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Going Bovine

by Libba Bray (Goodreads Author)

3.64 of 5 stars 3.64 · rating details · 14,736 ratings · 2,532 reviews

Can Cameron find what he’s looking for?

All 16-year-old Cameron wants is to get through high school—and life in general—with a minimum of effort. It’s not a lot to ask. But that’s before he’s given some bad news: he’s sick and he’s going to die. Which totally sucks. Hope arrives in the winged form of Dulcie, a loopy punk angel/possible hallucination with a bad sugar habit....more

Hardcover, 480 pages

Published September 22nd 2009 by Delacorte Books for Young Readers

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Community Reviews

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Apr 12, 2010 Annalisa rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: beware of an overuse of the f word, blah

Recommended to Annalisa by: YA book club

Shelves: book-club, young-adult, magical-realism, humor, satire, voice, cover

Bray takes on the great Don Quixote and delivers more than a modern satire. She gives us a wild ride worthy of Alice in Wonderland and The Wizard of Oz that is not only fun and hilarious but moving and exceptionally written. This novel is a monumental undertaking and somehow Bray accomplishes it.

In the beginning, I found Cameron wholly unrelatable, but Bray is so witty and has such a way with sarcastic metaphors and sneaking in description so you see and smell and hear and feel the book without...more

40 likes · like · see review

Dec 20, 2010 Thomas rated it 2 of 5 stars

Sixteen year old Cameron Smith confidently states that the best day of his entire life was when he was a toddler and his family visited Disney Land. During that day he almost got himself killed in a freak drowning accident. Already it is evident of Cameron's mindset, or the teenage group he fits into: the lazy, jaded, underachievers that dwell within the restrooms of high school smoking pot. Things can't seem to get any worse until Cameron learns he has contracted Mad Cow Disease and that his de...more Sixteen year old Cameron Smith confidently states that the best day of his entire life was when he was a toddler and his family visited Disney Land. During that day he almost got himself killed in a freak drowning accident. Already it is evident of Cameron's mindset, or the teenage group he fits into: the lazy, jaded, underachievers that dwell within the restrooms of high school smoking pot. Things can't seem to get any worse until Cameron learns he has contracted Mad Cow Disease and that his death is inevitable. After his immediate hospitalization a drug-induced hallucination appears by his bedside and persuades him to find a cure and save the world from evil fire giants. The remainder of the book details his adventures, including punk cow angels, New Orleans greatest musicians, Slurpee machines gone wild, and a talking yard gnome. Throughout his exciting endeavor Cameron learns what truly separates simply existing and living life to the fullest.

Whether it was the fact that I was busy achieving this book's theme (living life) or that the plot seemed to drag, it took me quite a long time to finish this novel. What stood out to me the most but failed to impress me was the seemingly endless middle portion of the book where Cameron goes on the crazy adventure. Bray does a good job of communicating the fact that Cameron's brain is deteriorating - yet I never felt a connection to the character at all. Which is strange because I am an adolescent male.

The main highlight of Going Bovine was its humorous events. There were moments I found myself laughing out loud due to the sheer hilarity of occurrences taking place. There were also quite a few allusions to various individuals and objects, however, because of the book's intended age group I'm fairly certain that many teenagers will not understand the references and will be left scratching their heads in confusion.

Another good aspect of Going Bovine was its central theme or the idea that Bray is trying to communicate throughout the story: living life to the fullest and not letting yourself simply exist. The theme was stuck into almost every situation Cameron found himself in, so even the most uneducated teen could understand what the book is about. Sadly, Cameron's little fantasy that was taking place inside his mind didn't enthrall me at all - by the middle of the book I was rapidly flipping the pages not because I couldn't wait to see what was happening, but because I wanted to get it over with. A little note to the side is that the last few pages were actually extraordinary, it was one of the few moments I found myself emotionally connecting to the story and characters. Overall I would only recommend this to people that don't have a to-read list containing a large amount of books because Going Bovine will take you a while to finish and by the end you may be wondering why you bothered to read it in the first place (although it wasn't that horrible).

Want to read more of my reviews? Follow me here.(less)

29 likes · like · see review

Feb 26, 2011 Nomes marked it as graveyard-of-abandoned-books

Shelves: i-thought-i-would-love-this-but, ya-male-pov, 2011, out-of-the-loop, not-for-me

me + this book = fail.

