Arianne's Review: Rockoholic by C.J. Skuse

Title: Rockoholic by CJ Skuse

Release date: November 1st 2012 by Scholastic (first published March 1st 2011)

Source: Library

Format: Paperback (358 pages)

Age group: Young adult

Genre: Contemporary/humour

Reviewer: Arianne

Grade rate: B

She's got it bad, and he ain't good -- he's in her garage?"I'm your biggest fan, I'll follow you until you love me..." Gonna have to face it: Jody's addicted to Jackson Gatlin, frontman of The Regulators, and after her best bud Mac scores tickets, she's front and center at his sold-out concert. But when she gets mashed in the moshpit and bodysurfs backstage, she's got more than a mild concussion to deal with. By the next morning, the strung-out rock star is coming down in her garage. Jody -- oops -- kind of kidnapped him. By accident. With a Curly Wurly candy bar. And now he doesn't want to leave. It's a rock-star abduction worthy of an MTV reality series...but who got punk'd?

Jody’s grandfather just passed away and her parents are getting a divorce. She feels totally alone. Nobody understands – except for her favourite band, The Regulators. Their music speaks to her. Their lead singer, Jackson Gatlin, speaks to her. Well, in her dreams.

It only takes a split second – and a chocolate bar – for those dreams to become a reality. Jody's obsession with the knockout frontman of The Regulators reaches new heights when she finds herself inadvertently kidnapping her idol and learning a few things about herself along the way.

Let’s get the hard stuff out of the way first. The characters in this book are not easy to like. Jody’s immature and Jackson is just plain disgusting. Skuse relies on the ‘pitch perfect sister makes other sister feel inadequate’ stereotype to bulk up the family drama. The story may be funny, but you practically have to suspend your disbelief above Niagara Falls to enjoy it.

I really loved Mac – and his adorable little sister Cree - but I just could not get over the fact that Skuse drops him in as the ‘token’ best friend character and thinks she can get away with it. He deserves so much more than that. Jody rarely does right by him; it's as if she just choose not to see that the people around her need a shoulder to cry on sometimes, too. She’s selfish and allows their friendship to become totally one-sided. Jody is the kind of girl who gives nothing and takes everything. 

I came into this book knowing Jody would be a bit of a handful – but in retrospect, I had absolutely no idea how bad it would be. You know when you wonder why things that are common sense to most of us – always wearing your seatbelt in the car, reporting illegal activity, little things like that – are put on posters in public places? Characters like Jody are the reason those posters exist. Sometimes I just wanted to shake her and remind her that there were choices available to her that didn’t involve being mindlessly and unbelievably stupid. Her obsession was completely unhealthy and it’s made worse by the knowledge that there are probably real people out there who act just like she does – now that’s a  really worrying thought!

That said, Jody does go on a journey over the course of this book (albeit a fairly obvious one). She has a lot of problems and it’s clear from the start that she really, really needs to deal with them – and thankfully, eventually, she does. It just takes too long for her to get there.

But onto the good stuff. Rockoholic is outrageously, uproariously funny. It deals with bereavement, addiction and the perils of fame. It is ridiculously and fabulously unique. It’s breakneck and fast-paced. Its signature style never fails to impress. My favourite character is a person who never actually appears in Rockoholic – well, at least not while he’s alive. Jody’s rock’n’roll grandfather made me smile so much. Even in death he’s the life and soul of the party – and the book.

For me, Rockoholic essential UKYA reading. On the surface it’s a very American concept but with a click of her fingers Skuse makes the novel extremely and brilliantly British. It’s full of pop culture, trivia and slang, amplifying the already huge gulf between American rocker Jackson and English fangirl Jody. 

It’s a testament to the author’s ability that, although I reached the halfway point not particularly enamoured by the story, by the end I really appreciated the direction the book had taken and found myself thoroughly enjoying the tale. I loved that Jody learns that all actions have consequences, Jackson transform into a much more likeable person filled with fresh purpose and clarity, and Mac finally gets an answer to the question he’s been waiting to ask for so long. In a way, the ending of this book is really just the beginning. 

Rockoholic may make your eyes roll and your brain explode, but if you don’t read it, you really are missing out on something special. 

Review: Adorkable by Sara Manning

Title: Adorkable by Sarra Manning

Release date: May 24th 2012 by Atom

Source: Library

Format: Audiobook

Age group: Young adult

Genre: Humourous contemporary

Reviewer: Arianne

Grade rate: A+

Jeane Smith's a blogger, a dreamer, a dare-to-dreamer, a jumble sale queen, CEO of her own lifestyle brand and has half a million followers on twitter.Michael Lee's a star of school, stage and playing field. A golden boy in a Jack Wills hoodie.They have nothing in common but a pair of cheating exes. So why can't they stop snogging?

Arianne's Review

Whatever you're expecting from this book, unexpect it.

Jeane's seventeen and living the dork dream: she's made her oddness into a lifestyle brand and is considered something of a teen icon to millions of people worldwide. But this blogging guru is hiding some harrowing secrets - and it will take a very special person to help her find her true self again.

Adorkable has a great premise, a great male lead, laugh-out-loud humour and a writing style that will leave you breathless - or rolling in the dust. Just like it's namesake, it's is a complete mash-up of characters and style and it makes for a vibrant, chatty and often conflicted book.

