Sorta Like a Rock Star

Amber Appleton is homeless and poor-- she's living in a school bus for chrissakes. But she's positive and philanthropic, she's sweet and joyful, and deserves basically nothing that happens to her. She and her friends are misfits, but this is not a book about where she fits in-- not really. Instead it's a Job-esque tale of overcoming personal trials of the most difficult kind.

This book sorta rocks-- and then sorta doesn't.

The story is fabulous (spoiler warning...) This girl is poor and tortured. Homeless and yet finding ways to deal with the struggle of not appearing to be homeless. Hungry, and finding ways of dealing with finding food. Outcast-- and yet finding a place among the outcasts. Hers is not a struggle to identify with-- instead it's one to observe and hope to never be a part of. When Mr. Quick kills off Amber's mother, it's horrifying-- slightly unexpected, but not really. And watching Amber's character deal with this grave blow forces forward the readers empathy and forces a need for her to overcome this that is difficult to bring forward. As a reader I am at once sympathetic and hopeful, devastated and joyful, upset and riveted.

The drawback is the character's voice. The unfortunate thing about Amber's voice is that it's something that the reader has to get past in order to read the story. Mr. Quick has this fabulous story and placed it in this bizarre first person. It's like reading a story narrated by Naruto (yeah-- I just referenced Naruto.) I can't even imagine a real person talking like that. When she mentioned that she was in a class for learning how to cope with difficulties and learning to fit in-- I started to think she was the one with mental deficiencies-- not the other characters in her band of misfits. I suppose you can't really have a significantly different second edition of a novel, but if you could-- this would be one where the voice just needs to sound a little more normal. Sorta like a real person.

All in all, it's a story worth reading. This book is one that sticks with you-- I'm not sure if it's because of the shear horror (social, societal, and criminal horror,) or perhaps because I keep asking myself why did he write it that way, or perhaps because at the end of it all she's a modern day Job. Regardless, despite the fact that I want to get this girl some classes in elocution, I have hope for this hopeful character.

R.