reviews
Oct 26, 2009
Colin
rated it: 
I'm a bit torn on this one. On the good side, Cynthia Voigt is extremely good at characterization. She writes in a compelling, interesting way; I am invested and interested in her characters.
Now for the complicated/I'm torn parts: On one hand it seemed a pretty realistic story about how someone might deal with suddenly becoming disabled. There was a lot of spewing of internalized ableism, she loses all her shallow "popular" friends, and has to make new ones. My problem wit More...
Now for the complicated/I'm torn parts: On one hand it seemed a pretty realistic story about how someone might deal with suddenly becoming disabled. There was a lot of spewing of internalized ableism, she loses all her shallow "popular" friends, and has to make new ones. My problem wit More...
Mar 09, 2009
Ashley
rated it: 
This book should be required reading for every high school student. Izzy is a normal fifteen year old girl. When a popular senior ask her out, she is thrilled. Who wouldn’t be? Most people want to impress others, whether they admit it or not. Middle school and high school are the hardest times to stand up for yourself. Besides, it couldn’t happen to you, could it? So Izzy goes out on a date with this senior and has an okay time, but he drinks too much. She knows he is drunk and gets in his car a
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Mar 03, 2011
Kate
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Izzy wakes up in the hospital, groggy and confused. Finally she remembers what happened: she had gone to a party with her date Marco, and when the time came to leave he was drunk, but still attempted to drive her home. After they crashed into a tree, both of Izzy's legs are broken, and one of them has to be amputated.
At first Izzy avoids even thinking about her leg. She's a nice girl, and she doesn't want to cause anyone any trouble or make them feel uncomfortable around her. Too b More...
At first Izzy avoids even thinking about her leg. She's a nice girl, and she doesn't want to cause anyone any trouble or make them feel uncomfortable around her. Too b More...
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Jun 06, 2010
Ella
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This book is about a girl, Izzy, who decides that when a senior boy asks her out, you have to go for it. Well let’s just say that she has regretted that decision her entire life. The senior boy, Marcus, turned out to be the worst drunk driver ever. When he thinks that he will be ok to drive Izzy home, she ends up with a half fake leg and so much sympathy.
I can make a text to world connection. I can relate this book to the world because so many new drivers and people of the drinking More...
I can make a text to world connection. I can relate this book to the world because so many new drivers and people of the drinking More...
Jun 05, 2011
Kristen
rated it:
i read izzy willy-nilly back in HS and saw it at the library & decided to revisit it.
the book was pretty much as i remembered it. i still enjoyed reading it as an adult. it makes me realize that YA has come a long way - while this book can stand on its own in my memory as a book i enjoyed in HS, it's a differnet kind of writing from YA of today.
surprisingly, this book didn't seem as dated as i thought it might be, which is pretty cool considering it was published in 19 More...
the book was pretty much as i remembered it. i still enjoyed reading it as an adult. it makes me realize that YA has come a long way - while this book can stand on its own in my memory as a book i enjoyed in HS, it's a differnet kind of writing from YA of today.
surprisingly, this book didn't seem as dated as i thought it might be, which is pretty cool considering it was published in 19 More...
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Feb 22, 2009
April
rated it:
I remember reading Izzy, Willi-Nilly during middle school. I had a friend that read a lot recommend it to me, so I decided to read it. I remember it being about a girl who lost her right leg in a car accident. Since it was almost 10 years ago, the basic storyline was the only thing I remembered. This time around I choose this book to read because I remember it being very interesting and thought it would fall under the category of “Being Different”. I knew I wanted to read it again bec More...
Aug 18, 2011
Catherine
rated it:
This book brings up a lot of important issues; one being that all of us should decide what to do if we are ever faced with getting into a car with a drunk driver. I thought the emotional roller coaster that Izzy felt was realistic. I liked that she was able to hid her depression - it shows that we don't really know what other people are going through - we only know what they tell us.
I loved Rosamunde. I felt Izzy's mom was a snob, but she was still a good mom. I loved that Izzy's b More...
