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i have always been broken.
i could have. died.
and maybe it would have been better if i had.
It is... read full description
i could have. died.
and maybe it would have been better if i had.
It is... read full description
reviews
Jan 05, 2012
Miz Lizzie
rated it: 
A novel in verse about the (fictionalized) Manson Family is not something I would choose for myself to read under any normal circumstances. The local mock Printz discussion has it on our list, however, so I forced myself into it. I am glad to have the experience finished with but the book was well-crafted. Though the idea of a true-crime novel in verse might seem a weird juxtaposition, the somewhat distancing effect that verse novels often have actually made it an easier, more palatable read.
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Sep 02, 2011
Barbara
rated it: 
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
To view it, click here
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Jul 24, 2011
Lee Anne
rated it: 
What if the Manson Family murders had a (somewhat) happier ending?
As a reader of many, many books about Charles Manson and the family, I was VERY wary of this young adult novel, written in free verse, told from the point of view of a Linda Kasabian/Leslie Van Houten hybrid. Who wouldn't be; that description is chock-full of red flags. But the free verse style works well for both the time period and the self-involved romanticism of a teen girl, plus it makes for a quicker read. T More...
As a reader of many, many books about Charles Manson and the family, I was VERY wary of this young adult novel, written in free verse, told from the point of view of a Linda Kasabian/Leslie Van Houten hybrid. Who wouldn't be; that description is chock-full of red flags. But the free verse style works well for both the time period and the self-involved romanticism of a teen girl, plus it makes for a quicker read. T More...
Jun 28, 2011
karen
rated it:
dear book, WHY ARE YOU POETRY??
yeah, this one is all on me. some wise customer had abandoned this book on one of my shelves at the store, and as i was walking it over the the resort cart, i read the flap, and i said to myself, "teen fiction about charles manson?? from a manson girl's perspective?? sign me up!!"
however.
it is not teen fiction about charles manson.
it is teen poetry about charles manson.
and even the most casual glance through th More...
yeah, this one is all on me. some wise customer had abandoned this book on one of my shelves at the store, and as i was walking it over the the resort cart, i read the flap, and i said to myself, "teen fiction about charles manson?? from a manson girl's perspective?? sign me up!!"
however.
it is not teen fiction about charles manson.
it is teen poetry about charles manson.
and even the most casual glance through th More...
48 comments
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(44 people liked it)
Apr 30, 2011
Karen
rated it:
The dust jacket says this was "loosely" based on the Manson family murders, but if you've read Helter Skelter or versed yourself in the grim tale of the murders, as I have, then you know this is nearly identical in detail to that frightening patch of sixties history.
In family, teenaged Mel runs away from her absuive family--the stepfather who rapes her and the disconnected mother who turns a blind eye--and straight into the arms of the charimsatic "Henry," who More...
In family, teenaged Mel runs away from her absuive family--the stepfather who rapes her and the disconnected mother who turns a blind eye--and straight into the arms of the charimsatic "Henry," who More...
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(3 people liked it)
Apr 26, 2011
Kelly
rated it:
This is inspired by the Manson murders. It's not a strict retelling (although many details are still the same). Melinda is a runaway and is immediately captivated when she meets Henry. She quickly goes to the ranch where he lives with his family and soon feels like one of them. What seems fairly idyllic at first (she loves Henry and has a best friend for what seems like the first time ever, based on how she talks; everyone shares everything) soon turns creepy. Henry is angry that his music
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Apr 02, 2011
Leslie (That Chick That Reads)
rated it:
Family by Micol Ostow was actually really good. I’ve always strayed away from verse type books just because they are sometimes very hard to understand but this one was actually very well written. When I got this in the mail, I immediately freaked out. I mean what was I supposed to make of a cover with a girl’s blank face on it and blood splatters along the book? We’re drawn into Mel’s story immediately when she talks about being broken. I guess this is a very important part to understand about h
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Jan 05, 2011
Charli
rated it:
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
To view it, click here
Jun 15, 2011
Erin
rated it: 
Several years ago I went to a performance of MacBeth at my alma mater, an all-women's college. The cast was composed entirely of women. As the director noted in the program, this was a deliberate choice, harking back to the Celtic matriarchal tradition, in which women used storytelling to pass on the culture's morals and values.
I imagine Family by Micol Ostow being read by a chorus of women for just such a purpose.
If you're younger than me, you may have read a book called Out Of The Dust More...
I imagine Family by Micol Ostow being read by a chorus of women for just such a purpose.
If you're younger than me, you may have read a book called Out Of The Dust More...
