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Thursday, January 29, 2009

Across the Pond by Storyheart

Finding himself packed off to friends in the USA, fifteen-year-old English born Fred Squire is not happy. Then he meets Brittany.

Struggling with his feelings for Brit and the language, Fred is further confused when he meets Brit's flirtatious friend, Angel.

Escaping from a confrontation with Steve Harris, the neighborhood bully, Brit tells Fred her dark secret about Harris, and Fred's world is turned upside down.

Life continues to throw Fred a curveball when he catches a baseball worth a small fortune. Further run-ins with Harris, a crazy family BBQ, and a chase through a mall all add to Fred's American adventure.

"Brit and her Brit", know that their young love will be followed by heartache when Fred has to return to England. But not before some final twists in the tale.

Review:

Storyheart comes across as a modern day Judy Blume with Across The Pond. The book's humor is reminiscent of Blume's books that were written for younger audiences while touching on a serious subject similar to the books written for older audiences. In spite of this, it is an easy, entertaining read. It's funny, sure, but it can be sad, while--at the same time--it's just an enjoyable novel.

It is an extremely well written novel for a young adult romance; often, YA romance novels seem to think that all they need is romance to be good which is so not true. The characters are well developed and their escapades are believable. A fantastic story about teens, young love and what really happens when you go "Across the Pond". This book is a hilarious look at culture shock even when you both speak the same language and a fresh look at the ins and outs of teenage romance.

Readers will love laughing along with Fred as he finds out what it really means to be an American. It helps that Fred's a very likable character, and his humor is not only laugh-out-loud funny at times, but it's also very touching. He was a clever character, and i couldnt help but falling in love with the British 'Knight' a little myself.

Between the characterization and the well-paced plot, this book never becomes tedious. Since I traveled from the States to the UK recently, I was fascinated by the lead character's views as he traveled from the UK to the US. For American readers who grew up with the Harry Potter series, this book will be especially interesting. It shows the cultural differences on both sides. It's a quick and solid read, a book that teenagers will love because it doesn't treat them like they're stupid and incompetent. It's well paced and doesn't talk down to the readers. Parents and other adults will enjoy this book as well.

If you are just looking for a sweet, short, easy, fun read, this is definately a good choice.

Thank-you Barry for the copy of your fantastic novel!

Grade: A+

4 comments:

Unknown said...

Now I'm blushing.. thank you so much TruNerd for you great review and kind remarks.

simply nerdy book reviews said...

haha

my pleasure :)

Bookworm said...

I love books about foreign exchange! Looks cute!

simply nerdy book reviews said...

*nod* it was a fun read :)

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