I loved Rosamunde. I felt Izzy's mom was a snob, but she was still a good mom. I loved that Izzy's b More...
Jul 16, 2011
Amanda
rated it:
I'm not sure why I picked up this book again. I read it in 6th grade and remember really liking it. Re-reading it as an adult, it didn't impress me. Izzy is a nice girl without ambition who loses a leg during a drunk driving incident (she's the passenger). There's nothing at all compelling to me about Izzy. Near the end of the book when she's supposed to have changed and look at people differently, just about all she's concerned with is getting a makeover for her new friend. You're not really di
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Jul 28, 2011
I expected this to be a better book, since Cynthia Voigt is such a celebrated writer of young-adult literature. There's really so little to the story, and Izzy has ridiculously mature thought processes for a 15-year-old.
Plus, the book dwells on how Izzy will never be attractive again, never be invited to a party again, never dance with a boy again, and so forth, ending before she's even rehabilitated enough to have her prosthetic leg fitted.
One of my students has a prosthetic leg, and she is a More...
Plus, the book dwells on how Izzy will never be attractive again, never be invited to a party again, never dance with a boy again, and so forth, ending before she's even rehabilitated enough to have her prosthetic leg fitted.
One of my students has a prosthetic leg, and she is a More...
Jan 01, 2012
Frederick
rated it:
Isabel Lindgard is a normal 15-year-old in high school. She is on the cheerleading team and has a number of popular friends. She is asked out to a party by a senior boy one night. There is alcohol consumed. On the way home, her date, drunk, smashes the car into a tree. She ends up in the hospital having to have her leg amputated. The story is of her recovery and her coming to terms with the fact that she will never be the same. Her "friends" abandon her and she becomes friends w
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Oct 13, 2010
Adam
rated it: 
Required reading for Freshman English in High School. A foreshadowing of all the typical problems of high school, relationships, peer pressure, popularity, etc etc. Suddenly Izzy finds herself crippled in a car wreck with the popular guy that she had eyes for. He walks away and continues with high school life and participating in sports. She learns to adapt to life with a prosthetic leg, wheelchair and being different.
Drunk driving -- the type of stuff that kids think won't happen to t More...
Drunk driving -- the type of stuff that kids think won't happen to t More...
Sep 06, 2011
Meera
rated it:
For Marco, Izzy's accident could ruin his life if she chose to tell. He would have a criminal record, no college acceptance, and most importantly, no girlfriend.
For Izzy's group of friends, her accident is a tragedy indeed, yet disgusting. Nobody wants a cripple around, and certainly being friends with one would lessen their status on the high school popularity pyramid.
For Izzy's family, Izzy's accident is horrible and embarrassing... but could be dealt with. Izzy was a nice girl, so s More...
For Izzy's group of friends, her accident is a tragedy indeed, yet disgusting. Nobody wants a cripple around, and certainly being friends with one would lessen their status on the high school popularity pyramid.
For Izzy's family, Izzy's accident is horrible and embarrassing... but could be dealt with. Izzy was a nice girl, so s More...
May 02, 2010
Allison
rated it:
Whether or not teens will relate to this book will all depend on the teen that reads it. On the one hand this book would be “good for” teens to read so that they have an understanding of what it’s like to feel physically abnormal and to face life-changing challenges. On the other hand, what teen doesn’t know what it feels like to feel physically abnormal and to face life-changing challenges? The novel focuses on Izzy, who just-so-happens to be in the passenger seat of a popular drunk kid when
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Aug 02, 2010
Ashley
rated it:
This book was originally reviewed on my blog, Books from Bleh to Basically Amazing
Cynthia Voigt has been one of my favorite authors since I read her Tillerman Saga in elementary school. After those 7 books, I was eager to read more, because that's what you do with an author you love, right?! I read several more of her books before I lost interest in a lot of my old favorites in favor of Mary Higgins Clark and Agatha Christie. Real life drama, trials and pain didn't hold a candle to t More...
