Sophie is starting a new school year. Shopping for it with her best friend should be fun, but nothing seems to fit, which is a major issue to a hig...
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Jan 30, 2011
Kelsey
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I wasn’t sure what to expect when I dived into Anything But Normal, but I finished it in two days. I was pulled into Sophie’s story. Although Anything But Normal was in third person, something that usually irks me, I really felt connected to Sophie throughout the novel. The summary on the back left a lot to be desired, but the main plot was actually quite original. Sophie’s realistic character was interesting to read about. An honors student and big believer in God, she was the least likely cand
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Dec 30, 2011
Melanie
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I enjoyed this book. At first I did not want to read it because I find that I do not enjoy books that are generally for teenagers, and I also have to say that I don't overly enjoy Melody Carlson books because I find them very childish and simple writing. Once I started reading it I found that I could actually relate to this book. When a girl gets pregnant after breaking her purity pledge, it is no easy thing to go through. I honestly believe that there was a lot of research put into this book, a
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Jun 02, 2010
Kaylea
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In less than 250 pages, Melody Carson has crafted a story that features a realistic and view of teen pregnancy - from the vantage point of a normal, average high-school student who attends church and gets good grades.
The novel opens with Sophie returning home from summer camp, ready to begin her senior year. At first she's only dealing with a broken heart. Later, as events unfold, she discovers that her summer choice has led to an unplanned pregnancy.
Through her struggle More...
Apr 17, 2010
Sophie Ramsay is seventeen and about to start her senior year of high-school . She is a strong christian girl who made a purity pledge along with her friends including best friend Carrie-Ann ( the pastors daughter). However coming back from Summer break , Sophie spent it as a Church camp counsellor . She is hoping for a fresh start and to put everything that happened that summer behind her including the boy she fell for Dylan Morris. In saying that , its easier said than done as when they return
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Feb 06, 2010
Cindy
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Senior year! It is supposed to be the best year of your life as a teenager right? Well Sophie Ramsay's summer of church camp counseling has turned her senior year into a major not so good year. How can this be happening to her? She is the brainiac of her group of friends, on course for college with scholarships looming in the future. A staunch pro-life supporter, a purity pledge taker and here she is pregnant. Oh she knows how it happened, but she is so afraid to tell anyone. More...
Feb 21, 2010
Crystal
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Teen pregnancy, we all have an opinion on it. Whether we believe it's from teens with totally lax values, to teens who make a one-time mistake we all have feelings on this heated subject. I know I had certain ideas going into this book and after reading it I have definitely been rethinking where I was coming from.
Sophie is a good girl, she attends church and has made her purity vow and despite all the wishing to the contrary she is pregnant. What Anything But Normal gi More...
Apr 02, 2011
Joy
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A high-achieving teenager ends up pregnant after a brief affair at a Christian camp where she worked as a counselor over the summer. Spurred by a combination of fear and denial, she refuses to admit her pregnancy even as she gets caught in a conflict between her virginity-pledge friends (and their parents) and the high school's pregnancy center. But pregnancy isn't possible to hide forever, even if you are kind of pudgy, and facing the inevitable will bring with it both expected condemnation and
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Jul 26, 2011
Jaime
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Ummmmm, well, how do I start? There were parts of this book that were realistic and parts that left me saying, "I don't think so." Sophie's fear and doubt, her denial and depression, all of that was very realistic. How do I know? Well, because I was in her shoes once. I was also a good girl that "made a mistake" and got caught. So yes, there was a lot of things in this book I could relate to. However, there was a whole lot I could not.
Given the fact tha More...
Given the fact tha More...
May 08, 2011
Anything But Normal was a really good book, probably one of my favorites. It's about a girl named Sophie who was a normal senior in high school she was a great student, and very smart, and had a great future ahead of her, but the summer before he senior year she was at a church camp and got pregnant but she hadn't found out until a few weeks later. Sophie feels she has definetly screwed up her life, because of one little mistake, throughout the whole book Sophie tries to keep her secret from her
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Jan 17, 2010
NCPL
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The future looks bright for Sophie Ramsey. She's a high school senior with aspirations of attending college to study journalism. The job of chief editor of the school paper has her name written all over it. She has a great group of friends that share her love of Christ. But a secret from the summer threatens to make this year anything but normal.
Why I picked this book up: I've been wanting to read something by Melody Carlson and I'm always interested in how authors tackle a novel a More...
Why I picked this book up: I've been wanting to read something by Melody Carlson and I'm always interested in how authors tackle a novel a More...
Jan 17, 2010
Jenn
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Probably the best teen pregnancy book I've found so far or I guess I should say the closest to home. I wish authors would spend more time focused on after the adoption, although unless they had been through it, they wouldn't get that "right" either.
