Personal Effects

Sep 02, 2012 Joy (joyous reads) rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: arc, favourites, own

The Gist: Matt is a mess; between dealing with the grief of losing his brother, TJ to the on-going difficulty of living with his father, some days, Matt can no longer tell which way is up. Added to that emotional upheaval and turmoil is a burgeoning relationship with his best friend that Matt could no longer ignore. Seven months after burying what was left of his brother, he's overwhelmed by anger and loneliness seemingly beyond relief.

When his brother's footlockers showed up, it felt like he w...more The Gist: Matt is a mess; between dealing with the grief of losing his brother, TJ to the on-going difficulty of living with his father, some days, Matt can no longer tell which way is up. Added to that emotional upheaval and turmoil is a burgeoning relationship with his best friend that Matt could no longer ignore. Seven months after burying what was left of his brother, he's overwhelmed by anger and loneliness seemingly beyond relief.

When his brother's footlockers showed up, it felt like he was losing his brother all over again. Opening the locks was like opening up a side of him that he never knew. The discovery that he didn't really know him was like salt to his already festering wounds. Betrayed and angry, Matt set out on a journey that began with love letters exchanged between his brother and a person Matt never knew. What he discovered would be a catalyst to the changes he needed to do in order to honour the memory of a fallen soldier and to help the family he left behind.

The Review:

Damn.

This review will fail to convey how I felt after reading this book. I was destroyed; and much like Matt, I felt like I was grieving for the loss of a life cut short. But in my case, I'm grieving for the ending of this book. It was hard to put this down after it was over. I felt like I missed a whole lifetime - missed knowing a person because I read too fast.

TJ had so much to live for - so much to look forward to. Bound by the honour and obligation of serving his country, he chose to fulfill that responsibility rather than face the future with his loved ones. I mean, who could blame him? At the end of it all, he followed his heart. Unfortunately, that led him to being blown to bits. The ugly realities of war.

EM Kokie's writing captured the heartbreak of grief, made even more powerful by Matt's voice. His anger and sadness leapt off the pages and the betrayal that he felt with the things he found out about his brother. It was just...heartache all around. And even if the ending left a lot to be hopeful for, I wasn't satisfied. I needed to read TJ's story, need to feel what he felt when he realized he was in love. I needed to see the desperation every time he had to leave that person. A soldier's life is not easy, it's lonely and ripe with peril.

Ultimately though, Curtis is the one who cut me to pieces. I don't think I could ever recover from his heartache. He's one of those characters who'd lodge right into your heart like a splinter; buried deep that all you'd feel is the constant ache. I think this is the first time that I've been so affected by a secondary character. But I can't help it. He's the one I can't forget from this book. I don't know why I felt so much for Curtis. In a way, he's like a close relative who's suffering deeply and you want to help him but you don't know how. But he's very good at hiding his emotions - he looks strong from the outside but you're almost sure he's a mess inside. I want to wish him well, want him to feel happy again but it seems impossible somehow.

VERDICT: EM Kokie's debut novel was a mine of explosive, emotional, heart wrenching drama. This book will stay with me for a long time and it's not only because it dealt with the difficulty of grief, it's mostly because her characters are unforgettable. She gave a voice to a boy who had to fight for every single breath, the will to go on living even if the urge to give up was so severe. This author is unreal; considering she's a newbie. I've never had a book affect me so deeply and in a level of empathy even I, could never understand.
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May 23, 2013 Cayce rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: ya, glbt-ya

It was never a question of whether or not I would read Personal Effects, just a question of when. Everything from the blurb to the cover was calling my name. Not to mention the fact that Goodreads has it shelved under ya as well as glbt. I just had to be in the right mood to be able to read a story that deals with grief. It was never a question of whether or not I would like Personal Effects, but rather how much it would break my heart. I desperately wanted to read it, but at the same time was t...more

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Nov 03, 2012 Arlene rated it 5 of 5 stars

Recommended to Arlene by: Joy (joyous reads)