I made it to page 93 and still wasn't feeling it. I think it was just a touch too random and there were so many tangents from the main story-line that I wasn't engaged enough.

Also, the quirky anecdotes and asides just didn't do anything for me. Perhaps as an Aussie I just have a different sense of humour and found it too hard to relate?

Once I started doing the skimming thing (I was trying to zoom ahead and see if I could stumble across the plot, somewhere, hidden in there....more

27 likes · like · see review

Jan 07, 2012 Caris rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012, young-adult, kindle

In 1995, Paramount Pictures released a movie called Clueless. I remember when the previews were out, and, honestly, there was nothing I wanted to see less. This was, after all, the same year that 3 Ninjas Knuckle Up, Dracula: Dead and Loving It, and Mortal Kombat found their place on the big screen. Alicia Silverstone’s crowning glory was just not at the top of my eleven-year-old Big List o’ Shit.

A year later, I was chilling with my cousin, a bona fide teenage girl. Clueless was on HBO and she i...more

18 likes · like · see review

Aug 16, 2010 Kat Kennedy rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: the-great-shelf-of-meh, kat-s-book-reviews

Okay, here's my review:

It started out good although very reminiscent of a modern-day Holden Caulfield.

Then it went really psychedelic.

Then I finished it and found something else to read.

Great concept - just kind of average execution.

12 likes · like · see review

Feb 16, 2010 ~Tina~ rated it 3 of 5 stars

Recommended to ~Tina~ by: oliviasbooks

Shelves: young-adult, angels, unique, read-2010

Going Bovine is one of those really cool books that you didn't know existed till it's in your hands and your madly flipping the pages to find out what's going on. Now this is a book that has so much meaning, so much heart, so much soul, but with a twisted witty humor to entertain every page of this masterpiece.

This book was a really trip and a half! I didn't know where Cameron's hallucinations start and where his reality ended. The lines are very fuzzy, but the adventure getting there was amazin...more

7 likes · like · see review

Dec 01, 2010 Morgan F rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult, 2000s, fantasy, nfa-library, read-2010, its-a-boy, haha, good-sized, awesome-titles

There will be spoilers at the end of this review. Don't worry; I'll give you plenty of notice. I just hate clickin that little spoilers box, because if the rest of the world is like me, no one will read this review because of the energy it takes to open the page.

Cameron is just your average teen guy. He's lazy, aimless, and the highlight of his day is smoking pot in the school rest room. But then the unexpected happens: he get's mad cow disease, which is fatal in every single case. The only cha...more

16 likes · like · see review

Jun 13, 2011 Stephanie rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction, read-in-2011, dnf, young-adult

I really loved the writing in "Going Bovine"; Libba Bray can write very well. I very much enjoyed the snarky dialogue but could have lived without the angst-y teenage BS. Cameron is not a lovable kid; he's miserable and transmits his misery page after page. His parents and sister are so unbelievably self-absorbed that I just could not connect with them or Cameron after wading through more than half of the book. I realy hate not finishing a book but I had to let this one go. However, since I real...more

6 likes · like · see review

Jun 27, 2011 Melissa rated it 2 of 5 stars

Well....I enjoyed the first chapter.

In all, the book was quite slow paced (480 freaking pages of it) and entirely predictable. The tone drove me absolutely insane. It sounded as if Bray was trying too hard to make her character witty and sarcastic. So instead of using the "Less is more" technique, Bray succeeded in creating a character that thinks they are incredibly funny and witty, when in reality, was extremely irritating.

I will admit that the concept of the book was original. But, sadly, poo...more

7 likes · like · see review

Jan 28, 2011 ♫ נєηη - ѕσυℓ σƒ ѕσυη∂ ♫ rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: novel, books-i-got-shivers-from, most-memorable-characters, must-reads-before-you-die, covers-i-♥, writers-i-look-up-to, favorites

NOTE: This review may have some spoilers in the part where I talk about the characters. Besides that, this review is spoiler free and FDA approved.

Going Bovine was possibly one of the best books I have ever read. No joke. I mean, I’ve used the term “best book ever” until it was worn out to my sister’s old pair of Converse that really should be mine now, but no, my parents just had to give it back to her.

