Wish You Were Here

Rating:
Summary: Glad to Have Been There
Review: At the beginning of this, my senior year, my best friend dropped out of school, leaving me to face the crazy world of high school alone. While not quite as blatant a desertion as Jax's by Brady, it has still been difficult to deal with. This circumstance is originally caused the book's appeal to me. My continuing interest, however, came from the novel's uncompromising honesty and entirely believable characters. Though the main character, Jax, is a male, I found myself able to relate to him almost completely. The craziness, confusion, and conflict which seems to define his life is characteristinc of the high school experience, no matter which gender you examine it through. This book is a worthy read for any teenager, and especially one who seeks sympathy and affirmation in their turbulent world.

Rating:
Summary: An engrossing book of hardships and depth.
Review: Jackson Watt is one of the most lovable characters I've read about. His realistic hardships and attitude in life, makes him believable. This book was completely worth my while to read. The characters' individuality was interesting. I reccommend that any teenager or young adult read this book.

Rating:
Summary: Responsibility and Friendship
Review: My tastes in young adult often run to humor, so I was not sure what to expect with "Wish You Were Here." What I found was a beautifully written book that looked at friendship and relationships very frankly and dealt with notions of responsibility. When I read it, a couple of years ago, it really spoke to me. The main character all of a sudden has to face his school and his life alone. People who had depended on his best friend now start to depend on him. And he has to understand what it means to be himself and to care about other people. This book is almost as compelling for the other story, the story of the friend who runs away. Shoup shows without telling what irresponsible behavior is and does through his destructive lifestyle and his actions with his former best friend. This book is a good read and is also a sober and mature look at young adult issues.

Rating:
Summary: Responsibility and Friendship
Review: My tastes in young adult often run to humor, so I was not sure what to expect with "Wish You Were Here." What I found was a beautifully written book that looked at friendship and relationships very frankly and dealt with notions of responsibility. When I read it, a couple of years ago, it really spoke to me. The main character all of a sudden has to face his school and his life alone. People who had depended on his best friend now start to depend on him. And he has to understand what it means to be himself and to care about other people. This book is almost as compelling for the other story, the story of the friend who runs away. Shoup shows without telling what irresponsible behavior is and does through his destructive lifestyle and his actions with his former best friend. This book is a good read and is also a sober and mature look at young adult issues.

Rating:
Summary: Wish You Were Here
Review: The novel Wish You Were Here by Barbara Shoup was a literary work of art. I appreciated how she did not over-intensify situations, but made realistic so that you could understand and relate to the characters. I particularly liked the plot of the story. It was constantly changing and that made it all that much more interesting to read. There was situation after situation, dealing with everything from peer pressure and sex, to love, hate and also tragedy. Not many authors can write with the amount of realism and honesty that she does, and it was a great mix of modern day issues with hard situations and not always the best solution to it, but always a solution. I think that everybody should read this book. I guarantee you will enjoy it.

Rating:
Summary: Wish You Were Here
Review: The novel Wish You Were Here by Barbara Shoup was a literary work of art. I appreciated how she did not over-intensify situations, but made realistic so that you could understand and relate to the characters. I particularly liked the plot of the story. It was constantly changing and that made it all that much more interesting to read. There was situation after situation, dealing with everything from peer pressure and sex, to love, hate and also tragedy. Not many authors can write with the amount of realism and honesty that she does, and it was a great mix of modern day issues with hard situations and not always the best solution to it, but always a solution. I think that everybody should read this book. I guarantee you will enjoy it.