Cynthia Voigt has been one of my favorite authors since I read her Tillerman Saga in elementary school. After those 7 books, I was eager to read more, because that's what you do with an author you love, right?! I read several more of her books before I lost interest in a lot of my old favorites in favor of Mary Higgins Clark and Agatha Christie. Real life drama, trials and pain didn't hold a candle to t More...
Aug 08, 2008
Janessa
rated it:
Reading Izzy made me wonder why I didn't read more Cynthia Voigt books as a teen (and less Sweet Valley High!). Izzy's voice is real and sincere, the social tension and difficult friendships so vivid and unaffected that reading it felt like being in high school again: I remembered so much that I had forgotten!
I was impressed at Voigt's ability to show us everything that happens through Izzy's eyes, even when dealing with issues like drunk driving (in which a writer might be tempte More...
I was impressed at Voigt's ability to show us everything that happens through Izzy's eyes, even when dealing with issues like drunk driving (in which a writer might be tempte More...
Oct 21, 2007
iamtedae
rated it:
I had to read this book in junior high, and found it boring and depressing, despite its Newbery Medal-Winning Author. Quite possibly they required it as a way of discouraging underage drinking, or driving while under the influence at any age rather than its real value as a novel, but it's a little hard to guess at now. I say that unless the teenager is more than the usual in maturity and perception, they're going to have the same reaction I did: boring! depressing! Those young people who do
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Jun 19, 2009
Megan
rated it:
I think my expectations were too high for this book. I thought Isobel was vain, whiny, and depressing (and her little sister and mom were worse).
I thought the plotline was very typical--girl has life-changing experience and then discovers who her real friends are. Blah. But then again, I've never been in this situation. Maybe it really does make you become like an Izzy.
I do have to say, the descriptions of her friends' and family's reactions to seeing her for the fi More...
I thought the plotline was very typical--girl has life-changing experience and then discovers who her real friends are. Blah. But then again, I've never been in this situation. Maybe it really does make you become like an Izzy.
I do have to say, the descriptions of her friends' and family's reactions to seeing her for the fi More...
Jun 17, 2011
Sarah
rated it:
I just read all of Voigt's Tillerman Family series, and really enjoyed it, so I figured I'd check out a couple of her other books.
There were some good things about this book, including the way Voigt handled what a teen's feelings might be about losing a leg, but I wasn't very interested in most of the characters, and the book itself felt a little bit uneventful. It felt like there were some loose ends that never really got tied up, and a lot of things that never really happened.
There were some good things about this book, including the way Voigt handled what a teen's feelings might be about losing a leg, but I wasn't very interested in most of the characters, and the book itself felt a little bit uneventful. It felt like there were some loose ends that never really got tied up, and a lot of things that never really happened.
Jul 28, 2010
Ms. Sorock
rated it:
I read this book when I was a teenager and still remember it! This book is about a teenage girl who gets into a horrible accident that completely changes her life. There are important lessons in this book about good making choices, but there are also a lot of lessons about friendship, survival, and other issues that teenagers face. Some students thought the title of the book was a little strange, but when students looked beyond that and read the book, they loved it!
Dec 06, 2009
Dawn
rated it:
I think I almost cried while reading this book. It is really sad. I don't know what I would do if something happened to me that made me less able to go about my daily life as I do now. The main character in the book, Izzy, is 15, and during her senior year she is in a car crash that results in her losing her right leg.
I was really touched by this book. I think I need to re-read it now.
P.S. This is also the author who wrote the Tillerman series.
I was really touched by this book. I think I need to re-read it now.
P.S. This is also the author who wrote the Tillerman series.
Oct 04, 2009
Amanda
rated it:
I love this book. I read it first in grade six, and it blew my mind. It was the first time I really connected with the fact that kids can be seriously injured in life changing ways, that a little neosporan and a band-aid wont always cut it!
Every time I read it it makes me think of the connections and choices I make everyday. I think Voigt is a YA genius. I also think it is a shame her books aren't more readily available in most book stores!
