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kricketa's review against another edition
3.0
invisible, average teen james turner finds an opportunity to recreate himself at a public boarding school two hours from his hometown. it starts with a sid vicious poster and a few lies about where
the scars on his arms came from. then he dyes his hair purple and begins planning pranks with his roommate. soon he's lying about everything. but no matter what he does, he can't impress the lovely
and aptly named ellie frost.
when he starts having vivid, crazy dreams and getting IMs from a mystery "ghost" friend, james' life takes a turn for the dangerous. can he really run from his old self? who was he, anyway?
a lot of reviews mention how similar this was to "looking for alaska" by john green, plotwise, and i definitely noticed this. unfortunately, it wasn't nearly as good, writingwise. i know it's not really fair to compare the two...but seriously, the plots are SO SIMILAR. i'm also going to have to complain about the dream world james visits many nights. IT WAS SO BORING. the symbolism was ridiculously obvious and the girl trapped in the pod was ripped off from coraline. so cheesy and boring.
still, the book gripped me enough that i wanted to know what happened next. i'll try it on some teen guys and see what they think.
the scars on his arms came from. then he dyes his hair purple and begins planning pranks with his roommate. soon he's lying about everything. but no matter what he does, he can't impress the lovely
and aptly named ellie frost.
when he starts having vivid, crazy dreams and getting IMs from a mystery "ghost" friend, james' life takes a turn for the dangerous. can he really run from his old self? who was he, anyway?
a lot of reviews mention how similar this was to "looking for alaska" by john green, plotwise, and i definitely noticed this. unfortunately, it wasn't nearly as good, writingwise. i know it's not really fair to compare the two...but seriously, the plots are SO SIMILAR. i'm also going to have to complain about the dream world james visits many nights. IT WAS SO BORING. the symbolism was ridiculously obvious and the girl trapped in the pod was ripped off from coraline. so cheesy and boring.
still, the book gripped me enough that i wanted to know what happened next. i'll try it on some teen guys and see what they think.
liralen's review against another edition
2.0
When James goes to Nerd School, he takes it as an opportunity to reinvent himself: no longer will he be average or forgettable. He'll spin a web of lies that present him as a daredevil and sometimes delinquent; in an effort to present as interesting, he'll keep everyone around him from learning anything real.
Now...some important context for this review: I went to Nerd School too. The same kind of Nerd School that James goes to, which is to say a government-funded boarding school with killer academics and an emphasis on math and science. I almost never see this kind of school in fiction (there are lots and lots of boarding-school books in which everybody has $$$$$$$, or in which everyone in a vampire or a witch or whatever, etc., but not so much ones where everyone just wants a really good education and can't necessarily get one in their hometown), so I was eager to read this.
I'd be curious to know whether Mitchell went to a comparable school. There are some things that feel so specific to the experience: the half-hour before curfew when students flood an area outside to socialise (we called this Happy Half, I think), or the way this kind of school is genuinely somewhere that smart students can be unashamedly, well, smart. And yet...and yet. James still immediately categorises everyone based on the same cliques they'd be in in a standard high school. James still judges other students pretty hard for not being 'cool'. (For the record, the students at my Dork School who were held in the highest stead were the ones who won national science competitions and tutored other students in physics.) You know what James is not interested in? School. He's not even remotely interested in any of his classes. Some of this can probably be put down to depression (though his depression is explained only in the barest of terms), but guys...you don't survive academically at that kind of school if you don't put in any effort. And: maybe more to the point, in terms of accuracy, that kind of school doesn't a) note your self-injury scars and shrug them off or b) note that you've jumped out of a window and let you stay anyway. For (a) at a minimum, they'd inform your parents. For (b) they'd sent you home so fast your head would spin. Not because of punishment but because of liability. If you're going to off yourself, they want you to do it on your own time and not on school property.
I don't know. I didn't like James, and although I suspect that some of that was intentional (a reflection of his depression making it difficult for him to connect to the world around him), there was very little for me to hold on to and say 'yes, this is a character I can root for'. I really wanted the school to be important to the story, but it really wouldn't have taken many changes to make this a 'standard' boarding school. I could call this three stars, because I think it's basically unremarkable, but I was so much hoping for more out of a Nerd School story.
Now...some important context for this review: I went to Nerd School too. The same kind of Nerd School that James goes to, which is to say a government-funded boarding school with killer academics and an emphasis on math and science. I almost never see this kind of school in fiction (there are lots and lots of boarding-school books in which everybody has $$$$$$$, or in which everyone in a vampire or a witch or whatever, etc., but not so much ones where everyone just wants a really good education and can't necessarily get one in their hometown), so I was eager to read this.