Shelves: read-2012, ya-contemporary, military-war, young-adult

Matt Foster has been struggling to recover from the death of his older brother who was killed in the Iraq war. There’s so much surrounding this tragedy that he can’t seem to comprehend, and living with a father that’s extremely distant and fierce, Matt struggles to make sense of it all. Then one day when a Casualty Assistance Officer delivers his brother’s personal effects, Matt discovers through his brother’s pictures and belongings that there was a part of his brother’s life he never really kn...more Matt Foster has been struggling to recover from the death of his older brother who was killed in the Iraq war. There’s so much surrounding this tragedy that he can’t seem to comprehend, and living with a father that’s extremely distant and fierce, Matt struggles to make sense of it all. Then one day when a Casualty Assistance Officer delivers his brother’s personal effects, Matt discovers through his brother’s pictures and belongings that there was a part of his brother’s life he never really knew. Leaving everything behind, Matt sets out on a journey of discovery ultimately giving him the opportunity to grieve and somewhat heal from his loss.

“Embrace the suck…”

That’s Matt Foster's family motto. Right off the bat, I can’t help but want to hug the guy for having to live by such a harsh reality. Then as I learned more about this character and his struggles, my need to provide a gentle hug turned to a fierce embrace. There’s something about male POVs that clearly have a resounding affect on my emotional psyche and it doesn’t help when the character in question is so dame likeable and feels so truly real that I’m left with a sense of hoping and longing that his life takes a turn for the better. See that says something there… we’re talking about a fictional character and I’m left feeling like I met someone in real life and journeyed with them. If that’s not powerful, then I don’t know what is.

This sense of realism I feel can only be attributed to Kokie’s brilliant ability to be so descript and powerful with her writing that she’s able to blur the lines between the here and now and takes complete control of my imagination. I definitely immersed myself in this novel and when I was there in the moment, I felt every emotion, every hurt, every hope she conveyed through her main character Matt.

E.M. Kokie deserves some serious attention. Yes, I’m stating that as a clear and definite fact. This author truly hit a home run with her book Personal Effects. To say she spared no expense with her heartbreaking but never hopeless tale of grief, friendship and tolerance is a huge understatement. What’s even more impressive is that Personal Effects is her debut novel. I love that! A rookie author with a strong debut! ~claps enthusiastically~ I’ll be keeping my eye out for more of Kokie’s stories. She got herself a new fan.

**Review copy provided by Candlewick Press. Many thanks!**(less)

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Aug 27, 2012 Trish Doller rated it 5 of 5 stars

Still thinking of exactly what I want to say, but moving is probably where I'll start. Very moving. And real.

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Aug 11, 2012 Rachel rated it 4 of 5 stars

Edited Aug 12 2012: Dear Rachel and everyone else at marketing of Candlewick: I hope you pimp this book out like no tomorrow. I am in awe of this book. Review to come.

WOW Its being released on 9/11/12... AND its about a soldier in Iraq.
Wow.
I can't wait for this book because its Candlewick and I love their books. Plus...EM Kokie & Trish Dollar are releasing soldier-boy YA books and that excites me. There isn't enough of that in YA in my opinion.

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Nov 01, 2012 Kellee rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: contemporary-historical-fiction, death-or-dying, abuse, ya-teen, war, lbgt, my-best-of-2012, teach-mentor-texts

Reviewed at: http://www.teachmentortexts.com/2012/...

I just love that feeling of reading a really superb book. One that has it all- story, characterization, theme, grippingness, relevance, etc. etc. etc. It is very similar to eating a perfect meal, but this give you satisfaction in your body, heart and soul. To someone who has never experienced this feeling unless they have read some of those great books out there. I'll never forget the first time I got this feeling- The Giver. 7th grade. I've b...more

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Jan 14, 2013 Karen Yingling rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult

Matt has enough to deal with. His father is very controlling and overbearing, more so since the death of Matt's mother. Matt must do well in school, work a job, control his anger, and most of all, join the military. Since Matt's brother, T.J., has recently died while serving in the military, it's not something Matt is really interested in. He's having a lot of anger management issues, especially when kids in school spout pacificistic rhetoric. His father barely mentions T.J., has taken down pict...more

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Sep 15, 2012 Bookish♥Sarah rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: singles-fic, read-in-2012, favorites, top-10-of-2012, z-2012-dac

