From Blake Nelson, a fantastic and topical novel about idealism and finding the ideal girl.James Hoff likes to rant against America's consumerist c...
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Aug 02, 2010
Erin
rated it: 
I think what I enjoyed most about this book was the protagonist's (somewhat immature) rants against a self-interested consumer-brainwashed fossil-fuel-guzzling society. It probably helps that I agree with his position. The author, assuming he feels the same way, probably had a blast writing up some of the assignments, which often undergo several rewrites, of papers that can barely contain the vehemence of adolescent fury. At the same time, Nelson also brings attention to the lack of change cr
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Mar 21, 2010
Jackie
rated it:
Yes, this is the story of ranting teen James Hoff and his complete hatred of cars and all things car. However, it's also the story of a young man coming to terms with first love, his place in the universe, and seeing (Holden Caulfieldish) the phoniness of modern American. At the end of the book, in his essay, "Thoughts of Assholism," James states,
"We are taught the greatness of the Dalai Lama, Mother Teresa, Martin Luther King. But who do we really stand in awe of? More...
"We are taught the greatness of the Dalai Lama, Mother Teresa, Martin Luther King. But who do we really stand in awe of? More...
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Dec 31, 2009
Steve
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I really enjoyed this book for all that it's worth. The main character is a very authentic character, the kind of people that live reclusively in vain of their society (he'll probably aspire to move to canada and relish and god-knows-what traditions they have that we don't...). Despite his lack of charm, he is a good character and you'll learn to sympathize for him.
The story was however, way too short. I enjoyed it, and it was a decent ride but it was an abridged version of what it could More...
The story was however, way too short. I enjoyed it, and it was a decent ride but it was an abridged version of what it could More...
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Jun 04, 2009
Jennifer
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Reviewed by Sally Kruger aka "Readingjunky" for TeensReadToo.com
A junior in high school without the burning desire to possess and drive his own car? Yep, that's James Hoff.
He believes cars are part of what is wrong in this world focused on consumerism and material wealth. He'll walk to the mall and bike to school, and he doesn't understand how everyone else can't see how they are contributing to the destruction of the planet.
James is a bit of an outc More...
A junior in high school without the burning desire to possess and drive his own car? Yep, that's James Hoff.
He believes cars are part of what is wrong in this world focused on consumerism and material wealth. He'll walk to the mall and bike to school, and he doesn't understand how everyone else can't see how they are contributing to the destruction of the planet.
James is a bit of an outc More...
May 08, 2009
Rachael
rated it:
James Hoff is a long term pessimist—he believes humans have consistently trashes the planet and aren’t doing enough to reverse that trend, thus leading to ecological disaster. Her rejects American consumerism, materialism, and popular fads. And he particularly hates cars, as he views automobiles as the root of today’s environmental problems. He talks big, of change the world, but his AP English teacher is getting fed up with James’ “manifestos.” And his ex-girlfriend Sadie, a supposed activist,
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Nov 21, 2011
Marisa
rated it:
Okay, this one grew on me. At first, I was all like, "Gawd, get over yourself! You take everything so seriously! Lighten up, right!!" Then I was kind of like, "Okay, you're not a total douche, I guess." Then I was kind of like, "Oh, actually, that was kind of funny. Alright, you're okay, bro."
Sorry, this book was so VERY teen, it's hard to talk about it like an adult. Disclaimer that if I had known James when I was a teen, he would have either been More...
Sorry, this book was so VERY teen, it's hard to talk about it like an adult. Disclaimer that if I had known James when I was a teen, he would have either been More...
Apr 16, 2011
Anila
rated it: 
I literally haven't given up on a book since I tried to read The Little White Horse years and years ago when I was probably too young for it. (I ought to go back to that book, since I still own it.)
I guess it's not that the books are getting progressively worse so much as the fact that I've been reading so many crummy ones lately. I can't force myself through another one. Besides, I have Liar's Moon on my shelfand you don't hahahahahah! so it's not like I'm without other options.
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I guess it's not that the books are getting progressively worse so much as the fact that I've been reading so many crummy ones lately. I can't force myself through another one. Besides, I have Liar's Moon on my shelf
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Apr 23, 2009
Yan
rated it: 
Destroy All Cars was quite a liberal piece of work. James is irrational and rational at the same time, with his cut-off sweaters, he reminded me of the kid in the back row. The one that makes you wonder, is he doing that on purpose or just for the heck of it? And with his ways of not shampooing his hair, and talk about the corrupt nature of humans you tend to shy away from characters such as he.
One of the strongest points of this book has to be James's essays. The reader gets a grea More...
One of the strongest points of this book has to be James's essays. The reader gets a grea More...
Aug 27, 2011
kb
rated it:
This did not only destroy me. It killed me. Right off the bat. Perhaps it was because I am in the same lane as James Hoff, the 17-year-old anti-Consumerist American who wanted to change the world by first eliminating the cars off the road but his own consumerist desires were getting in the way. You'd think something so serious and socially and economically attached wouldn't work in a YA novel, but Blake Nelson did it, and did it successfully so. The story had the usual YA issues like girl proble
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Aug 18, 2011
Alexis
rated it:
I want to start by saying I'm totally bought into reading whatever I can find written by Blake Nelson; I loved Recovery Road, and I love Destroy All Cars. In fact when I picked up Destroy All Cars at the library, I didn't really even know much about it at all, aside from the fact that it happened to be written by Blake Nelson. And it didn't disappoint me.