I'd be curious to know whether Mitchell went to a comparable school. There are some things that feel so specific to the experience: the half-hour before curfew when students flood an area outside to socialise (we called this Happy Half, I think), or the way this kind of school is genuinely somewhere that smart students can be unashamedly, well, smart. And yet...and yet. James still immediately categorises everyone based on the same cliques they'd be in in a standard high school. James still judges other students pretty hard for not being 'cool'. (For the record, the students at my Dork School who were held in the highest stead were the ones who won national science competitions and tutored other students in physics.) You know what James is not interested in? School. He's not even remotely interested in any of his classes. Some of this can probably be put down to depression (though his depression is explained only in the barest of terms), but guys...you don't survive academically at that kind of school if you don't put in any effort. And: maybe more to the point, in terms of accuracy, that kind of school doesn't a) note your self-injury scars and shrug them off or b) note that you've jumped out of a window and let you stay anyway. For (a) at a minimum, they'd inform your parents. For (b) they'd sent you home so fast your head would spin. Not because of punishment but because of liability. If you're going to off yourself, they want you to do it on your own time and not on school property.
I don't know. I didn't like James, and although I suspect that some of that was intentional (a reflection of his depression making it difficult for him to connect to the world around him), there was very little for me to hold on to and say 'yes, this is a character I can root for'. I really wanted the school to be important to the story, but it really wouldn't have taken many changes to make this a 'standard' boarding school. I could call this three stars, because I think it's basically unremarkable, but I was so much hoping for more out of a Nerd School story.
supersleuth's review against another edition
4.0
This hit close to home for me, which made it uncomfortable to read at times but always compelling. I identify with the struggle to reinvent myself as a teenager and with the alienation from parents, administrators, and peers. Twenty years on, I can laugh at some of my more outrageous shenanigans or outright lies and still reel with guilt from the memories of others.
I also wonder whether my life would be very different if I had stronger mental health support in high school, or whether my own path was just as valid a way through that messy upheaval. I like the use of "katabasis" for that journey. I am not sure that a proper psychiatric diagnosis would have been something I could handle at 16 or would just have been something else to rebel against. I do wish that therapy was more widely understood, available, and "normal" - maybe something we all could try as young adults whether or not we are in acute distress.
I do know that like James I came to highly value the community of my peers and teachers, even those I did not know well, and reading about this parallel experience to my own has strengthened that value.
I also wonder whether my life would be very different if I had stronger mental health support in high school, or whether my own path was just as valid a way through that messy upheaval. I like the use of "katabasis" for that journey. I am not sure that a proper psychiatric diagnosis would have been something I could handle at 16 or would just have been something else to rebel against. I do wish that therapy was more widely understood, available, and "normal" - maybe something we all could try as young adults whether or not we are in acute distress.
I do know that like James I came to highly value the community of my peers and teachers, even those I did not know well, and reading about this parallel experience to my own has strengthened that value.
dlarca's review against another edition
4.0
When James Turner gets into the American Science and Mathematics Society, he sees it as an opportunity to reinvent himself. At his old school, James was nearly invisible, but at ASMA he makes up stories about his past life, letting his new peers see him as a street-fighting, car-stealing, bad-ass. For the first time in his life, James is noticed. At first it's innocent; a couple of pranks, sneaking into his girlfriend's room, staging a protest over the cafeteria food. But no matter what he does, or how much attention he gets, James still feels nothing and must resort to increasingly alarming antics. As his behavior becomes riskier, the line between the lies and the truth, between dreams and reality, becomes so blurred that Jame's life begins to swing out of control.
The Secret to Lying is a thoroughly engrossing coming-of-age story that doesn't shy away from tough issues and questions just how much we really know anyone-including ourselves.
Read-alike: The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart.
The Secret to Lying is a thoroughly engrossing coming-of-age story that doesn't shy away from tough issues and questions just how much we really know anyone-including ourselves.
Read-alike: The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart.
exmish's review against another edition
4.0
Overall, an entertaining read - though I have to admit that part of the fun factor for me was sorting out fact from fiction when it came to the world of ASMA. (I attended the school on which it was based and was in the same graduating class as the author. Orange carpet? Fact! Snarky cheers? Half-fact! :) )
trikaratops's review against another edition
4.0
Epic Wins: (What I loved about the book!)
- The message: That sometime we are our own worst enemy and that we have choices to make in life that are ours alone.
- Like I said with It Started with a Dare, lying sucks! James has to lie and twist the truth till he doesn’t know who he is and has to find himself; he does this through his dreams.
- James: When he wasn’t lying he was pretty funny, made me laugh a lot.
- All the crazy pranks that him and his roommate (Dickie, a guy who speaks in a British accent and loves to laugh) play on people or performed for people.
- Ghost44: I knew it was her! The whole time I knew it! To know exactly who she is you’ll have to read. She was my favorite.
- His hair-brain parents left a few laughs. I like how he called his mother moms because of her multiple personalities. :)
Epic Fails: (please remember: this isn’t fails just weird oddities I found or stuff I didn’t like about the book, I just thought the name fit well with my blog)
- Ellie: She had an attitude like no other but I suppose that is where she got the nick name ‘Ice Queen’.
- Drinking, never a good thing when mixed with hypothermia.
- Lying, not a big fan of the constant tales he comes up with but I respect it, it had to be done.
- Sex: I’m actually really mad that this came up; I was on a streak of clean lit. Oh well!