Screw her feet that stopped growing after she hit the age of fourteen.

Anyways, Going Bovine...more

16 likes · like · see review

Apr 24, 2011 Ashleyn Poston rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: blog

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I must say, if you can read this 400 page monstrosity of doobie-tokin' mad cow let's-go-on-a-crazy-adventure-to-find-cure-and-don't-forget-the-dwarf-and-the-yard-gnome hysteria without shedding a tear, you are one powerful human being, sir (or ma'am, depending). From the premise of the novel, it sounds like a nonsensical romp where Bray just let her goofies rip and tear ass through this geek-studded terrain of comical plotlines and slap-stick devices, but it's much, much more.

It's so much more,...more I must say, if you can read this 400 page monstrosity of doobie-tokin' mad cow let's-go-on-a-crazy-adventure-to-find-cure-and-don't-forget-the-dwarf-and-the-yard-gnome hysteria without shedding a tear, you are one powerful human being, sir (or ma'am, depending). From the premise of the novel, it sounds like a nonsensical romp where Bray just let her goofies rip and tear ass through this geek-studded terrain of comical plotlines and slap-stick devices, but it's much, much more.

It's so much more, I'm afraid that the world might have spontaneously combusted if she had written a single page more. Phew! Despite the easy read, it took me a while to actually finish it. Bray creates characters and situations that just let you savor the moment. The descriptions are lush and vibrant to the point of tasting the waffles, feeling the exhilaration of time-travel, and making of love to a pink-haired angel. It's just all so vivid and alive. The entire novel made me feel alive and whole, it made me laugh, and cry, and grin like a maniac.

The hero, Cameron, isn't likable--at all. He's self-centered, biased to the point of boredom, and extremely apathetic to life in general. He states in the first chapter that the most exciting part of his life was when (spoiler!) he had almost drowned on Disney World's Small World ride when he was little. He thinks his life sucks. He never takes initiative. He always sidles off to the wayside, and waits for something to happen to him. He waits for the world to come to him, because he's apparently too good to go get it himself. In other words, he's a self-righteous prick who I wish I could've curb-stomped into the ground.

But then plot happens, and of course nothing is the same after. He became one of my best friends by the end of the novel--a real chum. Someone I'd trust watching my back, you know?

The secondary characters--Dulcie (who I personally adore), Gonzo, and Balder--all of them teem with bubbly life. I wanted them to be real. I wanted to see Dulcie's wings, and shake Gonzo's hand, and hear one of Balder's epic stories. I wanted to be on that adventure with Cameron, and it even pained me (OK, yeah I know that sounds weird) when I knew it was just a novel, and that these wonderful, fresh people weren't real.

And, in the end, I think that is what completely sold me on this novel. It was a little long for my patience, yes, and I often found myself flipping pages, wondering when the next chapter would begin, but it wasn't because I was bored, but because I couldn't wait. I loved the analogies, how Bray allowed you to think what you wanted, how while some things were left up to interpretation, others weren't. I loved how she punned on real-life geek-dom, and how she spoofed teenage melodrama. I loved the way she characterized music, and how jazz seemed to be the life of the entire universe. I wanted to hear that B-Flat only Junior Webster could hear--I waited to hear it with Cameron. There are more things that I loved about this novel, I can't even list them all.

The favorite of them all, however, has to be the sheer possibility to quote this book. There are so many wonderful insights that just chill me to the bone. So many passages that I just want to hi-lite and sigh over and read again and again just to feel that way again. Bray is such a wonderful writer. Reading this was like walking into a cupcake shop knowing that everything was going to be sweet and delicious.

A few of my favorites quotes are (spoilers!):
"And when it comes, her kiss is like something not so much felt as found."
I will get chills every time I read that line. Every. Time.

"We live in fear and forget to walk in hope. But hope has not forgotten you. So ask it to dinner. It's probably hungry and would appreciate the invitation."
As you can see, it's also a sad story. It's sad in a wild, exhilarating, and at-times completely bonkers way. With every mote of sadness comes this flurry of funny, happy life. It's purely wonderful. Hell, I actually cried--multiple times!. They weren't those long, drawn-out OH-EM-GEE-DUMBLEDORE-IS-DEAD type of cries, but just the way she created a movement, the way she illuminated an emotion. It was beautiful--glorious.