Aug 02, 2011
Courtney
rated it:
Told in verse, this novel follows the journey of one girl who leaves an abusive home only to be discovered by a cult leader. It's loosely based on the Manson family, which is a topic that I've personally never come across in teen lit. Melinda is immediately taken with Henry (the Charles-like character) and appears willing to follow him anywhere. She joins the family with few reservations and has no trouble joining in the free sex and drugs. Even as she realizes that something might be amiss,
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May 25, 2011
Kate
rated it:
As someone who's read Helter Skelter: The True Story of the Manson Murders, I was interested in the idea of a YA book "loosely based" on the Manson family. Seeing that it was written in poetry form made me pick this up, thinking it would be a quick read.
Mel has run away from home (and her sexually abusive "Uncle Jack") and is living on the streets in Haight-Ashbury when she meets "Henry" (aka Charles Manson). Henry feeds her and gives her drugs and has s More...
Mel has run away from home (and her sexually abusive "Uncle Jack") and is living on the streets in Haight-Ashbury when she meets "Henry" (aka Charles Manson). Henry feeds her and gives her drugs and has s More...
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Nov 10, 2011
Kellie
rated it:
Seventeen year old Melinda Jenson runs away from her abusive “uncle Jack” as soon as she gets the chance. While sleeping on the beach, she encounters a charismatic and kind man named Henry. Before even the audience can tell what is happening, Mel is lured in Henry’s “family,” but it is turns out that what Mel imagined is not true at all.
The “family” shares everything with one another. There is no “I” and no before. There is only the now and the undying belief in the “word” of thei More...
The “family” shares everything with one another. There is no “I” and no before. There is only the now and the undying belief in the “word” of thei More...
Aug 21, 2011
Temoca
rated it:
I was interested in the idea of this book and that it is written in verse. I think YA needs more verse novels to help address the needs of a diverse YA population.
I'm thinking for the whole "hippie", free-flowing lifestyle of the sixties, this verse is very choppy. The constant periods and punctuation made this novel hard for me to flow with and read. Maybe that's the intent? The intense feelings need the abrupt stops???
I need more from Mel, the main character More...
I'm thinking for the whole "hippie", free-flowing lifestyle of the sixties, this verse is very choppy. The constant periods and punctuation made this novel hard for me to flow with and read. Maybe that's the intent? The intense feelings need the abrupt stops???
I need more from Mel, the main character More...
Jun 21, 2011
Miranda
rated it:
I'm just going to keep this review short and sweet.
This book wasn't bad, but it wasn't amazing either.
This book is based on the Manson Family and it helps to know the history behind the "family" and the murders. There are a lot of similarities between the Manson Family and this family. There are similarities between Henry and Charles.
I didn't connect with ANY of the characters. I didn't connect with Mel. I didn't care what happened to her. I didn't understand what m More...
This book wasn't bad, but it wasn't amazing either.
This book is based on the Manson Family and it helps to know the history behind the "family" and the murders. There are a lot of similarities between the Manson Family and this family. There are similarities between Henry and Charles.
I didn't connect with ANY of the characters. I didn't connect with Mel. I didn't care what happened to her. I didn't understand what m More...
Sep 12, 2011
If I can say a book was disturbing and gorgeously written chances are it was a great book.
I don't have a whole lot of interest in Charles Manson, to be honest. I mean, I KNEW about him obviously but the last time I can remember making a conscious decision to read about him was when a late night Wikipedia-ing spree (you know how you look up one thing and then you find you've looked up about 80 things that had nothing to do with the original thing you were looking up?) ended up at his p More...
I don't have a whole lot of interest in Charles Manson, to be honest. I mean, I KNEW about him obviously but the last time I can remember making a conscious decision to read about him was when a late night Wikipedia-ing spree (you know how you look up one thing and then you find you've looked up about 80 things that had nothing to do with the original thing you were looking up?) ended up at his p More...
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Jul 18, 2011
Renae
rated it:
Ostow's episodic verse novel is not for the purely recreational reader. It is heavy, emotional, and gritty. Closely paralleling the Manson family murders in the 60's, the story is at times rambling, at times circular, and at times very stark. There are some notable differences from the true story, but it is definitely inspired by it.
I understood Ostow's insistence on abandoning capital letters except for with references to Henry, but it was a tough technique to get past in my reading. More...
I understood Ostow's insistence on abandoning capital letters except for with references to Henry, but it was a tough technique to get past in my reading. More...
Jun 22, 2011
Emily
rated it: 
I did not finish this book. I hated this book. A lot.
From the cover information, the impression of this book would be that it's a look at cults by someone who is actually living in them, taken in by their message, happy with everything.
Yes, the book did sort of go into that, but everything in it felt dark and wrong... I got about 70 pages into the book and realized I just couldn't read it anymore. I've never been one for horror movies and that seemed to pretty much be what this was tur More...