Every time I read it it makes me think of the connections and choices I make everyday. I think Voigt is a YA genius. I also think it is a shame her books aren't more readily available in most book stores!
May 21, 2010
Jeannie
rated it:
Interesting, but somewhat unrealistic. I thought it was pretty dated considering the difference in how things would be handled today.
The character Rosamond was way more interesting and real than Izzy who seemed shell shocked throughout the entire book. I just didn't feel the author brought her to life.
My last two books dealt with people losing part of their leg. Very strange. Hope it isn't an omen.
The character Rosamond was way more interesting and real than Izzy who seemed shell shocked throughout the entire book. I just didn't feel the author brought her to life.
My last two books dealt with people losing part of their leg. Very strange. Hope it isn't an omen.
Oct 31, 2009
Cindy
rated it:
I really enjoyed this book. Izzy showed amazing strength and courage throughout her life changing ordeal. A lot of things changed in her life, but she remained a "pleaser"...not wanting to disappoint anyone. She put on a brave front. It's kind of funny that I kept thinking how different things would be today for Izzy, almost like I'd forget I was reading fiction....after all, today there are wonderful prosthetics available.
Mar 15, 2009
Amy
rated it:
This book was on my district's curriculum list so I read it. I also had fond memories of Voigt's books from high school. Izzy is in a car crash and gets her leg amputated. With this tragedy she has to cope with her loss as well as the loss of her dreams and friends. It was good, as far as plot goes, but the stilted class issues seemed a little out of date for kids today. I did enjoy seeing Izzy grow and learn how to deal, but I wasn't absorbed by it.
Jul 08, 2011
Raine
rated it:
I admit that I read this book as part of my required reading in my master's degree program, but I'm glad that I did. I found the story deeply touching and real. The subject is a bit heavy for kids, but certainly suitable for teens. I would recommend this book for anyone who has ever experienced tragedy or set-back and worked to overcome it.
Oct 08, 2011
Margaret
rated it:
I don't remember a lot of the books I've read, but sometimes one scene will stick in my head. I didn't remember the name of this book or the author or even the main character's name, but the scene where Izzy comes home from the hospital is something that I have thought about every so often since I read the book once 20 years ago.
Nov 04, 2011
Sarah
rated it:
Whilst I'm a bit disappointed in the ending, I did still really enjoy this book. It's well written and does feel like I could imagine it might if I lost a leg. What seemed strange to me, hiwever, was the Physiotherapist. Training to be one myself, I like to think of us as kinder toward Parients than Adelia is, even if we do come across one or the other whom we don't like. What also started annoying me a bit was Izzy's constant griping about ferling upset/depressed/ grunpy instead of just ferling
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Oct 06, 2010
Danica
rated it:
I read this book when i was really young and i didn't really understand it. i don't know if it was because i couldn't relate to it or imagine it but i did know it made me extremely sad. When i got older i read it again and absolutely adored it. You should know i'm a sucker for tearjerkers so this was a book made for me!!
Sep 21, 2007
Jennifer
rated it:
Does everyone these days have to read this book in school?
This novel was a required text in my health class at Catholic School (since it was Catholic School, health class couldn't mention sex, so was taken up with info on drugs, drinking, and anorexia).
The novel is well-written, and the perspective of a teenage girl was believable to me, even when I WAS a teenage girl. The main problem with this book is, like the "This is your brain on drugs" ads, shock value More...
This novel was a required text in my health class at Catholic School (since it was Catholic School, health class couldn't mention sex, so was taken up with info on drugs, drinking, and anorexia).
The novel is well-written, and the perspective of a teenage girl was believable to me, even when I WAS a teenage girl. The main problem with this book is, like the "This is your brain on drugs" ads, shock value More...
Sep 26, 2011
BlueSky
rated it:
I may have been too generous with the two stars. Izzy is not a good role model whatsoever. She didn't stand up for herself... Ever. She is a soft and weak character. The whole book was a boring depressing read. I read it once as a preteen and I really don't plan on reading it again. Save yourself the trouble.
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