You have to at least try this novel. You have to at least read the first fifty pages, and see if it's your cup of tea. Maybe it is, maybe it's not. But just try it, and if it turns out to be your favorite flavor of english tea, then I hope you will find Cameron's journey just as heartbreaking, hopeful, and endearing as I did.

Wow. Just... wow.(less)

9 likes · like · see review

Dec 01, 2011 Jillian -always aspiring- rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: disappointing-books

Yep, two stars. (Libba Bray fans are probably giving me the stink eye.) Don't get me wrong: I think Libba Bray is a good writer with fascinating takes on certain ideas and premises, but oftentimes her stories lose me because of the characters. I never really come away loving any of them, and that's a sad thing since other books have introduced me to flawed characters that I still end up loving. (Yes, it is essential that I have characters to latch onto in a story. If not, the book receives littl...more

6 likes · like · see review

Mar 01, 2010 Jonathon Arntson rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2010

Wow. This book is f*ing A-Ma-Zing! In fact, it's not a book. It is an HBO mini-series playing in your mind, if LotR met Dude Where's My Car, had a baby, that baby grew up and met every epic teen novel and movie from the last fifteen years and they all had one big literary orgy. Protection was used. Kinda.

Going Bovine is more than an unusual book; it is abnormal, bizarre, controversial, and extraordinary. I am a quick reader; you could say that I am a big fan of quickies. This book took me TWO WE...more Wow. This book is f*ing A-Ma-Zing! In fact, it's not a book. It is an HBO mini-series playing in your mind, if LotR met Dude Where's My Car, had a baby, that baby grew up and met every epic teen novel and movie from the last fifteen years and they all had one big literary orgy. Protection was used. Kinda.

Going Bovine is more than an unusual book; it is abnormal, bizarre, controversial, and extraordinary. I am a quick reader; you could say that I am a big fan of quickies. This book took me TWO WEEKS to read. A record not broken since like 2006...yes, when I only read three books. This is not a basis by which to consider the book bad. The delay is all blogging's fault, well, my fault for blogging too much and not reading enough. Uh, back to the book.

Bray brings on an impressive cast of characters, from a drag queen to odd scientists to these weird happy cult people. Bray doesn't just hand you a sucker of fervor, she makes you work for your feelings toward the characters, for both good and bad. Frankly, the MC, Cameron, annoyed the hell outta me most of the time, but since he's dying, I had to cut him slack. Have you ever had a friend who was very sick, but they are annoying and insufferable - not from being sick, just because they're that way - and you find yourself loyally sticking by their side until they come to their "I am a bad person, what the hell is wrong with me" epiphany? No, okay, well, neither have I, but I found myself doing that with Cameron. Thankfully it's not just you and him in the room. You've got this hella funny Little Person, the friend that always makes you laugh, but they have weird quirks that make you laugh even hard when they are attempting to be serious. There's also the cool buddy that everyone likes, he's a garden gnome. You've got the above all of you friend, that is trying to be just like you, but no matter how hard they try, you continue to shine them in a different light, mostly because you're probably in love with them, oh and no one else can see them, which makes you look crazy. Oh, then there's you, the reader, the listener. You don't have any input on anything, but you are subject to every high and every low.

Living inside Cameron's head as he travels across the US after ditching the hospital with the LP is tedious, at times, and fantastically funny at others. The book takes place in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, and Florida. Bray gives us a satirical book based on completely believable characters, even the magical ones seem so right. I found myself rooting for Cameron because I wanted him to, like, save the world, but I also found myself rooting for Bray. She turns some of today's ideas: pop-culture, corporate America, etc., and shines on them an unfamiliar light. I laughed hysterically throughout the book. Some of the time because what she was telling us I felt to be completely true and other times because I felt I was learning something new in a way all teachers would envy. In the end, Bray's message is about life, reality, and our right to control the two.

