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Jennie Yabroff

Autor/a de If You Were Here

1 obres 11 Membres 2 Ressenyes

Obres de Jennie Yabroff

If You Were Here (2017) 11 exemplars

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4.5 stars

With a cast of realistic characters, a touch of magical realism and an imaginative plot, If You Were Here by Jennie Yabroff is a riveting young adult novel that touches on some sensitive topics such as mental illness, teenage friendships and loss.

Social outcasts at their exclusive private school, Tess Block and Tabitha Smiley have been best friends for the past five years. The summer before their junior year, Tess goes to visit her grandmother like she usually does but when she returns home, she is puzzled when Tabitha ignores her texts. When school resumes, Tess's puzzlement turns to hurt once she realizes that over the summer break, Tabitha has transformed herself into one of the popular girls. Tess feels more isolated and alone than ever now that Tabitha is best friends with mean girl Amanda Price and perfect Zoe Haley. When the unthinkable happens, Tess tries to comes terms with a devastating loss while at the same time trying to learn the truth about what happened to Tabitha.

Tess was once popular and well-liked by her classmates but after her mom's struggle with mental illness became public knowledge, all of her friendships dwindled away. Five years later, she and best friend Tabitha spend all of their time together eating contraband snacks while watching their favorite movie, Sixteen Candles. Tess's home life is overshadowed by her mother's bouts with depression and manic episodes and she escapes to Tabitha's as often as possible. Although Tess is relatively content with the status quo, Tabitha wants nothing more than to become a part of the popular crowd.

While Tess is spending the summer with her grandmother, Tabitha is busy reinventing herself. Tess barely recognizes her friend but she is stunned when Tabitha snubs her in favor of Amanda and Zoe. Angry and hurt by Tabitha's behavior, Tess keeps a vivid and prophetic dream about her friend to herself. After a horrible accident, Tess feels guilty and ashamed about keeping the dream to herself and she is haunted by the last bitter and hurtful argument between her and Tabitha. When questions arise about the circumstances of Tabitha's accident, Zoe and Amanda's revelations cast suspicion in Tess's direction. Can Tess uncover the truth about what happened to Tabitha?

The subplot that deals with Tess's mom's mental illness is a little uncomfortable since Tess is not exactly sensitive when referring to her mom. While it is a realistic representation of how insensitive and tactless a teenager can be, it is not easy seeing Tess continually refer to her mom as "crazy". The portrayal of the effects her mom's illness have on the family and their home life is absolutely heartbreaking. Tess's dad is trying hard to give his daughter as normal a life as possible and while he sometimes falls short, Tess appreciates his efforts.

If You Were Here by is a compelling young adult novel with an intriguing storyline. Jennie Yabroff's depiction of teenagers struggling to fit in is poignant yet true to life. The characters are brilliantly developed with relatable flaws and imperfections. A clever story with a hint of mystery and a dash of magical realism that will appeal to readers of all ages.
… (més)
 
Marcat
kbranfield | Hi ha 1 ressenya més | Feb 3, 2020 |
Tess is the first to admit her family is weird. Her grandmother reads the future in coffee grounds. Her mother is bipolar and mostly a zombie on medication. Tess's black hair has a strange white streak, and she has dreams that seem to predict the future. Life would be unbearable if Tess didn't have her best friend Tabitha, who is as unpopular at school as she is.

At the start of one summer in high school, Tabitha announces that she wants to be popular and fit in. Tess thinks nothing of it and goes away to visit her grandmother's cabin in Maine. While in Maine, her grandmother reads Tess's coffee grounds and predicts change is coming for Tess. Worse, Tess has one of her weird dreams - a dream that shows Tabitha dead on a stretcher.

When Tess returns to school in the fall, she finds Tabitha has re-invented herself and is now friends with the popular girls. Tabitha will have nothing to do with Tess and drops her like a hot potato. Her friendship down the drain, Tess begins spending more time alone. One night, she once again has the dream showing Tabitha dead on a stretcher, drowned, in vivid detail. Tess sends a quick text message to Tabitha but receives no reply.

Later, Tess finds her dream came true. Tabitha drowned in the school pool. There is talk that alcohol and drugs are involved. Worse yet, several of the popular girls insist Tabitha left the pool in the middle of partying to meet Tess and came back acting weird. Talk around the school is that Tess is to blame for Tabitha's death.

Tess does feel guilty over Tabitha's death; after all, she could have tried harder to warn Tabitha about her dream. However, the popular kids have closed ranks and taken a vow of silence to not speak of that night. As Tess makes her way through the world without Tabitha, she slowly unravels the events leading up to Tabitha's death.

Overall, I liked this book, but the one thing I hated was that it constantly quotes and refers to the movie "Sixteen Candles". I have never seen "Sixteen Candles", and all the quotes and mentions of movie characters are just confusing for a person who has not seen the film. The book would have read just as well with a lot of the "Sixteen Candles" bit cut from the writing.
… (més)
 
Marcat
cln1812 | Hi ha 1 ressenya més | Jan 26, 2017 |

Estadístiques

Obres
1
Membres
11
Popularitat
#857,862
Valoració
4.0
Ressenyes
2
ISBN
2