Review: Friday Brown by Vikki Wakefield

Title: Friday Brown

Author: Vikki Wakefield

Published: August 2012 by Text Publishing

Blurb:

‘I am Friday Brown. I buried my mother. My grandfather buried a swimming pool. A boy who can’t speak has adopted me. A girl kissed me. I broke and entered. Now I’m fantasising about a guy who’s a victim of crime and I am the criminal. I’m going nowhere and every minute I’m not moving, I’m being tail-gated by a curse that may or may not be real. They call me Friday. It has been foretold that on a Saturday I will drown…’

Friday, 17, flees memories of her mother, grandad, and the family curse. She joins Silence in a street gang led by beautiful charismatic Arden, and escapes to a ghost town in the outback. In Murungal Creek, the town of never leaving, Friday faces the ghosts of her past. Sometimes you have to stay to finish what you started, and before you can find out who you are, you have to become someone you never meant to be

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Review:

How many good books have you read? How many of them actually went through you?

For me, Friday Brown was one of them.

Friday Brown is the touching story of family and love. It follows the journey of 17 year old Liliane Brown, also known as Friday Brown. Her family was cursed so that the females would die from drowning on a Saturday. Hence, came the name Friday.

After her mother died, Friday goes to live with her grandfather, but escapes to a large city. There, she meets a strange mute boy, Silence, who is as invisible as he is quiet. Having nowhere else to go, Silence takes Friday to his home, a squat on the outskirts which houses other street kids.

The leader is Arden, a beautiful, charismatic girl, but dangerous. She holds utmost authority. But since Friday's arrival, Arden's leadership is challenged. In return, she challenges Friday to the limits.

The characters in the novel are exceptionally crafted. They are realistic and fascinating. I fell in love with them. They aren't flat and predictable, they are flawed just like humans. Friday is a strong protagonist. She doesn't give up, although she is struggling within herself. She asks herself, "Who am I, without you?" and this is explored throughout the book. 

"I was the sum of two people, one dead, the other unknown. I’d lived in a hundred small towns and I’d never known another person for my whole life, except for Vivienne [Friday's mother]." - Friday Brown

I liked how the author uses foreshadowing. And if you read it quite carefully, you can pinpoint the fates of the different characters and their inner selves, whether they should be trusted. 

I think that the greatness of this book outshone the faults in it. One part that bothered me though was how the curse seemed to be neglected. It is introduced in the prologue in a interesting manner, making it seem like the central part of the plot. It, however, isn't, and is reminded when Friday tried to drown another person.

At the end of the book, one might have a new understanding of grief, family and love, like Friday Brown. It is a must read.


What did you think about Friday Brown?

Please comment and follow :)

Review: Boys Don't Cry by Malorie Blackman

Title: Boys Don't Cry

Author: Malorie Blackman
Published: October 2010 by Corgi Childrens

Blurb:

You're waiting for the postman - he's bringing your A level results. University, a career as a journalist - a glittering future lies ahead. But when the doorbell rings it's your old girlfriend; and she's carrying a baby. Your baby. 

You're happy to look after it, just for an hour or two. But then she doesn't come back - and your future suddenly looks very different.

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Review:

Recently, I read the Noughts and Crosses sequence by the same author and I loved it. (For anyone who hasn't read it yet, you must read it.) I decided to read more books by Malorie Blackman. At first, I didn't want to read Boys Don't Cry because the idea of teenage parenting seemed a bit uninteresting for me. But there were numerous recommendations for it, so I gave it a go.

Meet Dante. He's waiting for his A level results to arrive. But when he opens the door, it isn't the postman. It is his ex-girlfriend, carrying a baby and he is the father. She leaves the baby with him and does a runner. Dante is left behind with his daughter Emma who he didn't even know existed until a few hours ago. He is confused, angry and lost. He doesn't want to be Emma's father. However, the heartwarming scenes that appear later show how he starts to love his daughter. Not long comes the harsh realities of being a teenage father.

Meanwhile, many family issues are also happening. There is a dead mother, and a father who rarely shows emotion towards his sons. There is also Adam, Dante's younger brother, whose family is turning a blind eye to what he is. Each member struggles in their own way to express their love and how they really feel. But as the story progresses, you can see the family bonding together and taking shape.

I really enjoyed the book. There were many heartwarming scenes, and I laughed and smiled countless times. I liked how the author avoided the cliché of a single teenage mother. This book showed how teenage fathers can show care and love just like a mother's.

This is a well-written story about family and growing up. It is inspiring and should be loved by many readers.

Review: Mind Games by Kiersten White

Title: Mind Games

Series: Mind Games #1

Author: Kiersten White
Published: February 2013 by HarperTeen

Blurb:

I can't see the present...but I know what lies ahead. My instincts are always right...but every move I make feels wrong. It's my fault Fia's here...how was I supposed to know? Annie will die if I don't do what they ask...I'll wish  I were dead if I do.

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Review:

I was completely unsure of what to expect from Mind Games. I really didn't read this due to the blurb (I mean, it's so vague), but due to the title. What would a book called Mind Games be about? I had no idea.

Straight away, I was launched into the story of Sofia "Fia" and Annie. They were sisters who were trapped in a school for psychics and mind readers. The story jumps frequently between past and present, telling you the back story. Annie is blind, but she can see fragments of the future. Fia has a unique power, she has perfect instincts. Fia has to do what the school wants her to do, or else, they would kill Annie. She always does. Except once.

Even though the story is told from both characters' point of view, I would have to say that Fia is more the main character. I liked how the author made the character voices quite distinct. 

Fia, although she is quite mature, her voice has a more immature feel to it. She sometimes repeats things and she frequently taps her leg. In the writing, her voice frequently has thoughts written inside brackets. She is very broken inside, and always tries to hide her secrets from Annie.

Annie has a more sensible and reserved voice. Like Fia, she really loves her sister and her main actions are all centred around her.

Mind Games is a really interesting book. It is a fresh idea among many YA books out there. It is a dark, twisted story about two sisters facing impossible choices. This book is a must read.