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ridiculousamanda's review against another edition
3.0
Metamorphosis: Junior Year is a quick read full of free-verse poetry and pen-and-ink drawings from Ovid, a junior high school teen, who has to be perfect to make up for the mistakes made by his meth-head older sister, Thena. If only his parents were as hopeful as they were when they named their kids, Ovid wouldn't have to try so hard to be perfect. He compares his life in high school to Roman mythology, comparing his friends to Icarus, Orpheus, Dalia, Cupid and Callisto among others. An artsy kid, Ovid is afraid to be himself around his parents, to show them his artwork and poetry, because he worries they'll think he's crazy and about to go off the deep end like his dear sister, which he may very well be close to doing.
sandraagee's review against another edition
3.0
Meh. I like the premise and parts of this book were actually excellent and interesting on their own. But somehow I'm left feeling kind of indifferent in the end. And I honestly didn't care for the illustrations - but that could just be me.
lazygal's review against another edition
3.0
This would have been a four-star if it had been a little longer. At 128 pages, you just skim the surface of Ovid's junior year: the pairings, break-ups, crushes, disappointments, friends and his missing runaway meth-addict sister Thena.
I'm the first to blip over poetry when it appears in books, but I did read some of the poems and they were quite good - miss them, and you'll miss the backstory to the action.
I'm the first to blip over poetry when it appears in books, but I did read some of the poems and they were quite good - miss them, and you'll miss the backstory to the action.
cloudlemons's review against another edition
4.0
I enjoyed the structure and the quick pace. I finished it in 1 sitting and found all of the characters and their little sections quite interesting. I loved the way they all tied together while still being distinctly different. As a current high school student, it really resonated with me. I will definitely be rereading this in the future.
marifergm's review against another edition
4.0
4.5
This book is beautifully written. The way the stories are adapted and they are brought to the modern world is an incredible detail in the story.
I listened to the audiobook which is narrated by Dave and James, and they definitely give the book a different vibe. I will get myself a physical copy of this book as soon as I can.
This book is beautifully written. The way the stories are adapted and they are brought to the modern world is an incredible detail in the story.
I listened to the audiobook which is narrated by Dave and James, and they definitely give the book a different vibe. I will get myself a physical copy of this book as soon as I can.
libraryelf's review against another edition
4.0
I agree with many of the reviews that say that this was a wonderful book but was a bit too short. I enjoyed Ovid's insights and loved how "True to life" this book was. I was also excited to see a new plot point that I've never seen in YA literature (what Ovid does).
bohemianiris's review against another edition
4.0
I enjoyed the structure and the quick pace. I finished it in 1 sitting and found all of the characters and their little sections quite interesting. I loved the way they all tied together while still being distinctly different. As a current high school student, it really resonated with me. I will definitely be rereading this in the future.
elisquared's review against another edition
3.0
What drew me to this book wasn't a review from a fellow book blogger, or even word of mouth from a friend. Nope, I bought this based on plain old book summary (the one listed above in fact). I have an obsession with Greek/Roman mythology. I've read The Odyssey 20 times, watched each movie made about the myths (super excited for The Eagle to be coming out!), and tried to read as many YA books based on the subject (some of my favorites: Psyche in a Dress by Francesca Lia Block, The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book 1) by Rick Riordan, The Eagle of the Ninth (The Roman Britain Trilogy) by Rosemary Sutcliff & Nobody's Princess (Princesses of Myth) by Esther M. Friesner). So when I saw that Betsy Franco (mother of James Franco) used Ovid's Metamorphoses in a modern context I was excited!
Unfortunately, when I started to read I was disappointed. Yes, the story is told in poetry, with a mix of prose to make it more tangible for modern teens, and the illusions of each character is really good, there isn't enough. Like when you get a bite of some great dessert, but that's all? That's how this book was for me. I wanted more: more character development, more explication, more coherence. I think it would have been easy to accomplish with the format presented.
This is really upsetting because the writing is beautiful. There are some really great lines: "But Thena beat every poetic bone out of their bodies. They walled up that part of themselves, and it'd take a lightning bolt to crack them open again" (pg. 66). But no matter how good the writing is, the plot is suffering. All the reader has to wrap up a book with some pretty intense issues being explored, such as, cutting, anorexia, sexual abuse, meth addiction, is an epilogue that simply has a couple of lines about each character.
In addition, Franco has her other son, Tom, include his art to help illustrate the book. The drawings are suppose to be as if Ovid (the protagonist, go figure) is drawing them. I understand what Franco is trying to do, but I don't feel this really adds anything to the book. The drawings are somewhat confusing to look at, which could have been really good as Ovid is confused and dealing with a lot of things, but they end up just detracting.
I really wanted to love this book, but I didn't. I like it, I don't regret buying it, but I just wish it was ten times thicker than it is.
Unfortunately, when I started to read I was disappointed. Yes, the story is told in poetry, with a mix of prose to make it more tangible for modern teens, and the illusions of each character is really good, there isn't enough. Like when you get a bite of some great dessert, but that's all? That's how this book was for me. I wanted more: more character development, more explication, more coherence. I think it would have been easy to accomplish with the format presented.
This is really upsetting because the writing is beautiful. There are some really great lines: "But Thena beat every poetic bone out of their bodies. They walled up that part of themselves, and it'd take a lightning bolt to crack them open again" (pg. 66). But no matter how good the writing is, the plot is suffering. All the reader has to wrap up a book with some pretty intense issues being explored, such as, cutting, anorexia, sexual abuse, meth addiction, is an epilogue that simply has a couple of lines about each character.
In addition, Franco has her other son, Tom, include his art to help illustrate the book. The drawings are suppose to be as if Ovid (the protagonist, go figure) is drawing them. I understand what Franco is trying to do, but I don't feel this really adds anything to the book. The drawings are somewhat confusing to look at, which could have been really good as Ovid is confused and dealing with a lot of things, but they end up just detracting.
I really wanted to love this book, but I didn't. I like it, I don't regret buying it, but I just wish it was ten times thicker than it is.
raquelstecher's review against another edition
5.0
Listening to this was a real treat. It's a short audio book, about 2 hours on 2 CDs. It was a delight listening to Betsy Franco's sons David Franco and James Franco (yes THE James Franco) read their mom's book. This book is heavily influenced by Ovid's Metamorphosis which was one of my favorite books to read in college. My favorite part, funny enough, was the informational part at the end that talked about Ovid's life, work, exile, and death. I'm glad this was included because as fun as it is to read a re-envisioning of Ovid's Metamorphosis (in a high school setting no less) I think it's also really important to understand that what Ovid wrote was also a re-envisioning of the mythological stories that he and his contemporaries were so familiar with.
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