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89th out of 222 books
—
250 voters
Waves
by
Sharon Dogar
A major YA debut by a stunning new talent, acquired in a hot auction; a LOVELY BONES for teens.
When Hal's family makes the heart-wrenching decision to leave Charley, their comatose daughter, behind in a hospital ward while they spend the summer on the west coast of England, Hal finds it harder than ever to shake his sister's presence. What power is letting him share her me...more
When Hal's family makes the heart-wrenching decision to leave Charley, their comatose daughter, behind in a hospital ward while they spend the summer on the west coast of England, Hal finds it harder than ever to shake his sister's presence. What power is letting him share her me...more
Hardcover, 344 pages
Published
April 1st 2007
by Chicken House
(first published March 6th 2007)
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I actually really like this one at the start. It was interesting, the characters were belivable. It really pulled me in and kept me eager for more. It started to fall apart after about a hundred pages though. The randomly shoved in thoughts between Charley and Hal were annoying and confusing and the story just started going all over the place. It really lacked focus for the second part of the book. It had potential but didn't impress me overall. Also, I'm not sure why they made such a big deal a...more
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Not at all what I expected. Rather than the light, breezy summer beach read the cover seemed to promise, this (from what I read) was a story with much more depth -- Cal, a teenage boy, is incredibly resentful of his comatose sister (knocked out by a, get this, WAVE) and pretty much urges her to a) wake up or b) die already. The story switches perspective, between Cal and his sister. Her narration is very poetic and confused ("What is this cabinet I'm locked inside?!?" yada, yada.) His sister's s...more
So the narrator has to find out what peril befell his older sister last summer that lead to her comatose state? Ok, that sounds like a decent mystery set-up. Having his sister's spirit inhabit the narrator's body during the investigation? Not so cool. I guess if she was all into the "solving the mystery of my tragedy" mode, it'd be ok, but she seems more interested in reliving stupid teen moments and re-hooking up with the friends/boyfriend she made. Which loosely relate to the plot in the sense...more
Fifteen-year-old Hal Ditton of Oxford, England is just about fed up with his sister, Charley - sitting unresponsive and gray in her hospital bed, day after day, without signs of any change for the better.
Hal and Charley used to be really close - whenever they and their family would vacation on the seashore in Cornwall, adventurous Charley would often drag more timid, cautious Hal into the woods and around the general vicinity of their beach home. They were close, that is, until the summer Charl...more
Hal and Charley used to be really close - whenever they and their family would vacation on the seashore in Cornwall, adventurous Charley would often drag more timid, cautious Hal into the woods and around the general vicinity of their beach home. They were close, that is, until the summer Charl...more
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Yes, the word "lyrical" is a book reviewer's cliche, but this book truly warrants the adjective. Everything about the prose was lyric and beautiful, ebbing and flowing like the waves and tides it described, leaving me quite literally breathless as I raced to keep up. Whatever criticisms I have, I have to give it that.
Honestly, though, perhaps that is my criticism. The breathless pace and mystery started to annoy me by the end, when the sickly saccharine sweet resolution left me with a bad taste...more
Honestly, though, perhaps that is my criticism. The breathless pace and mystery started to annoy me by the end, when the sickly saccharine sweet resolution left me with a bad taste...more
Waves is a contemporary story about family, heartbreaking loss and first love.
Hal and his family spend every summer in their big sea-front house in Cornwall. It is a house that belongs to everyone and no one. It is a house full of shimmering summer memories. But this summer, the house is full of grief and sadness because this is the first time the family have spent the summer without Charley.
The story of brother and sister – Hal and Charley – is told through a dual narrative which moves between...more
Hal and his family spend every summer in their big sea-front house in Cornwall. It is a house that belongs to everyone and no one. It is a house full of shimmering summer memories. But this summer, the house is full of grief and sadness because this is the first time the family have spent the summer without Charley.