♥ Find my reviews on Blogger ~ Reviews by Bookish Sarah

- - -

Matt's life is a mess. His father is abusive and overly strict about everything. He is also pushing him to join the military as soon as he's able. Matt lives in fear of his father practically every moment of every day. He's also dealing with the fact that he has more-than-friendly feelings for his best friend, Shauna - feelings he's sure she would spurn. The worst issue of all is the loss of his brother, TJ. TJ was a soldier and died in...more

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Apr 18, 2013 Sue rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya

Matt is 17 and lives with his dad. His father is ex-military, very controlling, and doesn't have any compunction about hitting Matt if he is displeased. Matt's brother, T.J., was a soldier killed in the war in Iraq. Neither Matt nor his father are dealing with this loss well. Matt is getting into trouble in school, failing classes, and is very angry. Matt's dad is eradicating any evidence of T.J.'s existence from their house and refuses to talk about him. When the Army sends three footlockers of...more

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Mar 22, 2013 Kim Schnase rated it 5 of 5 stars

As the mother of a teenage boy who has expressed an interest in a future in the millitary, I am suddenly finding myself drawn to books that incorporate the millitary into their story. Hence my initial interest in this book. Matt, the main character, is a 17 year old boy who lives with an abusive father. His mother died when he was younger, and his only real confidante is his best friend, Shauna. His older brother, T.J. was recently killed while deployed in Iraq. When his older brother's personal...more

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Mar 19, 2013 Chris rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: adult, guys-read, ya, life, voice

This is a complex, subtle, and powerful book about a teen on the verge of adulthood who learns that becoming a man means something entirely different than he'd ever been told or expected. Engaging, honest, challenging, and satisfying.

Publisher blurbs usually don't do it for me, but I'm having trouble coming up with anything that describes it better than this (copied from above if you're on the main Goodreads page for the book; included for those of you who aren't):

"Ever since his brother, T.J.,...more

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Jan 28, 2013 Stephanie rated it 5 of 5 stars

Every now and then, a book comes along that completely blows away even the highest expectations readers have for it. E. M. Kokie’s Personal Effects is one of those books.

The beauty of this book starts on the very first page. When protagonist Matt describes his annoyance with one of his classmates, I could not help being reminded of one of the most honest narrators in American Literature: J. D. Salinger’s Holden Caulfield. Like Holden, Matt is immediately likeable because he doesn’t float through...more Every now and then, a book comes along that completely blows away even the highest expectations readers have for it. E. M. Kokie’s Personal Effects is one of those books.

The beauty of this book starts on the very first page. When protagonist Matt describes his annoyance with one of his classmates, I could not help being reminded of one of the most honest narrators in American Literature: J. D. Salinger’s Holden Caulfield. Like Holden, Matt is immediately likeable because he doesn’t float through life with phony politeness. Matt has no problem with pointing out the bad in people, and Pinscher has plenty of it. Pinscher, who is known for his anti-war activism, is wearing a shirt that says “Support OUR Troops: Bring Them Home. And not in Pieces.” Names of deceased soldiers cover the back of the shirt, and Matt’s brother is one of them. I don’t think I’ve ever read a book that starts with more conflict than that.

Most novels can be divided into four categories: man versus man, man versus society, man versus nature, and man versus himself. This is not the case in Personal Effects. Matt is battling a lot of forces in the novel, including society, the people around him, and himself. All Matt wants to do is work through losing his brother, but no one will let him do that. His father doesn’t want to look through T.J.’s things, and no one will even talk to him about T.J. anymore. No one will let him grieve. When Matt uncovers a life that T.J. never told him about, he just might find someone he can grieve with, even if it’s not at all whom he expected.

In addition, Matt’s relationship with Shauna is a subplot of the novel that I really enjoyed. Matt and Shauna have been friends since childhood. Naturally, Matt has had a crush on her since he stopped thinking girls had cooties, but he thinks she is totally unattainable. Shauna is such a strong character. She is beautiful, doesn’t put up with anything from anyone, and knows what she wants. I could not get enough of her.

Although this novel might just have too many similarities to The Catcher in the Rye (Harley was just a combination of Sunny and Maurice), I thoroughly enjoyed Personal Effects by E. M. Kokie. It is a literary novel with a gripping plot and excellent characterization. I can promise you that you will not regret reading it.(less)

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Dec 04, 2012 Ed added it

Kokie, E.M. (2012). Personal effects. Somerville, MA: Candlewick Press. 367 pp. ISBN: 978-0-7636-5527-3. (Hardcover); $16.99.

