Book Review: Why We Broke Up

                Take a moment and think about a scrapbook. Filled with delicate pages of pictures, smiles flood the pages, and people you care about enchant the covers. Now think about someone throwing that scrapbook away; tearing every page, putting it through the shredder, and finally using a chainsaw to erase any possible trace of its existence. That’s exactly what Why We Broke Up by Daniel Handler is like and because of that, it’s so fantastic. The novel also includes beautiful illustrations from Maria Kalman that help you visualize the characters experiences. Min, the narrator, tells her story through a letter to Ed, her ex, before dropping off a box of items to him representing the reasons for their break up. Although the writing is a little scratchy and plot somewhat of a cliché, it’s still a perfect diary of a “puppy love” romance.

                The themes of this novel revolve a lot around growing up, figuring out who you’re meant to be, a real coming of age story. Min begins her journey as a normal 15 year-old with a best friend, Al, and together they dream of being Hollywood directors. Their conversations consist of a distinct lingo, complete with made-up actors and movie scenes. Brian Truitt of the USA Today Reviews writes, “It's almost unfair to slap Why We Broke Up with a "young adult" label, since the novel by writer Daniel Handler and illustrator Maira Kalman will connect with anyone who has ever had an ex.” The way Handler conveys Min’s feelings is perfect. I’m a 15 year-old girl and I’ve encountered everything this novel discusses. Feeling left out, not knowing who you want to become, wanting to rebel, all of it. In a discussion between Ed and Min, they describe their reasoning for rebelling against those who think they’re wrong for each other, “’And, OK, I see what she means, but she doesn’t, Min, know what she’s talking about. She’s so, everybody’s so stupid, you know? Christian too, Todd, whoever says stupid things…’” It’s a great part of the book that helps the reader understand why they were so keen into making their relationship work and why Ed wanted to keep the romance alive. It’s also a great theme to show that having the wrong purposes for things can lead us to catastrophic fallouts.

                Besides having phenomenal themes, the character development of Ed and Min is wonderful.  At the beginning of the book we see Min as the clichéd dorky girl who falls for basketball star heartthrob, Ed, and he loves her despite her social status. However, the ending turned out to be quite different, and we saw the characters for everything they were, Min especially. Towards the end of the book there are a few pages of Min describing her feelings and it’s as if she took the words straight from a high school students’ mouth. “I’m not a romantic, I’m a half-wit. Only stupid people would think I’m smart. I’m not something anyone should know,” He describes her feelings with such detail and actuality that you believe she’s real. Although some of the statements Min makes are more on the suicidal side of things, the way she relates things to her terrible relationship makes it easy to understand lessons she’s learned as well as why she thinks this way. Monica Edinger of New York Times Book Reviews writes, “Filled with long, lovely riffs of language (some paragraphs of Min’s moody reflections go on for over a page), exquisite scenes of teenage life and the sad souvenirs of one high school relationship, Why We Broke Up is a silken, bittersweet tale of adolescent heartache.” If you’re looking for a way to relate to someone going through themes discussed previously, or simply life, this is an awesome pick to help you not feel so alone.

                The writing style of this book was quite unique. I’m not sure how Handler writes any of his other novels, but these had quite a distinct taste to them. He would switch up words in a sentence so that they almost had a Yoda-like quality to them. Yael Goldstein Love of the San Francisco Chronicle writes, “Told in the form of a confessional letter by the heartbroken Min, the book is so good at capturing what it feels like to be a jilted 16-year-old girl that it seems almost wasted on its young-adult audience.”  Besides being written in letter-format, which made it a very quick yet fun read, the style had many new vocab words to learn due to the nature of Min’s love for black and white French films. Min and her friend Al are often talking about their favorite movies and books and the terminology makes it very interesting, “’When the Lights Go Down…’ ‘…because for forty minutes we’ve watched this French girl wandering around thinking things. Look, the cars are going by again. Are you sure this is the right movie?’ ‘Two Pairs of Shoes.’”