From the cover information, the impression of this book would be that it's a look at cults by someone who is actually living in them, taken in by their message, happy with everything.
Yes, the book did sort of go into that, but everything in it felt dark and wrong... I got about 70 pages into the book and realized I just couldn't read it anymore. I've never been one for horror movies and that seemed to pretty much be what this was tur More...
May 06, 2011
Figment
rated it:
Micol Ostow's Family follows teenager Mel on a dizzying journey into the arms of a cult. Focusing on Mel's desire to be part of something meaningful, Ostow's quick verse serves to reflect Mel's impressionable and fractured mind and self-esteem, while creating dark and touching poetry. While Family does follow the history of Charles Manson's cult, Ostow's work creates a new image of what a community such as this would think like, and always asks the question: what would you do for family?
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Dec 12, 2011
Dolores
rated it:
I love free verse and the idea of a free verse book about the Manson family for young adults intrigued me very much. This one started out very well. I thought she did an excellent job of demonstrating how a charismatic leader could find and assimilate "broken" and rudderless young people. How they looked to him as father, leader, Jesus and willingly did his bidding. The book was a pretty repetitive, but I could have lived with that--it seemed to reinforce her points. My problem was wit
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Apr 29, 2011
Christi
rated it:
Review from my blog: http://christitheteenlibrarian.blogspot....
Tell me that cover doesn't freak you out? Love it. At the time I'm writing this post, Micol Ostow is using the book cover as her profile picture, and it weirds me out a little every time I see it. Fun stuff, I tell you.
Now, the story. I'm only vaguely familiar with the Manson murders, but I assumed that, this being a fictionalized account, you shouldn't really need that much background info. I was able to unde More...
Tell me that cover doesn't freak you out? Love it. At the time I'm writing this post, Micol Ostow is using the book cover as her profile picture, and it weirds me out a little every time I see it. Fun stuff, I tell you.
Now, the story. I'm only vaguely familiar with the Manson murders, but I assumed that, this being a fictionalized account, you shouldn't really need that much background info. I was able to unde More...
Jun 24, 2011
Rachel
rated it:
Very interesting young adult book about Charles Manson. I just didn't like the execution of the novel. This book is written in verse and very disjointed and repetative. You read a sentence and lo and behold, the next sentence is identical or close to it! I understand this particular style was done on purpose, but man it sure did make me crazy.
There was something missing from this book for me and I can't figure out what it is. Even thought it was a fast read and quite interesting fic More...
There was something missing from this book for me and I can't figure out what it is. Even thought it was a fast read and quite interesting fic More...
Apr 03, 2011
Val
rated it:
My Review
Family by Micol Ostow was an emotionally packed read. This one is written in verse and discusses a very scary part of our history.
The book starts off in the present and bounces back and forth between now and the past, also adding in bits of Mel’s (main character) history. The first part was really brutal, it starts off using terms like “covered in blood” and “inescapable noise”. These terms set a very scary scene and have you kind of worried and drawn into the story r More...
Family by Micol Ostow was an emotionally packed read. This one is written in verse and discusses a very scary part of our history.
The book starts off in the present and bounces back and forth between now and the past, also adding in bits of Mel’s (main character) history. The first part was really brutal, it starts off using terms like “covered in blood” and “inescapable noise”. These terms set a very scary scene and have you kind of worried and drawn into the story r More...
Jan 02, 2012
Loretta
rated it:
I bought Family, because it sounded like it would be interesting. It is also written in verse, which I have found that I really like reading. For me Family was not one that I liked or will be reading ever again.
This was not a book full of hope. There was no hope. It seemed like every other word, was a repetition of the previous words. Very repetitive. (see how I used the SAME word in a different way, LIKE that) I could not like this book, nor the MC Mel. I felt that she was very naive. I More...
This was not a book full of hope. There was no hope. It seemed like every other word, was a repetition of the previous words. Very repetitive. (see how I used the SAME word in a different way, LIKE that) I could not like this book, nor the MC Mel. I felt that she was very naive. I More...
Jan 04, 2012
Jessica
rated it:
From shutupimreading.blogspot.com
Give me a book about zombies, demons, or even serial killers and it doesn't faze me. But give me a book about a cult and I'm completely freaked out to the point that I'm looking in my closet for cult leaders trying to murder me and/or share their "message" (which would be worse? Honestly, I'm not sure). Apparently I have a huge fear of cults. Who knew? Anyways, on to the actual review:
I love books written in verse, but Micol Ost More...
