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Beiträge
Even though I enjoyed this book, I have to say that I'm not a big fan of the writing style. It's like it can decide between being mature and green, like the author is new enough at this that he's still trying to figure his style out. I'm not saying it's bad, it was nice, but it's also a tad distracting when I noticed these shifts. The reader doesn't need to know everything at once, it's actually part of the appeal that they don't, but they also don't need to be told the same thing three times in the span of just a few pages to keep their interest. Despite my initial trouble with the writing, it evened out into mature territory. Not only the plot but also how it's written. Cash is dealing with anxiety and stress the wrong way, unfortunately. He's doing drugs and alcohol and not really caring about what the people he works with, and some even truly care about him, say. And he thinks since it's close to ending for him so, either way, he doesn't care. The four dedicated fans in this book are so real it's fantastic to read. They have worried about college and losing the closeness with each other, a friendship that happened due to Wiz Kids, in which Cash stars. Topher is very selfless and an excellent brother, putting his handicapped younger brother and his mother before himself and not going to college far away, for now, so they have his help with anything. Not only that, he uses his brother's problem to motivate him to be and do better and that's fantastic! Sam is transgender and it's really interesting and new to me to see the thought process of this character. His mother wants him to use tiny skirts and dresses and everything to impress boys. Except he doesn't want it because he doesn't feel like he's a girl and as soon as he can he wants to transition. He hasn't told anyone he knows but has spoken with other people who encouraged him to see a psychologist. So he tries. But of course he gets the old man who thinks this is all just a passing fancy and that he is like that because he lacked a steady male figure in his life. I wanted to bash this man's head in for being so stupid and retrograde and thinking he knows better than the patient without even giving him the benefit of the doubt! He was terrible! Mo lost her mother to cancer 13 years ago and her father still hasn't gotten past it. Her mother encouraged her imagination and her writing but since her passing her father doesn't want to hear about it. So now he wants to force her to go to Stanford, even though she wants to go to Columbia for a writing course. He doesn't hear his daughter and I know this happens in real life but I hate it. I hate that Mo is devastated but I love that her solace for years has been writing and fiction. That's beautiful. Joey comes from a very religious family that went through some troubles because of people's prejudices. They were supposed to have learned to do and be better because of that, but no! They are still judgmental p*****! Joey has had to hide his sexual identity from friends and family because his father, a pastor, says gay people will go to hell! It's very frustrating to see what these three characters go through with their family... When Cash actually shows up for their road-trip they are all paralyzed with surprise before they start talking and wanting to know their favorite actor (who looks so different from his character, but of course he does!). And I really want to like Cash because I understand his struggles, but he's making it really hard when he admits that he just told the four of them a bunch of lies! He says he's being honest about the reality of things and that Mo can't "truth-shame" him, and that's all fine, but then he says that most of what he just said to them were lies! Like, Cash, you can't have it both ways! Things are a little awkward with Cash and for the four friends it's hard to put the character and the person side by side. They had expectations and they don't match. In the diner, a waitress recognizes Cash and starts a parade of staff coming to see him to make sure he's famous. That doesn't help the patrons, some of whom had already recognized him too. But all hell breaks loose when Topher has the misfortune of saying that one picture is okay because then the entire diner wants to take a photo, even though they don't know who Cash is. At their first stop Cash destroys a national monument because Joey asked if the world's biggest rubber-band bounced! The thing comes downhill and almost hits them! Then, at a museum, Cash doesn't recognize his own country's history. He bought tickets to an aggressive concert and fake IDs! At first, the gang wasn't sure but he convinced them and they actually had a good time! But Cash had his gummy bears and a drink and he almost causes a scene but his friends are there, being weirder than him and having a blast. At least until he collapses... All his friends are worried and Topher carries him outside. But they don't realize someone is shooting a video of them and the next day they find themselves all over the internet and being treated like crap because people are blaming them for Cash's collapse. Sam seems to have realized something after that dance: he likes Topher just as much as he likes Sam and that's a big part of the reason why he wants to but is afraid of telling Topher. Joey's