Damage

Rating:
Summary: Great Book
Review: A great book that tells the reality of how even a normal popular guy or girl can suffer from depression. It gives you a great feel for the character Austin and how he is feeling throughout the book. Kept me reading from start to end and was hard to put down. Was a great book for a teenage male for it has the two best things in the world, girls and football. The book also gives a normal person a great feel for what a depressed person feels like and how life is for them. And finally the book has an awesome ending and doesn't tell how Austin fixes his problem with depression. I would definitely recomend this book to anyone who is looking for a good read and ready to think a little.

Rating:
Summary: For the Kids
Review: An estimated 19 million American adults suffer from depression and depressive disorders, according to the National Institute of Mental Health. Approximately 4% of adolescents get depressed each year. Up to 2.5 percent of children and 8.3 of adolescents suffer from depression beyond "just being a teenager." William Styron exposed the adult condition in Darkness Visible: A Memoir of Madness. Now, A.M. Jenkins has done the same for adolescent depression. If you think teenagers have nothing to be depressed about, you probably repeatedly say, "Get over it," to depressed adults. Just pass us the Prozac.

Austin Reid, Pride of the Panthers, might seem to have it all, including Heather, his school's most desirable girl...so why is he so numb about everything?

A.M. Jenkins beautifully illustrates the contrast between Austin's suicidal feelings and his awkward teenage Pilgrim's Progress, and drives the point subtly home by making the people around Austin, including his best friend Curtis and the perfect Heather as well as the adults, damaged and vulnerable too. Buy the teacher, parent, teen, friend, or high school counselor a copy of Damage. It may save someone's life.


Rating:
Summary: Believable angst
Review: As the designated family book reviewer, I encouraged my husband and teenaged son to read this book after I finished it. The character of Austin is likable and evokes empathy in the reader, even when he does things he doesn't understand himself. While Heather at first seems to be the stereotypical spoiled princess, she reveals deeper levels of her character as the story progresses. This is a book that should definitely leave teen readers with a feeling of hope.

Rating:
Summary: A Great Book
Review: Austin is a senior in high school, and the pride of his school football, The Panthers. Austin lives with his mother, and sister. His dad died when he was three, and he has never quite gotten over it. When Austin first starts dating the prettiest girl in town, Heather, he thinks that it would only make his life better, and help him deal with his current issues. However, he did not know that dating Heather would make him have to choose between her, and his lifelong friends. As the novel edges on, Austin becomes tremendously depressed. His football game is becoming horrible, his friends are mad at him, and everything is going downhill. Austin begins to lose the will to live... and at times, even wants to kill himself.
In this novel, there were many aspects that I liked. Perhaps what intrigued me most was the style of writing that A. M. Jenkins uses in Damage. He writes in the second person point of view. By reading the story in the second person point of view, it made me feel a lot more like I was actually in the story, then if he had used the first or third person point of view. I also liked how the book ended. It did not fully conclude it just dropped of. I enjoyed this because it left me to decide the ending of the book. In addition, I liked that the characters were believable. They were not superheroes or deadly ax murders, but normal teenage kids. Lastly, I liked this book because it blended Austin's football into the main story line perfectly. Despite the fact that I thought this was a great book; there were a few aspects that I did not like. For example, one of the disappointments that I found in this book, is that it took a long time for the story to get started. Also, I thought that the whole story just dragged on too long. I would have enjoyed it more if it had ended sooner. Damage is a realalistic book that takes the reader inside the head of a teenager. I would reccomend this book to kids and adults who hope to find what life is like for many teenagers.

Rating:
Summary: Have You Ever Been Depressed...
Review: Austin Reid is the star football player of his school's team and one of the most popular kids at his school. So how would anyone understand that he just feels like throwing it all aside and giving up? Most people would kill to have his sort of life with his promising football career, and loyal, understanding friends. Certainly, it is not perfect--his father died when he was three; his mother is very busy trying to make ends meet and seems rather detached from his life; there is the new football coach who is a jerk with a capital J, punishing mistakes made by players by forcing them to stand in the center of a ring and be tackled by all the other players. However, Austin still insists he has a good life and should be grateful for everything that he does have.

