I want to be awful. I want to do awful things and why not? Dull is dull is dull is my life. Like now, it's night, not yet time for bed but too l...
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reviews
Apr 01, 2010
Gigi
rated it: 
i should wait to comment. i know this...but here's what i figured. you sit down to a meal at a new restaurant. you take the first bite. the food is sublime, the taste is remarkable. that very moment is memorable in its own right. that first impression, that feeling of being introduced to something spectacular. irrelevant if you wind up hating the meal because you stumbled upon a rancid turnip six bites later or you got acid reflux three hours after paying the check. that first bite remains inta
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Mar 25, 2010
Jane
rated it: 
It's a very good book. Mathilda is a strong character who reflects her life after her sisters death. She comes to know her sister more, even when she is dead. Mathilda finds old emails of her sisters and tries to form an image of her sister. This book has some crude language, but it is very good. I reccamend it to all.
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Jun 14, 2011
Chris
rated it:
I bought this book after reading the cover flap at Mrs. Dalloway's. It said something like, "my sister is dead, did I tell you that?" I felt like I had to read it. That was two years ago. It ended up in a box. Go figure.
Mathilda Savitch is a teenage girl whose older sister, Helene, died about a year ago. Her parents, both college professors, are not dealing with the loss well. But then again, neither is Mathilda, and honestly who really does deal with such a loss well?
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Mathilda Savitch is a teenage girl whose older sister, Helene, died about a year ago. Her parents, both college professors, are not dealing with the loss well. But then again, neither is Mathilda, and honestly who really does deal with such a loss well?
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Jun 13, 2011
Lydia
rated it: 
This book made my heart hurt - and not necessarily in the good way that gives you a sense of understanding and hope through the pain. It was just a whole lot of pain.
But don't let me make you think that it wasn't a good book, because it was. It was dark, terrifying, filled with horror, heartache, pain and hurt - everything a coming-of-age story seems to need to reflect the current time. It dealt with heavy issues such as terrorism, suicide, alcoholism, neglect and sexuality, all t More...
But don't let me make you think that it wasn't a good book, because it was. It was dark, terrifying, filled with horror, heartache, pain and hurt - everything a coming-of-age story seems to need to reflect the current time. It dealt with heavy issues such as terrorism, suicide, alcoholism, neglect and sexuality, all t More...
Apr 09, 2011
Amy (SpedBug)
rated it:
In this heartbreaking, darkly funny, and poignant novel, we are 'treated' to Mathilda Savitch's inner thoughts on the death of her older sister, her emotionally absent parents, and what it feels like to be trapped in that odd place between child and adulthood. Her thoughts are often fractured and dark, but then punctuated by a moment of exceptional beauty.
Mathilda wants to be awful, but all she accomplishes in showing us is just how vulnerable she truly is. She pinches the family do More...
Mathilda wants to be awful, but all she accomplishes in showing us is just how vulnerable she truly is. She pinches the family do More...
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Jan 11, 2011
Melana
rated it: 
I wanted to love this story, especially after it had been compared to Catcher in the Rye. Like Holden, Mathilda — or "Lufwa" as she'd like to be known — has suffered the loss of a sibling, been emotionally starved by her parents, and communicates in fragments, but that's where the likeness ends.
Like many other reviewers, I felt that the voice in the first half of the book was young, precocious, and sharp but fell apart somewhere between uncovering a handful of emails belonging t More...
Like many other reviewers, I felt that the voice in the first half of the book was young, precocious, and sharp but fell apart somewhere between uncovering a handful of emails belonging t More...
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Dec 21, 2010
Judy
rated it:
I actually think that I would rate this book a 3.5,but, unfortunately, that opportunity isn't available. Mathilda Savitch is a young teenager whose sister,Helene age 16, died almost exactly a year before. Mathilda believes that Helene was pushed in front of a train by an unknown man who easily got away from the station. Mathilda is trying to find the truth behind her sister's death, but her parents are emotionally locked down and unavailable to her. Mathilda has two goals--to find out about he
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Apr 29, 2010
Elevate Difference
rated it: 
Despite years of being told not to, I immediately judged Victor Lodato’s novel Mathilda Savitch by the cover. I opened it expecting to speed through a mature version of Harriet the Spy with a twist of Tim Burton’s eccentricity. The title suggested a fantastic world not unlike Coraline; however, the fantasy of Mathilda Savitch is of the saddest shade.
