Big Mouth & Ugly Girl

Rating:
Summary: Big Mouth Ugly Girl
Review: Big Mouth Ugly Girl, written by Joyce Carol Oates, is an excellent book for high school students to read. In post-Columbine America, Matt Donoghy has been pulled out of class by police due to accusations of making remarks that he will blow up the school. Ursula Riggs, Ugly Girl as she calls herself, is the only person who does not believe the rumors and she ignores her parents strict instructions to not get involved. She comes forward and talks to the principal about what really happened. The story alternates between Ursula and Matt, who do not even know each other at school. Ursula is large framed and more interested in sports than most girls her age. She is having a tough time figuring out who she is. Matt is dealing with losing his friends and reputation. Throughout the book, Ursula and Matt work out their problems despite what others think.

Rating:
Summary: Crouching MOuth hidden Ugly
Review: Big Mouth, and Ugly Girl by Joyce Carol Oates is an excellent book. This book is a perfect example of not "Judging a book by its cover or title." In the beginning I had absolutely no intention of checking this book out. I mean the title to me was pretty dumb. I had my heart set on Lance Armstrong's autobiography, but it was checked out. I then went to find Silent to the Bone, but that was also checked out. At this point all the books that I really wanted to read were gone and I was getting desperate. I had no choice, but to borrow this book and see what happens. Fortunately, this book was just outstanding. The whole entire book really appeals to teenagers and the types of things they go through.
Even so, the thing that I liked most about this book was that the author really made it appealing to teenagers. I was really able to relate to Matt and Ursula, which made the book even more fun to read. For example, I was able to relate to the pressures that their parents gave them to do certain things or how their friends left them when something bad happened. Therefore, this book is very well written and worthwhile to read. It teaches you a lot about friendship, loyalty, and doing the right thing.

Rating:
Summary: Good romantic tale
Review: First off, from the descriptions in the book, the "Ugly Girl" in this novel really doesn't sound all that ugly to me. She's tall. She's athletic. She's a tomboy. And if the girl on the cover is supposed to represent what she looks, she's actually not too bad looking.

All in all, the Amazon review is pretty on target. Matt and Ursula are great, full blooded characters. The supporting characters are not. In a sense, the book is about these characters in a sort of vacuum. And the climax and ending of the story has some of the most purely romantic scenes of any book I've read, because it's real. Their relationship feels honest. When the sentiment comes, it's believable rather than sappy. A nice romantic tale for teens--male or female.

Rating:
Summary: Richie's Picks: BIG MOUTH AND UGLY GIRL
Review: Gosh. I never imagined that I'd get to share old stories that involved reading Joyce Carol Oates...or that I'd be characterizing a book of hers as one of this year's YA highlights.

But, here I am!

I first encountered the writing of Joyce Carol Oates in 1973 as a freshman at the University of Connecticut. I experienced two semesters of freshman comp with a beautiful and demanding grad student named Ann Gates. The nearly book-a-week regimen imposed by Ann took us careening through a collection of titles based on a theme she called, "The American Dream." Included were ON THE ROAD, GATSBY, FEAR & LOATHING, LOLITA, SANCTUARY, SNOW WHITE, TROUT FISHING, and Oates' WONDERLAND. Ann, who tried to teach us how to find the OTHER meanings in the authors' words, was frequently assisted in class by her musician-husband, David, whose specialty was turning us on to old vinyl recordings by 'Bird and 'Train, along with illuminating the latest examples of phallic imagery in what we'd been reading.

It was the end of that second semester of being in her class when, as I sat on the library floor cramming for some final or other, Ann literally came floating down the hall, her face all lit up. She paused long enough to tell me that The New Yorker had bought her short story, "A Platonic Relationship." It was published later that year under her own (soon to be well-known) name, Ann Beattie. Her later-to-be musician-ex-husband, David Gates, ended up working for Newsweek and writing his own books, including the Pulitzer Prize finalist, JERNIGAN.

Anyway, thirty years past WONDERLAND, Joyce Carol Oates has discovered her true calling--young adult fiction. BIG MOUTH & UGLY GIRL, a book I devoured excitedly in one sitting, is a masterfully written and thought-provoking gem that is sure to bring Oates a whole new generation of fans.