The story of brother and sister – Hal and Charley – is told through a dual narrative which moves between...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Est-il possible d'apprécier ce qu'un livre vous offre, même si au final on se sent également déçue ? C'est ce qu'il m'arrive ! Je suis incapable d'affirmer ce que j'ai ressenti dans l'ensemble. J'ai été captivée par l'intrigue policière, je me suis ennuyée quant au lien télépathique qui se noue entre le frère et la soeur, j'ai trouvé la fin triste et chiante, je n'ai pas du tout été sensible à l'histoire d'amour, j'ai trouvé insupportable d'avoir une tordue et de ne pouvoir l'éviter... Bref, voi...more
Read this because it's on YALSA's Teens Top Ten List for 2009. I like Hal's voice, and although his family is struggling with a tragedy, Hal still lets us see how life moves on (crush on a girl at the beach, etc.). Having a 5 year old sister in the story also adds humor and relief when the serious scenes get to be too much. The story is poignant and there's also a bit of mystery concerning what really happened to Hal's older sister Charlie who is in a coma in the hospital. Some students may be t...more
BEWARE: this is going to be a rant review and this review is going to include spoilers.
This book was an utter, bitter disappointment. I've been waiting to get my hands on Waves since I saw it in my local bookshop. I went there a few weeks back and looked to buy it but it wasn't available at the shop any more, all I can think now is thank goodness that Waves wasn't available to buy. I'm so glad I could get it out of the library, as if I had bought it I would've regretted spending my money on this...more
This book was an utter, bitter disappointment. I've been waiting to get my hands on Waves since I saw it in my local bookshop. I went there a few weeks back and looked to buy it but it wasn't available at the shop any more, all I can think now is thank goodness that Waves wasn't available to buy. I'm so glad I could get it out of the library, as if I had bought it I would've regretted spending my money on this...more
While I was intrigued by the premise of the book, the execution was not as I had imagined when I began reading.
The story focuses on Hal, a 15-year-old British teen, the middle child and only son, whose older sister has been in a coma for nearly a year. Hal alternates between extreme anger at his parents, confusion, longing and anger toward his sister, and the desire to live a normal life. The family goes to Cornwall every summer; however, this is where Charley, Hal’s older sister, last spent her...more
The story focuses on Hal, a 15-year-old British teen, the middle child and only son, whose older sister has been in a coma for nearly a year. Hal alternates between extreme anger at his parents, confusion, longing and anger toward his sister, and the desire to live a normal life. The family goes to Cornwall every summer; however, this is where Charley, Hal’s older sister, last spent her...more
Sixteen-year-old Charly has been in a coma for almost a year, ever since a surfing accident. Now she's on life support and the family has decided to return to their beach house in Cornwall, the site of the accident.
Once their, Hal, Charly's 14 year old brother, begins to hear her voice more and more. Charly calls for Hal and Hal hears her. He wants to find the person whose shadow he saw hovering nearby when he found his sister on the rocks. The novel travels back and forth in time. Hal begins t...more
Once their, Hal, Charly's 14 year old brother, begins to hear her voice more and more. Charly calls for Hal and Hal hears her. He wants to find the person whose shadow he saw hovering nearby when he found his sister on the rocks. The novel travels back and forth in time. Hal begins t...more
Simply great!
Finally an author accomplished it to write an realistic book about young adults without ruining it for everyone with an inappropriate youth language! (like in all the house of night novels)I was really able to identify myself with the protagonist and, although he is much younger then me, I wouldn't act in a different way. The plot, whether you like it or not, is about a teenage girl namend Charley that is in a coma and communicates with her brother Hal in a telepathically way. Char...more
Finally an author accomplished it to write an realistic book about young adults without ruining it for everyone with an inappropriate youth language! (like in all the house of night novels)I was really able to identify myself with the protagonist and, although he is much younger then me, I wouldn't act in a different way. The plot, whether you like it or not, is about a teenage girl namend Charley that is in a coma and communicates with her brother Hal in a telepathically way. Char...more
This was an absolutely wonderful and pun-entirely-intended here, haunting book. It is a mystery, a love story and a eulogy all at the same time. I love the characters: from Hal, who feels so left out of his dear older sister's life in the months before she ends up in a coma that leaves her unable to tell what happened to her, to Charlie, the sister who is in a coma and how she comes to untangle her own ending, to her boyfriend Pete and his tortured former girlfriend, Am. All of the characters ar...more
Summary: There are few things that are harder in life then moving on from tragedy.
The time spent wondering how life can ever be normal again. Dwelling on how it once was.
Healing, part of the final goal.
No time is ever wasted trying to get there.
The Dittons family is trying to come to terms with a terrible accident that happened last summer.
After what was thought to be a surfing accident, sixteen-year-old Charley, the oldest sibling, is left in a coma.
