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The Freak Observer (2010)

by Blythe Woolston(Favorite Author)

3.51 of 5 Votes: 1

ISBN

0761362126 (ISBN13: 9780761362128)

languge

English

genre

Young Adult Fantasy & Science Fiction

publisher

Carolrhoda Books

review 1: This is an awesome story about death and the surviving family's coping mechanisms, while also interjecting short bits of info on physics, the favorite subject for Loa, the main character. She shows a quiet, understated grief for the dead sister she spent so much time caring for. There's not a one-time family discussion that makes everything better--in fact, the family members barely talk about painful stuff at all. But, as the story progresses, the reader may notice a subtle shift in focus for each person as they work through the stages of grief on their own, with a more positive but not a Hollywood-style, ending.
review 2: Grades 9-12. Woolston's novel, winner of the 2011 YALSA William C. Morris Award for excellence in a previously unpublished author, is a stu... morenningly moving, honest look at the life of teenage girls. Perhaps the single best feature of Woolston's work is its' seamless integration of different kinds of worldviews into one enriched outlook. The protagonist, Loa, faces the issue of mortality, the meaning of friendship, the application of Physics to real life, how poverty affects opportunity, and the frustration of French irregular verbs while still maintaining a tone that is easy to relate to and an honesty that is at times heartwarming and at times deeply saddening. The compelling plot makes the chapter headings--each non fiction descriptions of science phenomena or problems for the reader to solve--easier to swallow. The narrator does such a good job of combining high school academics with her daily lived experience that the reader is more likely to give honest consideration to the chapter headings, where they may feel talked down to in analogous works of fiction. This work would be a valuable addition to public libraries' young adult collections and to high school libraries. less

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