- How he treated poor Jess! She was probably mess up mentally when he was done with her. (of course she is just a character in a book so why I care is beyond me)
Overall:
Like a work of art, sometimes you don’t like the look but you respect the message. That makes it mean more to you. After this and It started with a Dare, I think I won’t ever lie again even little white lies! So go find out who ghost44 is already!
just sayin,
Kare
- The message: That sometime we are our own worst enemy and that we have choices to make in life that are ours alone.
- Like I said with It Started with a Dare, lying sucks! James has to lie and twist the truth till he doesn’t know who he is and has to find himself; he does this through his dreams.
- James: When he wasn’t lying he was pretty funny, made me laugh a lot.
- All the crazy pranks that him and his roommate (Dickie, a guy who speaks in a British accent and loves to laugh) play on people or performed for people.
- Ghost44: I knew it was her! The whole time I knew it! To know exactly who she is you’ll have to read. She was my favorite.
- His hair-brain parents left a few laughs. I like how he called his mother moms because of her multiple personalities. :)
Epic Fails: (please remember: this isn’t fails just weird oddities I found or stuff I didn’t like about the book, I just thought the name fit well with my blog)
- Ellie: She had an attitude like no other but I suppose that is where she got the nick name ‘Ice Queen’.
- Drinking, never a good thing when mixed with hypothermia.
- Lying, not a big fan of the constant tales he comes up with but I respect it, it had to be done.
- Sex: I’m actually really mad that this came up; I was on a streak of clean lit. Oh well!
- How he treated poor Jess! She was probably mess up mentally when he was done with her. (of course she is just a character in a book so why I care is beyond me)
Overall:
Like a work of art, sometimes you don’t like the look but you respect the message. That makes it mean more to you. After this and It started with a Dare, I think I won’t ever lie again even little white lies! So go find out who ghost44 is already!
just sayin,
Kare
thursdaymouse's review against another edition
5.0
I read Todd's most recent book, "Backwards" first, so maybe I am doing this right... as this book came before. I don't have a whole lot to say except...You know that feeling you get when you have found a new author that seems to get inside your head? They write exactly what you want to read and you are absolutely thrilled about it and can't wait to get your hands on more? This is that kind of book for me. SO insightful. A YA book that is hip enough for teens and also possesses the deep insight that adults, as well as teenagers, crave. The sifting through the sludge of life to get to the heart of the matter. I LOVE books such as these. Also, I met Todd at a recent library function, READCON, and I thanked him for being "real". I had to laugh out loud when I came across a part that addresses that in his book. Maybe it was my imagination, but he seemed to give me a strange look when I said that. Perhaps he was thinking of that part? Read the book!
srousseau's review against another edition
3.0
Imagine being able to start over again - the only thing your classmates know about you is what you tell them. That's what James gets to do. When he is picked to go to the American Science and Mathematics Academy for his sophomore year he decides he is no longer going to be invisible. So he re-invents himself. Then he starts having odd dreams. The lines between his dreams and his time awake start to blur and things start to get really weird.
This coming of age novel showcases the kid who seems to have it all together and is smart, but still unraveling, rather than the kid who is obviously in trouble. James is likeable. His roommate and friends are the cool outcasts in a school full of outcasts. You root for James even as you watch him fall apart, wondering as he does what is going on.
This coming of age novel showcases the kid who seems to have it all together and is smart, but still unraveling, rather than the kid who is obviously in trouble. James is likeable. His roommate and friends are the cool outcasts in a school full of outcasts. You root for James even as you watch him fall apart, wondering as he does what is going on.
autumn_nester's review against another edition
4.0
This is the second time that i have read the book and the first time i thought it was a really good book. This time i am probably about 2 years older now and understand more about what people go through when they have a mental illness which allowed me to understand the book more. I really love the way that Todd Mitchell really got deep into the way that people make up stories because they think it will make them happy, but in the end just makes them feel lonely and isolated because no one really knows who the person is. While this isn't one of my favorite books in the entire world, i would absolutely recommend this to a friend and reread it multiple times in the future. Thank you Todd Mitchell for writing a book that hit on a topic that a lot of people don't want to talk about.
amdame1's review against another edition
3.0
The secret to lying is to believe the lie yourself
James Turner is overlooked by everyone at his school, so he jumps at the chance to go to a boarding school for talented math/science kids. He figures that there he can re-invent himself. Which he does, by lying about pretty much everything. The only problem is that he still feels pretty empty inside so he pulls all sorts of pranks and stupid stunts, as well as by cutting.
Well-written, a good read. Interesting to have a male cutter for once, seems as if it is usually females portrayed as the cutters.
James Turner is overlooked by everyone at his school, so he jumps at the chance to go to a boarding school for talented math/science kids. He figures that there he can re-invent himself. Which he does, by lying about pretty much everything. The only problem is that he still feels pretty empty inside so he pulls all sorts of pranks and stupid stunts, as well as by cutting.
Well-written, a good read. Interesting to have a male cutter for once, seems as if it is usually females portrayed as the cutters.