Push

Rating:
Summary: Dull Repetative Story; Whispy Weak Girl Character
Review: I have no idea how these "depressing" morbid stories can attract readers, mostly girls, and they somehow say they can relate to the character. I hated, and I mean HATED, the way it was written, it was full of all that negro language which made it hard to understand. Yes, I understand that may have been to emphasis this girl's way of speech and upbringing, but it was way overhauled.

The whole story was just too much for me, you might as well go and buy "Go Ask Alice" or "Crosses".

Rating:
Summary: WOW!
Review: Saffire wrote about something taboo in our community, the very things no one wants to talk about and therefore nothing happens to change it. The concept of a child protection agency is new, noble and hopeful however, it doesn't work. And unfortunately, some people do not deserve to be parents...or even to live after performing such atrocitities on their children. Thank the Powers that Be that Saffire is able to lay it all on the table like she did in this book through the child, Precious Jones. Whenever I need encouragement or offer it, all I have to say is "PUSH!"

Rating:
Summary: Whoah! What a nove!
Review: I would have given the bok 5 stars but it made me cry and now I'm a bit bitter!Atfirst I was not sure whether I should continue reading Push because it was so depressing it made me feel awful. THe thing is I could not help from picking it back up and i never put it back down. This novel was ultra real, a little to much so. The abuse and illiteracy were problems that I knew existed but was not framiliar with them at all so reading this book gave me a true insight to a whole new world. I'll keep this short by saying you are missing out on a truely wonderful novel if you chose not to read it.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent, just excellent.
Review: A major talent. Read it. Nothing more needs to be said

Rating:
Summary: This was a tough book!!!
Review: I read "PUSH" with my book club "VISIONS". It was deep. I couldn't put the book down. It made me feel depressed most of the way through. It was just so negative and sad. I kept waiting and waiting for something positive to happen in the book and it never really did. The main character finally realized how to get a way from the bad things in her life and she started to learn, but she was still in for more tragedy. I think the author did an excellent job writing the book and the detail was wonderful. I was just looking for something really great to happen to the main character, I guess the book was just a little to REAL for me.

Rating:
Summary: Push is about encouragement in hard times.
Review: Claireece Precious Jones went through a tough time in her life. She has very low self -esteem, she was raped by her father and got pregnant twice my him, her mother abused her. Precious was also illiterate she never had the chance to learn. This story is similar to the movie "The Color Purple" by Alice Walker, because, like Precious, Celie was also raped by her father and abused .She too did not know how to read or write, But did not have the advantages Precious has. Precious gets to go to school and tries to make it better for her self, by learning how to read and write. Then again, Celie had her sister teach her what she learned in school the following day. There's a part in the story when Precious says how were gonna write when we can't spell. Then Mrs.Rain says "Write what's on your mind, push your self to see the letters that represent the word your thinking ", then she turns and asks real fast "Precious what's your mind?" There is a certain time in Precious life when she had some one to push her, give her encouragement and inspiration, some one to challenge Precious how to learn to read and write, and improve her way in life. Sapphire knows that there are people like Precious all over the world. She is just trying to encourage them to finish school and let them know that they can over come what ever comes there way. Every one has a second chance in life and should not ever give up for what they really want in life, because just like Mrs.Rain said in the story, "The longest journey begins with a single step." So go for what you want to become, because if you don't do it or get it done, who will. I like this story because Sapphire writes about real problems that make you think, because there are people that go through these types of situations everyday of there lives. They don't have opportunities to go to school like we do, and what do we do? We take advantage of school and the teachers, While other people would die just to be in school and make it better for them selves. Precious and Celie have noting and all the fortunate people just complain that the school system is know good, that school is a bore, that it's just a waste of time. These students have to realize that going to school is a privilege and that we students are lucky, unlike other that don't have the opportunities that we have. I think that it's so sad how people could just take advantage of something so great. This book opened my eyes and made me realize all the advantages I have in life. The book that Sapphire wrote made me realize it all.

Rating:
Summary: a physically draining experience
Review: this book affected me more emotionally than virtually anything else I've ever read. i found myself alternately crying and wanting to kill someone and wanting to throw the book away, but simultaneously, I couldn't put it down. sapphire does an amazing job of bringing the reader into precious's life and paints an absolutely horrifying picture of adolescence. I feel like this should be required reading for any course of study, especially those in the education and/or social work fields. I was physically drained for an entire day after I finished the novel. an absolutely harrowingly beautiful experience.