Young Mathilda Savitch is a teenager who introduces herself in the first line of the book by saying, “I want to be awful.” Disoriented by More...
Young Mathilda Savitch is a teenager who introduces herself in the first line of the book by saying, “I want to be awful.” Disoriented by More...
Apr 05, 2010
bonnie
rated it:
Three stars is the highest I've ever rated a book I yanked off the shelf with no previous knowledge of it. I am very bad at picking out my own books cold.
Anyhow, this one was aight. Dude definitely could have come up with a better title than the girl's name, which is kind of an unnecessarily annoying name. She also calls her parents "Ma" and "Da." Have you heard of "Da" before?? Also highly annoying unless someone can convince me this is real. Also More...
Anyhow, this one was aight. Dude definitely could have come up with a better title than the girl's name, which is kind of an unnecessarily annoying name. She also calls her parents "Ma" and "Da." Have you heard of "Da" before?? Also highly annoying unless someone can convince me this is real. Also More...
Jan 24, 2010
Joanne
rated it:
The back cover blurb uses the Catcher comparison, and I'm usually drawn in by that.
The first chapters held promise. I didn't like the character but I hoped that as I read on, I would come to love her in the same way that I love Holden. Both are confused kids who don't communicate effectively with their parents; both have suffered the loss of a sibling; both do really stupid things in an effort to deal with the loss.
However, Mathilda doesn't change. While the inner workin More...
The first chapters held promise. I didn't like the character but I hoped that as I read on, I would come to love her in the same way that I love Holden. Both are confused kids who don't communicate effectively with their parents; both have suffered the loss of a sibling; both do really stupid things in an effort to deal with the loss.
However, Mathilda doesn't change. While the inner workin More...
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Nov 16, 2009
Ken
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Mathilda Savitch tells the story of her life so far in this odd but engaging and powerful novel. Though not specifically revealed, she would seem to be around 12 or 13, the remaining daughter of parents so grief stricken at the death of their older, 16 year old daughter a year earlier that they are almost dysfunctional, sleepwalking through life and still unable to deal with their loss, and certainly doing a poor job of parenting. Mathilda, one of the most precocious kids you will ever meet be
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Oct 06, 2009
Libby
rated it:
Mathilda Savitch wants to be awful. Like so many adolescent girls, she lies to her parents; steals cigarettes; coerces her friends into illicit activity; riffles through her sibling’s belongings; and ponders that great teenaged imponderable: sex.
What casts her desire to be bad in more uncertain light, however, is the calamity that has produced it: the violent death, a year prior to the novel’s opening, of her older sister, Helene. Emotionally stranded by her parents—torpor-consumed in th More...
What casts her desire to be bad in more uncertain light, however, is the calamity that has produced it: the violent death, a year prior to the novel’s opening, of her older sister, Helene. Emotionally stranded by her parents—torpor-consumed in th More...
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Apr 08, 2010
Chris
rated it:
Mathilda Savitch only knows September 11, 2001, from movies and old television footage. In her world, terrorist attacks are frequent and “wars in deserts” ongoing. Mattie faces her life with a level of fearlessness, speaking openly about the news and practicing what she would do in case of an attack. But Mattie and her parents have been traumatized by their own tragedy - the mysterious death of Mattie’s older sister, Helene, a year ago. With no one to turn to, Mattie obsesses over letters an
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Apr 23, 2011
Stormmyy..
rated it:
Mathilda Savitch is a creative and original read that brings its readers to the heart of its plot. This book was an amazing read that showed me the true depth of not only Victor Lodato's creative characterisation but also how a reader can interpret a character and see how real they are compared to our daily lives. The mind and thoughts of Mathilda Savitch are what makes this book a read unlike many others I have read before. The imagination and stream of confused yet sure thought of Mattie (Math
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Apr 02, 2010
Kristin
rated it:
Victor Lodato's debut novel, Mathilda Savitch, is challenging to describe. Thankfully, I have plenty of experience with young teens, otherwise the stream of consciousness teen narration would have been incomprehensible.
