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7th out of 65 books
—
21 voters
Breaking Point
by
Alex Flinn (Goodreads Author)
How far would you go to fit in?
Paul is new to Gate, a school whose rich students make life miserable for anyone not like them. And Paul is definitely not like them. Then, something incredible happens. Charlie Good, a star student and athlete, invites Paul to join his elite inner circle. All Charlie wants is a few things in return--small things that Paul does willingly. Unt...more
Paul is new to Gate, a school whose rich students make life miserable for anyone not like them. And Paul is definitely not like them. Then, something incredible happens. Charlie Good, a star student and athlete, invites Paul to join his elite inner circle. All Charlie wants is a few things in return--small things that Paul does willingly. Unt...more
Paperback, 256 pages
Published
June 3rd 2003
by HarperTeen
(first published May 1st 2002)
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Paul, a new kid that moved to Miami, is constantly picked on because he's poor. Paul goes to this expensive private school called Gate-Bicknell Christian. Paul is there free because his mother works in the school office. The jocks mercilessly pick on Paul by shooting spit-wads in his hair, mooning him in the hall, tripping him in class, and pouring cola down the slats of his locker. His only friend is a funny-looking girl named Binky. After all the cruelty he's been through, he still thinks he...more
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This book was amazing! I finished it in one day, again....I am so glad that I picked this book up....
This book was so good and I am so glad that I read it sooner rather then later. This book is about violence in schools...bullying, but yet so much more.
The main character, Paul, has moved to a new state with his mom and is now attending a new private school because his mom works in the office and so he can attend there. Because of this he is an outsider from the very first minute. Because of this...more
This book was so good and I am so glad that I read it sooner rather then later. This book is about violence in schools...bullying, but yet so much more.
The main character, Paul, has moved to a new state with his mom and is now attending a new private school because his mom works in the office and so he can attend there. Because of this he is an outsider from the very first minute. Because of this...more
Breaking Point by Alex Flinn made me realize one very daunting fact... school is probably one of the most dangerous places to send our kids.
This book was far from being a fictional escape and more of a story about awareness and understanding with regards to school violence and why some kids resort to measures of destruction. Very scary and sad to say the least.
Paul Richmond is one of those privileged kids… if you can really consider him that. He is able to attend Gate Christian Academy on scho...more
This book was far from being a fictional escape and more of a story about awareness and understanding with regards to school violence and why some kids resort to measures of destruction. Very scary and sad to say the least.
Paul Richmond is one of those privileged kids… if you can really consider him that. He is able to attend Gate Christian Academy on scho...more
Paul is new to GATE high school, a private school where his mom has gotten a teaching job. He is bullied and picked on until he becomes friends with a boy named Charlie. Charlie seems like the perfect child. He doesn’t get in trouble at school, he gets good grades, he is very popular with the students and the teachers, and he is in athletics. When Paul starts hanging out with Charlie everyone becomes his friend. He begins drinking, causing minor destruction like knocking over mail boxes, and lea...more
Wow, alright, so, this is a very real-world book about bullying in school and the true definition of a sociopath. I'm angry with the ending however any other ending would have been fake, created just for the sake of having a "happy ending" when the truth of the matter is a happy ending was impossible.
But let's get to the nitty gritty -I disliked all the characters in this story and not just the antagonist who is aptly named Charlie (anybody else picture Charles Mansen the whole time?). Paul was...more
But let's get to the nitty gritty -I disliked all the characters in this story and not just the antagonist who is aptly named Charlie (anybody else picture Charles Mansen the whole time?). Paul was...more
Yowzier!
For a YA book, and considering Alex Flinn's other books I am quite impressed.
Why? I've enjoyed the other books by Flinn that I've read. But this one was totally different from what I was expecting.
I borrowed several ebooks from a neighboring library by Flinn. This was the first one I read that wasn't a spin off a classic fairytale.
Well put together and thought out. You think you have an idea of how twisted things are, only to find out that they were twisted far beyond what you could imag...more
For a YA book, and considering Alex Flinn's other books I am quite impressed.
Why? I've enjoyed the other books by Flinn that I've read. But this one was totally different from what I was expecting.