Everything changes when Austin meets Heather. With her attractive figure, blonde hair, and striking features, she is the most popular girl in the high school and she is interested in Austin. What's more, she shares the common bond of having a father who died--committed suicide--when she was very young. In Heather, Austin finds his reason for existence. The smile, the presence, the sex--it seems to be precisely what Austin needs. Yet why does Austin still have the sensation of a void with in him? How is it that he finds himself having less and less time to spend with his friends? As Austin finds himself gravitating slowly towards the razor in the bathroom cabinet, it is only a matter of time before something has to give. Whether it is Austin's present with Heather, his past with his father, or his very life is a choice that only Austin can decide for the future.

This is a very good book, especially for adolescent boys. The author seems to be able to aptly describe the thoughts of a teenage boy without seeming ingenuine. The second-person narrative comes off as completely convincing and the "you" pronoun even puts every thought Austin has into your own head. I also felt that this book did an excellent job dealing with the symptoms of depression. The author showed that depression does not necessarily stem from some recent traumatic occurrence but can be caused by a slow, steady accumulation of grief. I appreciated the author's effort to put in some of the more minor details of a depressed existence such as Austin's lack of appetite and slowness of movement. The author astutely captured the state of emptiness and numbness and capitulation which were signs of Austin's depression.

However, there were some parts of this book which I was disappointed with. I had trouble understanding the character, Heather and what type of person she was supposed to be. The author seemed to give contradictory evidence as to the nature of her personality. Maybe the author meant for her to be this way, but it still seemed unpleasant. I also found the ending to be a complete disappointment. It did not seem to typify the way a depressed person would act and seemed to wrap-up a complex and intensified plot much too quickly. I think Jenkins needs to show a more realistic way of depression being resolved. Overall, however, this was an excellent book to read and a MUST-READ for adolescent boys or anyone who is feeling or wonders what it is like to feel depressed.

Rating:
Summary: HOT GRILS and football
Review: Damage by A.M. Jenkins is a story about a teenage boy, who will soon choose life or death. Austin Reid, at age eighteen talks about his friends, family, relationships, and feelings that he has felt for so long. He also talks about what has happened in his life, some good but also some painful. Austin Reid had quite a lot of struggles and conflicts in his life. The big conflict for Austin in this story was the relationship between his best friend and his girlfriend. I started to think that Austin really didn't understand what was going on in his life. He started really changing during his senior year. Austin was only hanging around with his girlfriend, he is never with his friends anymore. He used to always be with them all the time no matter what.
Some of the dislikes that I have about this book are how he turns his life into something that nobody would want to live just because his father died when he was a little kid. He just didn't want to live just because one bad thing happened. Another thing that I disliked about this novel was that Austin thinks that everything is always about him.
Then what I liked about this book was that it was written in first person. I enjoyed this because then it would say how Austin was feeling exactly. Another thing that I liked about this novel was that is was extremely creative and it made you just want to keep reading.
Overall I would not recommend this book because it was perverted and depressing in that Austin just let little things take over his life.

Rating:
Summary: damge a review by Jonathan Cass
Review: Damage A Review By Jonathan Cass

Damage is a book about a teenager named Austin Reid. He is about 17 years old and is the pride of the high school football team, the Panthers. Every thing is perfect for him. He is a likeable guy and he is good with the ladies. But lately he feels like he just can't go on with his life. He no longer has any urge to play football or do anything else. Suicide is no longer a fantasia for Austin. Austin is a victim of depression.
I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. Never before have I read a book where the author describes a victim of depression in such detail. I enjoyed the parts of the book where Austin is with his girlfriend Heather. I think it is a very seductive relationship and the author A.M Jenkins does a splendid job of describing their encounters. Another reason I loved this book is because of the writing style. It is unique because the author switches from the past tense to the present tense a lot. This makes the book really come alive.
Along with this positive aspects of this book come the negative. This is definitely not a book for younger kids. It has many sentences and paragraphs that seem distorted and disgusting. I know it is a book about a teenager but those sentences could easily have been left out of the book for the younger kids sakes. Another aspect that hurts this book is the fact that it is a little bit sad. If you are an emotional person I would recommend that you read a different book.
Overall the positive aspects outweigh the negative making this an amazing book. If you are between the ages of 12 and 14 this is the book for you. I really felt what it feels like to experience depression. That is the first book I have read where a character has depression and it was sad but great overall!

