Official Review: Naked and Far from Home by J.P. Grider
Posted: 10 May 2016, 08:26
[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Naked and Far from Home" by J.P. Grider.]
4 out of 4 stars
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Do you ever have days when you wake up and think, “I’d like to read a romance book”? I normally don’t have days like that, but when I do, I tend to be pretty picky about what kind of book I open up. I’m not a big fan of passionate or erotic love scenes. I tend to prefer pure and innocent romances, with more of a focus on emotional connections rather than lust or physical relationships, which is why I usually stick to young adult romance novels. And Naked and Far from Home by J.P. Grider is definitely the kind of YA romance I can read, enjoy, and recommend.
The story follows Jersey girl Tia Mercury over a few years of her life, starting from her freshman year in high school in the early 1980s. Her best friend’s neighbor, Clinton, catches her eye, but he’s already 18 and way too old for her. Though dating is off limits, Tia still pursues a friendship with him, and the two of them find a strong connection in their love of music, with the help of the appearance of MTV, as Clinton makes her meaningful mixed tapes over the years. Their friendship further blooms when Tia’s mother is diagnosed with brain cancer, sending Tia’s life on a roller coaster ride of change with only Clinton to turn to for support. But Clinton has problems (and secrets) of his own that could permanently jeopardize their future.
Throughout all of the problems that Tia faces during her life, her relationship with Clinton is always the focus of this story. So often when I read a book, the plot tends to focus on an external conflict with a romance developing as a kind of side-plot. That’s not the case with this story at all. The entire plot focuses on Tia and Clinton’s relationship, and all of the other problems are the side-plots that revolve around this relationship. I can understand how some people might not care for it – certainly issues such as dealing with cancer and surviving domestic violence are more substantial topics for the focus of a book – but I personally found it quite refreshing to see a story tackle romance in such a way that breaks away from the norm. I commend the author on taking this risk, and I think it worked well for this particular story.
This book flows at a steady pace and makes for a quick read, thanks to the smooth, flawless writing. Incorporating pop culture and music references fitting for the time period was also fun for me. Younger readers might not understand some of these references, so it would be nice if some kind of index were included to list all of the songs/albums/artists mentioned within the text, for easy reference in case anyone would like to look up the information. Even a soundtrack or playlist for the book would be fun to check out.
I had a really hard time deciding on my final rating for this book. I was all set on a full rating up until the last few chapters, but a huge jump in time and sudden shift in perspective, from Tia to Clinton, really threw me off. But then, at the very end of the story, I was brought back on track again – the author kept me guessing right up until the last words of the page, which almost never happens. So in the end, I feel that this book deserves a rating of 4 out of 4 stars. I would definitely recommend this book to young adult romance lovers, with a warning that the book does contain a little bit of mature content.
******
Naked and Far from Home
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
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4 out of 4 stars
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Do you ever have days when you wake up and think, “I’d like to read a romance book”? I normally don’t have days like that, but when I do, I tend to be pretty picky about what kind of book I open up. I’m not a big fan of passionate or erotic love scenes. I tend to prefer pure and innocent romances, with more of a focus on emotional connections rather than lust or physical relationships, which is why I usually stick to young adult romance novels. And Naked and Far from Home by J.P. Grider is definitely the kind of YA romance I can read, enjoy, and recommend.
The story follows Jersey girl Tia Mercury over a few years of her life, starting from her freshman year in high school in the early 1980s. Her best friend’s neighbor, Clinton, catches her eye, but he’s already 18 and way too old for her. Though dating is off limits, Tia still pursues a friendship with him, and the two of them find a strong connection in their love of music, with the help of the appearance of MTV, as Clinton makes her meaningful mixed tapes over the years. Their friendship further blooms when Tia’s mother is diagnosed with brain cancer, sending Tia’s life on a roller coaster ride of change with only Clinton to turn to for support. But Clinton has problems (and secrets) of his own that could permanently jeopardize their future.
Throughout all of the problems that Tia faces during her life, her relationship with Clinton is always the focus of this story. So often when I read a book, the plot tends to focus on an external conflict with a romance developing as a kind of side-plot. That’s not the case with this story at all. The entire plot focuses on Tia and Clinton’s relationship, and all of the other problems are the side-plots that revolve around this relationship. I can understand how some people might not care for it – certainly issues such as dealing with cancer and surviving domestic violence are more substantial topics for the focus of a book – but I personally found it quite refreshing to see a story tackle romance in such a way that breaks away from the norm. I commend the author on taking this risk, and I think it worked well for this particular story.
This book flows at a steady pace and makes for a quick read, thanks to the smooth, flawless writing. Incorporating pop culture and music references fitting for the time period was also fun for me. Younger readers might not understand some of these references, so it would be nice if some kind of index were included to list all of the songs/albums/artists mentioned within the text, for easy reference in case anyone would like to look up the information. Even a soundtrack or playlist for the book would be fun to check out.
I had a really hard time deciding on my final rating for this book. I was all set on a full rating up until the last few chapters, but a huge jump in time and sudden shift in perspective, from Tia to Clinton, really threw me off. But then, at the very end of the story, I was brought back on track again – the author kept me guessing right up until the last words of the page, which almost never happens. So in the end, I feel that this book deserves a rating of 4 out of 4 stars. I would definitely recommend this book to young adult romance lovers, with a warning that the book does contain a little bit of mature content.
******
Naked and Far from Home
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Like ALynnPowers's review? Post a comment saying so!
I love reading romance novels and I love the 80s. I hope I get the chance to read it. Great review. Congratulations to J.P. Grider on such an obviously well-written book.