Hey! I hope you're all having a good week. Today, I'm going to be focusing on a YA pick that has inspired me personally, as well as being an example of the worth of young writers' work.
After the review, stay tuned for the results of my blogiversary giveaway, including signed copies of Kara Swanson's Dust and Kaley and Rhonda Rhea's Off-Script and Over-Caffeinated!
Title: Interrupted
Author: Rachel Coker
Series: This is a standalone novel.
Synopsis: Can love really heal all things?
If Sam Carroll hadn’t shown up, she might have been able to get to her mother in time. Instead, Allie Everly finds herself at a funeral, mourning the loss of her beloved mother. She is dealt another blow when, a few hours later, she is sent from Tennessee to Maine to become the daughter of Miss Beatrice Lovell, a prim woman with a faith Allie cannot accept.
Poetry and letters written to her mother become the only things keeping Allie’s heart from hardening completely. But then Sam arrives for the summer, and with him comes many confusing emotions, both toward him and the people around her. As World War II looms, Allie will be forced to decide whether hanging on to the past is worth losing her chance to be loved.
Language: The main character labels a boy as "annoying," "nosy," "bothersome," and "dopey". "Darn/darned", "gosh", "ugh", "dear heavens", and "oh my word" are used too.
Violence: Allie is forced to take care of her mother, who has a mental illness, and later lives through her dying through an accident. The later part of the book also takes place during World War II, so dying and the possibility of dying are mentioned.
Romance/Sexual Stuff: Allie has a childhood history with a boy named Sam, who has always had a crush on her. They interact in a romantic way several times. Allie's friend Charlie is also a bit of a flirt before pursuing a long-term relationship. A different boy in love with Allie tries to make his love known in an unhealthy way. There are mentions of marriage and pregnancy, but that's about it.
Spiritual Elements: This is a Christian novel, so Christian themes, ideas, and Scripture passages are mentioned. Allie is an atheist for many years, and so she wrestles with the idea of faith.
Magic: None
References: There are several mentions of different literary figures and books, such as Emily Dickinson, A Little Princess, and Robin Hood. Since Allie plays piano there are several references to classical music and composers too. Once the fairytale Rumplestilskin is mentioned. Allie also listens to and dances to some old songs, such as "Cheek to Cheek" and "My Funny Valentine". In her illness Allie's mother mentions fairies.
Other Issues: As an analogy the main character mentions a time when she was sick to her stomach.
Where To Buy: Interrupted is available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Abebooks, Alibris, Book Depository, Indigo, Better World Books, and eBay.
My Age Range: I think kids aged 13 and up would enjoy this book the most.
Read Aloud: This might be a good read aloud if you have an audience ready to understand the story and discuss the themes presented.
My Opinion: I originally got this book for Christmas a few years ago, and was impressed to see that a thirteen year old author had been able to release this book. As I started reading, it wasn't too hard to see the talent and emotion that led her to this opportunity.
Allie is very relatable, in a variety of ways. Though the pain she's suffered in her early life leads her to close herself off from the world, she is still a heroine with a loving heart, a sensitive nature, and a head full of hopes and dreams. There were so many themes here...adoption, mercy, love, and courage, to name a few...that were spotlighted at different points in the story, in such a way that audiences of all types would be able to understand and be impacted by. The author's style is almost lyrical and clearly shows her own heart, faith, and love of writing. Despite, or because of, Coker's young age, she was able to create a series of events that showed her own thoughts and beliefs in a raw, real way. To add to the already vibrant storytelling, Coker adds a surrounding cast of engaging characters and historical details that make the era of World War II feel that much closer to our own time.
If you're looking for a great YA historical fiction, a story filled with hope, or just want to see the best of what young people can accomplish, please read Interrupted. As Allie's own life was interrupted, our lives can be interrupted by the fact that there has been no other book like this.
Discussion Questions:
-What was your first impression of Allie? Did this change as you kept reading? Why?
-How does Allie feel after losing her mother? How does this impact the rest of her life?
-Allie and Sam come from very different worlds, yet they are still drawn towards each other. Why do you think this is? How much of it do you think came from Sam's crush, and how much of it did not?
-What is your favorite part of the book? Why?
-What did you think about how the book ended? Did you think the last line was satisfactory? Why or why not?
-The title and subtitle of the book is Interrupted: Life Beyond Words. Why do you think the author chose to name the story this? Do you think it fits with how the story goes?
(There are also some good questions near the end of the paperback copy.)
Thanks for joining me to look at Interrupted! I hope you'll consider reading the book for yourself, or recommending it to someone else.
Requests for book reviews and other posts are still open! Click on the Review Policy tab for more details.
Finally, I'm excited to announce the winner of Stepping Stones Book Reviews' first blogiversary giveaway. Two lovely readers ended up entering, which made it particularly hard to decide who would get the prize.
So, I put each entrant's name on a piece of paper and put those in a cup.
After a minute or so of swirling, the winner of the blogiversary giveaway is...
Anna Grace!
Congrats, Anna Grace! Hope you enjoy reading both books.
Thank you to everyone who entered (and everyone who read my posts about it!). If things line up right, I'm hoping to host another giveaway for my next blogiversary in May 2022. This was such a fun opportunity. Special thanks to Ms. Swanson and the Rheas for giving out free copies of their work.
Join me next Friday for another review! After that, I will be MIA for a few weeks due to summer schedules.
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