first date is a total bust because he doesn't get what he expected. But that's because he has to tell the truth to the guy and he says some very wise things, that can be somewhat hard to do. After the guy leaves, Cash announces his presence and even though he doesn't tell the story right the take-home message is still the same: don't let other people's expectations prevent you from living your life (how you want it). Cash kind of ruined part of the road trip. The gang had plans to go to Texas, to a museum, but Cash suggested they go to a water park instead, because he had great childhood memories of it. He gets everyone really excited about it but he made a mistake in the route they took and they ended up taking five hours to get to a water park that has been closed for years. Cash is really disappointed but when they make to leave they can't because they've run out of gas and Triple-A can only get to them in the morning. So Cash decides to enter the old park and the gang follows him. They start to play a game but they are all against Cash so he changes it. The gang tells mostly innocent secrets but Cash shares some really deep things from his past, like the fact that his parents are both in jail and that he was raised with his aunt. (The similarities with Marvel are everywhere so I think that actor is a great Marvel fan, which is just awesome!) But then Cash has the brilliant idea of getting them high. It's quite funny how they are all different and Cash is interested in that. At the gas station, Cash and Joey meet a guy with a confederate flag and he insults Joey up and down. Despite the stress and the fear that things may go wrong, that I'm sure he's feeling, Cash stands up for Joey and threatens the man with his army of fangirls. After this incident, they finally get to Amarillo, Texas. In the gift shop, while they wait, they watch a broadcast in which the people are complaining more and more about Cash along with the rest of the world. And they even bring up the fact that he's missing from the set os the show. I feel really bad for Cash (and celebrities in general) for having to go through having their entire lives and choices and opinions constantly watched and judged! They have no right to privacy like the common citizen and that's wrong! They all want to give Cash the benefit of the doubt but behind that I think there's a lot of wishful thinking and doubt, even if they're not saying it... While they are going to Amarillo Cash tells Topher to stop the car because he sees an iconic car and wants to drive it. After a small push, he gets Mo to drive with him. When he tells her he has no breaks she freaks out and ends up telling him that she doesn't want to go to Stanford. He gives her encouragement enough to get her to take control of her own life. One by one they are, albeit a little against their will, opening up to Cash. After Topher said that he was starting to understand what it's like to love someone so much you'd die for them, Sam finally got to the point where he knows he has to tell the truth to Topher. But he's scared and he can't sleep so he goes outside. And finds Cash, dunk, on the museum's roof. And of course Sam spills everything about his secret to Cash, but that's mostly because even though their situations are very different the overall feelings are the same. And Cash can be very wise! He was actually sweet and kind with his words, even in an unfamiliar situation. When Topher goes alone to fill his gas tank a very creepy and insistent paparazzo tries to pay him for information on Cash, but Topher declines again and again and the man ends up going away. When he runs out of pills Cash is even worse! He's chain-smoking, popping gummy bears like candy and having a meltdown in a fossilized forest. But it's all about to be even worse when the gang discovers the news that their favorite show was canceled. With less than 40 pages to go, I got to the point where I felt hate for Cash. I kept looking for things to redeem his attitude but every time he did something good, he did five horrible. And spilling everyone's secrets because he's angry was where I finally drew the line. But of course there was a "reasonable explanation" for this awful behavior. In my opinion (which counts for very little), one of the worse things a writer can do is write an awful and mostly unlikeable character whose reason to be like that is because he/she is dying. I was profoundly prepared to not forgive Cash. But he was trying to live the three months he had left as much as he could. And it made tear up a little. It's unfair! Cash was very rarely good but his end redeemed him completely and it shouldn't have! I don't like that but I forgave him just as easily as the gang... Joey came out to his parents and his father kicked him out of the house, so he's staying at Topher's. Sam told his mom he's transgender and she took it rather well! And Mo told her father that she was going to Columbia. And Cash left trust funds to all his friends, an apartment in NYC to Joey, another trust for Sam for his transition, another fund for Topher to have a caretaker for his brother so he can go to the school where he wants and the rights to his life story to Mo! He gave them a lot but his redemption and reasons still feel like a cheat... Still, this was a fun and short story, with amazing themes portrayed really well.