I spent most of last year reading debut books from authors breaking into print for the first time with a book intended for teens. I served on the Morris Committee. It does not surprise me to hear folks talk about teen literature in such glowing terms, both teens and adults. The literature is rich. This brings me to Personal Effects by Kokie. Matt Foster lives with his fath...more Kokie, E.M. (2012). Personal effects. Somerville, MA: Candlewick Press. 367 pp. ISBN: 978-0-7636-5527-3. (Hardcover); $16.99.

I spent most of last year reading debut books from authors breaking into print for the first time with a book intended for teens. I served on the Morris Committee. It does not surprise me to hear folks talk about teen literature in such glowing terms, both teens and adults. The literature is rich. This brings me to Personal Effects by Kokie. Matt Foster lives with his father. His older brother, TJ, has died in the war in Iraq. Matt’s father refuses to acknowledge this fact and seems determined to have Matt become the TJ he misses and seems to love more. Matt is caught between the normal desire to have your father’s love and the understanding that he will NEVER be the person his father wants him to be. What sets this book apart is how the reader can understand both Matt’s rage at school and his extremely fragile vulnerability that no one sees, except maybe Shauna, a kind teen soul who works very hard to be friends with a young man who sometimes believes that he does not deserve friends.

Matt adored his older brother TJ. When his overbearing father refuses to recognize TJ’s death, refuses to allow Matt access to the footlockers filled with TJ’s personal effects, Matt suffers. Without overtly saying anything, Kokie allows readers to sense the fact that Matt suffers from survivor’s guilt. Over and over again, Matt is living his life through TJ’s eyes. Matt is forced to sneak into his brother’s room and break into the footlockers in an attempt to produce some semblance of closure, some reconnection to the brother he knows is dead, but still loves desperately. In the random collection of personal effects, however, Matt discovers a brother he never knew. He sees pictures of TJ with a girl and letter after letter after love letter from Celia. There is even a picture of Celia holding a baby named Zoe. And there is an address in Wisconsin! How could Matt be so ignorant of the brother who so defines his day-to-day existence? Matt borrows Shauna’s car and sets off to learn about this person he thought he knew so well. Along the way, however, he learns plenty more about himself, including several surprises about his own true feelings and not all of them are good!

Wow! This story is excellent and it is important. Both of my brothers served in Viet Nam. Both have Purple Hearts. My oldest brother came back from Viet Nam with very serious mental problems. He NEVER spoke to anyone about what happened in Viet Nam. In fact, he pretty much divorced his family and disappeared for many years. When I ran into this brother I idolized, he did not even recognize me. It is clear that I was a responsibility he could not claim. He died several years ago and I am sure that his stint in Viet Nam played a part in his premature death. Kokie captures much of this miasma in Matt’s relationship with TJ and with his father’s militaristic attitude toward both of his sons. Kokie also gets the fact that some teens only see fathers through the single lens of good or bad. Even bad fathers make good decisions, have good ideas, and attempt to do what is best for their children. While Matt’s father is certainly not a person that should be in charge of children, his portrayal (through Matt’s eyes) shows that wonderful ability of a skilled writer to allow readers to see a more three dimensional picture.

I so want to talk about the ending of this book, which is particularly amazing and fabulous, but I cannot without spoiling the book. READ this book! Put this into the hands of high school students who feel isolated, misunderstood, and completely at odds with their family (isn’t that just about every single one of us?). This is a book that I know will get very serious consideration by the Morris Committee and it is another one of those amazing debut YA publications that I learned to love so passionately last year! Congratulations! I did a video interview with Kokie that is available online at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1DAlM...
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Sep 18, 2012 Audrey Wilkerson rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012-books-read, books-reviewed

Ink and Page's Quick & Dirty Review

Rating : 4

The Low Down : Matt has been pretty angry ever since his brother, T.J., was killed in Iraq. There’s not anyone to talk to about it - not his hard-ass, talks-with-his-fists former-military dad; not the ineffectual school counselor; not even his best, and only, friend, Shauna. Then the military shows up with three footlockers full of T.J.’s belongings. Since Matt’s dad has already removed any evidence of T.J.’s existence from the house, Matt decide...more

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Sep 11, 2012 Liviania rated it 4 of 5 stars

Seventeen-year-old Matt Foster is on the cusp of graduating from high school. He's not getting into state school, and his father is pushing him to enlist. But his older brother asked him to stay out of the army shortly before he died in Iraq. Matt's angry and confused and the only thing he knows for sure is that he wants to go through his brother's personal effects.