                Overall, this novel was a great pick for romance and life in general. It really connects to its audience and takes older readers back to their first loves. It helps you understand the difference between love and lust. Afterwards I felt like I knew these two personally, as if Min had told me her story face-to-face. Although the ending was somewhat of a downer, it gave the reader good insight and helped us learn important lessons without having our heartbroken (although you became so attached to the two, it felt as if you had). Beautifully themed and structured, with creative writing and detailed characters, I adored this book and believe any romance enthusiast would as well.

5 Links for My Little Bookworms

The New York Times Best Sellers list: http://www.nytimes.com/best-sellers-books/overview.html

NPR Book Reviews: http://www.npr.org/series/book-reviews/

With over 1 million free online books, I'm sure you can find soemthing: http://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/

Based off of Daniel Handler's, Why We Broke Up, this website gives lots of heartfelt and quirky relationship stories and advice. It also has responses from the books author, and his thoughts on topics discussed throughout the book: http://whywebrokeupproject.tumblr.com/

To keep up on all things Nicholas Sparks: http://www.nicholassparks.com/

Truth In Memoirs

I think for a book to be completely considered a memoir, all of it should be true. One thing that aggravates me to no end is when authors write Inspired by a True Story at the top of their novel(s). Everything is inspired by a true story. Otherwise there would be no way for the reader to connect to the authors work. Then what would be the point of the story? I think that some authors will connect their book to a real event just to attract viewers or fans of that event. Doing that, in my opinion, makes the author seem weak. I think they should be able to draw the same ideas and themes from the event, into another one made-up in their own head. That makes an author remembered.

I am not a fan bending the truth. I cannot stand when people lie, and I feel lied to when I realize that a book or a movie “inspired” by a true story has left out details or changed reality. It doesn’t make sense to make up a new story when the inspiration came from something that already happened—all you have to do is write or film it. For example, I had some friends see The Vow and tell me how it was afterwards. They loved it and they raved at how it was a true story and how lovely it was that someone would do that for their wife. We decided to research the story, and it turns out that half of what they depicted in the movie never happened. This upset all of us greatly; it seemed to cheat the audience from what they saw as something real, into something fake.

Readicide: How Schools Are Killing The Love To Read

            I think that literary books and today’s popular genre fiction books should be interchangeable. I think they all convey a message that could be taught in schools. Putting them in two separate categories confuses me, since the authors all wrote for a similar purpose: trying to spread a message through a story. Now, I personally love the classics, but I also enjoy picking up the latest and greatest at Barnes & Noble after school. I don’t find it fair to today’s authors that we don’t read their novels in school. Fair would be having an even divide between literary classics and popular genre fiction novels. And, I think, this would interest more students to explore the wonderful world of books because most of us only know what’s required to read.

            In a perfect world, teenagers would want to read literary classics. I think a lot of why we don’t [want to read] now is because it’s something we’re forced to do. Maybe if we were given options, or a wider variety of books, it would be more fascinating. But just handing us a book and telling us when it’s due makes it seem like a chore, which reading shouldn’t be. Reading should open your mind to ideas you’d never imagined. It should help you learn lessons and feel new emotions, gain tools that will help you succeed in life. It’s important that we read a variety of books, of different genres, to expand the small amount of knowledge we have now. Kids should want to read because they want to help themselves. If you don’t want to help yourself, well, good luck.

The Hunger Games Book Trailer

The Hunger Games - Movie VS. Book

Some challenges the filmmakers might face when producing this movie include: all the special effects in the arena, capturing the feel of the capital and the people, killing children and animals, as well as the many flashbacks Katniss has throughout the story. Katniss explains her feelings/actions through her thoughts, which is hard to interpret in a movie. Also the lack of dialogue could become a problem. Although special effects can be useful in re-creating the authors’ vision, nothing can compare to how our imagination views the scenes. It will be very difficult for filmmakers to satisfy all audiences' imaginations.