Please forgive the long-winded and mostly discombobulated sorry excuse for a review. I so wish I had some powerful message to poetically place here, but, alas, you get a 'read the damn book!' instead. It will take patience, I will tell you that. It's not wrapped up in a pretty bow, but the last page will make it all so worth it. I dare you to stay a cynic.(less)

18 likes · like · see review

Oct 08, 2009 R rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: could-not-bring-self-to-finish, ya, printz

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

10 likes · like · see review

Jan 12, 2010 Megan added it

Shelves: ya, put-it-down

I could *not* make a dent in this. Every time I picked it up, I put it right back down again. I liked the Gemma Doyle books, and Libba Bray, from what I've gleaned through interviews and funny youtube videos co-starring Maureen Johnson and Scott Westerfeld, seems like a super-fun person. But this just isn't a book for me.

I think I'm finally learning to stop feeling guilty about doing the ditch. I will champion books and reading to the bitter end, but "every book, its reader" and vice versa. Stop...more

7 likes · like · see review

Nov 28, 2011 Cyrus rated it 5 of 5 stars

My favorite book of all time. Imagine Brian Lee O'Malley surrendering his masterpiece Scott Pilgrim series to Bob Dylan, Scott Adams and Jack Kerouac. The constraints are Scott Pilgrim is now a stoner who has mad cow disease, Ramona is a punk rock angel who flies in and out of Scott's life, and Wallace is a hypochondriac dwarf human. They all take a road trip through the dirty South and face many a task. New Orleans blues legends, smile cults, eskimo rock bands, evil snowglobes and the occaision...more

5 likes · like · see review

Apr 19, 2010 kari rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2010, ya, 5-star

Wow! What a wild ride! Beautiful and sad.
Cameron is leading a boring teenage life; doesn't really fit in and doesn't really seem to care. He's mostly just going through the motions of life without really thinking about what matters to him or what his future holds.
Then, after having halucinations, he's diagnosed with Mad Cow Disease and that's when things get interesting. The pieces of his memories, random thoughts from his life are scrambled with physics and philosophy, reality and alternate un...more

8 likes · like · see review

Jun 30, 2012 Eddie rated it 4 of 5 stars

This year compared to previous years, I've been having a hard time staying with books and not putting them down after I start them. I've put down more books this year than I have finished, I think. I almost did it with this book too. It was one of the strangest things I've read to date. I felt like I had to be high on certain points to really get into it. Not that I ever smoked weed and read a book at the same time, mind you. But nevertheless, I felt that I did need to be. And since I wasn't hig...more

4 likes · like · see review

Aug 09, 2012 Book Angel Emma rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: classics-carnival, road-trip

It's not that I don't love this book because I really do. The narrative voice is just brilliant and the imagery alongside the story-line is a total trip BUT it deals with dementia (how I did not know this I have no idea) it is far too personal & painful to read about dementia therefore am passing onto the wonderful Beth to review for me.

Review by Beth

For a novel that I had never heard of from a writer I have never come across, I am absolutely thrilled to be able to give Going Bovine five sta...more It's not that I don't love this book because I really do. The narrative voice is just brilliant and the imagery alongside the story-line is a total trip BUT it deals with dementia (how I did not know this I have no idea) it is far too personal & painful to read about dementia therefore am passing onto the wonderful Beth to review for me.

Review by Beth

For a novel that I had never heard of from a writer I have never come across, I am absolutely thrilled to be able to give Going Bovine five stars, a first from me for a novel that is 100% considered part of the young adult genre. Going Bovine is absolutely unerringly fantastic. An epic read, with a completely madcap combination of fantasy, sci-fi, dry humour and of course, the darker more serious side of the story which makes the crazy chapters even more enjoyable.

Cameron isn’t a particularly likeable character, your standard teenage waster, there’s nothing much about him that is endearing and he knows it. Dripping with intertextual connections and links which will have English Literature teachers drooling, Going Bovine draws heavily on links to Don Quixote, which Cameron had been reading at school before he embarks upon his big mission. The clearest links to Quixote include of course, Dulcie (Dulcinea), Cameron’s punky angel friend and of course the array of trusty sidekicks that stay at Cameron’s side throughout his journey.

