Rate this book

Tell Me Who (2009)

by Jessica Wollman(Favorite Author)

3.42 of 5 Votes: 3

ISBN

0525420878 (ISBN13: 9780525420873)

languge

English

genre

Young Adult Fantasy & Science Fiction

publisher

Dutton Juvenile

review 1: Reviewed by Breanna F. for TeensReadToo.comMolly's dad is engaged to Phyllis. Molly refers to Phyllis as "the claw" because of her nails. Molly's mom died when she was young, and after her mother's death she and her dad became the best of friends. They spent so much time together, but now Phyllis is ruining everything and Molly hates her.One day, Molly and her best friend, Tanna, find a weird antique machine in the basement that belongs to "the claw." When they turn it on, they discover that the machine tells you who you are going to marry. After several tests, they decide that it indeed does tell the truth.Molly is determined to change the outcome of the Who-Meter when it comes to her father. All Tanna wants to do is tell other people and charge them money to find out who... more they will end up marrying. But when an interesting thing happens, Molly and Tanna might start thinking differently about the machine.This book was really cute and also funny. Phyllis - "the claw" - seemed like such an awful person that it made sense that Molly wanted to find her dad somebody else to be with! There were a few parts of the book that were unexpected to me, which was a nice surprise. The ending was pretty good, as well.I'd recommend this book to younger readers around age 12 or so. It seems like a book they might enjoy a lot.
review 2: Sixth grader Molly Paige and her best friend Tanna find an antique machine in Molly’s basement that has the power to tell them who they’ll marry. News spreads and all the kids at school now want to know “Who” too. Meanwhile, Molly tries to find a way to keep her widower father from marrying the horrifying woman known as “The Claw” even though the “Who-meter” says their marriage is a done deal. Is the future decided or can it be influenced?This concept had me super excited thinking of all the possibilities. How would your dating life change if knew the name of the person you were destined to marry? Would it help you avoid heartbreak or would you miss out on some great relationships while waiting for “the one” to show up? Would the absence of mystery suck all the roller coaster fun out of dating?Once I started reading though, I pretty quickly realized that this novel was not set up to explore such questions.Instead of jumping right into the action of the main plot, the book begins with a bunch of long winded set-up scenes that feature elementary school kids I do not care about doing disgusting things like chewing with their mouths open. The “who meter”, the reason I’m reading this, does not show up until page 50. Seriously?!But then it does get kind of fun. Tanna finds out she’s going to marry some rich British guy and uses UK slang the rest of the book. Molly plots “The Claw’s” downfall and is grossed out when she finds out she’s destined to marry a younger man. One classmate finds out she’ll marry 7 times. Another not at all. Only Molly’s basketball tutor Julie refuses to use the machine, saying:“I guess it feels kind of like reading the last page of a mystery before you’ve even started.” (page 133)Wise words Julie. I only wish you and your pals hadn’t been confined to a 3 month time period in a middle grade novel. That this wasn’t YA or even adult fiction is a real missed opportunity in my eyes. less

Download links for: Tell Me Who

Advertising