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A review by katykelly
Trouble by Non Pratt
3.0
3.5 stars.
I enjoyed this much more in the first half than the second, I would say. It's unusual to make the teenage protagonist a 'bit of a goer', and for such an insight into her world of make-up, boys and hangin' out. Hannah isn't quite the 'easy' girl she appears though, and she does grow throughout the story.
It's a story often told of course - accidental pregnancy. But this time, even the narrator (Hannah) refuses to name the father (though I thought it was pretty obvious), and at only 15 she is caught up in a decision that will change her little world. Especially as her mother works in a birth control clinic.
Hannah has a reputation for being rather... loose, like her best friend. But she knows exactly who the father of her child is, and it's not the boy claiming it as his own. Aaron is a new boy at school, finds himself feeling for Hannah and wanting to help her. Through the story we learn just what he's trying to hide from as well.
My favourite parts of the book were those where I felt the author had an excellent grasp of teenage language, conversation and social lives - the scenes outside of school where they each jostle for position, for supremacy and for mates. And the scenes in the nursing home where Hannah talks to her confidante of a grandmother, and where Aaron seeks refuge with a curmudgeonly resident and learns a bit about life through him. Some humour there.
I wasn't convinced by Aaron at all, his reasons for helping Hannah just didn't feel right, it's simply a strange thing to do, and though I liked both him and Hannah, it just didn't sit well with me.
There's a plot concerning Hannah's best friend as well, and a lot about social media (though a bullying subplot comes out of nowhere and barely registers). The pregnancy as well isn't as central as I'd have expected, considering Hannah is going through exams while coping with symptoms and changes.
The reveal about the father raises yet more issues in a book already concerned with several, and the conclusion left it all rather flat and open, in a rather unsatisfying way. I wanted to know exactly how that story was going to continue.
Overall, a good idea with an excellent youth angle, but felt flawed.
I enjoyed this much more in the first half than the second, I would say. It's unusual to make the teenage protagonist a 'bit of a goer', and for such an insight into her world of make-up, boys and hangin' out. Hannah isn't quite the 'easy' girl she appears though, and she does grow throughout the story.
It's a story often told of course - accidental pregnancy. But this time, even the narrator (Hannah) refuses to name the father (though I thought it was pretty obvious), and at only 15 she is caught up in a decision that will change her little world. Especially as her mother works in a birth control clinic.
Hannah has a reputation for being rather... loose, like her best friend. But she knows exactly who the father of her child is, and it's not the boy claiming it as his own. Aaron is a new boy at school, finds himself feeling for Hannah and wanting to help her. Through the story we learn just what he's trying to hide from as well.
My favourite parts of the book were those where I felt the author had an excellent grasp of teenage language, conversation and social lives - the scenes outside of school where they each jostle for position, for supremacy and for mates. And the scenes in the nursing home where Hannah talks to her confidante of a grandmother, and where Aaron seeks refuge with a curmudgeonly resident and learns a bit about life through him. Some humour there.
I wasn't convinced by Aaron at all, his reasons for helping Hannah just didn't feel right, it's simply a strange thing to do, and though I liked both him and Hannah, it just didn't sit well with me.
There's a plot concerning Hannah's best friend as well, and a lot about social media (though a bullying subplot comes out of nowhere and barely registers). The pregnancy as well isn't as central as I'd have expected, considering Hannah is going through exams while coping with symptoms and changes.
The reveal about the father raises yet more issues in a book already concerned with several, and the conclusion left it all rather flat and open, in a rather unsatisfying way. I wanted to know exactly how that story was going to continue.
Overall, a good idea with an excellent youth angle, but felt flawed.