Title: vibesAuthor: Amy Kathleen Ryan
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
Copyright Date: 2008
Print Date:
ISBN: 9780618995301
Pages: 249
Book Description (from dust jacket):
IT ISN'T EASY BEING ABLE TO READ MINDS — GUYS' MINDS, ESPECIALLY.Comments:
GUSTY PETERSON, the hottest bimboy in school, is always thinking I’m SICK, as in totally gross to look at. Not that it matters, since I don’t have a crush on him or anything. And Mallory, MY FIRST REAL FRIEND SINCE FOREVER, has disturbing romantic ideas about me and my ginormous gazungas.
Ask me if I’d RATHER NOT KNOW these things.
I have ENOUGH TO WORRY ABOUT with my dad showing up after two years of SAVING AFRICA FROM TYPHOID, ready to resuscitate our relationship. There’s something HE'S NOT TELLING ME. I know it.
And now I’ve been assigned to work with Gusty in a HIDEOUS NEW PROJECT the faculty are torturing us with at school. It’s so wonderful to EXPLORE YOURSELF with someone who’s always thinking you’re sick.
I’d probably be a lot BETTER OFF if I weren’t psychic after all . . .
Kristi Carmichael has self-image issues. A lot of them. Who wouldn't if they could read minds and always picked up thoughts about the size of your chest and how your outfits are "sick"? Plus she has family issues and friend issues...
So I get how Kristi's life is difficult. But while her attitude is understandable, her rather cruel "pranks" ... are not. Nevertheless, the book and character is chock full of lessons about what we think, how others think, accepting ourselves and working to improve ourselves. I can't say the book made me happy, but it certainly gave me a lot to think about.
Some other things I noticed...
I don't know if things have changed that much in the last 5-10 yrs, or if it's location, but the skateboarders were not the popular kids in my high school. They had their own crowd, but were nothing like Gusty in this book. ::shrugs::
The language can be rough (I imagine not much different than heard in high school, but rough nonetheless).
Anyway, this was an attention-grabbing read overall, and it ends with some nice twists.
It sounds like it had a great concept. I think high school would be hard enough without being able to read minds. When I was there (forever ago) it was the jocks and the cheerleaders that were popular.
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