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katrinx_x's review
emotional
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
b0hemian_graham's review
4.0
The writing isn't bad, but the protagonist is a bit of an ass. it's like a romance novel for "bros," because the proragonist is a steteotypical bro, but the cover makes it seem more for female readers.
edit: after thinking of this, I'm bumping my rating up. I think the claims of misogyny are unfounded. The protagonist does grow. people are just so quick to dismiss things out of hand
edit: after thinking of this, I'm bumping my rating up. I think the claims of misogyny are unfounded. The protagonist does grow. people are just so quick to dismiss things out of hand
missbookiverse's review
3.0
Dieses Buch habe ich besser verstanden, umso mehr Rezensionen ich darüber gelesen habe. Für mich funktioniert es einfach eher, wenn man es auf einer metaphorischen Ebene sieht und viel zwischen den Zeilen liest. Mit dem Buch allein bin ich allerdings auf vieles nicht gekommen (im Großen und Ganzen spiegelt es Sexismus und Feminismus in unserer Welt wider… oder zumindest kann man das gut so interpretieren) und war am Ende eher unbefriedigt. Die ganze Geschichte lang habe ich auf den großen Aha-Moment gewartet, auf die alles erklärende Wendung, die aber nie kam.
Stattdessen bleibt es (auf der offensichtlichen Ebene) übernatürlich. Letzteres habe ich mir von dem Buch weniger erwartet, weshalb es sich oft nicht passend angefühlt hat. An sich hat Bennett Madison aber ein Händchen für die schaurigen, melancholischen Beschreibungen von meerjungfrauenähnlichen Wesen. Die eingestreuten Kapitel aus ihrer Sicht waren sogar meine liebsten.
Das steckt drin: Sommer, Strand, Sex und alles was davor kommt, Meerjungfrauen, das Meer, Familienprobleme und Karaoke.
Für Fans von: Imaginary Girls, Fathomless, We Were Liars.
Stattdessen bleibt es (auf der offensichtlichen Ebene) übernatürlich. Letzteres habe ich mir von dem Buch weniger erwartet, weshalb es sich oft nicht passend angefühlt hat. An sich hat Bennett Madison aber ein Händchen für die schaurigen, melancholischen Beschreibungen von meerjungfrauenähnlichen Wesen. Die eingestreuten Kapitel aus ihrer Sicht waren sogar meine liebsten.
Das steckt drin: Sommer, Strand, Sex und alles was davor kommt, Meerjungfrauen, das Meer, Familienprobleme und Karaoke.
Für Fans von: Imaginary Girls, Fathomless, We Were Liars.
bougies_et_etoiles's review
2.0
I first heard of this book through a YouTube video about mermaid books and had very high expectations for this book(mainly that there were going to be mermaids). Instead, I get thrown into the mind of a seventeen year old boy who has stereotypical heterosexual guy interests. He goes to this beach in the middle of nowhere where there are a bunch of very attractive Girls who are ethereal and different. At first, this seems like a very sexist book about heterosexual girls who want to do it with guys and basic girl interests. But then we meet DeeDee who is different and wants more out of life than the typical interests associated to the other Girls. We also see that Sam the main character is not a sexist guy overall, so the book was okay besides for slang and overused curse words at least ten times per chapter.
christajls's review
This review originally posted at More Than Just Magic
I was not the target audience for this book by any means. And as a result I had a hard time with it. I didn’t feel like I could relate to Sam or his experience with “the girls.” However, that being said, I do think this is an incredibly interesting and thought provoking novel. There aren’t a lot of Young Adult novels (at least not a lot that I’ve come into contact with) that deal with issues of male sexuality. But Bennett Madison has written one. I think this book tackles a number of issues that teenage boys may encounter – peer pressure, falling in love for the first time etc. And though at times I was really put off by some of Sam’s thoughts/opinions, he really grows throughout his summer on the beach and that kind of character development is something I can respect as well. I think there is a very real audience that could use this book, I’m just not a part of it.
*side note: I also think that to reach that audience this book may need a different cover. I don’t know too many teen boys who would be confident enough to carry this particular edition around in public.
I was not the target audience for this book by any means. And as a result I had a hard time with it. I didn’t feel like I could relate to Sam or his experience with “the girls.” However, that being said, I do think this is an incredibly interesting and thought provoking novel. There aren’t a lot of Young Adult novels (at least not a lot that I’ve come into contact with) that deal with issues of male sexuality. But Bennett Madison has written one. I think this book tackles a number of issues that teenage boys may encounter – peer pressure, falling in love for the first time etc. And though at times I was really put off by some of Sam’s thoughts/opinions, he really grows throughout his summer on the beach and that kind of character development is something I can respect as well. I think there is a very real audience that could use this book, I’m just not a part of it.
*side note: I also think that to reach that audience this book may need a different cover. I don’t know too many teen boys who would be confident enough to carry this particular edition around in public.
aleffert's review
4.0
As far as I can tell all the discussion about this book is whether it's horrifically misogynistic or subversively anti toxic-masculinity. IMO one of the sympathetic characters saying "Valerie Solanas was just misunderstood" certainly makes the author's intentions clear, but whether or not he succeeded is a separate matter. There's a lot that's questionable about the setup and its sexual politics.
But like, have you been inside the head of a 17 year old boy (our narrator)? There are a lot of badness in there and this book isn't shy about it. And that's I think where it really shines, capturing a bunch of stuff that's ultimately dumb but feels really important at the time. And it does a great job showing a character's attempt to stumble through a bunch of toxic ideas and come out the other side with a deeper understanding (even if he's bland and kind of a dip).