Mathilda's older sister Helene has died in a horrible train accident. Her parents are barely surviving the loss of their eldest child. Mathilda has been lost in the shuffle. She decides the best way to get their attention is to behave badly. Mathilda is also More...
Mathilda's older sister Helene has died in a horrible train accident. Her parents are barely surviving the loss of their eldest child. Mathilda has been lost in the shuffle. She decides the best way to get their attention is to behave badly. Mathilda is also More...
Jan 31, 2011
B&N Discovery winner
At once poignant and fiercely funny, poet and playwright Victor Lodato's debut novel tells the story of a young girl determined to find the key to the death of her older sister.
From the Judges
"In an era where so many voices speak purely to make profit or sense out of life, it is a refreshing deliverance to hear the voice of Mathilda Savitch, the adolescent narrator of Victor Lodato's fine novel, who seems purely to want to make beautiful trouble More...
At once poignant and fiercely funny, poet and playwright Victor Lodato's debut novel tells the story of a young girl determined to find the key to the death of her older sister.
From the Judges
"In an era where so many voices speak purely to make profit or sense out of life, it is a refreshing deliverance to hear the voice of Mathilda Savitch, the adolescent narrator of Victor Lodato's fine novel, who seems purely to want to make beautiful trouble More...
Mar 31, 2010
Gregg
rated it:
Mathilda is a young teenage girl growing up in the shadow of her 16 year old sister's tragic death. Throw in some terrorist activity, teenage lust, family dysfunction, and unanswered questions about the sister's death, and you have the elements for an interesting read. The biggest problem I had was I just never liked Mathilda very much. She lies and manipulates---sometimes for no apparent reason. She tends to avoid reality by escaping into her own invented worlds and scenarios, which is unde
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Dec 11, 2009
Mindy
rated it:
My local library thinks this would be a good pick for Jodi Picoultfans. I disagree. Mathilda Savitch doesn't have that "tough moral choice" Picoult trademark. Lodato's writing is more clever, and the backdrop of a not-too-distant future in which terrorist attacks happen routinely, lends the book a rather dystopian vibe. Instead, I think this book, with its precocious, unreliable teen narrator, would be a better fit with fans of Curious incidents of the Dog in the Night-time, Lullabie
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Aug 05, 2009
Heather
rated it:
Mathida's beautiful, vibrant, tempestuous older sister, Helene, died a year ago, having been pushed in front of a moving train, and no one in the Savitch family has recovered from the devastating loss. Yet, Mathilda (whose age is never explicitly stated, but whom I would guess is about thirteen) seems to be the only one willing or able to openly mourn. Conversely, her stricken mother, formerly a loving, attentive parent, is slowly disappearing into herself with the help of alcohol; her father, k
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Jul 29, 2009
eb
rated it:
There's a weird contrast going on in this book: the narrator's voice is rapier sharp, tonally perfect, and highly memorable. But the events that take place seem vague, flabby, and a bit scattershot, and the central incident--the death of the narrator's sister--is handled melodramatically. Still, the keenness of Mathilda's observations and the truths she tells make this one more than worth reading.
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Mar 10, 2010
Alisha
rated it:
Mathilda Savitch was a pretty unusual read. I thought it was going to be completely different from what it turned out to be. The summary in the back of the book states that Mathilda is trying to find the truth of her sister's death. It's less about her finding the truth than it is about her trying to cope with the grief brought on by her sister's death.
I've read a couple of reviews that mention that the voice of the Mathilda rang false for them. To me, Mathilda was like any other More...
I've read a couple of reviews that mention that the voice of the Mathilda rang false for them. To me, Mathilda was like any other More...
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Mar 01, 2010
Laura
rated it:
REALLY liked this one. Was an unusal read. I read that the author was a poet and I guess that is why, but the style was very stream of consciousness and was constantly sliding in and out of reality, fantasy and memory. It also felt like the narator was in a fugue state, like if you had to paint them, the image would be out of focus. No hard edges.
The title character is a bit odd, no doubt, but very sympathetic in what she is going through. Her sister died the previous year and More...
The title character is a bit odd, no doubt, but very sympathetic in what she is going through. Her sister died the previous year and More...