The serious side of this novel is extremely bleak, Cameron is going to die, we all know it and there’s nothing that can be done. Diagnosed with Creutzfeldt-Jakob Syndrome from nowhere, he slips into a deep and seemingly impenetrable comatose state and this is where the ‘fun’ begins although saying that at all seems wrong. Directed by Dulcie, Cameron is on a mission to find a cure for his disease, with the help of Gonzo, a Mexican dwarf and Balder, a garden gnome who may or may not be the son of Norse Gods Thor and Frigg. The imagination used in this novel knows no bounds and despite its length, not a single word is wasted. Bray manages to keep chapters concise and titles which manage to summarise a whole chapter in a line, which worked really successfully for me.

As the novel progresses, Cameron becomes more than the waster he seemed, he begins to embrace and enjoy experiences and although the fantastical nature of the whole tale is bittersweet as it’s clear it’s not really happening, through his journeys and hallucinations Cameron has the chance to really experience life, before death.

Bittersweet and absolutely unforgettable, I loved this novel and think Bray is a bit of a genius managing to combine such a potentially bleak theme with some of the funniest scenes and crazily imaginative characters I have ever come across.(less)

2 likes · like · see review

Jul 07, 2010 Eric rated it 1 of 5 stars

As I plow through this sludge, I'm reminded of a favorite quote, which I think is from Charles Ives, "Awards are the badges of mediocrity." I am becoming cynical and distrustful of any work, fiction or otherwise, that wins any award.

I don't read a metric tonne of YA, I like much of it, and this book looked interesting. The cover, title, and premise of this novel intrigued me; but since I insist on doing idiotic things, like reading forwards, after I return home from the library, I should have k...more As I plow through this sludge, I'm reminded of a favorite quote, which I think is from Charles Ives, "Awards are the badges of mediocrity." I am becoming cynical and distrustful of any work, fiction or otherwise, that wins any award.

I don't read a metric tonne of YA, I like much of it, and this book looked interesting. The cover, title, and premise of this novel intrigued me; but since I insist on doing idiotic things, like reading forwards, after I return home from the library, I should have known better. I found the writers mocking and limp satiric voice off-putting, not nearly so in the teenage protagonist, but still...satire needs to be leavened with wit, truth and sympathy, all of which are almost completely lacking in this book.

Yet, I am plowing on, at nearly the half way point, the book is just a chore to read. I will put up with language, sex, violence, anything, as long as it is integral to the story, it's development or morality - in this case it seems to have been the product of (perhaps an attempt at) shock value, or maybe pseudo-realism, and ultimately comes off as cheap writing. Also the book is full of modern cliches about everything - the wise African American, Jazz loving, record store owner; the detached, fitness obsessed, morally obtuse, overly logical father; the ditsy, liberal arts Mom; the shallow, weight obsessed, mocking cheer-leader sister; the Texan, Christian, high school hypocrites. Blah, blah, blah.

The protagonist is unlikable, which is fine for a start, but after 100 pages I wished him to go away, especially since the novel is all first person narrative. Also, as someone who was a nerdy teenager, not too long ago, he just didn't seem real - I remember what it was like to be 16 and on the outside, not caring about much, but still there was something very manufactured about him, and his world. It didn't ring very true - the writing is very good (in spite of my comment above about choices of language), the author, Libba Bray, knows how to write; but the story just didn't jive very well. All of the irony and Don Quixote references were slathered on far too thickly for my taste and showed an inability to create a plot of originality or value - as a result the story didn't generate any longing for more, for beauty, or for the character to triumph. It is basically a modern anthem to a sort of Nietzsche-ian despair and a plummet into narcissism, disguised as wisdom. Plus it didn't help that the works major conceit is transparent, I am 99% sure I know how the book will end, and peeking at the other reviews here confirms my suspicions. The bulk of the narrative, the whole peripatetic voyage is too much, all the time, small doses, honey please. The humor is cruel and un-truthful, and the topics of attack are frankly easy in our current culture. She takes on materialism - oh no, not that, no one's ever done that before; and mega-corporations, oh, no, not that, not like the mega-corporation that's publishing this tripe. Please. Here other targets are equally easy - and in fact she has neither a consistent philosophy or moral vision for the work so far - what she likes is lauded, what she dis-likes is condemned, hypocrisy is the main theme - and since hypocrisy is the ne plus ultra of modern sins - so what? She reveals throughout the book her own hypocrisy...at any rate...