I borrowed several ebooks from a neighboring library by Flinn. This was the first one I read that wasn't a spin off a classic fairytale.
Well put together and thought out. You think you have an idea of how twisted things are, only to find out that they were twisted far beyond what you could imag...more
This book was, in my opinion, not the way i imagine it. The book starts off with a flashback to when Paul was in the new school. The other kids were spoiled, rich, dumb and everything in between. Then Charlie invites Paul to one of his gang meetings, then they destroy property, spray graffiti and say bad words constantly. The one day, Charlie wants to blow up the school! I didn't like what happened next, but it was shocking. I would recommend this book to insane, violent people if they want acti...more
Paul is going to a new school ... uniforms ... clicks ... girls ... puberty ... fitting in ... all take place here . but Paul has always been different ... an outcast kinda ..Paul meets binky and they get along pretty well . . Paul gets knocked down by two guys while signing up for classes and Charlie good comes and helps him up .. that's the beginning of the end. Paul want to be his friend badly .. Charlie is very popular ... Paul and Charlie start to hang out.. play video games ... laugh .. Pa...more
This is not a nice tale, but it is certainly a cautionary one that I think would be good for teens to read: a lesson about trust, manipulation, and right and wrong. It follows the character of Paul who isn't doing too well in his new wealthy high school. He's a bully's dream: he's not wealthy (he's there only because his mother has a job at the school), he's tall and gawky, and isn't adept at making friends since he was home-schooled prior to this. So, right from go he is picked on. But, a popul...more
With the incredible popularity in my Y.A. Lit class of Alex Flinn’s other novel, Breathing Underwater, I knew I had to buy and read more of her novels. Breaking Point did not disappoint.
Just like in Breathing Underwater Alex Flinn has developed intense characters struggling with critical issues. Paul doesn’t fit in at Gate and no one lets him forget it. He’s tripped in the halls, his locker is vandalized, and he’s teased relentlessly. To top it off, his parents have divorced and his father acts...more
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Paul is your average outcast in a snooty rich private school. He grew up an army brat, moving from neighborhood to neighborhood and school to school along with his father’s postings, until his smothering mother decided to homeschool him. Now, his parents are divorced, his mother’s gotten a job in the office at a ritzy private school, and Paul has to face school with a bunch of obnoxious rich kids. All he wants is a friend, but it’s worse than that. As the scholarship kid, he’s constantly picked...more
This book is one of my all time favorites. The main idea of the book was Paul isnt popular and he becomes friends with one of the cool guy named Charlie. All he had to do were some simple favors for charlie, which he usually did. Until charlie asked for something too big. My reason for liking this book a lot is because of the struggling from bullying. Especially one guy named David who's life was so miserable he committed suicide. This book had lots of emotions and violence and drama.
I liked this book. It was really interesting with the whole plot though. But I have to just say, Charlie Good is really annoying in this book and I really hated how the character was changing into a jerk when he started hanging out with Charlie. But I feel like I really like David Blanco because the guy was pretty interesting and poetic with him reciting poems and all that some parts in the book. It was a shame what happened to him... The school didn't even care.
Breaking Point:
I think that Breaking Point was a good book because it talked about how a guy went through bullying and how he had to survive it. I also like the part where he met Charlie. He thought that Charlie was nice at first then he had the feeling that he was using him. I really liked this book because the emotions the character goes through, I feel it and it feels as if it's actually happening! Overall, good job Alex Flinn!
Rating:
**** out of 4
I think that Breaking Point was a good book because it talked about how a guy went through bullying and how he had to survive it. I also like the part where he met Charlie. He thought that Charlie was nice at first then he had the feeling that he was using him. I really liked this book because the emotions the character goes through, I feel it and it feels as if it's actually happening! Overall, good job Alex Flinn!
Rating:
**** out of 4
Chose to read this because it was said to be the follow up to Breathing underwater which is one of my favorites. Was very disappointed with it. The characters extreme personalities were to much to be believable, and I found some points of description making me feel nauseous, but not in the "I can't put it down I need to know more of it" feeling that sometimes comes from a great book. I think I had my expectations to high for this book and that was why it was such a let down. It was an okay book...more
I tried to like this. Really I did, but good grief. There was not one person in this book that I liked. Everyone (except for Binky) was absolutely detestable. I listened to it and I kept stopping it and listened to the radio, just to gather my strength to start listening again.