THIS REVIEW MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS I read every book out so far from Colfer. He always write with a bright imagination and such a nice funny tone. So of course I preordered this piece as well and couldn't wait to read it. The book is like i imaginate it. Funny, great adventure and a story which inspires. But it wasn't until the end that the story takes a complete change. Through the whole book you get to know every character and get to know their secrets which they are afraid to tell one another. You should think that when 4 friends are making a road trip they would know each other pretty good, but they are in fact not really do. The last 2 chapters caught me off guard. I didn't expect such a up side down turn in the story. This book feels like Glee in book form and I absolutly love it. Just without the singing and dancing. However, I can't stop wonder if Colfer tried to process Corys death through this book. So I think this fiction story may contain some real facts or at least some thoughts that Colfer needed to put on paper.
Okay, but hear me out! I'm not that much of a review writer but I really have to type one for this book. First of all: I expected literally zero anything from it. I've read one of the author's books last year and found it very "meh", so I wasn't really motivated to start this one. However, it really got me. I loved the well written charcters! Everyone was different and it was super easy to seperate them from each other (I sometimes struggle with that). Again, I didn't expect anything, because you know... The Plot being a road trip where fans travel with their favourite celebrity??? But the storylines were moving and their struggles very real I guess. It's not that of a life changing or wild/surprising plot (for example the ending was really obvious for me(didn't brother me tho)) but Chris Colfer managed to make me cry a little, lol. Only in the end the pacing was kinda fast or even rushed (I was like... "There are only 50 pages left but there still has to happen a lot."). I wouldn't mind 100 pages more with those cool people. :D In conclusion: This book surprised me in the most positive way! I do recommend if you want to read a short book with well portrait characters, amazing/funny quotes and a deeper meaning.
Beiträge
Even though I enjoyed this book, I have to say that I'm not a big fan of the writing style. It's like it can decide between being mature and green, like the author is new enough at this that he's still trying to figure his style out. I'm not saying it's bad, it was nice, but it's also a tad distracting when I noticed these shifts. The reader doesn't need to know everything at once, it's actually part of the appeal that they don't, but they also don't need to be told the same thing three times in the span of just a few pages to keep their interest. Despite my initial trouble with the writing, it evened out into mature territory. Not only the plot but also how it's written. Cash is dealing with anxiety and stress the wrong way, unfortunately. He's doing drugs and alcohol and not really caring about what the people he works with, and some even truly care about him, say. And he thinks since it's close to ending for him so, either way, he doesn't care. The four dedicated fans in this book are so real it's fantastic to read. They have worried about college and losing the closeness with each other, a friendship that happened due to Wiz Kids, in which Cash stars. Topher is very selfless and an excellent brother, putting his handicapped younger brother and his mother before himself and not going to college far away, for now, so they have his help with anything. Not only that, he uses his brother's problem to motivate him to be and do better and that's fantastic! Sam is transgender and it's really interesting and new to me to see the thought process of this character. His mother wants him to use tiny skirts and dresses and everything to impress boys. Except he doesn't want it because he doesn't feel like he's a girl and as soon as he can he wants to transition. He hasn't told anyone he knows but has spoken with other people who encouraged him to see a psychologist. So he tries. But of course he gets the old man who thinks this is all just a passing fancy and that he is like that because he lacked a steady male figure in his life. I wanted to bash this man's head in for being so stupid and retrograde and thinking he knows better than the patient without even giving him the benefit of the doubt! He was terrible! Mo lost her mother to cancer 13 years ago and her father still hasn't gotten past it. Her mother encouraged her imagination and her writing but since her passing her father doesn't want to hear about it. So now he wants to force her to go to Stanford, even though she wants to go to Columbia for a writing course. He doesn't hear his daughter and I know this happens in real life but I hate it. I hate that Mo is devastated but I love that her solace for years has been writing and fiction. That's beautiful. Joey comes from a very religious family that went