If you want a dark window into our culture - with little literary or redemptive value, you might like this book - otherwise, don't waste your time or money. I have rarely been moved to write such a scathing review, but the waste of talent that this book represents and the awards it garnered demanded it. I'm highly suspicious that it was the meaninglessness and nastiness of this work that prompted the awards - how else to explain the awards with its lack of merit, originality, or vision.(less)

13 likes · like · see review

Dec 13, 2010 Isamlq rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Anyone who likes a good laugh...

I'm trying to come up with a decent review that will explain how weird/great/different this book is. (And I have a couple of chapters to go!)I'M REALLY INTO IT!!!! Going Bovine is going to be impossible to explain so allow me my head start.

Pigeon holes...
Cameron:Stoner,Mad Cow Disease,Hallucinations
Dulcie: Punk rock angel
Gonzo: The hypochondriac dwarf
And Dr. X...'Nuf said

More? All righty... I'm told he eventually finds the meaning of life after but that's only after everything else that's crazy...more

4 likes · like · see review

Feb 04, 2011 Sarah rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: audio, adventure, recommended-reads

I was listening to this unabridged audiobook on my drive to the airport for ALA Annual. I knew I was going to hear Libba Bray's acceptance speech for this book, and it was quite the treat! Do I think this is the best book ever? No way. But I think the Printz committee did a great job picking a winner. This book is different and showing where YA literature is going in the future. It's complex, yet simple. I laughed and got a little teary at the end. I wanted to befriend Cameron. And adopt him. Or...more

2 likes · like · see review

Nov 18, 2009 Riley Carney rated it 4 of 5 stars

Going Bovine was one of the strangest books I have ever read. It was also one of the funniest books I’ve read. The premise in itself is amusing, though depressing – sixteen-year-old Cameron is an ordinary teenager dealing with the thrills and kills of high school until, that is, he is diagnosed with mad cow disease. Cameron begins to see visions that hover between hallucinations and reality. He is told by one of these hallucinations, a punk rock angel, that he must stop the band of dark energy...more

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Oct 17, 2009 Sammi rated it 4 of 5 stars

Believe it or not, this is NOT the weirdest book I've ever read. It's in the top ten, certainly, but even with a talking Norse God/lawn gnome and a punk angel that speaks in riddles, it is not the oddest story I have ever picked up.

That being said, I was fairly impressed with this book. Libba Bray took a complete one-eighty in writing this as a follow up to her series A Great and Terrible Beauty. Not only does this story have a completely different concept than its predecessors, but it also is d...more

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Jan 05, 2010 Krystle rated it 2 of 5 stars

What-the-heck. This book was off the charts weird. If you were something in the vein of her Gemma Doyle trilogy, step back now because it’s way, way, way different.

The first thing you notice is her writing style. It’s sarcastic, snarky, and light-hearted. Not to mention it’s got eccentric weaved in all over it. I’m not sure if I was fan of it because it felt overly forced and she tried, maybe, a bit too hard making it sound quirky. But then again her journal entries, interviews, and everything e...more What-the-heck. This book was off the charts weird. If you were something in the vein of her Gemma Doyle trilogy, step back now because it’s way, way, way different.

The first thing you notice is her writing style. It’s sarcastic, snarky, and light-hearted. Not to mention it’s got eccentric weaved in all over it. I’m not sure if I was fan of it because it felt overly forced and she tried, maybe, a bit too hard making it sound quirky. But then again her journal entries, interviews, and everything else you read about her is just as funky. So maybe it’s more in the vein of this being her real self shining through.

Cameron is one of your typical aloof, whiny, disillusioned teen, who somehow gets caught up in the nasty twists of fate and throughout the book we watch him evolve by the challenges his quest present him with. His other sidekicks, Gonzo and Balder, were equally amusing and quite distinct. All were pretty well developed I would say, as I had no problems distinguishing who was who and they didn’t blend into some bland mash.

The real problem I had with this book was that it took forever to get to the real plot points highlighted in the premise and I kept checking on the length of the chapters to see how much more of this book I had to go. I know it’s meant to bring about back story and give everyone a chance to shine and develop, but honestly, it was a chore to read through and I found myself bored more than anything.

There were lots of allusions to some of the more popular media outlets (MTV, Star Wars, Myspace, and so on) in here and lots of swearing. Also some sex. I have to admit some parts of the book were neat and stood out: Cameron being diagnosed with Mad Cow Disease, the sometimes deeper touch on space/time/life/etc, and the weird villains that they come up against.

