Tag Archives: relationships

Review: The Universe is Expanding and So Am I by Carolyn Mackler

Book Review and Content, Contemporary, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , , ,

The Universe is Expanding and So Am I by Carolyn MacklerThe Universe is Expanding and So Am I
Carolyn Mackler
Bloomsbury
Published on June 5, 2018

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About The Universe is Expanding and So Am I
Virginia Shreves’ world implodes again in this long-awaited follow-up to Printz Honoree The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things.

Sixteen-year-old Virginia Shreves’ life is finally back on course: she’s accepted who she is inside and out and is rebuilding her relationship with brother Byron, whose date-rape charge shattered everything.

But just as she adjusts to her new normal, her world turns upside down again. Sparks with boyfriend Froggy fade, her best friend bombshells bad news, and then the police arrest Byron. As Virginia struggles to cope, she meets Sebastian, an artist with his own baggage. The pair vow not to share personal drama. But secrets have a way of coming out, and theirs could ruin everything.

My Review
In the opening scene, Virginia is making out with her boyfriend. Because the story starts there, I wasn’t sure what kind of content it would have, but that’s the most explicit scene in the whole book. Mostly it shows her conflicted feelings about her relationship. She feels that, because she’s overweight, she should be grateful to have a boyfriend and shouldn’t risk breaking up with him and being alone forever. But she’s definitely not into the make-out session like she would have been on another day.

I like Virginia. She’s smart and self-contained and independent. I love that she was taking a kick-boxing class! Somehow that made total sense for her, and it was a neat, unusual thing in the story.

Ultimately, The Universe is Expanding and So Am I is about relationships. Virginia’s relationships with her parents, her siblings, her friends, her boyfriend Froggy, and her new friend Sebastian all change through the course of the story. I loved the way that redefining those relationships showed her own personal growth, and that some of the relationships that affected her most, like the tree lady, were ones she might once have dismissed. Fans of The Best Possible Answer by E. Katherine Kottaras should add this one to their reading lists.

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Cultural Elements
Major characters are white.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Extreme profanity used with moderate frequency.

Romance/Sexual Content
In the opening scene, Virginia is making out with her boyfriend. She mentions that they’ve had shirts off together before, but nothing further. This time, though, her boyfriend wants to do more. She stops him.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violent Content
Virginia’s brother is accused of rape. We don’t learn the details of the incident, but it’s referenced a number of times.

Drug Content
Virginia’s brother is only 20, but her parents have allowed him to drink in the past. He was drunk the night he’s accused of raping a friend. (Sometimes Virginia’s parents seem to lean on this as an excuse for his behavior. Virginia makes it very clear she doesn’t buy that.) Byron gets drunk another time and Virginia has to take him home.

Note: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Review: Almost There by Laurel Garver

Book Review and Content, Christian World-View, Contemporary, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , , , ,

Almost There
Laurel Garver
Createspace
Available May 17, 2016

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Just before Dani and her mother escape to Paris for healing and restoration, Dani learns that her grandfather has been hospitalized. The Paris trip was supposed to be the inspiration to create the artwork that will make Dani’s mother a star, plus the project that will save Dani’s own grade in art class. Now, unless Dani can fix up her grandfather’s house, repair the damaged relationships between him and his children, and find someone to care for the ornery man while they’re gone, her trip is a lost cause.

Dani can’t give up, especially when she learns of her grandmother’s dreams that one day her mom would become a famous painter. As Dani struggles to make her life into the perfect happily-ever-after, she discovers that the people she loves most have other plans, other dreams than the ones she imagined for them. She learns that like her grandfather, she, too must learn to love others beyond what they do for her and for themselves.

I really liked this story. I found Dani easy to identify with. Her struggles with trying to make things turn out right for everyone else really resonated with me, as did her confusion over her feelings for her neighbor and her hurt over her boyfriend’s behavior toward her. It definitely echoed my own teen experience in some ways.

The faith elements play a strong role in the story, but they didn’t seem to dominate or steal the show. I liked that prayer was kind of a natural part of Dani’s life, and that the author included it in such an open, organic way. To me it felt more experiential and less preachy, which I think is a great thing.

If you liked To Get to You by Joanne Bischof, check out Almost There for the similar innocent romance and organic expression of Christian faith.

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Cultural Elements
All characters appear to be white. Dani’s family is wealthy as is her boyfriend’s and friend’s. She meets a boy from much more humble background.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
Dani and her boyfriend are very close but have agreed not to have sex until after marriage. They share kisses, and she becomes nervous if she thinks he has ideas beyond that.

Spiritual Content
Dani and her friends pray at difficult intervals throughout the story. Dani shares her faith with her mom, not like salvation prayers, but more like sharing her current experience. For instance, she talks of learning to trust that God will work things out in her life. These deep faith moments happen as though they’re a part of normal life, which might be strange for some readers, but accurately depicts the kind of faith experience of some evangelical Christian families.

Violent Content
Dani’s grandfather becomes violent when he doesn’t get his way. Nothing huge, but his temper is definitely not under control. A fire leaves one man dead.

Drug Content
Dani worries about her uncle, a recovering addict. She learns that her friend’s dad is an alcoholic. The story shows no drug abuse.

Note: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

 

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Review: Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan

Book Review and Content, Contemporary, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , ,

Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist
Rachel Cohn and David Levithan
Ember
Published August 28, 2007 (Orig. published 2006)

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When the girl who just dumped him walks into the club where Nick’s band is playing a show, he resorts to the extreme and asks the random girl standing next to him if she’ll be his girlfriend for five minutes.

Though Nick’s request at first infuriates Norah (what kind of cheap trick does he take her for?), the approach of her not-quite-friend prompts her to take some desperate measures of her own. Like yanking almost-stranger-Nick into an electrifying kiss.

The agreed on five minutes stretches into a whole night of adventure, misunderstanding, reflection and romance. Cohn and Levithan weave a tale full of teen angst, hormones, confusion and of course music. It’s a wild ride from start to finish.

I sometimes feel like the odd one out on this book. So many people rave about it, and I felt like I just didn’t get it. I didn’t find either Nick or Norah particularly likeable. Some of the plot elements felt a little too convenient to me. When Norah ends up in the bathroom with another girl who kisses her, to show her how to kiss a boy, I remember thinking, this is what some men wish happened in women’s bathrooms. It felt more like a fantasy rather than a believable element to the plot.

Also, the language was pretty over the top. I mean, I get that the scene in which the F-bomb gets grossly overused was supposed to be ridiculous, but it was just way too much for me.

If you’re really into boundary-pushing books about music and unrealistic relationships, this might be exactly the book for you.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Extreme profanity used frequently. On one page the f-bomb drops no less than 25 times.

Sexual Content
Several scenes of same sex kissing. Twice Nick and Norah retreat to some measure of privacy to have sex. Those scenes are pretty heavy and specific. Several times sex and sexual topics are discussed in conversation. The couple also goes to see a burlesque show that features “nuns.”

**SPOILER**
Nick and Norah do not actually have sex in the story… both times they’re interrupted for different reasons, but it’s by a hair’s breadth.

Spiritual Content
Norah comments somewhat sarcastically in prayer a couple of times.

Violent Content
None

Drug Content
The club where the band plays serves alcohol and some underage drinking occurs. (Nick and Norah drink virgin drinks at the burlesque club.)

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