My rating: 5 of 5 stars
“Take responsibility of your own happiness, never put it in other people’s hands.”
----Roy T. Bennett
Julie Murphy, an American best-selling author, has penned an entertaining and thoroughly inspiring young adult contemporary fiction called, Ramona Blue that surrounds around a confident white 6 foot 3 in' tall blue-haired high school teenager who has forever been sure about being a lesbian but when a childhood friend who has become tall dark and handsome arrives at the seaside town, her feelings act in a rather different way. Blue-haired Ramona has always been taking care of her good-for-nothing dad, pregnant elder sister and her sister's boyfriend, without giving a second glance to her dreams or ambitions. But will love and the arrival of a new baby save her from all the real-life drama?
Synopsis:
Ramona was only five years old when Hurricane Katrina changed her life forever.
Since then, it’s been Ramona and her family against the world. Standing over six feet tall with unmistakable blue hair, Ramona is sure of three things: she likes girls, she’s fiercely devoted to her family, and she knows she’s destined for something bigger than the trailer she calls home in Eulogy, Mississippi. But juggling multiple jobs, her flaky mom, and her well-meaning but ineffectual dad forces her to be the adult of the family. Now, with her sister, Hattie, pregnant, responsibility weighs more heavily than ever.
The return of her childhood friend Freddie brings a welcome distraction. Ramona’s friendship with the former competitive swimmer picks up exactly where it left off, and soon he’s talked her into joining him for laps at the pool. But as Ramona falls in love with swimming, her feelings for Freddie begin to shift too, which is the last thing she expected. With her growing affection for Freddie making her question her sexual identity, Ramona begins to wonder if perhaps she likes girls and guys or if this new attraction is just a fluke. Either way, Ramona will discover that, for her, life and love are more fluid than they seem.
Ramona's life is going good post-hurricane-Katrina, that destroyed her home and her dreams of becoming a swimmer. But Ramona is happy, she is happy and content about her dad and her pregnant sister and also about her sexuality and her long distance relationship with an out-of-the-town female tourist. But things drastically change, when her childhood friend, Freddie, who has grown into a tall dark and handsome young man, moves back to her town and her sister's boyfriend move in with them. It is becoming too much for Ramona as her feelings are shifting towards Freddie and with a good-for-nothing and careless soon-to-be-baby-daddy of her sister's yet-to-be-born child. Everything Ramona was once sure about are now making her feel confused especially about her sexuality, love and ambitions.
This is by far one of the best YA contemporary fictions of the year, 2017, and one can not really miss reading it, as it will not only enlighten one's mind, but will also impact deeply, especially to the young minds and souls. This story of identity crisis, sexuality issues and family drama will suit well with the real life teenagers who are everyday fighting against such social and psychological issues in a cruel world where one mistake can land them up on a the "most bullied kid of the school" list. The author has shed light on such issues with utmost empathy and sensitively but most above all, in a striking manner that will help the young readers to relate with it.
The author's writing style is brilliant, laced with light hearted emotions in order to not to make the readers feel depressed about the central characters' sad plight. The narrative is very engaging and its free flowing, with a slow and steady prose, as the author took a lot of time to build up her plot with depths and layers to give her readers a thorough insight into Ramona's life.
The realistic voice of Ramona is vividly portrayed by the author in the story line, and as she goes to myriad of emotional roller coaster journey, the readers too will be able to feel and soak up her pain and glee in a distinctive manner. The relationships featured in the book, like one in between Freddie and Ramona and the other being between Ramona and her older sister, are all very well developed in a thoughtful and honest way. The best part of the book would obviously be Ramona's quest to find the true sexuality, and that mistakes are okay and labels aren't, which the author has majorly stressed upon all throughout the plot.
In a nutshell, I believe that this book will resonate well with the minds and hearts of the diverse, young readers, especially the ones who are still looking for their true identity.
Verdict: A heart touching and a must read YA book!
Courtesy: Thanks to the publishers from Harper Collins India for giving me an opportunity to read and review this book.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Author Info:
Julie lives in North Texas with her husband who loves her, her dog who adores her, and her cat who tolerates her. When she's not writing or trying to catch stray cats, she works at an academic library. Side Effects May Vary is Julie's debut novel.
Visit her here
Book Purchase Links:
0 comments:
Post a Comment
Thanks for your feedback!