Hinton, S.E. (1997). The outsiders. New York: Puffin. Genre: Realistic fiction Intended audience: Mid-teens Personal reaction to the book: I did not like it as assigned reading in junior high; I do not like it now. On page 162 or so, Ponyboy says "I would rather have anybody's hate instead of their pity." So why… Continue reading Genre starter
Tag: realistic fiction
Bring tissues
Green, J. (2012). The fault in our stars. New York: Dutton. Genre: Romance Intended audience: General YA Personal reaction to the book: SPOILER ALERT: Review contains spoiler. OK, so it's an emotionally manipulative tear-jerking exposed dental nerve ending of a book. What's wrong with that? It's also extremely well-written and it's the first romance I've… Continue reading Bring tissues
War … what is it good for?
Cormier, R. (2000). The chocolate war. New York: Laurel Leaf. (First published 1974.) Genre: Realistic fiction. Intended audience: Teens Personal reaction to the book: It's not pretty cynical for a teen book, it's pretty cynical (as in Raymond Chandler's “Red wind,” where the pearls from the dead lover are fake). Even I, cynical former newspaper… Continue reading War … what is it good for?
Walk a mile in her pants
Brashares, A. (2001). The sisterhood of the traveling pants. New York: Delacorte. Genre: Romance Intended audience: Romantics, particularly girls. Personal reaction to the book: It's a chick-lit book that goes beyond the usual stereotypes: The hot boys weren't all clueless; The characters progressed during the book (a hard concept for the genre, I know); The… Continue reading Walk a mile in her pants
Let’s talk about sex
Blume, Judy. (1975). Forever … . Scarsdale, N.Y.: Bradbury Press. Genre: Romance / realistic fiction Intended audience: Older teens, especially girls Personal reaction to the book: Steamy for its era and certainly for Blume's traditional audience; it would be a relatively tame romance by contemporary adult standards (for instance, I just did a comparison of… Continue reading Let’s talk about sex
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