Destroy All Cars begins like some bad documentary, ranting and raving about how cars are evil, people are stupid, and basically the More...
Destroy All Cars begins like some bad documentary, ranting and raving about how cars are evil, people are stupid, and basically the More...
Jun 24, 2009
Jena
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
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Mar 10, 2011
Brittany
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James is anti-consumerism. James is anti-mall. James is anti-cars. James is trying to be anti-Sadie, his ex-girlfriend. Unfortunately the world is filled with things one has to buy and lots of ex-girlfriends. So to get through it James writes his English papers about how much we are destroying the Earth and he writes in his journal about his girl troubles.
So James is a douche. I'm not sure if we're supposed to think he is, but he totally is. James seems to rally against things, only More...
So James is a douche. I'm not sure if we're supposed to think he is, but he totally is. James seems to rally against things, only More...
Sep 28, 2009
Additeenlibrarian
rated it:
James Hoff is the kind of teenager I love running across in teen books - one who cares about something other than himself. James cares passionately about the environmental destruction being wreaked by humans and uses his assigned English essays to put forth his point (not that his teacher entirely appreciates James' argumentative "style"). Being a 17 year old boy, though, means his anti-consumerist zeal is mixed with hormones and lots of outside pressures. His father cannot comprehend
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Feb 04, 2009
Cheryl
rated it:
Excellent new YA -- out in June, I think -- about a teenage boy environmental activist who thinks all the cars in the world should be destroyed in order to solve global warming, and a knotty year in his life, particularly in his interactions with his ex-girlfriend -- the first girl he ever loved, and an environmental activist of a more peaceful, small-things, sign-this-petition-please type. Nelson describes James as having long dark hair that hangs down by his face and wearing ratty old clothes
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Jul 19, 2010
Kat
rated it:
James Hoff cuts the elbows out of his sweaters to make them look older, he's a nihilist, and he believes that cars will be the ultimate downfall of human society. But he's also a typical teenager, meaning that he just wants to get laid, he can't get over his first love, and he frets about his acne. The novel is written in ranting anti-consumerist anti-car essays on various assigned topics for English class, mixed in with James' personal journal, primarily chronicling his stages of grief over the
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Jun 09, 2009
Anna
rated it:
I picked up “Destroy All Cars” because I recognized Blake Nelson’s name from back when, in the mists of the early 90s, excerpts of his first teen novel, “Girl,” were published in my much-beloved (now much-missed) Sassy magazine. The chapters were a sharp and vivid exploration of the emotional wasteland of adolescence, which I was traversing at the time. “Destroy All Cars,” Nelson’s latest novel, mines the same tumultuous territory, now (for me) bittersweet nostalgia. (Nelson also wrote “Paranoid
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Aug 15, 2009
Diana
rated it:
The 3 stars may or may not stay as I ponder upon this book in days to come. Nelson hits on many themes near and dear to my heart, outsider teens, loners, destruction of the earth through rampant consumerism, and activism. James Hoff is one of those guys you just have to think about for a while. He tells his story in essays, journal entries, lists, and dialog. Depending on the maturity of the reader, it could be a good next read for The Gospel According to Larry by Janet Tashjian This could turn
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Jan 30, 2009
Newengland
rated it:
Winsome first-person of a young man who rages against the machine -- Detroit's machine, to be exact. That and Consumer America (good luck, lad!). But this angry young man (James Hoff, by name) has a sense of humor, and the diary format of the book allows us to see the many papers he writes for his grizzled old English teacher, Cogsweiller. Some papers end with the words "not handed in" (to which the reader can only say, "Thank God!"), but many are not only submitted, but g
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Jul 26, 2009
Sarah
rated it:
High school junior James Hoff thinks he is the next Karl Marx. He hangs out at the library, doesn’t shampoo his hair, and he is going to grow a huge beard as soon as he can. He spends hours writing manifesto-like essays for his AP English class, mostly railing against what he refers to in all caps, CONSUMER AMERICANS. Hunched over a notebook until late into the night at a 24-hour coffee shop, James writes about his big ideas for changing the world. Not because he loves the world or the peopl
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May 23, 2009
Steph Su
rated it:
Told in English essays, screenplay dialogue exchanges, and diary-like entries, DESTROY ALL CARS is a unique approach to the development of a young and interesting pessimist. This book’s strengths lie in its writing and its protagonist. The variety of writing formats perfectly yet uniquely captures the confused, angsty, and passionate mind of a teenage boy and makes for great reading.
To avoid falling into the pit of believing that the supporting characters are underdeveloped in this n More...
To avoid falling into the pit of believing that the supporting characters are underdeveloped in this n More...