Give me a book about zombies, demons, or even serial killers and it doesn't faze me. But give me a book about a cult and I'm completely freaked out to the point that I'm looking in my closet for cult leaders trying to murder me and/or share their "message" (which would be worse? Honestly, I'm not sure). Apparently I have a huge fear of cults. Who knew? Anyways, on to the actual review:
I love books written in verse, but Micol Ost More...
Dec 23, 2011
E.
rated it:
This novel told in lyric verse will make your skin crawl.
Of course, what else would you expect from a story based on the Manson Family murders?
FAMILY chronicles the life of seventeen-year-old Melinda Jensen from the time she leaves home, to when she is found on a park bench by charismatic Henry, and through her time with Henry and her family — the young men and women who live on an abandoned movie set (“the ranch”) outside of L.A. Melinda, a broken girl having suffered abuse More...
Of course, what else would you expect from a story based on the Manson Family murders?
FAMILY chronicles the life of seventeen-year-old Melinda Jensen from the time she leaves home, to when she is found on a park bench by charismatic Henry, and through her time with Henry and her family — the young men and women who live on an abandoned movie set (“the ranch”) outside of L.A. Melinda, a broken girl having suffered abuse More...
Jun 21, 2011
Ashelynn
rated it:
(4.5 Star rating...)
Beautiful. Addictive.
Haunting.
Told from seventeen year old Mel, about being broken and joining a family.
This book is delicious.
And creepy.
Intense.
What I really liked the most about this book is the voice. Mel's voice is so strong, even through the verse, that it grabbed me from the first page, the first line, which is actually the first line of the summary. I don't read a lot of verse books, and I think this is the first one More...
Beautiful. Addictive.
Haunting.
Told from seventeen year old Mel, about being broken and joining a family.
This book is delicious.
And creepy.
Intense.
What I really liked the most about this book is the voice. Mel's voice is so strong, even through the verse, that it grabbed me from the first page, the first line, which is actually the first line of the summary. I don't read a lot of verse books, and I think this is the first one More...
Oct 13, 2011
Nikki (Wicked Awesome Books)
rated it:
3.5 stars
Family is one of the most disturbing and terrifying, yet oddly captivating, books that I have ever read. As someone who only knows the barest facts about the Manson family murders, Micol Ostow’s take on 17 year old Mel’s descent into cult life is haunting and creepy. We get to see her slowly, but surely lose herself to this notion of family; which is ludicrous and all kinds of messed up, but for someone who has come from so little and so much pain, it makes sense to Mel.
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Family is one of the most disturbing and terrifying, yet oddly captivating, books that I have ever read. As someone who only knows the barest facts about the Manson family murders, Micol Ostow’s take on 17 year old Mel’s descent into cult life is haunting and creepy. We get to see her slowly, but surely lose herself to this notion of family; which is ludicrous and all kinds of messed up, but for someone who has come from so little and so much pain, it makes sense to Mel.
More...
Jul 08, 2011
Kelsey
rated it:
Before reading family I hadn't been too familiar with the history of Charles Manson and his cult. I had a vague idea of what it was about, but by reading this it opened my eyes to the horrifying truth of what happened in 1969. This was a fictionalized version of the Manson Family murders, but it still had some basic similarities. family was written in verse, which I think worked purely because this novel relied so much on emotions and random thoughts. The characters were never fully developed an
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May 30, 2011
Adele
rated it:
Whether you're dipping in unfamiliar or obsessively familiar with the Manson family murders, any reader will be fascinated by the artistry of this novel that reinvents those narrative atrocities in such well-crafted, artful prose that sometimes you feel as if you're reading the romantic poets as imagined by the free verse of Chuck Palaniuk.
It's disconcerting and haunting and strange. "Henry," the Manson archtype, is so charismatic and compelling and narrator Mel is such a More...
It's disconcerting and haunting and strange. "Henry," the Manson archtype, is so charismatic and compelling and narrator Mel is such a More...
Jul 07, 2011
April
rated it:
Originally Posted Here
Family by Micol Ostow is a free verse fictionalization of the Charles Manson murders. The story is told from the point of view of Melinda Jensen, a troubled 17 year old who desperately seeks affection. As she is a runaway, she sleeps on park benches. And so while passed out on a park bench she meets Henry, aka Charles Manson.
Henry provides everything, including sex. Melinda finds herself deeper and deeper in his lurid world of sex, drugs, and More...
Family by Micol Ostow is a free verse fictionalization of the Charles Manson murders. The story is told from the point of view of Melinda Jensen, a troubled 17 year old who desperately seeks affection. As she is a runaway, she sleeps on park benches. And so while passed out on a park bench she meets Henry, aka Charles Manson.
Henry provides everything, including sex. Melinda finds herself deeper and deeper in his lurid world of sex, drugs, and More...