Then he gets his chance and discovers a set of love letters revealing that his brother was in a serious relationship for years. And...more

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Apr 11, 2012 Richie Partington rated it 5 of 5 stars

Richie’s Picks: PERSONAL EFFECTS by E.M. Kokie, Candlewick, September 2012, 352p., ISBN: 978-0-7636-6203-5

“In response, McCain said, ‘That old, eh, that old Beach Boys song, Bomb Iran’ -- which elicited laughter from the crowd. McCain then chuckled before singing -- to the tune of the chorus of the Beach Boys’ classic ‘Barbara Ann’ -- ‘Bomb, bomb, bomb, bomb, anyway, ah…’
“The audience responded with more laughter.”
-- from the NPR article by Don Gonyea, April 20, 2007 “Jesting, McCain Sings: ‘Bom...more

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Apr 07, 2012 Barbara rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: abusive-relationships, families, war

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Having lost his older brother T.J. during the war in Iraq, seventeen-year-old Matt Foster is still trying to process the unexpected loss. His abusive father, a former military man himself, handles T.J.'s death by removing all his personal effects and leaving the condolence cards unopened. He runs the household with a heavy hand, and Matt dreads disappointing him by not joining the military. When he happens upon some photographs and passionate letters to his brother, Matt becomes convinced that h...more Having lost his older brother T.J. during the war in Iraq, seventeen-year-old Matt Foster is still trying to process the unexpected loss. His abusive father, a former military man himself, handles T.J.'s death by removing all his personal effects and leaving the condolence cards unopened. He runs the household with a heavy hand, and Matt dreads disappointing him by not joining the military. When he happens upon some photographs and passionate letters to his brother, Matt becomes convinced that he must follow their lead to Wisconsin where he thinks he will learn more about his brother's romantic life and a possible child. Maybe there he will find a connection to his brother and some clue to help him make sense of his death. Clearly, his brother had a life about which Matt knew nothing, and Matt is puzzled as to why he never shared that life with him. Borrowing a car from his best friend Shauna and leaving their budding romantic relationship in limbo, he leaves Pennsylvania in search of the truth and to deliver an unopened letter from T.J. Once he reaches Madison, he finds a different version of T.J.'s life than he had imagined. My heart ached for Matt but even more it ached for T.J. and Curtis and what might have been. The letters written by Curtis to T.J. are deeply emotional and show how strong the connection between the two men was. Because Curtis was not considered T.J.'s closest relative, his personal effects went to T.J.'s family while the casualty notification officers notified his father and not Curtis first, a result of the government's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy. This is an important story, another aspect of the consequences of war and of a policy that encourages dishonesty, and it's told with grace and empathy by a skillful novice author. I raced through the pages, and felt sad when I came to the last page. My only criticism is that I would have liked to have known more about the reasons behind the behavior of Matt's parents and understood more about how their relationship fell apart. (less)

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Feb 13, 2013 Kristina rated it 5 of 5 stars

Such a raw and gripping tale.

All throughout Personal Effects my heart kept clenching and breaking for all of the pain that Matt felt and most especially for what he figures out in the end. He was a brave, honest and realistic character, that I couldn't help but feel for him. While the story did read a bit slow for me, it was a fantastic read overall.

Matt's father had always groomed him and his brother to go into the military. Growing up with that push wasn't the easiest thing for either son to...more Such a raw and gripping tale.

All throughout Personal Effects my heart kept clenching and breaking for all of the pain that Matt felt and most especially for what he figures out in the end. He was a brave, honest and realistic character, that I couldn't help but feel for him. While the story did read a bit slow for me, it was a fantastic read overall.

Matt's father had always groomed him and his brother to go into the military. Growing up with that push wasn't the easiest thing for either son to deal with, but T.J. eventually joined up. Sadly, he dies on his tour in Iraq, and Matt struggles to deal with his death and his angry father. After breaking into T.J.'s stuff, he finds questions and people that he must seek out if he wants any answers. "What he learns challenges him to stand up to his father, honor his brother’s memory, and take charge of his own life."