There's Matt (THE MOUTH):

"At the rear of the room, Matt and his friends were absorbed in the play, for which Matt was doing hurried revisions, typing away furiously on his laptop. Anxiously he'd ask his friends 'But does this work? Is it scary, is it funny, does it move?' Matt Donaghy had something of a reputation at Rocky River for being being both brainy and a comic character, but secretly he was a perfectionist, too. He'd been working on his one-act play William Wilson: A Case of Mistaken Identity longer than his friends knew, and he had hopes it would be selected to be performed at the school's Spring Arts Festival."

Those "friends" all abandon Matt in an instant after he is dragged from the classroom by detectives who have been tipped off that Matt has threatened to blow up the school.

There's Ursula (UGLY GIRL):

"Strange: how stuff that used to bother me in middle school, had the power to make me hide away and cry, didn't bother me at all now. Since that day I woke up and knew I wasn't an ugly girl, I was Ugly Girl..."

"Lots of people I was starting to hate who I used to like a lot. But when you like people, you can be hurt. I'd made a few mistakes with girl friends, and one or two guys I'd thought were my buddies, and I wouldn't make these mistakes again..."

"I could see that my teachers didn't know what to make of me. There was Ursula Riggs, who was an excellent student, a serious girl with an interest in biology and art, and there was Ugly Girl, who played sports like a Comanche and who had a sullen, sarcastic tongue. It was Ugly Girl who was susceptible to 'moods'--these ranged from Inky Black to Fiery Red. In a mood sometimes I'd walk out of class, yawning; or I might quit a test in the middle, just snatch up my backpack and exit. My grades were everything from A+ to F. In a rational frame of mind I knew I had to worry I'd screw up my SAT's and not get into a college of the caliber I could bear going to, but in the next minute I'd shrug and laugh. Who cares? Not Ugly Girl, warrior-woman."

Ursula is not a friend of Matt's but she's known him since fifth grade. She also knows the truth of what Matt has actually said about blowing up the school. BIG MOUTH & UGLY GIRL is the story of what happens when Ugly Girl indignantly steps forward to set the record straight.

Ursula informs us: "Life consists of Facts, and Facts are of two kids: Boring and Crucial. I figured this out for myself in eighth grade. Wish I could patent it! A Boring Fact is virtually any fact that doesn't concern you. Or it's just trivial, a nothing fact. (Like the annual rainfall in, let's say, Bolivia. Crucial to the Bolivians, but Boring to everyone else.) I know the Crucial Facts of Ugly Girl's life are Boring Facts to others. Yet, to Ugly Girl, they are Crucial. There's one test of a Crucial Fact: It hurts."

Crucial Fact: BIG MOUTH AND UGLY GIRL is a must-read. I can only hope that Ms. Oates has another YA up her sleeve...

Rating:
Summary: Pretty Good Book
Review: Hi, I read the book "Big Mouth and Ugly Girl". This book was pretty good, but it didn't have loads of excitement in it. This is not a book that would keep you excited throughout the whole story, but it's not so boring that you won't want to finish it.
In this book the main character Matt Donaghy is supposely accused for something that he said, but he apparenly never said it. No one in the school knows if his side of the story is true or if he really did say something worth being accused for.
Matt loses a lot when no one believes him, but he starts to think that he's gained more than he ever lost.
This book takes Matt through thick and thin and back to thick again leading him on an outrageous high school journey.
I liked this book pretty well and I think if you will read it you will like it too!

Rating:
Summary: Entertaining for teens and adults.
Review: I am an adult trying to find books of interest and appropriateness for my children. "Big Mouth..." was a book that would seem to interest high school age readers and their parents. Other reviews give the story line, so this need not be repeated here. However, what I found most interesting was the author's taking polar opposite characters and staying with them until their lives intersect.

The more dynamic of the two is Ursula, who develops from a loner showing a tough (but not a bully) exterior to her peers and family, into a person who accepts social involvement. Whereas, Matt is very socially oriented, but unable to find accept his internal fears. Ursula does participate in team sports as perhaps a means to find a social outlet, but she plays the game strictly as an individual. Matt writes plays and stories, as perhaps a means of self expression, but keeps the material humorous so as to avoid exposing his real self. From these opposite ends, the story brings the characters together to an acceptable conclusion.

Parents should know that the adults in the story are not presented very favorably, but remember that the story is told exclusively from the point of view of the teenagers. Also, some of the unfavorable aspects of the adults change as the characters mature.