I liked the fact that Sophie had to find her way to realizing that teen pregnancy can happen to anyone. And it is a doubled edged sword. You can feel humiliated, judged, all while being part of a beautiful thing. I like the f More...
I liked the fact that Sophie had to find her way to realizing that teen pregnancy can happen to anyone. And it is a doubled edged sword. You can feel humiliated, judged, all while being part of a beautiful thing. I like the f More...
Feb 04, 2010
Carman
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This is the first book that I have read by Melody Carlson and I enjoyed it. I’ll try to be a little vague since I don’t want to spoil the plot for someone who hasn’t read this book yet. There was a certain guy in this book that I was hoping would come to a sudden and painful end. Well, that didn’t happen, but I wasn’t expecting it to, just hoping. ;) I was a little disappointed with Sophie’s final decision, but I can understand why she would do what she did. I really liked how Sophie changed in
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Apr 12, 2011
Ricki
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251 pages
Main Conflicts: This book is basically about teenagers that get pregnant when they are not ready and they tell you how they deal with it. So, the main character, her name is Sophie. She is just like all the normal teenagers, hanging out with good friends and being an editor of the school newspaper. But like everyone, she has a secret. It's not the secret that you can just ignore. It's more important than that. The truth is, she's pregnant. But that is not the worst, yet. The More...
Main Conflicts: This book is basically about teenagers that get pregnant when they are not ready and they tell you how they deal with it. So, the main character, her name is Sophie. She is just like all the normal teenagers, hanging out with good friends and being an editor of the school newspaper. But like everyone, she has a secret. It's not the secret that you can just ignore. It's more important than that. The truth is, she's pregnant. But that is not the worst, yet. The More...
Feb 07, 2010
Michelle
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This story tackles a tough subject. Anything But Normal is an excellent illustration of how one mistake can shred someone's future plans, or at least alter them in a major way. I really enjoyed this story. As a social worker I've come across similar situations and this story reflects scenarios that some of the teens I have worked with have experienced. Young people have a lapse in judgment one time and their world is jacked up for years to come. It's true with many young women that once they've
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May 26, 2011
Cassie
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When I began this book, I automatically thought, "Great, just another book where the angsty teenage girl is depressed because she's FAT!" and the boy she likes won't ever like her THIS way. So I was tempted to just put it down and walk away, but then she out of no where becomes pregnant, and I began to like the book. Carlson created an angsty (she actually didn't have much angst... she seemed pretty mature for her age and how she handled her pregnancy) teenage girl with an actual pro
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Jun 18, 2010
Jill
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Senior year should be the best in Sophie Ramsay’s life, but Sophie has a secret that she can’t hide forever. As she struggles with how to deal with it, she learns a lot about real love. Her only fear is that when the secret comes out, someone will still love her.
This book got out to a bit of a slow start, but once it got going, I couldn’t put it down. Carlson wrote a wonderful character in Sophie, a typical good girl who fell for the wrong guy. Happens all the time, unfortunately. I More...
This book got out to a bit of a slow start, but once it got going, I couldn’t put it down. Carlson wrote a wonderful character in Sophie, a typical good girl who fell for the wrong guy. Happens all the time, unfortunately. I More...
Mar 02, 2011
Sarah
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If I remember correctly, Melody Carlson references Christianity a lot in her books. This was no exception. The references are not too invasive, and overall the story was a very good read. I read it in one sitting! Would be off-putting for those who don't like mention of religion, but for those who do, all power to you! I did feel that it was somewhat unrealistic, and I couldn't really connect with the character very much. I was apathetic towards her. But, because I don't want a spoiler review, I
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Jun 24, 2010
Emma
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Sophie would like to forget her summer after Dylan Morris, cute and college bound, tells her he loves her only to use her and leave her. However, she now has a little problem growing into a big problem she's trying to ignore. What will she do when the problem won't go away on its own and she'll have to own up to not only breaking her purity pledge but also not being the smart girl everyone thought she was?
I appreciated Carlson's depiction of the range of emotions and trials pregnan More...
I appreciated Carlson's depiction of the range of emotions and trials pregnan More...
Jan 09, 2010
Jourdan
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I finished this book in a total of three hours...maybe less. Melody Carlson seems to have a thing for writing about purity. Anything but Normal was about a girl who worked at a summer camp and broke her purity promise and then had to face the consequences. I guess I have...mixed feelings about this book. I really liked it but it wasn't...deep enough. I think that's what I'm going for. The story seemed quick and the *tries not to give it away* problem doesn't become known until the book is more t
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May 12, 2010
Beth
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To be honest, a book with "Christian life" as a subject heading doesn't make it across my desk very often. However, I was pleasantly surprised by this book, especially considering the author.