I'll be honest: he real beginning of Adorkable is about eight chapters in. There are identity crises and flashes of humour galore - and they almost make up for the fact that for the majority of Adorkable, Jeane acts like more of a bitch than a dork. She's abrasive, snippy and sometimes, downright cruel. She's one of the world's most in-demand lifestyle bloggers, but there's an undeniable sense that many of the choices she labels as 'dorky' are motivated by a desperate need for attention.

There is, however, one person who undoes this acerbic attitude. Michael Lee wears branded clothes and gels his hair. He plays sport and partakes in extracurricular activities. Worst of all, even Jeane's legion of Twitter followers could never compete with his many real friends and his ability to simply get along with everyone. He is Jeane's antithesis. He's not perfect but he is, without doubt, one of the most genuine and lovable young adult love interests I've read in a long time. There was chemistry in his relationship with Jeane, but he was also a normal teenage boy with normal teenage angst and of course, some ever-present and slightly predictable teenage boy reactions. His Asian heritage makes for the icing on top of our very lovely Michael-shaped cake. This book is nothing if not multi-cultural and I adored that as well as the dual narrative.

Adorkable isn't exactly plot-heavy, but it does document a transformation. Jeane's hard to relate to and even harder to like, but there are plenty of other characters who fill out the backdrop to her journey (because while Michael plays a very important role in this story, we all know it's Jeane who needs to make the most dramatic change). The gormless exes of both main characters aside, there was a great cast who collectively captured the modern teenage experience very well. Michael's family, Jeane's sister, Gustav and Harry the endlessly entertaining neighbours - I loved them all.

What I didn't love was the fact that Jeane's parents are absent from most of the book. Likewise there are several emotional bomshells which are mentioned once and never spoken of again. These included some very inappropriate references (for example, a casual mention of a past relationship between Jeane and a much older man) and there are some very appropriate ones (for example, a casual mention of a past relationship between Jeane and another girl - the ease with which the author deals with Jeane's bi-curious nature is something I'd really like to see more of in YA). As a result of these contradictions, the emotional power of the story was lessened.

Adorkable is an acquired taste, but if you perservere, the investment is definitely worth it. A four star rating may be a little too generous (don't read it on a bad day, you'll just be irritated - remember it requires an open mind!) but it was oddly addictive and strangely satisfying, so I'd definitely recommend it.

As Jeane would say: “Welcome to the dorkside. It’s going to be a bumpy ride.”

Review: Withering Tights by Louise Rennison (Misadventures of Tallulah Casey #1)

Title: WitheringTights by Louise Rennison

Release date: July 8th 2010 by HarperTeen

Source: Library

Format: Audiobook

Age group: Young adult

Genre: Humour

Reviewer: Arianne

Grade rate: C

Hilarious new series from Queen of Teen – laugh your tights off at the (VERY) amateur dramatic antics of Talullah and her bonkers mates. Boys, snogging and bad acting guaranteed!Picture the scene: Dother Hall performing arts college somewhere Up North, surrounded by rolling dales, bearded cheesemaking villagers (male and female) and wildlife of the squirrely-type. On the whole, it’s not quite the showbiz experience Tallulah was expecting… but once her mates turn up and they start their ‘FAME! I’m gonna liiiiive foreeeeeever, I’m gonna fill my tiiiiights’ summer course things are bound to perk up. Especially when the boys arrive. (When DO the boys arrive?) Six weeks of parent-free freedom. BOY freedom. Freedom of expression… cos it’s the THEATRE dahling, the theatre!

My Review

Louise Rennison is a household name when it comes to writing funny, commercial YA chick-lit. She has a bestselling series and even a movie adaptation under her belt, so some of you may be surprised to hear that this is the first book of hers I've read. Georgia Nicholson must have skipped me when she decided to sweep the nation with her raucous diary entries and outrageous humour.

Tallulah Casey fits the mould of female teen fiction narrator exactly. She's insecure about her body image, her social life and her boy troubles. Her voice is distinct but it didn't grow on me like I so wished it would. She and her friends have a penchant for melodrama but they never really touch on the important things in life. Tallulah's the kind of girl who wants to go off into the corner with a boy she barely knows but still corrects people when they say she's fourteen (she's fourteen and a half, dahling) - she's unfortunately believable but she's just too easily led to be admired.

The setting is also solidly stereotyped, as you'd expect: there are farmers, bad accents and, in general, things that make Tallulah go 'Eww'. Aside from the fact that she's now in closer proximity to nature than ever before, she has to contend with a growing number of potential suitors - such a long list, in fact, that I began to wonder if they outnumbered the rest of the village population put together. There's Charlie, Phil, Alex, and some seriously questionable members of a rock band, to name just a few.

I actually really enjoyed Tallulah's interactions with the boys - it was so awkward and remniscent of a time when you're so eager to be in a relationship, you forget what being in a relationship entails! Tallulah was so innocent and eager, it was hard not to like her as she stumbled over herself to get to the next hottest boy before her friends.

As far as writing style and plot go, there's nothing totally unique about Withering Tights. Tallulah's thoughts often wander, but she's kind at heart and wouldn't hurt a fly, even when another character does something that she should seriously be mad about. I wasn't thrilled with the narrative style but the obvious comparisons to Wuthering Heights really made me smile.

There are more moments of sheer naivete than outright laughter in this book, but I get the feeling that die-hard Rennison fans will eat it up. It's nothing we haven't seen before in terms of plot and I found myself wishing Rennison could be braver with her storytelling instead of relying on casual wit and teenage insecurity to get by, but if you're looking for something fun and light, this is a great choice.