Finally, there are three areas in the book using unpleasant language. However, the language is not gratuitous and is used when the character is in a very stressful condition. The reader may want to consider whether this language was realistic, and appropriate for the literary value of the story. Also, given the two types of personalities in this story, the young reader may want to ponder which, if either, of these characters best reflects the reader's personality style. If the reader's personality style is different, what would be a character for the story that better fits your style? There are many aspects of this book for lively discussion.

Rating:
Summary: Big Mouth & Ugly Girl
Review: I enjoyed reading this book Big Mouth & Ugly Girl. The book is about a big mouth named Matt Donaghy. His mouth tends to get him into trouble, and it did, big trouble. A girl named Ursula Riggs who was not very popular and known as "ugly girl" was the only one that helped Matt. She stood up for him when he was in trouble and was the only one that got involved and told the truth. Matt realized how nice it was for Ursula to help him and they ended up becoming great friends. They were always together and always went places with eachother. It was a good book with a good point and a happy ending. It was enjoyable to read because i had such a good feeling reading how these two different people came to realize they weren't so different and became such good friends. I would suggest reading the book, especially young teen readers. I enjoyed this book and I am glad to chose to read it.

Rating:
Summary: Good romantic tale
Review: I first picked this book up because of the title. How interesting and unusual the title was. I started reading it, and got extremely bored. But, it didn't stop me. I read on to learn that Ursula (ugly girl) was a lot like me in various ways. I had a keen love for basketball, and so did she. She always tried her best in basketball, but sometimes it wasn't enough. Her parents didn't come watch her games; they didn't really care.

The book switches sides and introduces you to Matt. Matt is a friendly guy who is the "Big Mouth" in reference to the title. Matt makes a joke that he's going to blow up the school, which is overheard, and a dispute calls out. Matt is in serious trouble, not only with his higher school authorities, but the police.

Matt is well-liked, popular and interestingly funny. Ursula is...well ugly. Urusula stands up for Matt, which surprises him, because he hasn't ever talked to Urusula. He tries sending her e-mails, chickens out a lot, but soon befriends Urusula.

Urusula's parents tell her to stay away from Matt. They stereotype him as a "Bad, horrible" kid, not knowing that his mis doings were unintentional. Urusula and Matt start hanging out together more and more. Matt's life is turned upside down, and Urusula helps him through the horible times.

I believe anyone would enjoy this short story. The book is so simple, but it rewards you with so much more.

Rating:
Summary: Baskkeettball!!
Review: I first picked this book up because of the title. How interesting and unusual the title was. I started reading it, and got extremely bored. But, it didn't stop me. I read on to learn that Ursula (ugly girl) was a lot like me in various ways. I had a keen love for basketball, and so did she. She always tried her best in basketball, but sometimes it wasn't enough. Her parents didn't come watch her games; they didn't really care.

The book switches sides and introduces you to Matt. Matt is a friendly guy who is the "Big Mouth" in reference to the title. Matt makes a joke that he's going to blow up the school, which is overheard, and a dispute calls out. Matt is in serious trouble, not only with his higher school authorities, but the police.

Matt is well-liked, popular and interestingly funny. Ursula is...well ugly. Urusula stands up for Matt, which surprises him, because he hasn't ever talked to Urusula. He tries sending her e-mails, chickens out a lot, but soon befriends Urusula.

Urusula's parents tell her to stay away from Matt. They stereotype him as a "Bad, horrible" kid, not knowing that his mis doings were unintentional. Urusula and Matt start hanging out together more and more. Matt's life is turned upside down, and Urusula helps him through the horible times.

I believe anyone would enjoy this short story. The book is so simple, but it rewards you with so much more.

Rating:
Summary: Great juvenile fiction
Review: I initially read this book because a student highly recommended it and wanted to loan it to me. I ended up sitting up half the night to finish it. It is a story about two teenagers who don't fit in with the rest of the culture in their school but mask their discomfort by pretending to be something they are not. Finally the boy in the story is accused anonymously of having threatened to bomb the school and is considered guilty until proven innocent (hence the name Big Mouth). The girl, who considers herself ugly and horrible (Ugly Girl) is the only person who has the courage to stand up and tell the truth about what Big Mouth said and things just go from there as the two kids have to deal with the fallout of the incident. The book is extremely well-written and readable. I love Joyce Carol Oates' writing style and she has done her usual excellent job in telling a story that you can't put down even when you need to get some sleep so you can function at work tomorrow!