This book treats teen pregnancy with a deft touch, and I applaud the author for finding a way to present various aspects of the abortion/adoption/purity pledge/abstinence debate without making me want to rip out my very liberal hair. Pregnant teens are people with feelings and problems t More...
This book treats teen pregnancy with a deft touch, and I applaud the author for finding a way to present various aspects of the abortion/adoption/purity pledge/abstinence debate without making me want to rip out my very liberal hair. Pregnant teens are people with feelings and problems t More...
Oct 13, 2010
Mandy
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Anything But Normal is a novel that could be real, that most likely is real in the lives of many girls across the United States and around the world. The storyline is that of High School senior, Sophie, and her unexpected pregnancy. Sophie is a good girl, a Christian, so how could this happen to her? Melody Carlson gives us an afternoon read of what 9 months is like for a girl who finds herself in a situation she never thought she would be in.
I found this novel, written for teen More...
I found this novel, written for teen More...
Dec 23, 2011
joyce
rated it:
Melody Carlson is an amazing author. Do you know why? She writes real stories about real girls, who face real issues. On top of all that, Carlson writes about real relationships with a real God.
The moment I started reading this book, I was sucked in. I thought- I'll put the book down now, but my hands would not obey me. After having read this book, I can tell you exactly what it's like to be Sophie. I felt her pain, her loss, and I know her struggle. This is a must-read.
The moment I started reading this book, I was sucked in. I thought- I'll put the book down now, but my hands would not obey me. After having read this book, I can tell you exactly what it's like to be Sophie. I felt her pain, her loss, and I know her struggle. This is a must-read.
Sep 12, 2011
Katie
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So I absolutly loved this book I enjoyed it greatly. I love to read books by christian authors if I can ever get my hands on one. This author has a great style of writing. I do love Karen Kingsbury as a christian author but I do find myself getting bored with her writing on like the second book in a series. I would love if this book was a series but it is a great novel in itself...I didn't want it to end. I would encourage any teenage girl to read this book if you are about 15 or older:)
Sep 09, 2010
Laura
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This was a fast read and I was engaged with the character, but it reminded me a little too much of the True Colors series. I felt upset through much of the book because I was so sad for the main character and her situation. Also the way the Christians were reacting to the pregnant teenagers. I agree that teens shouldn't be having babies, but I think we need to love those that are, not abandon or ignore them.
Jun 20, 2010
Kapri
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I'm not sure what I was expecting when I started Anything but Normal, but I know I didn't expect to like it so much. This book was amazing, and I loved it. It was very real and honest about what Sophie is going through as a pregnant teen.
I loved Sophie. She was a very genuine character. At times I wanted to yell at her, but I can't blame her for most the things she did. She was sweet and I felt sorry for her. I did not like most of the other characters, but I loved Sophie.
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I loved Sophie. She was a very genuine character. At times I wanted to yell at her, but I can't blame her for most the things she did. She was sweet and I felt sorry for her. I did not like most of the other characters, but I loved Sophie.
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Jun 27, 2010
Tara
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A book about an underage teenager, who has taken the 'purity' pledge, gets pregnant. I found this book to be a good read, but not one of my favourites. I really have enjoyed reading it though. I found that Wes could have gotten a little more involved in the story or could have been left out. Same with Bart, Melody could have said more about when he was visiting, but it was an average fast read tat was enjoyable!
Oct 09, 2011
Cassidy
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This book was very good. A christain girl goes through daily life. She is a reporter and was asked to write an article about the building for pregnant girls in their school. Her article comes off in a bad way to the pregnant builing so she had interviews with the girls in that building and rewrote the article. Then the parents didnt like what she wrote because "it made it seem like being pregnant was okay" in their oppinion. Her friends ditched her, and she had many more problems.
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Jan 05, 2010
Angie
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The book description got my attention. I knew something happened to Sophie during the summer but the description gave nothing away. So I got sucked in---I had to see what happened. It was a quick read. I got frustrated with Sophie and the fact that she wouldn't face her problem but maybe that is how some teens would handle this situation. Good read.
Nov 03, 2010
$hanel
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Sophie seems like your typical average high school girl. She is friends with the right people, is the journalist for the school news paper and gets the right grades. Everything is perfect except for one thing. Something that is going to change Sophie Ramasay`s life in just a matter of time. Something sad and unbelieveable.
Feb 22, 2011
Meghan
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Sophie had a normal life till she went off to church camp. She fell in love with one of the boys in her class named Dylan Morris. A few weeks later she found out that she was pregnant. This was hard for Sophie because her family was Christians and she knew that it would break their hearts. She even thought about getting an abortion. When she thought about it, she decided to have the baby and give it up for adoption. She waited 4 months before telling her family that she was pregnant. This book w
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