Author: Wendelin Van Draanen
No. Of Pages: 224 Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: October 9, 2001
Rating: 5 Hearts
My Verdict :
The first time she saw Bryce Loski, she flipped. The first time he saw
Juli Baker, he ran. For six years these neighbors had played the same game of
cat-and-mouse (Juli was the cat; Bryce was the unfortunate mouse).
For years Juli dreamed of one thing: her first
kiss from the boy with those gorgeous baby blues eyes . Nothing else seemed to
matter. But when Juli’s favorite sycamore tree is threatened by developers,
things begin to change. She begins to see things and places and people in a
different light. Things, for years, she thought to be important, become things
she can live without; and people she thought to be the center of her universe,
become nothing more than a star in a far away galaxy.
Things begin changing with Bryce also. It all begins with the
eggs…which then cause a domino effect of changes with his relationships with
his best friend, his father, the Bakers and, ultimately, Juli.
I had seen this book on the
shelf at bookstores for years, but never bothered to pick it up, Until I heard
about Flipped the movie. I read an interview with Callan McAuliffe (the actor
who portrays Bryce) and thought that Flipped was a romance right up my alley;
cute and innocent After reading the interview and a summary of the movie, I
found the plot-line to be somewhat appealing and a definite breath of fresh air
opposed to the dark material I have been recently reading and writing. I found
the book a few days later in a cornerbookstore and finished it in one seating.
The story isn’t what you
would consider deep…it isn’t shallow and pointless either…I guess you could say
it’s the perfect balance of life-lessons and innocence.
You read about Bryce and
Juli (each from their own points of view) and how, throughout six years, their
lives and views and opinions change and develop. Flipped is somewhat of a
coming of age story about two kids learning to see life from the other’s point
of view and learning that growing up isn’t about staying the same, but
changing; changing likes and dislikes; changing friends and crushes and views
on family.
Uniquely written, every
other chapter showing the same scenes and events, only from the other’s point
of view, you see how the saying, “Two sides to every story,” is true. You are
able to see both Juli and Bryce’s reasons for doing what they do and saying
what they say…not just what the other sees.
It will be interesting to
see how this writing style comes into play in the movie. Overall I thought this
story was incredibly cute and light-hearted, although it didn’t entirely meet
my expectations. Especially the ending.(i am being harsh here) I felt as though
it ended quite abruptly and that there was more story that needed to be
told. (may be i don't want the story to end)
But even with that, after
having taken a step back and taken my mind off of Flipped, I find the story has
stuck with me and stayed in the back of my mind, making me highly anticipate
seeing this book turned to a film.
PS: The movie was incredibly awesome
My Verdict :
The first time she saw Bryce Loski, she flipped. The first time he saw
Juli Baker, he ran. For six years these neighbors had played the same game of
cat-and-mouse (Juli was the cat; Bryce was the unfortunate mouse).
For years Juli dreamed of one thing: her first
kiss from the boy with those gorgeous baby blues eyes . Nothing else seemed to
matter. But when Juli’s favorite sycamore tree is threatened by developers,
things begin to change. She begins to see things and places and people in a
different light. Things, for years, she thought to be important, become things
she can live without; and people she thought to be the center of her universe,
become nothing more than a star in a far away galaxy.
Things begin changing with Bryce also. It all begins with the
eggs…which then cause a domino effect of changes with his relationships with
his best friend, his father, the Bakers and, ultimately, Juli.
I had seen this book on the
shelf at bookstores for years, but never bothered to pick it up, Until I heard
about Flipped the movie. I read an interview with Callan McAuliffe (the actor
who portrays Bryce) and thought that Flipped was a romance right up my alley;
cute and innocent After reading the interview and a summary of the movie, I
found the plot-line to be somewhat appealing and a definite breath of fresh air
opposed to the dark material I have been recently reading and writing. I found
the book a few days later in a cornerbookstore and finished it in one seating.
The story isn’t what you
would consider deep…it isn’t shallow and pointless either…I guess you could say
it’s the perfect balance of life-lessons and innocence.