I’m not sure if I’m satisfied with the ending. It’s either cliché, or if you think the other way, not, but I don’t know if the conclusion for our main character was sufficient. To sum it up, this whole book leaves me with an “eh” feeling. But I'm sure some of you will enjoy this humor more than I did.(less)

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Jan 26, 2010 SheWunders rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2009-10, ya-childrens_lit

Update Jan 2010 - WHAT did I say back in October? Did I call this or what? The Printz people should hire me. LOL!! I'M A GENIUS!

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Oct 2009 -

I'm going to call it - This book will win the Printz award for 2009. It's an incredibly well written, honest, intriguing journey of a book.

However, I figured out the "big surprise" pretty early and I think it spoiled the Don Quixote-like road trip that took up the remaining 300 pages. That said - if I'm at...more

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Feb 15, 2013 Jen rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: booksfornephewsandnieces

A teen filled with ennui is diagnosed with mad cow disease and given a short time to live - and his brain will eat itself until that time. So when a sugar-addicted punk angel appears and tells him how a road trip will help him save the world and find a cure for his disease, Cameron enlists the aid of a dwarf friend...and they're off to New Orleans.

Going Bovine is a very whimsical take on a serious subject, with whiffs of Tom Robbins. The characters are eccentric but there's also a heart at its c...more

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Jun 26, 2011 Scott rated it 5 of 5 stars

Holy cow (pun intended), this book was really good in a weird way. In short, boy with mad cow disease meets dwarf, lawn gnome and punk rocker angel. 'Nough said. Read it. Absolutely not middle school appropriate.

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May 12, 2013 Stacy Arnold rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: eng-396

Holy Cow! was all I could think after finishing this book. I'm not sure what exactly I was expecting, but I can tell you this wasn't it. Cameron has mad cow disease which is awful and kind of cool at the same time. Add a punk rock angel named Dulcie, fire giants, Dr X, the wizard of reckoning, a talking lawn gnome and a video game nerd, dwarf named Gonzo and put them all together and take them to New Orleans and Florida and you get an out of this world, funny, coming of age story.
This book won t...more

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May 31, 2009 Barry rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: client-s-books

I'm biased, of course. Libba's not just my client, she's my wife. But this is one of the funniest books I've ever read, and will break your heart at the same time.

She wrote the first draft of this book in one month, for a workshop organized by Cynthia Leitich Smith. It just poured out of her, and I knew it was something special when she'd talk about it with this little gleam in her eye.

Fans of the Gemma books may not initially think this is for them, but I think the romance, the humor, the quir...more

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topics	posts	views	last activity
Libba Bray "Going Bovine" Review	3	17	Mar 06, 2013 02:06pm
What does this book MEAN?	2	52	Aug 06, 2012 07:00am
Book Loving Kiwis: Going Bovine	14	32	Feb 14, 2012 02:16am
Young Adult Book ...: Cameron and Family	19	74	Feb 28, 2011 02:11pm
Young Adult Book ...: Cameron and other characters	19	54	May 03, 2010 07:04am
Young Adult Book ...: Overall reactions	43	110	May 02, 2010 08:45pm

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About Libba Bray

What is it about writing an author bio that gives me that deer-in-headlights feeling? It's not exactly like I'm going to say "I was born in Alabama…" and somebody's going to jump up and snarl, "Oh yeah? Prove it!" At least I hope not.

I think what gets me feeling itchy is all that emphasis on the facts of a life, while all the juicy, relevant, human oddity stuff gets left on the cutting room floor....more

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A Great and Terrible Beauty (Gemma Doyle, #1)

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Quotes from Going Bovine

“These are hard times. The world hurts. We live in fear and forget to walk with hope. But hope has not forgotten you. So ask it to dinner. It's probably hungry and would appreciate the invitation.” — 202 people liked it

“People always think they know other people, but they don’t. Not really. I mean, maybe they know things about them, like they won’t eat doughnuts or they like action movies or whatever. But they don’t know what their friends do in their rooms alone at night or what happened to them when they were kids or if they feel fucked up and sad for no reason at all.” — 174 people liked it

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