Rating:
Summary: Interesting but Boring
Review: Damage by A.M. Jenkins is a story about a teenage boy, who will soon choose life or death. Austin Reid, at age eighteen talks about his friends, family, relationships, and feelings that he has felt for so long. He also talks about what has happened in his life, some good but also some painful. Austin Reid had quite a lot of struggles and conflicts in his life. The big conflict for Austin in this story was the relationship between his best friend and his girlfriend. I started to think that Austin really didn't understand what was going on in his life. He started really changing during his senior year. Austin was only hanging around with his girlfriend, he is never with his friends anymore. He used to always be with them all the time no matter what.
Some of the dislikes that I have about this book are how he turns his life into something that nobody would want to live just because his father died when he was a little kid. He just didn't want to live just because one bad thing happened. Another thing that I disliked about this novel was that Austin thinks that everything is always about him.
Then what I liked about this book was that it was written in first person. I enjoyed this because then it would say how Austin was feeling exactly. Another thing that I liked about this novel was that is was extremely creative and it made you just want to keep reading.
Overall I would not recommend this book because it was perverted and depressing in that Austin just let little things take over his life.

Rating:
Summary: A Damage Review
Review: Damage is about a high school boy named Austin, to whom football is a huge part of his life. His life is great, he's a football player, has the most beautiful girl in town as his girlfriend and he's popular.Austin has been living without a father since he was three years old but still lives with his mother and sister,Becky.Things start to go in a downward spiral in his life so he tries to commit suicide by burning himself and others. A big part of why he was going to commit suicide was because he had to chose between his girlfriend and his best friends. Neither wanted to see each other so they both tell Austin about their problems with each other.
Some things I liked about Damage were the way the author used "you" instead of "I". That was new to me and I've never seen any styles like that before and I think more people should use that writing style. Another thing I likes was I could relate to some of the things that were going on in the boy's life. A few of the people in the book grew up without a father and just so happens I did too. Like some of them they don't like to talk about their fathers. They all probably wish they had a dad around to ask for something when your mom says no, I know I do. The other thing I liked was how Austin, the boy, was into football and loved it so much, kind of like me and dance. I felt like I could connect with them, say if Austin messed up or something I could relate to seeing them feel bad. Sometimes that happened but he moved on and I do the same.
Some dislikes I had were A.M. Jenkins was very descriptive with Austin and Heather's relationship. The author would tell a little to much about what would be going on in Austin's truck with the two.It would have been better if it was less descriptive word and actions. Another thing I didn't like was he was trying to commit suicide in a couple of influencing ways. Sometimes I think some people that read the book and are trying to commit suicide might try these. The last thing that I didn't like was. I would recommend this novel to everyone over the age of at least 12, preferably 13. I had a good time reading the appropriate parts and I think other people might enjoy it also. I also recommend it for other people because I got confused on a couple things and younger people might also. Overall, as you can see above, I five this book 4 **** stars!!!!

Rating:
Summary: Damage had some good parts and some bad.
Review: Damage was a disappointing book. Damage is the story of a boy in high school named Austin Reid. He has a girl friend named Heather and he plays football. Austin is having problems and wants to kill himself in a horrible way. Heather and Austin get in a lot of fights. Heather wants Austin to be with her all the time but Austin wants to be with his friends more. I think that the book was too dense for 7th and 8th graders. It should be aimed at high school students because of what it talks about. the content is for older teens or for adults. For example there is a lot of detail about how Austin wants to kill himself. If you are looking for a book to read for enjoyment than this book is not the one that you want to read! If you have to choose between this book and another book. I would say choose the other book. And teachers, if your students are young, that I would suggest not to read this book.

I think that a way to make it more interesting would be if I could relate to the characters more. They did not relate to me in any way so it was hard for me to follow what was going on. My mind wandered because I did not like Austin. Nor did I care what happened to him. This book was more about the way Austin felt in his head . It was not an action book. This book would have been better if I could have related to the characters more.
The part that I did like was when he played football. Austin was their star wide receiver. I liked reading about the games that they played and the catches that he made. I wish that they talked about football more in the book. It was only a small bit out of the book. I thought that it was supposed to be about football because of its title. If I had written the book. I would have added some more football parts.