All Hal, Charley's fourteen-year-old brother,...more
The time spent wondering how life can ever be normal again. Dwelling on how it once was.
Healing, part of the final goal.
No time is ever wasted trying to get there.
The Dittons family is trying to come to terms with a terrible accident that happened last summer.
After what was thought to be a surfing accident, sixteen-year-old Charley, the oldest sibling, is left in a coma.
All Hal, Charley's fourteen-year-old brother,...more
This was a hard book to get in to. It is set in England and revolves around teens so there was the British slang which made it difficult. It also had a lot of flashbacks and flash forwards. The part that made it the most difficult to grasp was the fact that a boy was hearing his sister's voice in his head and she happened to be in a coma. He must figure out what happened to her the summer before when she was found floating in the water. I just didn't feel the story. There was quite a bit of lang...more
I kinda want to give it 2.5 so I'm sticking with 2 because it doesn't deserve 3.
I liked the characters of Hal, Pete, Am and Jack because I found them very intriguing. Charley too towards the end, but at the beginning I used to sigh everytime one of her parts came up.
I didn't like the flashbacks and memories and switching of narratives and times.. I found it quite confusing and boring a lot of the time, and just wanted it to be finished.
I suppose what saved the story somewhat for me was when the...more
I liked the characters of Hal, Pete, Am and Jack because I found them very intriguing. Charley too towards the end, but at the beginning I used to sigh everytime one of her parts came up.
I didn't like the flashbacks and memories and switching of narratives and times.. I found it quite confusing and boring a lot of the time, and just wanted it to be finished.
I suppose what saved the story somewhat for me was when the...more
This book wasn't really what I expected. Still...it had its moments. Hal's family decides to spend their summer at the beach as they do each year, only this year, Hal's sister Charley won't be coming. Charley is in a coma from an accident at the beach last summer. Hal struggles with trying to move on with his life, while also dealing with a connection to his comatose sister, who is sending him messages to "remember." Hal is on a mission to figure out what happened to Charley, and the story has s...more
I was disappointed. Given the reviews I had expectations that this would be an interesting book. It reads like a high interest low level, but it also was written in a more simplistic formulaic way -- so that I had great trouble believing that Hal, the younger brother, would have such a strong connection with his comatose sister, so as to hear her voice in his head, and that she would be able to see through his eyes. What did ring true was the distress that enveloped the whole family at having a...more
This is one of those books that sounds like it's going to be awesome, but ends of being so not what you expected. From the cover, it looks like a light summer read, and from the summary it sounds like a heartbreaking story that I won't ever forget. It attempts to be both of these things, and happens to be neither of them, sadly.
Hal, for one, is sort of a jerk. He hates his sister for being in a coma and hates that he doesn't know what happened to her. He is determined to find out, but doesn't le...more
Hal, for one, is sort of a jerk. He hates his sister for being in a coma and hates that he doesn't know what happened to her. He is determined to find out, but doesn't le...more
This is a heart wrenching story which makes me cryer even harder everytime I read it. Keep a box of tissues nearby!
Hal and his family spend every summer at the beach, but this year is different. This year, his sister Charlie won't be coming with them. Instead, she's stuck back in the hospital, in a coma that's lated about a year so far. To make things worse, Hal doesn't know what happened that night last summer before Charlie was found on the beach. He doesn't know much about anything she did th...more
Hal and his family spend every summer at the beach, but this year is different. This year, his sister Charlie won't be coming with them. Instead, she's stuck back in the hospital, in a coma that's lated about a year so far. To make things worse, Hal doesn't know what happened that night last summer before Charlie was found on the beach. He doesn't know much about anything she did th...more
The cover was what first made me pick the book up. It looks like summer and though it's a terrible thing to do with books, I think we're all guilty of it... The characters are many but few are explained and really given more than a name. They're described but never formed a personality in my opinion. They pop up and go away and float around. Charley's in a coma. Her brother is desperately trying to find out what happened to her, what really happened. Somewhere here the author decides to stick he...more
"Waves" by Sharon Doger talks about a family dealing with a tragedy. A tragedy of the death of Charley. This book is written from the point of view of Hal, her brother and Charley herselg both before and after the accident. The accident that changed the family;s lives forever. Charley one summer day was found on top of a rock, in a coma. Her brother, Hal, found her there. Now a year later, with no progress, Charley is still in a coma and none of her family knows what happened or why the only th...more
Reviewed by Carrie Spellman for TeensReadToo.com
Every year the whole family goes to Cornwall, to the beach house, for vacation. Mum, Dad, Charley, Hal, Sara -- one big happy family, every year. Until this year. This year Charley won't be there. This year they won't be much of a happy family anymore. And it's all because of Charley. Charley's staying at home, in a hospital bed, in a coma. Caught somewhere between life and death. She's been that way since Hal found her last summer, washed up on th...more
Every year the whole family goes to Cornwall, to the beach house, for vacation. Mum, Dad, Charley, Hal, Sara -- one big happy family, every year. Until this year. This year Charley won't be there. This year they won't be much of a happy family anymore. And it's all because of Charley. Charley's staying at home, in a hospital bed, in a coma. Caught somewhere between life and death. She's been that way since Hal found her last summer, washed up on th...more
Waves is the story of the Ditton family. At the very beginning we are introduced to the fact that their family has suffered a tragedy. Charley, the 15year old golden girl of the family, is in a coma.
