Kissing Kate

Rating:
Summary: realistic, compelling, provocative
Review: "Kissing Kate" would be remarkable if only for its impressively realistic look inside the mind and emotions of a teenage girl, but this book has the courage--and the skill--to take on even greater challenges. The writing is compelling, funny, provocative, and insightful. This is a must-read for teenage girls--and for parents who'd like a chance at understanding them. I look forward to future books from this talented author.

Rating:
Summary: Growing up is hard to do.
Review: As a retired educator and an avid reader I was most impressed with this book. Lauren Myracle has written an engrossing story about the sexual feelings of a teenage girl, Lissa, and how she and the important others in her life react to them. Complicating things is the fact that she has these feelings towards her best friend Kate who after arousing desires in Lissa with a kiss now ignores her. Lissa's parents were killed in a car wreck when she and her younger sister were very young and they live with their Uncle Jerry. Entering the picture is Ariel, an interesting and ultimately critically important character in helping Lissa come to terms with her dilemma.
Myracle develops her story in a way that will appeal to teenagers with similar feelings but more that that she tells it in an engrossing manner that keeps the reader interested from beginning to end. This book is an important one for teenagers, parents, counselors, therapists, and anyone who wants to understand and help teenagers, even adults, with similar conflicting feelings.

Rating:
Summary: Pleasant Surprise
Review: As an over sixty father of six grown children, I had to be cajoled by my youngest daughter to read Ms Myracle's first novel. For starters the book was not written for my age group, and it was not a subject matter that seemed relevant to me now. But the story-telling was so engaging, the revelation of a young girl's search for self so clear and convincing, and the treatment of the theme so even-handed, I loved the book. Any parent (or grandparent) of adolescents should consider "Kissing Kate" required reading.

Rating:
Summary: DON'T listen to everyone else, just listen to my review!
Review: Kissing Kate was a book I could relate to. In fact, the only reason that I gave it so many stars (2) is due to the fact that I had the same experiences in my own life that the main character is this book has. The problems with this book are from cover to cover. The writing is amateur when it's at its very best. The two girls in the story need much more character development in order for their friendship to be believable and validated, which is probably the books biggest flaw. The author of the story, Lauren Myracle, did not convince me that these two girls were important to each other, although she does make a weak attempt to do just that. I found myself feeling apathetic toward the girls in this story and their inner conflicts. The final disappointment in this book came at the end, where half of my questions were left unanswered. Sometimes things are better left to one's imagination, but not EVERYTHING. Kissing Kate is a depressing book that leaves the reader feeling frusterated. Anyone who wishes to enlighten me with their review of my review may do so. Anyone else who is looking for a great story in this same genre will find one in the pages of Keeping You a Secret by Julie Ann Peters. As for Miss Myracle and her book, she should be thrown in jail for writing it, not paid. Myracle fails, miserably.

Rating:
Summary: Just a Kiss???
Review: Laruen Myracle is a writer to watch. Her depiction of sixteen-year old Lissa, brave enough to question everything she once took as truth, will delight readers of all ages. Gay or straight, anyone who has ever grown apart from a childhood friend will feel a connection to Lissa. Myracle captures the pathos, and the humor, of growing up. I can't wait to read more stuff by Myracle!

Rating:
Summary: Surprised...
Review: This book is about a girl named Lissa. She kissed her best friend Kate at a party, and Kate refuses to talk to her after that. Lissa is scared and confused about what happened, and she just wants to talk to Kate about how she felt. She doesn't have anyone to turn to...so she turns to her boss, and works a lot more. She works as a delivery girl- and her boss finds her a new co-worker. Her name is Ariel,and Lissa recognizes her from school. Ariel is different from a lot of the people at school. Ariel and Lissa become good friends. She sets Lissa up on a date with her guy friend. Her friend and Lissa go out to pizza. Her friends hand is a lot smaller than the other one, and Lissa is a little uncomfortable. But they end up being good friends.

Lissa realizes her relationship with Kate will never be that same, and she just enjoys her new found friendship Ariel.

This book was a little weird for my taste, and i really wouldn't recommend it for kids under 13.

Rating:
Summary: Just plain great!
Review: This is one of the most authentically written YA novels I have ever read. While I believe Nancy Garden has done more than any writer to include homosexual characters in YA lit, her novels always seem like they are written by someone trying to get in the mind of a teenager. Myracle manages to write a compelling story while really reflecting the attitudes of teens. The use of flashback is great. Unlike many authors, Myracle manages to write a gay character who is not guilt-ridden. She is filled with doubt and must come to terms with her sexuality, and what it has done to her friendship, but she never worries that she is mentally ill or otherwise disturbed. This was a great read!

Rating:
Summary: Just plain great!
Review: This is one of the most authentically written YA novels I have ever read. While I believe Nancy Garden has done more than any writer to include homosexual characters in YA lit, her novels always seem like they are written by someone trying to get in the mind of a teenager. Myracle manages to write a compelling story while really reflecting the attitudes of teens. The use of flashback is great. Unlike many authors, Myracle manages to write a gay character who is not guilt-ridden. She is filled with doubt and must come to terms with her sexuality, and what it has done to her friendship, but she never worries that she is mentally ill or otherwise disturbed. This was a great read!

Rating:
Summary: Easy to relate to..
Review: This story is beautifully written, and it strays from the basic teen novel formula into something that people of all ages can easily identify with. It's a very easy read, and you'll find yourself trying to slow down because it's so enjoyable. My only criticsm would be the portrayal of Kate. It may have helped the story if the reader had a better understanding of her motives, such as why she was so afraid of her own sexuality. All in all, a great first novel for Lauren Myracle.

Rating:
Summary: unconvinced
Review: While I adore YA novels about queer kids, this one left me a little underwhelmed. I was just never convinced that Lissa and Kate were real people --- the character development was nil. I also didn't believe that they actually felt something for one another --- it was kind of like a romantic comedy with Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant, where all of the ingredients for a romantic comedy are there, but there's just no chemistry; it's not convincing. For a really good read, rely on the old classic Annie On My Mind --- a book which I still practically keep under my pillow, and which convinced my mom (!) that maybe, maybe this lesbian thing was OK.