And look, I think taking the idea of endless interchangeable pretty blond townie girls and turning them into a horde of undines is a bit dehumanizing, but it's also a good hook, and it sure does try to then do the work of humanizing those undines.
I dunno, it's complicated, but for all the mess, there was a sweetness to this and it understood longing and the bittersweet.
But like, have you been inside the head of a 17 year old boy (our narrator)? There are a lot of badness in there and this book isn't shy about it. And that's I think where it really shines, capturing a bunch of stuff that's ultimately dumb but feels really important at the time. And it does a great job showing a character's attempt to stumble through a bunch of toxic ideas and come out the other side with a deeper understanding (even if he's bland and kind of a dip).
And look, I think taking the idea of endless interchangeable pretty blond townie girls and turning them into a horde of undines is a bit dehumanizing, but it's also a good hook, and it sure does try to then do the work of humanizing those undines.
I dunno, it's complicated, but for all the mess, there was a sweetness to this and it understood longing and the bittersweet.
kartastrophe's review
4.0
I absolutely loved this book. Madison's writing style is amazing, and I truly loved this book. The only issue I had with it was that it was sort of slow at points, but still in a way that made you want to keep reading more.
m_e_trevi's review
3.0
Such a beautiful cover hiding such a strange read. Sam’s mother is having another breakdown and this time it appears the family will not be picking up the pieces. Instead, Sam, along with his father and brother, are spending the summer in a nearly deserted beach town. I say nearly deserted because amongst the meager tourist there are otherworldly girls. They all seem to be drawn to him, for some reason that Sam, and his brother, cannot understand. The more I think about this book the more I like it. I’m a sucker for mermaid reads and this one is a new twist on the genre. Although the jury is out on whether it’s a good book I would still check it out, see for yourself. As for me, I give it 3 out of 5 stars
teganbeesebooks's review
3.0
"When Sam's dad whisks him and his brother off to a remote beach town for the summer, he's all for it-- at first. Sam soon realizes, though, that this place is anything but ordinary. Time seems to slow down around here, and everywhere he looks, there are beautiful blond girls. Girls who seem inexplicably drawn to him.
Then Sam meets DeeDee, one of the Girls, and she's different from the others. Just as he starts to fall for her, she pulls away, leaving him more confused than ever. He knows that if he's going to get her back, he'll have to uncover the secret of this beach and the girls who live here." (Goodreads)
Title: September Girls
Author: Bennett Madison
Type:Young Adult
Genre: Magical Realism
Tea: Sleepytime Tea, whimsical, a little ethereal, feels like a dream.
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars.
I was very excited when I found September Girls by Bennett Madison. I am a huge magical realism fan and was particularly intrigued by his use of mermaids in this manner. It also takes place, predominantly, in North Carolina, and I am a huge fan of the Carolinas, so this intrigued me even more. Perfect beach read (though I didn't get to it while on the beach, sadly).
At the beginning of the novel we meet Sam, your typical high school guy, with your not so typical family. His mom up and left them to live on a commune, his dad is freaking out and randomly uprooting him and his college age brother for a vacation at a beach he went to when he was younger.
While I enjoyed the premise of this book and trying to figure out the mystery of the beach and the Girls at the beach, it moved a little too slowly for me. I felt there was a lot of unnecessary description of things. Maybe it was to get a better feel for Sam and his brother, but I didn't quite see how that connected with the story overall. The saving grace was the magical realism element.
I liked the story of the Girls and I liked the background clues you got about them between chapters. I understand how this is a book about growing up. And how you can't just expect to find something, it comes to you when you least expect it and when you're not actively looking.
So not a bad book, but not the page turner I was expecting either.
But if you are looking for a mermaid tale with some magical realism thrown in, I highly recommend Monstrous Beauty by Elizabeth Fama.
Then Sam meets DeeDee, one of the Girls, and she's different from the others. Just as he starts to fall for her, she pulls away, leaving him more confused than ever. He knows that if he's going to get her back, he'll have to uncover the secret of this beach and the girls who live here." (Goodreads)
Title: September Girls
Author: Bennett Madison
Type:Young Adult
Genre: Magical Realism
Tea: Sleepytime Tea, whimsical, a little ethereal, feels like a dream.
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars.
I was very excited when I found September Girls by Bennett Madison. I am a huge magical realism fan and was particularly intrigued by his use of mermaids in this manner. It also takes place, predominantly, in North Carolina, and I am a huge fan of the Carolinas, so this intrigued me even more. Perfect beach read (though I didn't get to it while on the beach, sadly).
At the beginning of the novel we meet Sam, your typical high school guy, with your not so typical family. His mom up and left them to live on a commune, his dad is freaking out and randomly uprooting him and his college age brother for a vacation at a beach he went to when he was younger.
While I enjoyed the premise of this book and trying to figure out the mystery of the beach and the Girls at the beach, it moved a little too slowly for me. I felt there was a lot of unnecessary description of things. Maybe it was to get a better feel for Sam and his brother, but I didn't quite see how that connected with the story overall. The saving grace was the magical realism element.
I liked the story of the Girls and I liked the background clues you got about them between chapters. I understand how this is a book about growing up. And how you can't just expect to find something, it comes to you when you least expect it and when you're not actively looking.
So not a bad book, but not the page turner I was expecting either.
But if you are looking for a mermaid tale with some magical realism thrown in, I highly recommend Monstrous Beauty by Elizabeth Fama.