Rating:
Summary: Real life in a book
Review: This book is so wonderful! I never ener once in my life finished a book like this outside of school. Jackson Watt is about to discover the advantages and disadvantages of being in your senior year of high-school. And even if you are older than 18 it is still a wonderful book to read anytime. You will cry with him and feel his pain you can also recognize his happines and resolutions of his problems. litteraly you are in the story You have yo read this!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Five stars!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Rating:
Summary: Wish You Were Here Review
Review: Wish You Were Here
Teenagers today face tougher obstacles than just a typical calculus exam or debate speech. Love, sex, and popularity make for some pretty confusing and tough decision making on our young adults these days. Not always getting the credit they rightfully deserve, teenagers are the future doctors, lawyers, and executives of tomorrow and are forced to deal with today's biggest issues everyday. Barbara Shoup's Wish You Were Here is as close as it gets to a true reality story of one young man trying to find his place in the world amidst his parent's separation, remarriage, and several other difficult endeavors. A story we call all relate to at one point in our life, Jackson Watt takes the reader on a bumpy ride of happiness, tragedy, discovery, and a friendship truly written in the stars!
Jackson Watt never had much idea of what a real family was supposed to be like seeing how his was non-existent. His mother and father's differences were too much for either one to handle and they found no better alternative than to walk away. Like any other divorce today, Jackson was torn between his business woman for a mom and a punk band member for a father who was still trying to live out his childhood. Jackson felt as any other normal child would in this position, totally and utterly alone. Fortunately for him, he had someone to turn to. Brady was Jackson's best friend for as long as anyone could remember. They got each other through everything as though it was them against the world. With their futures planned to parallel one another Jackson thought they would be together forever; that is, until Brady up and split one day, right before the boys' senior year, leaving his problems and Jackson's with the confused and troubled teenager.
With Brady gone and no indication of ever returning, Jackson is left with no other choice then to move on in search of his future on his own. His mother, who at the time of the book's start, has been seeing a man named Ted who has two young girls of his own. Well, of course, you guessed it! It is not long before the two announce their engagement. Jackson, who never had much of a family to begin with, suddenly is thrown a new father and two younger sisters who are not too accepting of his shooting from the hip personality. Together the new family begins their journey together in the beautiful weather of Jamaica where Jackson is more than pleased to meet the gorgeous and adoring Amanda. Whether it was fate or just a coincident that this meeting took place in paradise, the two instantly began a relationship the pair never realized they had been missing so much.
All good things must come to an end as in any other storybook romance and Jackson and Amanda both had lives to return to. Their bond was far from over, though. However, with a new family, new house, and practically a whole new life, Jackson had plenty to preoccupy himself with. The love struck boy didn't get much of a chance to settle in on returning home, unfortunately, due to the tragic news he was met with upon arrival. His father had a very bad fall at work while the family had been away and was in critical condition at the time. With Jackson and his mother scared to death, they rushed to the hospital and were at his side until he woke up. Jackson was of course relieved at his father's survival, but was unaware of just how long the road to recovery truly can be.
Any sane individual would be driven crazy by just the issues of Jackson's family, but that was not the end for our in between teen. There was something else or shall we say someone else waiting for Jackson's expected return. Her name was Stephanie and she and Jackson had always had a unique relationship. Whether it was friendship or something more it was never easy to tell. What Jackson was not prepared, for though, was a dependence on the feeling of someone's loving or needing touch. The connection between Stephanie and Jackson was never clear, but their need for one another seemed to grow with each passing day until they discovered they both were in way over their heads!
From family endings to family beginnings Jackson Watt saw his share of ups and downs throughout his still very young life. Aside from all the commotion at home, Jackson was forced to deal with and experience a number of other trials and tribulations every teenager today must at one time encounter. These experiences and situations are what truly shaped and formed the man Jackson eventually grew into. In the words of Jackson Watt himself, "It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine," truly describes just what his experiences have taught him. Every one of us can relate to something Jackson went through and everyone us can say, "yeah that was me once," while flipping through the pages of this truly all around wholesome book. For anyone that ever has felt absolutely alone or that their life has come to a stand still while everyone else is zipping by, this book comes highly recommended. With a rating that ranks up there with the stars, people like Jackson Watt are living and breathing in all of us today and it is up to us whether or not we choose to set that person free. Jackson learned more than anything else that it is okay to need someone and until he was willing to give into that he would never get anywhere. Just perhaps there is a very simple lesson in this young adult novel that all of us should stop and think about!