* I have received this book for review from the publisher but this in no way affects my review *
Title: Tell Us Something True
Author: Dana Reinhardt
Source: From publisher
Publisher: Rock The Boat
Rating: 5/5 stars
Summary of Tell Us Something True from Goodreads:
For fans of Sarah Dessen, Jennifer Smith, E.L. Lockhart, and John Green, this delightful, often comic coming-of-age novel stars the lovable, brokenhearted River, the streets of LA, and an irresistible cast of characters.
Seventeen-year-old River doesn’t know what to do with himself when Penny, the girl he adores, breaks up with him. He lives in LA, where nobody walks anywhere, and Penny was his ride; he never bothered getting a license. He’s stuck. He’s desperate. Okay . . . he’s got to learn to drive.
But first, he does the unthinkable—he starts walking. He stumbles upon a support group for teens with various addictions. He fakes his way into the meetings and begins to connect with the other kids, especially an amazing girl. River wants, to tell the truth, but he can’t stop lying, and his tangle of deception may unravel before he learns how to handle the most potent drug of all: true love.
Seventeen-year-old River doesn’t know what to do with himself when Penny, the girl he adores, breaks up with him. He lives in LA, where nobody walks anywhere, and Penny was his ride; he never bothered getting a license. He’s stuck. He’s desperate. Okay . . . he’s got to learn to drive.
But first, he does the unthinkable—he starts walking. He stumbles upon a support group for teens with various addictions. He fakes his way into the meetings and begins to connect with the other kids, especially an amazing girl. River wants, to tell the truth, but he can’t stop lying, and his tangle of deception may unravel before he learns how to handle the most potent drug of all: true love.
Book Review Summary:
Tell Us Something True is a truly unique YA contemporary that stands out from others in its genre. It has memorable characters, an interesting plot and is well written.
Plot:
Tell Us Something True follows River, a boy that can't drive in a city that drives everywhere and he is lost when his girlfriend breaks up with him the only way that he can navigate the city of LA. With this River has to walk and this is where his adventure starts.
The plot of Tell Us Something True can come across as stupid and silly and to be honest, it is but this is what I love about it.I think as the story really progresses it becomes much more than the actual plot, being a story of the power of truth and how important it is. This ultimately makes the novel as it is what makes and breaks the friendships, this is after River makes this way to a support group and lies about having a weed addiction. It is, therefore, interesting to see how his relationship changes and evolves due to this.
Considering the book is very short, the plot is started and wrapped up very nicely and although this is a good thing my main complaint is that I need just want more of the story. This being said I know this will not be the last Dana Reinhardt book that I will read.
Characters:
Characters are a great part of the story and I felt that they were well written and I enjoyed reading about them. River was, of course, a really loveable character and I really liked him as the main protagonist and seeing his character develop over the novel, coming more into himself and moving on from his ex-girlfriend even if this meant telling a few lies before he gets to the truth. I then really enjoyed the character of Daphne and the complexities of her and the fact that she involved in River's life and then how she overcomes this as this was interesting to see. This being said, the characters were diverse in novel having different problems but also representing the different classes of American society which is something I have not seen mentioned in YA literature a lot. I also really liked the relationship of River and Daphne and liked to see the way that it changed also. I definitely like the other characters in the support group but due the shortness of the novel I don't feel like these were explored as much as they should of. The characters were the comic relief of the story but it would have been nice to have some more development. But in general the characters were a main part of why I enjoyed the story.
Writing:
I really enjoyed Reinhardt's writing in the book it was very addictive and at times I felt a need to read the book although I had to go to lectures and revision to do that day. This meant that the book was easy to finish and I raced through it. I also really liked the shortness of the novel as it meant that her writing was often concise and this is good for an author. It was just overall a well-written book.
The Verdict:
A fresh new YA that is the perfect for summer which shows that even though driving a car is great, walking gives you a great adventure too.
Have you read Tell Us Something True? Did you like it? Leave it in the comments below.
See you soon,
Amy
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