My Summary: Johanna, a sixteen-year-old, shy, smart girl who loves to read is living in her parents control. Paul, a seventeen-year-old, alcoholic, violent, and angry at the world is living without a father and hates his mother. When science says "opposites attract" they're defiantly speaking of these two. They fall in love, spend time together. And soon Johanna knows the secrets of Paul. Backed up by Kara, the cool girl, Carla, Paul's ex-girlfriend and sheer will. She stands up to Paul. She knows if he hit her once, he'll hit her again. And words could not change that.
This book deals with the struggle and the violence of being in an unstable teen relationship. It shows us how much teens can poison each other, making them blind to what they're actually doing. It not only deals with relationship of teens, but also, teens relationships with parents. While Johanna's try to control her life and everything in it, Paul's dad left him at age twelve, leaving him with a mother who looks to religion to work out their problems.
Personal Thoughts: I personally hated and loved Paul at the same time. He would hit, lie, and drink, but somehow I saw through that, just as Johanna had done, and loved him for what he was behind all the violence. I thought Johanna was a very complex character, no matter how average she said she was.
Conclusion: I really enjoyed this book. It gave me a tremendous perspective to the real tragedies of violent relationships. I think I'll look more into groups that help people with this cause. I really think Patrick Jones did a great job.
Favorite Line: When I'm reading I tend to come across a sentence, or a paragraph that I find extremely poetic. Here was my favorite;
"He looked at me, those green eyes sparkling with tears, loaded with fears."
Links:I found an interview of Patrick Jones about this book. Here is the link.
http://www.teenlibrarian.com/pjones.htm
Rating: I'd say a 7 1/2 out of 10.
I highly recommend this book!
-Koko