The family diligently visits her. The mother does so with hope – dressing Charley and talking to her. The father does so out of obligation – he wants her to live, but he knows that she will never again be the daughter she was. He questions if they should take Charley off of life support. The older b...more
The family diligently visits her. The mother does so with hope – dressing Charley and talking to her. The father does so out of obligation – he wants her to live, but he knows that she will never again be the daughter she was. He questions if they should take Charley off of life support. The older b...more
This is "Ghost" meets Lovely Bones - a teen, Charley, is "half-dead" (in a coma, in the hospital) a year after she is found in the ocean. Her brother, Hal, their parents and younger sister have returned to the family vacation house in Cornwall, where the memory and mystery of what happened that night still haunt them. Told partly in the present day by Hal, partly in the present day by Charley and partly during the previous summer, when Charley fell in love with Pete, we get glimpses of what happ...more
Really good, I hope this book does well. Parts of it dragged a bit, but the story definitely kept my attention. The twists in this book were completely unexpected and I totally didn't see them coming. The book is about Hal whose sister, Charley, is in a coman after a surfing accident that seems a bit mysterious since it happens so close to dawn. Hal hears Charley's thoughts in his head and she helps him find out what happened to her. It sounds strange but it's so well done.
Apr 25, 2009
Kirsten
added it
Waves is a wonderful book for high school aged boys and girls. The perspective shifts between Hal and Charley, brother and sister, past and present, beginning with almost pure grief, but hurtling toward the solution to the mystery of what happened to Charley. The bulk of the book took place in Cornwall, but that doesn't seem to have made much of a difference to the story -it could've taken place on the Cape just as easily. As Sally says, Waves is a powerfully emotional book.
I read Waves two years ago but still to this day the raw, gritty emotion sticks with me. I thought the book was phenomenal, the plot original- which is hard to come by in the teen fiction section now-a-days. It's one of those books you need to read to have a better understanding about what values should be at the top and what shouldnt be labeled as one at all.
For me, it spoke words and not lines. Give it a-go. Take a leap of faith- just like courageous Hal
For me, it spoke words and not lines. Give it a-go. Take a leap of faith- just like courageous Hal
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
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| Waves | 5 | 17 | Oct 13, 2012 07:24pm |
Sharon Dogar is a social worker who counsels troubled teens.
Waves is her first novel. The poignant coming-of-age story about a family dealing with the accident of their daughter, it took a while for Sharon to get started. "But then I had ‘the moment,' " she explains. "That moment when a character just arrives in your mind and begs to be written - whether you want to do it or not. I remember it wa...more
More about Sharon Dogar...
Waves is her first novel. The poignant coming-of-age story about a family dealing with the accident of their daughter, it took a while for Sharon to get started. "But then I had ‘the moment,' " she explains. "That moment when a character just arrives in your mind and begs to be written - whether you want to do it or not. I remember it wa...more
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“Sometimes, i think the sea nearly killed her, loved her so much that it didn't want to give her back. Other times i just hate Charley for ever existing in the first place.”
—
7 people liked it
“And she's alive, so alive that even the sun wants a piece of her, and that's what hurts most of all. That someone so alive could possibly be dying. And worse, that as she dies, we all seem to be dying too, somehow, especially Mum.”
—
6 people liked it
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