| A Recent Batch Of Reviews for FADE TO BLUE |
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From In Search Of Giants |
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| From Lit Bites This book is nine different level of FUCKING AWESOME! I don't know what's better; the total snark attack or the fact that the plot is so FUBAR that you have to read it again and again and again because it's twisted your brain into a knot and no matter how much you squint, you just can't untie it. This is not a book you can just skim through because if you do, you'll be more lost than Hansel and Gretel. You have to pay attention. And if you do, you will be amply rewarded and quite possibly become a Sean Beadoin fangirl/boy by the end of it. It starts off so linear. A little odd, but linear, normal. Your regular, slightly funky story. And then the weird shit gets weirder but running right along next to it, the fuzziness of all of the situations starts to get clearer. I'm sure that makes zero sense. Weirder and weirder but clearer and clearer. I'm not about to spoil and if I say anything about anything, it'll give it away. Just trust me on this. I love the language of the characters. It's probably the most realistic I've read in any YA book (which is one big bucket of ironic considering the story, read it and you'll get me). It's not that faux trying-to-be-hip-and-current language that the likes of other YA books try to sound like. The dialogue, the jam, just read so naturally. The OS's upspeak is the shit. Because you know you know someone that sounds like they end all their sentences in questions. You know you do. But how often is that portrayed in YA despite the fact that it goes on all the time? Rarely. You get authors trying to bank on the dialogue but never on the actual patterns. Beaudoin does that. He doesn't rely on colloquialisms of the day to get through. It's all about sentence structure. You know "they" say that that good writers can portray accents not through phonetics but through structure. And it's true. And this is quite possibly one of the most intricately written books I've ever read. And not just in YA. There is nothing simple in this book despite how simple it appears or how you think you've got it all figured out. You're wrong. The skill that a writer needs to write something so non-linear and so utterly fucked up but keep it this intact and understandable is phenomenal. It makes my writing so one dimensional and makes Beaudoin's look like a nine-sided Rubik's Cube. Sure, everything comes together in the end . . . except there's that one stupid red square in with all those yellows that just . . . won't . . . go . . . back . . . I have nothing to complain about with this book. And you all know me. Even if I love it there's usually something I can point out. Nope. Not here. I wouldn't call it perfect but this is the kind of writing I'm jealous of. If you like books that really make you think while holding you on the edge of your seat while you flip page after page after page because it's your crack, read this. Read it now. Even the comic in the middle is wicked. A book with pictures! Yay! But seriously. Read it. |
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| From T.V. and Book Addict Oh this book! I REALLY liked it. I hope there's a sequel in the works because I have not had enough. :) If you're not a patient person this book will probably make you want to tear your hair out. I'm not saying this is a frustrating read, it's not, but there were times where you are left wondering "WTFruit is going on?" That's completely normal because the author is making you feel/think like Sophie and Kenny. They think that they are losing their minds and maybe they are. You will feel the same exact way, which I LOVED. It all comes together in the end in a very satisfying way. You are still left with quite a bit of questions though but still, neato! Like I said in the synopsis, Sophie and Kenny have quite a bit in common. Reading about it all is simply awesome. Like me, you will be eager for more. This book is not only awesome because of the incredibly mind-boggling writing and story but also because it talks about how our world is changing. How eventually our planet will be "so full of discarded junk there [will] be nowhere to sit". The whole book makes you think quite a bit about all kinds of things. Remember how I said the writing and story is mind-boggling? Well it is. As you're reading it you feel like you're in a dream at times. It's very surreal which I've never experienced with a book before. It's amazing. :D You will enjoy finding out why Sophie and Kenny feel like they are going crazy. It's truly interesting. You will also love the mini comic book/graphic novel in the middle of the book. This book has a bit of everything so I'm sure even the most reluctant reader will like it. :) But remember, pay attention or you will get lost. Sometimes this book is like a maze. Be alert! I'll admit, even I (not like I'm a super awesome genius or anything) had to go back and re-read some parts or slow down and think. ;) I liked this book so much I'd love to see it in movie form. That will definitely be something. Reminds me a bit of Donnie Darko (LOVE THAT MOVIE!) actually. :) I wish I could say more about it but I really don't want to give away spoilers :D Go read it! |
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| From The Brain Lair: I totally loved this book. I read it the day I received the ARC from Little, Brown on Facebook. Fade to Blue is not only the title, it tells the story of two characters in the book, Kenny Fade and Sophie Blue. The chapter titles were pretty cool because they go from 0 and count up, then there's a comic, and then it counts down to 0 again. All 3 stories are related. We follow Sophie as she tries to figure out what happened to her dad and why is that psycho ice cream truck always following her! If you like smart, funny reads loaded with pop culture, music references, and sarcasm this is your book. It also has virtual reality and comix! What, what! I have to wait to write a full review because one of my former students snagged my ARC and ran off with it! Please stay tuned for more exciting information! |
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| From Professor Anna: FADE TO BLUE by Sean Beaudoin (Little Brown, August 2009) is the story of Sophie Blue, she of the black lipstick and Goth clothes and Kenny Fade (that's pronounced Fa-day) a basketball hero who can do no wrong even when he is doing wrong. Kenny and Sophie and a cast of characters find themselves in some rather surreal situations. And there is good reason for that. Sophie and her classmates at Uphear High (love the names of places and characters in this novel, especially Coach Dhushback and a cop named Goethe) are all guinea pigs in a bizarre experiment. To tell you more would deprive you of the hilarious confusion that is FADE TO BLUE. Part mystery, part social commentary, part typical teen angst novel and much more, this is a novel that will defy categorization. The shifting formats from letters, essays, multiple narrators and a comic book all mean that this is a puzzle that slowly shifts into focus before spinning out fuzzily when a heretofore new piece is discovered on the floor and needs to find its place. Intrigued? |
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