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gmamartha's review
2.0
Scary topic. Still thinking about the story. This is about an 8th grade girl and her new breath sisters, the narrator not wanting to continue, but not realizing how dangerous it is for her friends.
avillarose's review
4.0
My original review deleted itself, so let’s try this again. It was difficult to give this book a rating as I am not the intended audience, but overall I found the subject matter interesting. This book was written for middle school to high school aged students, and I know this because I bought this when I was one. It’s been a little over a decade, but nothing has seem to age poorly as it still covers matters of peer pressure and some of the dangerous things kids can get roped into. I do agree with other readers at the dialogue seemed a bit juvenile at times, even for middle schoolers. Despite that, the ending took a much darker turn than I was expecting. Overall, I think it was a digestible way to warn the intended readers about the dangers of “the choking game”, and I think it did it very well. Kept me interested once I got past a few introductory chapters and I’m glad I can finally make some room for new books on my bookshelf.
Edit: I meant to add that regardless of age, this can be a fun readers for native Texans. The story is set in San Antonio and has lots of little details to remind you of it. I live close to the area, so it was fun to see some familiarities thrown around.
Edit: I meant to add that regardless of age, this can be a fun readers for native Texans. The story is set in San Antonio and has lots of little details to remind you of it. I live close to the area, so it was fun to see some familiarities thrown around.
librariann's review
3.0
Ages 10+
[note: Scholastic says this is for grades 3 and up, because precocious third graders no longer have Regina Morrow and SVH to teach them about the dangers of doing cocaine EVAR EVEN ONE TIME. Not that I-I'm speaking from experience or anything]
On to the book! New girl Nina is tall, pretty, and wears scarves. (Could the scarves be a CLUE??? READ ON!) Narrator Windy is part of the "GP" - or General Population - at her middle school. Windy's tired of being mostly unnoticed, except to be picked on by the resident mean girls, so the fact that Nina wants to be her friend is appealing. But Nina has a secret addiction to the Choking Game. Even though Windy's not sure about the game, she does want to be Nina's "breath sister." How will things turn out?
A little teachy-preachy but full of realistic middle school emotions, situations, and temptations that will appeal to many girls. Bonus points for being set in San Antonio, Texas, and featuring a largely Hispanic cast of characters.
[note: Scholastic says this is for grades 3 and up, because precocious third graders no longer have Regina Morrow and SVH to teach them about the dangers of doing cocaine EVAR EVEN ONE TIME. Not that I-I'm speaking from experience or anything]
On to the book! New girl Nina is tall, pretty, and wears scarves. (Could the scarves be a CLUE??? READ ON!) Narrator Windy is part of the "GP" - or General Population - at her middle school. Windy's tired of being mostly unnoticed, except to be picked on by the resident mean girls, so the fact that Nina wants to be her friend is appealing. But Nina has a secret addiction to the Choking Game. Even though Windy's not sure about the game, she does want to be Nina's "breath sister." How will things turn out?
A little teachy-preachy but full of realistic middle school emotions, situations, and temptations that will appeal to many girls. Bonus points for being set in San Antonio, Texas, and featuring a largely Hispanic cast of characters.
mountie9's review
3.0
The Good Stuff
•Author very much understands the emotions of a grade 8 girl - such a horribly confusing time and many parents forget how tough this period is
•Some humour added at just the right moments
•Lovely messages about being /accepting yourself (Love Elena - wish I had had that kind of inner confidence when I was that age)
•Parents were mostly realistic
•Not overly preachy - sorta reminds me of those Go Ask Alice type books I read when I was around 10
•Story does show the horrible consequences of this horrific game (which I still cannot seem to get why anyone would do it -- but than again feel the same way about drugs)
The Not So Good Stuff
•not sure I agree of suggested reading age -- but still undecided on this and would love to do some research into it
•Nina's parents should have gotten her some help & fact that she had to change schools but no therapy mentioned for her problem seems off
Favorite Quotes/Passages
"I probably learned more about Isaac Newton that anyone else in class - like he's the guy who came up with gravity, not the guy who invented Fig Newtons."
"I nodded. Elena might look and act like a little girl, but sometimes she was as wise as a ninety year old."
"I often tell her to get with the fashion program, to update, but she just points to herself and says, "This is me, take it or leave it" she honestly doesn't care what other people think."
Who Should/Shouldn't Read
•I would say for the more reluctant reader - as it is not as developed as a stronger reader may prefer
•Obviously if a child you know seems to be getting into this dangerous game I would suggest this as a non preachy book about the dangers consequences of this stupid game
•Would be a good one to keep on hand in all public and school libraries
•Good for class discussion as well
3 Dewey's
I picked this up at Book Expo America 2012
tjlcody's review
3.0
Started off pretty strong, but towards the end got really, really cliche. It would have been a lot more effective if the author had fleshed Nina out as a character a bit more- or, potentially, told the story from her POV rather than Windy's (or, alternatively, taken Windy's story in a different direction).
[Spoilers below]
If the author was trying to use the book to educate kids about the Choking Game, it would have been a bit more effective to make the person who ended up suffering horrible consequences from it a bit easier to relate to; Windy was the main character, so it would make sense for it to be her.
It's complicated, because I like that the author chose not to go down the usual route (the main character/narrator is the one who learns the hard way), but at the same time, it didn't work. Nina is too distant. She is not as fleshed-out as she could be, especially compared to Windy, and so when something bad happens to her it doesn't have the same emotional impact that it might have otherwise had.