through some troubles because of people's prejudices. They were supposed to have learned to do and be better because of that, but no! They are still judgmental p*****! Joey has had to hide his sexual identity from friends and family because his father, a pastor, says gay people will go to hell! It's very frustrating to see what these three characters go through with their family... When Cash actually shows up for their road-trip they are all paralyzed with surprise before they start talking and wanting to know their favorite actor (who looks so different from his character, but of course he does!). And I really want to like Cash because I understand his struggles, but he's making it really hard when he admits that he just told the four of them a bunch of lies! He says he's being honest about the reality of things and that Mo can't "truth-shame" him, and that's all fine, but then he says that most of what he just said to them were lies! Like, Cash, you can't have it both ways! Things are a little awkward with Cash and for the four friends it's hard to put the character and the person side by side. They had expectations and they don't match. In the diner, a waitress recognizes Cash and starts a parade of staff coming to see him to make sure he's famous. That doesn't help the patrons, some of whom had already recognized him too. But all hell breaks loose when Topher has the misfortune of saying that one picture is okay because then the entire diner wants to take a photo, even though they don't know who Cash is. At their first stop Cash destroys a national monument because Joey asked if the world's biggest rubber-band bounced! The thing comes downhill and almost hits them! Then, at a museum, Cash doesn't recognize his own country's history. He bought tickets to an aggressive concert and fake IDs! At first, the gang wasn't sure but he convinced them and they actually had a good time! But Cash had his gummy bears and a drink and he almost causes a scene but his friends are there, being weirder than him and having a blast. At least until he collapses... All his friends are worried and Topher carries him outside. But they don't realize someone is shooting a video of them and the next day they find themselves all over the internet and being treated like crap because people are blaming them for Cash's collapse. Sam seems to have realized something after that dance: he likes Topher just as much as he likes Sam and that's a big part of the reason why he wants to but is afraid of telling Topher. Joey's first date is a total bust because he doesn't get what he expected. But that's because he has to tell the truth to the guy and he says some very wise things, that can be somewhat hard to do. After the guy leaves, Cash announces his presence and even though he doesn't tell the story right the take-home message is still the same: don't let other people's expectations prevent you from living your life (how you want it). Cash kind of ruined part of the road trip. The gang had plans to go to Texas, to a museum, but Cash suggested they go to a water park instead, because he had great childhood memories of it. He gets everyone really excited about it but he made a mistake in the route they took and they ended up taking five hours to get to a water park that has been closed for years. Cash is really disappointed but when they make to leave they can't because they've run out of gas and Triple-A can only get to them in the morning. So Cash decides to enter the old park and the gang follows him. They start to play a game but they are all against Cash so he changes it. The gang tells mostly innocent secrets but Cash shares some really deep things from his past, like the fact that his parents are both in jail and that he was raised with his aunt. (The similarities with Marvel are everywhere so I think that actor is a great Marvel fan, which is just awesome!) But then Cash has the brilliant idea of getting them high. It's quite funny how they are all different and Cash is interested in that. At the gas station, Cash and Joey meet a guy with a confederate flag and he insults Joey up and down. Despite the stress and the fear that things may go wrong, that I'm sure he's feeling, Cash stands up for Joey and threatens the man with his army of fangirls. After this incident, they finally get to Amarillo, Texas. In the gift shop, while they wait, they watch a broadcast in which the people are complaining more and more about Cash along with the rest of the world. And they even bring up the fact that he's missing from the set os the show. I feel really bad for Cash (and celebrities in general) for having to go through having their entire lives and choices and opinions constantly watched and judged! They have no right to privacy like the common citizen and that's wrong! They all want to give Cash the benefit of the doubt but behind that I think there's a lot of wishful thinking and doubt, even if they're not saying it... While they are going to Amarillo Cash tells Topher to stop the car because he sees an iconic car and wants to drive it. After a small push, he