Jan 28, 2009
Claire
rated it:
Laugh out loud funny with a poignant twist. A rant by James who clearly sees AMERICAN CONSUMERISM and SINGLE OCCUPANT CARS, especially suburban assault vehicles, as a source of eco disaster that must be remedied in one fell swoop. Today.
Sadie, on the other hand, sees eco problems as challenges that can be solved interpersonally, gently, with social action and habit changes.
They went together in sophomore year and James is not over Sadie, which provides the reader with more rants.
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Sadie, on the other hand, sees eco problems as challenges that can be solved interpersonally, gently, with social action and habit changes.
They went together in sophomore year and James is not over Sadie, which provides the reader with more rants.
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Dec 30, 2011
Sandy
rated it:
This book was hilarious. It's told in a combination of essay assignments for English class and journal entries. James is a fairly normal teenager, but he is very concerned with the effects that humans have on our environment. Specifically, he thinks American's are very wasteful and cars are very damaging to the environment. But he is not always motivated to do anything about it. His ex-girlfriend, whom he still has feelings for, is also concerned with our impact on the environment, but she is an
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Sep 28, 2009
Ann
rated it:
Ages 12+ (mentions of sex, mc has sex, language is of the aired-on-tv variety)
James, a 17 year old high school junior has no use for cars. He has no use for CONSUMERIST AMERICA as a whole. He wears thrift store clothes and sweaters with the elbows cut out as his classmates pop the collars of their Abercrombie polos. He sort of has use for Sadie, his ex girlfriend, his school's leader of the Activist Club. Through various manifestos (disguised as papers for his AP English class) he More...
James, a 17 year old high school junior has no use for cars. He has no use for CONSUMERIST AMERICA as a whole. He wears thrift store clothes and sweaters with the elbows cut out as his classmates pop the collars of their Abercrombie polos. He sort of has use for Sadie, his ex girlfriend, his school's leader of the Activist Club. Through various manifestos (disguised as papers for his AP English class) he More...
Apr 26, 2009
Bill
rated it:
I heard Blake read from this live, and absolutely loved what he read: some of the narrator's letters. They are hilarious, poignant, genious.
The essays are reason enough to read the book. I got a lot out of them, and I think they really show an interesting protagonist - a kid who is angry at the world, his dad, his ex-girlfriend, himself - beautifully.
That said, I gave this book 3 stars because I didn't find the rest of the novel nearly as affecting. I wanted to like it More...
The essays are reason enough to read the book. I got a lot out of them, and I think they really show an interesting protagonist - a kid who is angry at the world, his dad, his ex-girlfriend, himself - beautifully.
That said, I gave this book 3 stars because I didn't find the rest of the novel nearly as affecting. I wanted to like it More...
Apr 26, 2009
Alea
rated it:
Ok, this book totally rocked my world. I kept cracking up over and over again. I loved being inside of 11th grader James Hoff's world, listening to his rants and watching him pine over several girls. His observations about the world were just too good. This was definitely my kind of book. I felt like I was sort of laughing at how extreme he was but at the same time kind of got him. While he was obviously a lot of talk and not a lot of action I loved where he was coming from and would love to hav
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Jun 14, 2011
William
rated it:
Fairly good book. I had read Paranoid Park, Recovery Road and Gender Blender by the same author. The story starts out with the character full of angst and slowly he transforms through his relationship with Sadie and the sudden appearance of a character named Jediah. It's a good book, with nice descriptions of the high school environment and may have appeal to certain young adults who have social concerns or issues with fitting in in high school. Blake's characters tend to sometimes be a bit
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Oct 17, 2009
Seventeen-year-old cynic James rants against our consumerist culture and thinks there’s not much that can be done to save the sorry state of the environment. That’s before he and Sadie break up. Sadie, on the other hand, is an optimist/activist who is busy actually working for social change. Maybe there’s something to Sadie’s political views and philosphy, but James is too busy inflicting his particular brand of nihilism on his junior year AP English teacher by exploring his emergent philosophy
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Jul 25, 2009
Sophie
rated it:
Meh. That's pretty much how I felt about this book. The characters were okay. The story was okay. The writing was okay. It wasn't bad, it just didn't jump out at me.
It did make me feel a bit guilty though. Lots of the environmental issues that the main character James brought up were things that don't often occur to me so I did feel like I should do more to help the environment. But that, however, only lasted while I was reading it.
I probably won't be reading any more of More...
It did make me feel a bit guilty though. Lots of the environmental issues that the main character James brought up were things that don't often occur to me so I did feel like I should do more to help the environment. But that, however, only lasted while I was reading it.
I probably won't be reading any more of More...
Sep 14, 2009
Hayden
rated it:
3.5 stars. 17-year-old James lives in Portland, OR and spends most of his time hating consumer culture, freaking out about the coming environmental apocalypse, and wishing he could get back together with his ex-girlfriend. The book is mostly in diary format, with some of Jame's school essays (and grades/teacher comments received) thrown in.
There's not much plot, and the non-James characters are pretty thinly drawn. But I think that's how the world looks to a lot of teens--everyo More...
There's not much plot, and the non-James characters are pretty thinly drawn. But I think that's how the world looks to a lot of teens--everyo More...
Jun 19, 2011
Allison
rated it:
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
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