Rating:
Summary: The power of love and education can bring hope to hopeless
Review: A stark and astonishing first novel, "Push" uses all of Sapphire's poetic skills to give voice to one Claireece Precious Jones, a 17-year-old illiterate African-American girl from Harlem.... "Miz Rain" and the program are a last resort for Precious, who knows there is a better life out there, but isn't sure how to get there.....Although you wish you had a teacher like Blue Rain and you root for Precious to win in the end, the novel is left curiously open-ended (is there a sequel?), which is the most unsatisfying part of this gruesome, but worth it view of the sordid underbelly of the underclass.

Rating:
Summary: Sapphire uses Claireece's charactor to define humanstrength
Review: Push Review by Osman Khan & Sherran Graham

In Sapphire's novel, Push, she uses the character of Claireece Precious Jones, the extrusive protagonist of the novel, to bring forth her perseverance of physical, sexual, and mental abuse. Sapphire's use of harsh terms and profound description of the series of sexual and physical abuse contributes to the powerfulness of her novel. For example, when Precious described her being raped by her father, the explicatory words used to describe it were astounding, because you are able to depict it in your mind. Be that as it may, Push represents the austerities and all the negative forces that would hinder one from surviving in society. Throughout the course of Precious' life she was forced to affront many atrocities. These problems initiated in Precious' home; hence they contributed to her lack of emotional and social stability. Precious, being raped constantly by her father and obliged to engage in sexual acts with her mother, having no source of compassion, having no one to communicate with and feeling isolated, made her not value her existence on Earth. She at times vehemently wanted to die. Precious was illiterate, did not function aptly in a classroom setting, and customarily did not socialize with her peers. It was gratifying how Sapphire used one's ability to act respectably in society as a result of the household from which they came. Because of the milieu that she grew up in, it was a struggle for her to overcome her atrocities. Sapphire also mentioned the importance of role models. The way one presents his/her self in society can make a great impact on another person's life. Precious had two role models: Louis Farrakhan and Ms. Rain, her teacher. Farrakhan was a respectable leader of the black community and someone who made her proud of being Black. Ms. Rain was someone who taught her how to read and write, and inspired her to continue school. Precious proceeded with school and it was remarkable how her literacy skill developed gradually. In accordance, she won a literacy award for her perseverance in her class. This only inspired her to advance in her studies. Sapphire's novel uses Precious to define human strength. It took courage for her to portray her austerities, and to continue life holding them as a source of motivation. When you get into this book, you delineate Precious in your mind regarding her state of being, subordinate to yours. Figuratively speaking, you feel that if she can get through life with what she's gone through, so can I. We applaud Sapphire for writing such a powerful and realistic novel, because there are a respectable amount of people in society who can relate to such issues. This novel will make it easier for people in such predicaments to be more comfortable to tell their stories. We willfully encourage anyone to read this book.

Rating:
Summary: Brutally Powerful, Defiant, Memorable.
Review: _Push_ is wonderful! This is our group's conclusion after reading and discussing the book for a class assignment. This is an emotional and touching book that tells of the struggles and successes of a 17-year-old girl, from Harlem, named Claireece Precious Jones. Precious was illiterate, she was raised in the ghetto. She had a father who raped and fathered both her children, and she had a mother who severely beat and also sexually abused her. Precious grew up in an environment of loneliness, pain, and shame. The story tells how Precious fought the battle of being illiterate by pushing herself to learn how to read and write with the help of a courageous and determined teacher. The novel offers a powerful insight into what literacy can do for a person, namely Precious.

This book has the power to influence your emotions. The introductory paragraph is enough to describe the complications and hardships of Precious' life. We feel anger towards her biological father, someone who has continuously abused her. If anger is what we feel because of her father's behavior, then outrage is what we feel towards her mother for allowing Precious' father to molest Precious. However, sadness is what we experience the most during and after reading _Push_. It is sad to learn about Precious' life, to know how much pain she suffered, to actually feel her loneliness through her thoughts and verbal expression.

One of the high points of the book is sharing in the hope Precious felt when she met her teacher, Ms. Rain. Ms. Rain helped Precious to read and write. She gave Precious more than just literacy. In addition to giving her the ability to read and write, Ms. Rain also gave Precious the ability to think and to analyze her life. Precious showed her independence when she tried to make it on her own and in her determination to provide a better life for herself and her children. She is finally willing to open up herself and her feelings through the creative poems she has written in class. Precious could not have done all this without the love and care she received from her teacher and her friends at the new school. The moments of love and warmth conveys in the novel touches the reader's heart.

Even though _Push_ is a fictional novel, it sounds like a true-life story. It deals with global social issues that are reported continuously through the media, such as poverty, obesity, illiteracy, incest, and child abuse. This is the kind of book that everyone should read for a reality check.