What a exhausting book.
I know that Alex Flinn is a popular author. This is the first of her books that I've read. I'll try again.
What a exhausting book.
I know that Alex Flinn is a popular author. This is the first of her books that I've read. I'll try again.
A scary look at how friendship between two boys went from simply teenage rowdiness and fun to dangerous when Charlie manipulates friendless Paul into helping him create a bomb to go off in their elite private school. But, Paul doesn't realize that he's only a puppet.
It would work, I realized. Yet, I felt something in my stomach. A twinge. Like someone had tickled my insides with barbed wire.
It would work, I realized. Yet, I felt something in my stomach. A twinge. Like someone had tickled my insides with barbed wire.
I did not like this. Normally I really enjoy Alex Flinn but this novel was emotionally draining and the characters were NOT likable at all. I know I was supposed to feel empathy for the narrator, Paul, but he just seemed so weak and gullible to me. I found his family drama to be annoying, not something I empathized with. I also really hated Charlie Good, possibly because I kept picturing Check from Gossip Girl in my head...
This is a great book that I'd recommend to my students. It is about a boy who feels like he has no friends at a new school. When a popular boy starts to pay attention to him and protect him from pranks, Paul will do anything to please him. Anything. This is bullying to the extreme. I put it back on the AHS bookshelf today. Go get it!
I enjoyed reading this book, it kept me interested through the whole book. It's evident the author had a lot of knowledge about this subject. What was peculiar in my opinion, is that even though the ending was good it was still open ended. This book reflects on the humane thing to do in certain situations and I do reccomend this book.
Flinn has definitely addressed a frightening side of school, parent, and government politics. I can certainly see the appeal of the book - it's interesting, fast moving, and fairly intense. I would recommend this book to students. However, I find the writing style is somewhat overly simplistic - it keeps the book from being great.
"The feeling followed me to school, like a kid kicking the seat back. It got out with me. It saw what I saw." And that is still how I felt at the end of the novel. I wanted it to end differently, but it ended exactly how it began and kept me there throughout. It was really good. Well, Good without an 'e' .
When I read the prologue to this book I really thought it would be great. But as I got further in the book I started to dislike it more and more. When I got to the end I hated it, not even as good as I'd hoped for. The prologue totally leads you on to what seems like it would be an amazing story but it played me! It was not even close to what I expected and wasn't as good as it made out to be.It made me mad, it wasn't even a good ending. I was very dissapointed.
Good read, especially if you like her other books, has the same basic flow as the others, and moves forward; doesnt linger to long on parts to loose interest, and doesnt move so fast that you feel like you missed something. Fun and fast read :)
A chilling look at what can happen when a bullied kid falls under the influence of a probably-sociopathic classmate. As an adult, I could see the red flags waving. The protagonist was unfortunately too naive.
Well written book about bullying ... does a nice job of character development. Especially liked how the "bully" thinks of everything. It is clear this author carefully planned the book. Quick read. Read in a day.
How far can you go until you reach your Breaking point? This book is an exelent book for all ages. you follow the life of Paul a nerdy sorta boy with a beat down self esteem and it does't help him when he moves to a spoiled rich private school. This book shows a perfect example of a diffrent kind of bullying the bullying thats not physical but mental. It has a moral that everyone in one way or another can connect with. With intresting polt twist and turns and its compelling story this book is su...more
Pretty intense book. Really interesting though, and really gets you thinking about people. I love Alex Flinn! Another great book. Perhaps not her best, but it did not disappoint me in the least.
Paul doesn't seem to fit in at his new school until Charlie Good takes him under his wing. Will this new "friendship" be good for Paul? How much will he have to pay to have a friend like Charlie?
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I was born in a log cabin in the Big Woods of . . . okay, maybe not. I was born on Long Island, New York. When I was five years old, my mom said that I should be an author. I guess I must have nodded or something because, from that point on, every poem I ever wrote in school was submitted to Highlights or Cricket magazine. I was collecting rejection slips at age seven!
I learned to read early. But...more
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I learned to read early. But...more
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