gets Mo to drive with him. When he tells her he has no breaks she freaks out and ends up telling him that she doesn't want to go to Stanford. He gives her encouragement enough to get her to take control of her own life. One by one they are, albeit a little against their will, opening up to Cash. After Topher said that he was starting to understand what it's like to love someone so much you'd die for them, Sam finally got to the point where he knows he has to tell the truth to Topher. But he's scared and he can't sleep so he goes outside. And finds Cash, dunk, on the museum's roof. And of course Sam spills everything about his secret to Cash, but that's mostly because even though their situations are very different the overall feelings are the same. And Cash can be very wise! He was actually sweet and kind with his words, even in an unfamiliar situation. When Topher goes alone to fill his gas tank a very creepy and insistent paparazzo tries to pay him for information on Cash, but Topher declines again and again and the man ends up going away. When he runs out of pills Cash is even worse! He's chain-smoking, popping gummy bears like candy and having a meltdown in a fossilized forest. But it's all about to be even worse when the gang discovers the news that their favorite show was canceled. With less than 40 pages to go, I got to the point where I felt hate for Cash. I kept looking for things to redeem his attitude but every time he did something good, he did five horrible. And spilling everyone's secrets because he's angry was where I finally drew the line. But of course there was a "reasonable explanation" for this awful behavior. In my opinion (which counts for very little), one of the worse things a writer can do is write an awful and mostly unlikeable character whose reason to be like that is because he/she is dying. I was profoundly prepared to not forgive Cash. But he was trying to live the three months he had left as much as he could. And it made tear up a little. It's unfair! Cash was very rarely good but his end redeemed him completely and it shouldn't have! I don't like that but I forgave him just as easily as the gang... Joey came out to his parents and his father kicked him out of the house, so he's staying at Topher's. Sam told his mom he's transgender and she took it rather well! And Mo told her father that she was going to Columbia. And Cash left trust funds to all his friends, an apartment in NYC to Joey, another trust for Sam for his transition, another fund for Topher to have a caretaker for his brother so he can go to the school where he wants and the rights to his life story to Mo! He gave them a lot but his redemption and reasons still feel like a cheat... Still, this was a fun and short story, with amazing themes portrayed really well.
THIS REVIEW MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS I read every book out so far from Colfer. He always write with a bright imagination and such a nice funny tone. So of course I preordered this piece as well and couldn't wait to read it. The book is like i imaginate it. Funny, great adventure and a story which inspires. But it wasn't until the end that the story takes a complete change. Through the whole book you get to know every character and get to know their secrets which they are afraid to tell one another. You should think that when 4 friends are making a road trip they would know each other pretty good, but they are in fact not really do. The last 2 chapters caught me off guard. I didn't expect such a up side down turn in the story. This book feels like Glee in book form and I absolutly love it. Just without the singing and dancing. However, I can't stop wonder if Colfer tried to process Corys death through this book. So I think this fiction story may contain some real facts or at least some thoughts that Colfer needed to put on paper.
Okay, but hear me out! I'm not that much of a review writer but I really have to type one for this book. First of all: I expected literally zero anything from it. I've read one of the author's books last year and found it very "meh", so I wasn't really motivated to start this one. However, it really got me. I loved the well written charcters! Everyone was different and it was super easy to seperate them from each other (I sometimes struggle with that). Again, I didn't expect anything, because you know... The Plot being a road trip where fans travel with their favourite celebrity??? But the storylines were moving and their struggles very real I guess. It's not that of a life changing or wild/surprising plot (for example the ending was really obvious for me(didn't brother me tho)) but Chris Colfer managed to make me cry a little, lol. Only in the end the pacing was kinda fast or even rushed (I was like... "There are only 50 pages left but there still has to happen a lot."). I wouldn't mind 100 pages more with those cool people. :D In conclusion: This book surprised me in the most positive way! I do recommend if you want to read a short book with well portrait characters, amazing/funny quotes and a deeper meaning.