One scene that is essential to keep would be the killing of Rue. That is a huge factor for the rest of the book, as well as the two follow-up novels. If they were to change that, the rest of the plot would have to be changed, which would upset many viewers fond of the original story. A second scene they need to keep is near the ending when they’re about to take their own lives simultaneously by eating the berries, before the gamemakers announce their winning of the games. This provides the perfect set-up for the rest of the series and an explanation for the gamemakers emotions in the next book. The last scene they should keep is when Peeta and Katniss are on the way back to district 12, and Katniss confesses her fake love to Peeta. This, again, sets the tone for the next book and explains Katniss' conflicting feelings.

Most of the book is filled with important information to explain peoples' emotions/actions, however there can be some dull moments. I think more time should be spent on the games rather than supporting characters or secondary plotlines. I think the movie was well-done, but I found the book to be more intriguing. If I had just seen the movie I would have enjoyed it just as equally as if I had just read the book. But combining the two seemed to make the movie less enjoyable because of things they left out or changed.

13 Reasons Why Suicide Prevention Program

The Idea             

My idea is to have a society of teenagers that come together after, or while, reading the book and discuss their journey or relationship with suicide in young adults. There would be meetings held in different cities across the country as well as 24/7 online chat and a hotline connecting them with other teenagers to talk about their experiences. The novel really incorporates prevention and the aftermath of suicide, so having a society that could openly talk about both of those things would be very rewarding for young adults. Of course, the meetings would all be free and group leaders would be strictly volunteer based. In the novel, Hannah was very afraid to talk about suicide with her classmates and her teachers. Here, everyone would be allowed a word in as well as time to think and listen to the group leader about their actions. It would be a highly judgment-free zone where you could truly speak your mind. I think this would not only help promote the novel, but help promote the books message.  All Hannah really wanted was some attention, and having a hotline for people with unknown identities, struggling with some of the same issues would be very helpful for people seeking individualized attention. You could also use the online chat rooms or one on one chat with teenagers around the country.

Connection

                “I’m sure the school had psychologists come in loaded with handouts, telling you what to look for in students who might be considering...Another pause. No. Like I said before, I can’t say it. Suicide. Such a disgusting word.” (Pg. 164) Hannah didn’t believe in saying something that she forced herself to do. With help from this teen prevention program we help students discuss and look into themselves as well as what they want to do to themselves. “…I admitted that I was at a point in my life where I really could have used any encouragement anyone might have left me.” (Pg.168) At these programs we intend to give students the same amount of encouragement that Hannah lacked in her life. Most kids struggling with depression just want to be understood. They need to feel wanted and important. With our unique approach to this rising conflict, attention and understanding will be a top priority. “A flood of emotion rushes into me. Pain and anger.  Sadness and pity. But most surprising of all, hope. I keep walking.” (Pg. 288) We not only want kids to know the warning signs of high depression and suicide but we also want them to help stop it. A friendly smile in the hallway or a simple “Hey” before class can change someone’s attitude towards the world. We fully encourage teenagers to know as much about this topic as possible, before they themselves or someone else has to suffer through the consequences.

Why It’ll Work

The idea will work by word of mouth. Teenagers socialize among each other more and faster, now more than ever before, and once they use these prevention resources they’ll become more open with talking about suicide.  In the book, Hannah doesn’t even want to say the word. I hope that with these meetings someone who would consider such a thing would be able to say the word out loud. Once the teenagers are open about their feelings, they will draw their own parents in so they too can express their ideas on the issue. Having such organized meetings as well as online services, will hopefully grow and be recommended by schools and organizations that deal with suicide prevention. The fans of the book that come to these meetings will be intrigued by how real-life experiences and the book are extremely similar. Teens will tell about some of their portrayals of the story and if they agree with some of the choices Hannah made, reflecting on their own choices. All information would be kept strictly confidential, unless you choose otherwise. This gives teens the ability to freely express themselves without fear of judgment, prejudice, or embarrassment.