Backwater

Rating:
Summary: this book should not be in the backwater
Review: I really enjoyed this book. I could relate to both the story and the character of Ivy Breedlove. We all feel out of place in the our families sometimes, but not everyone gets the chance to prove themselves. That was what was so great about reading about Ivy's adventures. She got the chance to reunite her secluded aunt and the rest of her family while also having a life-changing experience. Everyone should read this book because we all want the chance to prove ourselves.

Rating:
Summary: I think it was very good.
Review: I thought it was very good. I read Rules of the Road and thought that one was good, so they really compared. it was really complex and Ivy was a real heroine. It was set in upstate New York. Ivy is a member of the Breedlove family. The Breedloves are all lawyers. She wants to be a historian. Ivy goes up in the Adirondacks to find her aunt Jo who has become a hermit. There she realizes her dreams, brings jo back, rescues people, finds love, changes he dad, and finds the true meaning of life. If you have read Rules of The Road or are reading this review, you should definitely read Backwater. You'll Love It Bookworm 38

Rating:
Summary: Really good book.
Review: Ivy's living in a family full of lawyers, and they all want her to become a lawyer too. She doesn't want that. She wants to become a historian. She's making a family tree of the Breedlove family and she finds a missing aunt, Josephine. Nobody in her family will talk about Josephine except for Tib. Her whole family says that Jo is "stuck in the Backwater." Ivy wants to talk to her aunt so she goes on a hunt into the mountains to find her with some help from Mountain Mama. It's a very good story and it has humor, adventure, and a little romance. Joan Bauer writes another great story!!!

Rating:
Summary: Okay, but not up to Bauer's usual standards
Review: Not awful, but this book isn't up to Bauer's usual standards. The plot felt rushed, and in places it was very didactic... and obvious. Some funny commentary from the heroine, though. Read SQUASHED or RULES OF THE ROAD instead.

Rating:
Summary: Bauer's latest needs some help...
Review: The plot of Joan Bauer's latest novel, Backwater, will be intensely familiar to anyone who has read her books. Backwater suffers from this sameness, as well as from a certain forced feeling; it's [note CORRECT use of it-apostrophe-s] also hampered by *severe* editing problems.

The plot of Backwater will be extremely familiar to anyone who has read Squashed, Bauer's best book so far. Ivy Breedlove, a teenager on a mission (in this book, family history), succeeds despite opposition from her father (in this book, a lawyer) and the people around her (in this book, her extended family). Ivy's mother died when Ivy was six (as opposed to eight, which is how old Ellie was in Squashed). Ivy has been given a great deal of strength from her Great-Aunt Tib (as opposed to grandmother, as in Ellie's case). And so on. Frankly, I'd like to see Bauer use her undeniable sense of humor and writing skills on an entirely new plot.

That isn't to say, though, that this plot doesn't have its differences; it's just that most of those differences feel forced. Ivy Breedlove is as unusual as most of Bauer's protagonists, but so is everything around her and everything she does, including her aunt's bird city and most of her winter mountain trek. There wasn't anything usual anywhere in the book, and the cumulative effect of all this originality was a sense of total *un*reality; I was not able to suspend disbelief far enough to buy any of it.

Also, the editing in the first hardcover edition of this book was, quite simply, a *disaster*. There are dozens of mistakes in possessives alone (it's is used to mean belonging-to-it consistently throughout the book, not to mention single errors like parents used to mean belonging-to-parents), as well as some painful spellchecker spelling errors (words substituted for other words). There's also at least one place where editing errors interfere with the plot of the novel itself; look at the use of "Backwater" v. "Breedlove" in the Town Records scene. However, unlike the first edition, the paperback edition lists an editor, so I'm hoping that means these errors have been fixed.

The book does have a few saving graces, though; there's a great deal of humor, always a pleasure to encounter in YA novels, and there's some great descriptions of people and places. So, I'll say it again: Bauer does have talents, obvious ones, but her most recent novels simply don't display them to advantage.

This book is only worth reading if you've already read Squashed. If you haven't, read that instead. In fact, of all of Bauer's works, this one is probably the one that should be read *last*.

Rating:
Summary: Backwater
Review: This book is about this girl who wants to find her aunt that no one talks about. It has a great thrill to it. Ivy who is in a mountain with her aunt who has about 1,000 birds and dosent talk.
If you are looking at this write now dont just read, go read the book!! you should read it its a thriller! book or m

Rating:
Summary: Caught me and Kept me stuck!
Review: This book is one of the best books I've ever read! It's about a 16 year old girl named Ivy Breedlove. Stuck in a family of lawyers Ivy feels like a goldfish in a tank full of snapping turtles. Ivy hates the idea of studying law and would like to be a historn to study, learn, and revile the past. Ivy has 6 monthes to work on a family project, just in time for her Great Anut Tib's birhtday. She used to be working on this with her Great Anut Tib but than Tib's eye sight got bad and it was up to Ivy. Ivy knew that there was so much to go...
collecting more stories
more photos to look at and...
finding out more about the Anut no one will talk about. Ivy REALLY needs to find this anut and isn't going to stop till she does. This all leads to her going up a tall mountain with her father telling her to stop. Ivy has one of the best wildreness in town giving Ivy a discount if her story of finding her anut could be used in a book she wants to become a best seller. When Ivy arrives she has 3 days to find out about her anut, 3 days to figure it out, 3 days to unrivile the mystery. Than there's the accident...

Rating:
Summary: Incredibly moving
Review: This is a fantastic book. Those of you who have enjoyed other Joan Bauer books will not be disappointed. Ivy's story is unique and relatable at the same time. Never have I read a story which captivated my intellect so much. Everything-from the plot, to the dialogue, to the humor-was wonderfully written. With intricately designed and well-developed characters, and a great story with a great lesson to match, this book is a must-read.

Rating:
Summary: UNBELIEVABLE!
Review: This is DEFINITELY my new favorite book. It is so incredibly realistic. In every family, there's always a black sheep- someone who just stands out and doesn't want to do whatever else your family does. This book is about a girl who comes from a long family of lawyers but wants to be a historian. The girl, Ivy, begins to search for her Aunt Josephine, who was just like Ivy- never wanted to be a lawyer. This book has a real O. Henry twist at the end and i would reccomend this book to ANYBODY, regardless of age!

Rating:
Summary: A girl searches for truth in her family.
Review: This is the story of a teenager's attempt to make sense of her family. Ivy is bright, well-spoken and interesting - a great role model for young adults. The mountain climb is symbolic and literal, and successful as both. Vaguely reminiscent of Jean C. George's _My Side of the Mountain_. Enjoy!