This was such a great book. E.M. Kokie's writing was so raw and greatly detailed Matt's struggle with his brother's death and his father. I believe that she did a swell job in writing a character of the opposite gender, who had obvious male thoughts.
Really, the thing that I enjoyed most about this book was the lead character. He's written so realistically, that you probably wouldn't be able to pick him out on the street. He's not written as the totally gorgeous bad boy, or the lonely awkward guy, he just exists. In fact, I don't even know if we got total descriptions (that I paid total mind to) of his physical appearence or not. In a book, I tend to enjoy this because then it's not all about what they look like or what they're wearing. We read that what's on the inside is the only thing that matters. All we know is that there's all of this angst, pent-up anger, and FEELINGs that are so ready to bust loose, that I can't help but feel that I know him better than I know most female characters from other contemporary fiction that I've read.

Plot-wise, I was uber curious to pick up this book and discover the truth of his brother's life. Matt's questions became my questions, and I was just as eager to get those answers in the end.

Pacing-wise, for some reason it just wasn't for me. I enjoyed the crap out of this book, but some of the parts just read a bit lax for me, especially the middle. The beginning and the 150ish pages of the end kept me going the most.

Overall, Personal Effects was a great book. The plot keeps you going, the main character keeps you feeling and the ending might even twist your heart a bit. If you've eyeballed this book for awhile or are just in the least bit curious, I suggest that you pick it up and read and open your heart.

☆☆☆☆☆/5
Recommend?: If military contemporary fiction sounds appealing to you.
If you're not afraid to let your heart feel something.
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Apr 21, 2012 Kelly rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya-fiction, read-in-2012

Now that Matt's brother TJ has died in combat and he's had time to move past the initial shock, he wants to know more about who his brother really was. When the footlockers of TJ's personal effects show up at their home, he takes a chance and goes through them when his father is out. What he finds leads him down a road to learning much more than he expected about the person his brother was.

Kokie's debut is well-written but I couldn't emotionally connect with this story in quite the way I could...more Now that Matt's brother TJ has died in combat and he's had time to move past the initial shock, he wants to know more about who his brother really was. When the footlockers of TJ's personal effects show up at their home, he takes a chance and goes through them when his father is out. What he finds leads him down a road to learning much more than he expected about the person his brother was.

Kokie's debut is well-written but I couldn't emotionally connect with this story in quite the way I could with other books tackling the personal aspects of war/combat. I think it had to do with the set up. Because TJ's dead, he's an automatic hero, despite learning his personal life wasn't quite what we'd expect it to be. Whenever a character is dead from the start, especially one who has the weight of the meaning of war on them, they elicit something from the reader automatically. There's sadness and sympathy, but more than that, there's the hero effect. While I commend Kokie for not building TJ into a perfect character -- he's not -- it was challenging not to think of him as anything but the victim of war. That's why Matt ultimately has this story; he's out to prove that TJ was a whole person, something much more than a victim of war. I couldn't quite remove that image from my mind, though, even after learning more about TJ.

Matt's character gets a little lost because of this, and when the big reveal comes in the story, I had a hard time understanding his reaction because I hadn't gotten to know him well. (view spoiler) I needed more from Matt, since this was really HIS story, despite being a story about him discovering his brother's story.

The writing is strong, though, and Matt's voice was definitely male. I appreciated that Matt wasn't a hero either. Much as I needed more from him to understand his reactions to things, I liked that he was flawed, imperfect, and at the end, doesn't have many more solid answers than he did from the start. (view spoiler)

Longer review to come. (less)

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Sep 03, 2012 Jody Casella rated it 5 of 5 stars

I read this book a few weeks ago and still can't get the voice of the main character, Matt Foster, out of my mind. The first time we meet him he's one minute away from beating the crap out of a classmate. Not the type of action that typically makes a reader sympathetic. But we soon learn that Matt's buckling under the weight of anger and grief--at the death of his idealized older brother in the Iraq War and at his authoritarian, abusive father. Nevermind his other "smaller" conflicts: dismal gra...more

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Jul 04, 2012 Deborah Gray rated it 5 of 5 stars

