclusion that it's a good idea. Anyway the Zen references were pretty nice and funny, although very stereotypical. I'm probably not being critical enough.