Before I Die, by Jenny Downham, is also in the Top Ten on the 2008 Best Books for Young Adults list. This book provided an interesting look into the way a teenager who is dying from cancer might approach life. With just months to live, Tessa starts doing all the things on a list she has made. But some of the things on her list are kind of dangerous. She wanted to have sex, so she picked up a guy at a club and slept with him. At least it was protected sex, but to her that kind of thing becomes less and less important as she accepts that she is dying. She spends a whole day agreeing to anything anyone asks of her. The worst thing she does that day is to walk into a dirty canal, so it could have been worse. She wants to try drugs, so she gets high on mushrooms. Breaking the law is number four on her list, so she tries to shoplift but gets caught. Driving was number five on her list so she disappears for a whole day and her family doesn’t know where she is, during which time she drove her dad’s car in a storm without a license or adequate experience. Next on her list was fame, so her dad got her a radio interview, which didn’t go very well. She was going to travel the world for number seven, but she decided to get her parents back together instead. They actually did that all by themselves. Number eight on her list was love. She fell in love with the boy next door, which eased some of her desperation about dying. Also, he made her famous by writing her name in huge letters all over the city. Number nine is getting this boy, Adam, to move in with her. She wants to face death with him by her side. Number ten on her list is to see her best friend Zoey’s baby being born. But as the end approaches, it becomes obvious to her that she won’t live that long, and each little thing becomes an item to check off her list - a cup of tea, hugging her brother Cal. The things that were initially important to her are very different from what I think I would do if I only had months to live. I would want to travel and experience beautiful, delicious things. I didn’t think I would cry when she died, but I did. The ending was very well done, scattered like the thoughts of a dying girl yet poetic too.
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Before I Die
Before I Die, by Jenny Downham, is also in the Top Ten on the 2008 Best Books for Young Adults list. This book provided an interesting look into the way a teenager who is dying from cancer might approach life. With just months to live, Tessa starts doing all the things on a list she has made. But some of the things on her list are kind of dangerous. She wanted to have sex, so she picked up a guy at a club and slept with him. At least it was protected sex, but to her that kind of thing becomes less and less important as she accepts that she is dying. She spends a whole day agreeing to anything anyone asks of her. The worst thing she does that day is to walk into a dirty canal, so it could have been worse. She wants to try drugs, so she gets high on mushrooms. Breaking the law is number four on her list, so she tries to shoplift but gets caught. Driving was number five on her list so she disappears for a whole day and her family doesn’t know where she is, during which time she drove her dad’s car in a storm without a license or adequate experience. Next on her list was fame, so her dad got her a radio interview, which didn’t go very well. She was going to travel the world for number seven, but she decided to get her parents back together instead. They actually did that all by themselves. Number eight on her list was love. She fell in love with the boy next door, which eased some of her desperation about dying. Also, he made her famous by writing her name in huge letters all over the city. Number nine is getting this boy, Adam, to move in with her. She wants to face death with him by her side. Number ten on her list is to see her best friend Zoey’s baby being born. But as the end approaches, it becomes obvious to her that she won’t live that long, and each little thing becomes an item to check off her list - a cup of tea, hugging her brother Cal. The things that were initially important to her are very different from what I think I would do if I only had months to live. I would want to travel and experience beautiful, delicious things. I didn’t think I would cry when she died, but I did. The ending was very well done, scattered like the thoughts of a dying girl yet poetic too.
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