Smack

Rating:
Summary: Flawless character development
Review: Absolutly Brilliant

No other words can describe this masterpeace

Rating:
Summary: 'Shake you up' dose of an intriguing, ugly reality
Review: I was amazed by what Burgess did with his story "Smack". Writing this book truly showed incredible talent. Take Gemma, for instance. Snotty, spoiled little teeny-girl who's so keen on pissing off her protective parents and having fun -- totally dislikable character, yes? Until you get inside her head. Then you completely understand and sympathize. And by the end of the book, she's changed so drastically, yet gradually enough that it's a real shock to pull away from the storyline and see how much she's changed! I received this book after buying it from Amazon at about 4 in the afternoon. I didn't put it down until 5 in the morning! It was that intense. All in all, this realistic book shook me up so badly, I'm still recovering 3 days later. It's haunting. It's beautiful. Buy it.

Rating:
Summary: This book is honest, straight forward, and addicting.
Review: This book taught me a lot about how some people choose to live. It helped me realize what all I'd be throwing away if I chose to do heroin. It's a very frightening story about running away, doing drugs, having sex, and rebelling against authority.

Rating:
Summary: GREAT
Review: I love this book.I have read it twice already and have only had it for two months.Once I start reading it I can't put it down.And for me to say the book must be pretty good because I hate reading.And it really teaches people about the consequences of using Heroin.that you could lose some pretty good friends that way,I would recommend this book to everyone who likes(or even doesn't like) to read.

Rating:
Summary: A heart-warming story
Review: This book was so touching from the first pages to the very last, I have a hard time shopping for books but I felt that I knew I would enjoy it right when I read the short summary. When I started to read it I had a point of view as to how I knew the characters were feeling. I don't know why because yet I haven't ever ventured any of the problems they came across in this book... The way Melvin Burgess explained this book out I understood everything so well. I would recommend it to anyone.

Rating:
Summary: A must-read
Review: I read this book in sitting -- and I didn't know it was a "young adult" book. The writing in this novel is so good, and the characters and all of their rationalizations are so realistic. I highly recommend it.

Rating:
Summary: Come and experience the best book ever
Review: "Junk" or "Smack" as it is known in the States, is the most thought-provoking book I have ever read. This book about teenage heroin addiction in the 80s is what all books should be. What struck me in particular was the way that the author developed the characters and made them seem "real". The plot was original and un-complicated but effective. The way the characters conveyed their feelings about the events in their lives was the most haunting aspect. Reading "Smack," I felt it could've been a true story in a teenage magazine, it was so real and detailed. The book has been described as a bit racy, but I'm 14, (the same age as the book's main characters), and I didn't find it too racy at all. Neither, as a matter of fact, did my parents. Anyway, I think the raciness of it contributes to making it so realistic. It wouldn't sound as though it were coming from the voice of the characters if everything was toned down. I'll probably read many books in my lifetime, and have read many already, but I am confident that there is no other book on earth like "Smack". Even the illustration on the front cover is remarkable- that is, the English version with the massive dandelion and needle. Who needs drugs when this book can blow your mind?

Rating:
Summary: Fantastic!
Review: I could not put Smack down from the very first page. Tar and Gemma's story touched me in many ways. Being a young adult myself, drugs have been very common in my surroundings, and this book made me even more determined to resist them. As I read, I could feel their pain, suffering, and longing to be clean. It is a strong, real book that applies to many situations young adults are in. I would recommend this book to mature young adults and above, or anyone struggling with problems at home or with drugs.

Rating:
Summary: Disturbing and sad
Review: I am not a young adult. I am a father of two small precious children. I still find myself weeping for Tar sometimes when my mind wanders. Looking back the book is riddled with mysoginism. All the women are evil and manipulative except Vonny. Even the wife-beating alcoholic in therapy blames women for the way he is. Despite this, the book is as powerful as its protagonists are pathetic. Tar is a tragic hero brought low by his circumstances and a universal inability to escape them. He would be about my age now. I have a wonderful family and am only addicted to life. I don't know what I did right and I still weep for Tar.

Rating:
Summary: Wow, wow, wow... I love it
Review: Junk is a great book- it has so many emotions in it... I cried along with the characters and felt all the pain and eveything they went through. Its such a 'real' book... Definitely the best book ever... Wow :o)