This is categorized as a YA book, but I found it every bit as compelling and unable to put down as any adult novel. Written from the POV of a 17 year old boy, I was immediately drawn into his very believable high school life - his relationships, yearnings, difficulties and teen awkwardness. The dialogue seemed spot-on to me. But the normal teen angst was magnified and overlaid with the tragic death of his only brother in Iraq. Alternately ignored or verbally abused by a grieving, distant father,...more

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Oct 28, 2012 Isamlq rated it 3 of 5 stars

There’s an honesty to Matt’s voice with him owning up to his attraction to Shauna, him frankly talking about his reactions to her, and later on him being so matter of fact -even resigned- to how things were with his father. I liked the guy even when he pulled some dick moves because I also felt sorry for him, with a dad like he was and with his big brother gone, there really was no other reaction I could have mustered up.

Matt’s story mixes a lot of what he recalls of his brother and what he rec...more There’s an honesty to Matt’s voice with him owning up to his attraction to Shauna, him frankly talking about his reactions to her, and later on him being so matter of fact -even resigned- to how things were with his father. I liked the guy even when he pulled some dick moves because I also felt sorry for him, with a dad like he was and with his big brother gone, there really was no other reaction I could have mustered up.

Matt’s story mixes a lot of what he recalls of his brother and what he recalls in general of his family that’s in sharp contrast to where things stand with his brother gone. So that I’m waiting, hoping really for something big to come the kid’s way. Except when things do finally start happening, with him thinking he’d finally pieced things together, he decides that his going all out to do something for his big brother. Still there was also that feeling on my part: that’s someone somewhere just missed something important, so that I was dreading what’s he’s going to encounter, but couldn’t help watching all the same.

It was not a complete ‘train wreck can’t tear my eyes from it situation’ because some of it was good… like Shauna and his conflicted feelings for her, or him and Mr. Anders or even just memories of TJ, but overall you just want the kid to get out from where he was… and do something, but as he’s just about to do something… well, like I said, someone missed something vital somewhere. And when smacked with the truth, Matt’s reaction made him shine brighter…well eventually at least with doing what he did.

Unlike IF I LIE, things are not long and overdrawn where your emotions get pulled thin by how much the key character suffers and I still rooted for Matt anyway. Because while he doesn’t suffer as much as the girl in IF I LIE, he does suffer a different sort of thing. There were other parallels too with a father who is overbearing and a mother who’s out of the picture, but this story is of Matt finally seeing things for what they are and standing up.

3/5
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May 06, 2013 MLE rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: yad

A really hard, powerful book about love, loss, and family. Matt is a very angry teenage boy, but considering his father and the home he lives in, and losing his brother his rage is understandable. His father is not a nice person, and his inability, and unwillingness to cope with the loss of son, and his verbal and physical abuse help to make Matt the mess he is. His reaction to his brother's secret isn't positive, and it isn't necessarily fair, but considering where he comes from, and what he ha...more

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May 25, 2012 Lily rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: signed-books

* Hardcover: 352 pages
* Publisher: Candlewick (September 11, 2012)
* ISBN-10: 0763655279
* Author: E. M. Kokie
* Cover Art: Love it, it conveys so much I want a poster!
* Overall rating:*****+ out of 5 stars!
* Obtained: I received an ARC for review. Thank you!

Personal Effects by E. M. Kokie

Reviewed by Moirae the fates book reviews.

After his older brother dies in Iraq, Matt makes a discovery that rocks his beliefs about strength, bravery, and honor in this page-turning debut.

Ever since his bro...more

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Apr 27, 2013 Brandy rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2013, 2013hubchallenge, bildungsroman, boy-books, family-drama, library, parents_exist, realistic, teen, audiobooks, potential_booktalks

Excellent story, very well handled. Matt's reactions to just about everything that happened--TJ's death, the kid at school who keeps needling him with anti-military t-shirts, his meeting the other people TJ knew and loved--everything so believable and true to how a 17-year-old boy would react to those things. At least, a boy who's grown up in the house Matt grew up in, anyway, with that father.

I was sorry to come to the end of this book. I know that the story Kokie set out to tell was over, but...more

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Apr 28, 2013 Amy rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2013, audio-books, yalsa-best-of-the-best-2013, couldn-not-finish

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I really wanted to like this book. I went into it with a positive attitude. