Rating: 
Summary: a good image of the modern society
Review: I apologize for not being impressed that a 17 year old can publish a book. But horrible writing is horrible writing regardless the age of the author. It inspired me to write a book because if this can get published, anything can.
Rating:
Summary: Twelve
Review: I was the same age as the author when I read this, and I remember the intense anger I felt that Mr.McDonell beat me to the punch. That being said I really enjoyed this novel, although it is terribly derivative and makes no new strides in the examination of privileged youth culture. If you have read Less Than Zero or even The Rules of Attraction, this book is old hat. If not, I suggest you skip Less Than Zero and read this. The narrative is much more purposed and streamlined than Ellis's bloated rant. This book is fun and violent, if simplistic. Recommended for readers of McDonell's own age.
Rating: 
Summary: Of definite interest and promise
Review: Twelve is best not taken too seriously. I don't think McDonell intended to write a definitive and revelatory statement on his entire generation; after all, he's only seventeen, and presumably knows it. In an interview, he admitted that he wasn't 'mature enough to draw a character study.' That may be true, as Twelve has little character and less plot, but its mood and pacing and overall style are very impressive. It's more like a poem, in a way, than a novel. I've always felt that literary talent is a 'have it or not' deal, and McDonell clearly has it.
Rating:
Summary: An amazing story any way you look at it........
Review: The fact that this story was written by a 17 year old is as amazing as the story itself: a documentary-type story of one week in the lives of a certain group of kids who go to private school. I disagree with reviewers who stated that the book has no depth or likeable characters. Most of the flashback sections contain deep philosophical views (albeit skewed by White Mike) such as the meaning of death, organized religion, the meaning of friendship, knowledge, and most importantly, life. Granted, most of the outlooks are a little brutal but that is the whole point. Life is extremely brutal even in the pampered lives of the rich and the fact that most of these characters make their own misery is ironically pointed out to the reader in blunt and cutting prose. So many scenes stick with you such as: (1) White Mikes's introspection on the real meaning of death as his mother is being buried is honest and raw and (2) the statement, "Can we please all stand and have a moment of silence for those students who died. And can we now have a moment of silence for those students who killed them." It's very powerful especially given the context. I found White Mike to be a tragic character whose anger against God (the view he expressed about the reason behind kneeling in church) and recent choices express the overall theme more forcefully than the surrounding scenes, despite their physical or emotional violence. The author uses various characters sympathic (White Mike, Hunter, Mollie & Andrew) and not (Jessica, Sara, Lionel Claude & most of the parents) to illustrate their struggle over getting the whole point of life and one's purpose in it. Obviously, the author prefers the nihilist point of view (although hope of the future is always present) which is sad given the setting of youth just beginning adult life. At the end of the story, all of the character's lives intersect momentarily for a New Year's Eve party - amid imagery of settling debts, cashing in your markers, re-birth and possibly starting anew - the resulting extreme violence is an x-generation cinema moment to be sure and almost certainly surreal, but, then the prominent narrator (White Mike) informs us that maybe he took some liberties with the retelling of that moment but it sure seemed that way to him. This doesn't make the preceeding story a dream or less true as some reviews think; but rather, it points out that the images so eloquently presented before us are colored by 16-18 year olds. Don't you remember what that was like? Makes me glad I'm in my 30s. I enjoyed this novel and think it speaks to more then just the age group it is about.
Rating: 
Summary: Interesting story concept, but still needs work
Review: I found this book completely by accident while browsing the bookshelf of a vacation home I rented while vacationing in Hawaii. I thought I would give it a try, but I was very disappointed. The good news, however, was that the story is a quick one (I finished it in around 3 to 4 hours).The plot tells of a rather interesting story, but the characters are poorly developed and everything is pretty much lacking in detail. In addition, I did not really care for the way the author told the story. He basically jumps from scene to scene with some scenes lasting only a paragraph or two. I've seen this work well in other literary works, but I felt that it did not lend itself well to this one. The book ends rather abruptly in a scene that makes very little sense and left me wondering why I picked the book up in the first place. Now, I realize that a very young author wrote this and it is his first published novel. I can see a lot of creativity there and I am sure that his future works will be much more polished.
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