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Apr 05, 2010
fennie
rated it:
i can't decide how i feel about this book. technically it can be categorized as a coming-of-age/mystery with a quirky, overthinking narrator that is trying to navigate growing up. but it's also a manifesto of mathilda, where you delve into her psyche and struggle along with her as she deals with friendship, death and family relationships. there is also the mystery aspect of the tale, which i unfortunately figured out much too early (although there is minimal foreshadowing). i guess i felt that s
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Sep 07, 2010
Carol
rated it:
I recieved this book free through Goodreads First Reads.
This book is hard to describe...it's unlike anything I have ever read before. It is very intriguing and I really couldn't put it down. There are dark moments and lighter moments. It really gets into a young adults thoughts.
I highly recommend this book!!!!
This book is hard to describe...it's unlike anything I have ever read before. It is very intriguing and I really couldn't put it down. There are dark moments and lighter moments. It really gets into a young adults thoughts.
I highly recommend this book!!!!
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Jan 11, 2010
Tara
rated it:
Of course this was one of those books I picked up because I loved the cover. At first, it was not what I expected... from the cover it looked like it was going to be a quirky little story about a girl. It was. It told a story about a family left behind after the oldest sister dies. A heartbreaking, yet darkly comedic coming of age story of a 13/14 year old trying to come to terms with her sister's death, while trying to shock her parents out of their grief.
It was a page-turner. I re More...
It was a page-turner. I re More...
Oct 19, 2009
Holly
rated it:
Mathilda Savitch is a young girl (the book never specifies her ages, but I would guess it at around 14) who is living with ghosts. Her sister Helene's tragic death has ripped her family into pieces and she has lost more than just her big sister but also the solid foundations that every child craves. Her parents (and particularly her mother) have become shadows, completely wrapped up in their own personal hells, and shy from even the mention of Helene. Mathilda, as many children would do, acts
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Sep 14, 2009
Kate
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The narrative voice was so strong in the first couple of chapters that I found it hard to read, and almost put it down. But i was trapped on an airplane, and it was my only option besides SkyMall, so I kept reading, and I'm glad I did. The title character is messed up, but tough, and is struggling through a kind of nervous breakdown following her sister's death. She eventually finds a way to live with the crappy state of the world, the sad state of her family, and her own potentially overwhelmin
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Nov 12, 2010
Nicholle
rated it:
I am usually pretty disappointed by the books that win the B&N Discover award, but this one really came thruough. The narrator, 13-year-old Mathilda, had a Holding Caufieldesque charm that helped keep the tone crisp and the perspectives fresh.
Mathilda is an extremely precocious girl, who is trying to cope with the death of her beautiful older sister. The word neglect doesn't even begin to describe her homelife, her parents too wrapped up in their own pain to think much about Mathild More...
Mathilda is an extremely precocious girl, who is trying to cope with the death of her beautiful older sister. The word neglect doesn't even begin to describe her homelife, her parents too wrapped up in their own pain to think much about Mathild More...
Aug 05, 2011
Cher
rated it:
The protagonist of Victor Lodato's first novel, Mathilda Savitch, is an adolescent girl struggling to cope with the violent loss of her sister, a couple of grieving, essentially non-functioning parents, and the reality of growing up in a world where "terror drills" and suicide bombs are omnipresent- oh and let us not forget- adolescence in general (gee, tough enough for me). This book while told from a teen girl viewpoint, is by no means young adult fiction, this speaks sharply to rea
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May 28, 2011
Kay Kay
rated it:
Initially as I was reading this book, I was like okay, this Mathilda seems quite mean spirited, but funny I'll persevere.
Much to my dismay, Mathilda got more so.
This book went all over the place in twisting with my mind.
THe way that she treats Anna, her friendship of sorts with Kevin and her ma and da, did my head in.
THe ending was the last straw.
It didn't make sense to me, I was sooo astonished! It wasn't because it was an awesome twist that you hate but you l More...
Much to my dismay, Mathilda got more so.
This book went all over the place in twisting with my mind.
THe way that she treats Anna, her friendship of sorts with Kevin and her ma and da, did my head in.
THe ending was the last straw.
It didn't make sense to me, I was sooo astonished! It wasn't because it was an awesome twist that you hate but you l More...