The reason books like these usually have such a strong impact is because the reader looks at what the character is going through and sees "Wow, look at how their life went from normal to awful all because of this one thing". With Nina, we really didn't get that as fully as we could have.
Overall it was a good book, but could have been a little more than that.
[Spoilers below]
If the author was trying to use the book to educate kids about the Choking Game, it would have been a bit more effective to make the person who ended up suffering horrible consequences from it a bit easier to relate to; Windy was the main character, so it would make sense for it to be her.
It's complicated, because I like that the author chose not to go down the usual route (the main character/narrator is the one who learns the hard way), but at the same time, it didn't work. Nina is too distant. She is not as fleshed-out as she could be, especially compared to Windy, and so when something bad happens to her it doesn't have the same emotional impact that it might have otherwise had.
The reason books like these usually have such a strong impact is because the reader looks at what the character is going through and sees "Wow, look at how their life went from normal to awful all because of this one thing". With Nina, we really didn't get that as fully as we could have.
Overall it was a good book, but could have been a little more than that.
nerfherder86's review
3.0
Although this book kind of reads like an Afterschool Special (it's a little bit preachy), it's about a little-known teen issue that all students should be aware of, and the characters are engaging, with realistically depicted peer pressure situations. Windy, an eighth grader who's tired of being an average, boring, frizzy-haired girl who's not part of the "in crowd," gets her wish to become more popular when she is befriended by Nina, the popular new girl. Nina invites her to be her "breath sister," which Windy thinks is about trusting each other, but is really about playing The Choking Game, where they choke each other until they pass out so that they can feel high when coming to. Windy rightfully is skeptical of this, and only has to try it once to realize it's not at all fun, but Nina is addicted, and this eventually leads to dire consequences (cue the Afterschool Special theme music). I liked that the main character is Hispanic and her parents are depicted as loving attentive parents, although the subplot involving her dad wanting to change his appearance to get a tv weatherman job makes him seem awfully shallow. Not a brilliant book, but definitely depicts the choking fad as the dangerous activity it is, and shows the horrible consequences.
heykellyjensen's review
2.0
This read way too young for an 8th grade main character. The story follows Windy, who wants desperately to fit in with the cool kids. So when Nina moves to town and has a "cool kid" thing about her, Windy is thrilled she gets the chance to make friends with her. Except, Nina has a secret, and it's that she plays the choke game. And she tries to teach Windy how to play, too.
I picked this one up because when I was in elementary school we had an assembly one morning after a couple of kids were taken to the hospital following a game of "pass out" in the school playground. I was fascinated to see how it'd play out in a middle school setting, and for the most part, it worked and was believable.
The challenges were that the writing was so basic and at times all tell and no show. I found the parents to be laughably bad in the story, especially since Windy was an 8th grader and not a 5th grader -- I feel like had this book been written down a couple of grades, it would have been way stronger. Topically, though, it's a tougher one to sell to the younger set. I also became a little frustrated that the topic at hand was treated almost as a secondary plot, rather than the plot itself. It took over 80 pages to get to the choking game at all, and for a book that's just over 200 pages, that's quite a long time. There was a lot involved in the story before (and after) that could have been cut and made this stronger.
What I appreciated was that it was culturally diverse in the same way that Lopez's CONFETTI GIRL was, and without doubt, this book will have large appeal to Latina girls looking for stories about people like themselves (which, as someone who worked with this population, I cheer). The book gets message-y at the end, but I think because the topic is interesting on its own, readers won't get too caught up on it.
I picked this one up because when I was in elementary school we had an assembly one morning after a couple of kids were taken to the hospital following a game of "pass out" in the school playground. I was fascinated to see how it'd play out in a middle school setting, and for the most part, it worked and was believable.
The challenges were that the writing was so basic and at times all tell and no show. I found the parents to be laughably bad in the story, especially since Windy was an 8th grader and not a 5th grader -- I feel like had this book been written down a couple of grades, it would have been way stronger. Topically, though, it's a tougher one to sell to the younger set. I also became a little frustrated that the topic at hand was treated almost as a secondary plot, rather than the plot itself. It took over 80 pages to get to the choking game at all, and for a book that's just over 200 pages, that's quite a long time. There was a lot involved in the story before (and after) that could have been cut and made this stronger.
What I appreciated was that it was culturally diverse in the same way that Lopez's CONFETTI GIRL was, and without doubt, this book will have large appeal to Latina girls looking for stories about people like themselves (which, as someone who worked with this population, I cheer). The book gets message-y at the end, but I think because the topic is interesting on its own, readers won't get too caught up on it.
kelli_belli's review
3.0
This is another book I'm not sure how to rate. While this book has a very important message, the characters were just too young for me to relate to. I could relate to the situations because who doesn't remember those years in school of trying to fit in and be cool and do the right thing. But the conversations were too immature and juvenile for me to feel any sort of connection or compassion for them. I felt more for the letter from the author at the end of the book. That's kind of what made me give it 3 stars. Otherwise would have been 2 or 2.5 stars.
howifeelaboutbooks's review
3.0
Nina is the new girl in school. She's beautiful, and could be friends with anyone, but she picks Windy and her friend Elena, even though they're part of the GP (General Public). Nina even stands up to the popular girls who bully Windy and her friend. She seems too good to be true, and as Windy gets to know the new girl, she realizes that she engages in some very dangerous behavior. The choking game sweeps the school, and all the girls choke each other in private to experience the tingly high of passing out. They start wearing scarves to cover their bruises, and band together based on their shared secret. Then Nina takes the game a step too far, and Windy has to decide how good of a friend she wants to be.