You read about Bryce and
Juli (each from their own points of view) and how, throughout six years, their
lives and views and opinions change and develop. Flipped is somewhat of a
coming of age story about two kids learning to see life from the other’s point
of view and learning that growing up isn’t about staying the same, but
changing; changing likes and dislikes; changing friends and crushes and views
on family.
Uniquely written, every
other chapter showing the same scenes and events, only from the other’s point
of view, you see how the saying, “Two sides to every story,” is true. You are
able to see both Juli and Bryce’s reasons for doing what they do and saying
what they say…not just what the other sees.
It will be interesting to
see how this writing style comes into play in the movie. Overall I thought this
story was incredibly cute and light-hearted, although it didn’t entirely meet
my expectations. Especially the ending.(i am being harsh here) I felt as though
it ended quite abruptly and that there was more story that needed to be
told. (may be i don't want the story to end)
But even with that, after
having taken a step back and taken my mind off of Flipped, I find the story has
stuck with me and stayed in the back of my mind, making me highly anticipate
seeing this book turned to a film.
PS: The movie was incredibly awesome
The first time she saw Bryce Loski, she flipped. The first time he saw
Juli Baker, he ran. For six years these neighbors had played the same game of
cat-and-mouse (Juli was the cat; Bryce was the unfortunate mouse).
For years Juli dreamed of one thing: her first
kiss from the boy with those gorgeous baby blues eyes . Nothing else seemed to
matter. But when Juli’s favorite sycamore tree is threatened by developers,
things begin to change. She begins to see things and places and people in a
different light. Things, for years, she thought to be important, become things
she can live without; and people she thought to be the center of her universe,
become nothing more than a star in a far away galaxy.
Things begin changing with Bryce also. It all begins with the
eggs…which then cause a domino effect of changes with his relationships with
his best friend, his father, the Bakers and, ultimately, Juli.
I had seen this book on the
shelf at bookstores for years, but never bothered to pick it up, Until I heard
about Flipped the movie. I read an interview with Callan McAuliffe (the actor
who portrays Bryce) and thought that Flipped was a romance right up my alley;
cute and innocent After reading the interview and a summary of the movie, I
found the plot-line to be somewhat appealing and a definite breath of fresh air
opposed to the dark material I have been recently reading and writing. I found
the book a few days later in a cornerbookstore and finished it in one seating.
The story isn’t what you
would consider deep…it isn’t shallow and pointless either…I guess you could say
it’s the perfect balance of life-lessons and innocence.
You read about Bryce and
Juli (each from their own points of view) and how, throughout six years, their
lives and views and opinions change and develop. Flipped is somewhat of a
coming of age story about two kids learning to see life from the other’s point
of view and learning that growing up isn’t about staying the same, but
changing; changing likes and dislikes; changing friends and crushes and views
on family.
Uniquely written, every
other chapter showing the same scenes and events, only from the other’s point
of view, you see how the saying, “Two sides to every story,” is true. You are
able to see both Juli and Bryce’s reasons for doing what they do and saying
what they say…not just what the other sees.
It will be interesting to
see how this writing style comes into play in the movie. Overall I thought this
story was incredibly cute and light-hearted, although it didn’t entirely meet
my expectations. Especially the ending.(i am being harsh here) I felt as though
it ended quite abruptly and that there was more story that needed to be
told. (may be i don't want the story to end)
But even with that, after
having taken a step back and taken my mind off of Flipped, I find the story has
stuck with me and stayed in the back of my mind, making me highly anticipate
seeing this book turned to a film.
PS: The movie was incredibly awesome
2 comments:
Great Review Kartik.. :)
Iniya @ Ini's Ravishing Reads
I love coming of age stories and the cute, sweet romances! So this one is totally my type of book. Also, I agree with "two sided of the same story" and it's nice to see that Flipped is from both Juli and Bryce's points of views. And... Contrary to almost all readers out there, I love abrupt endings too! So I will be keeping an eye out for this one. Awesome review, Kartik! I'm glad you enjoyed the book and the movie.
Sarika @ The Readdicts
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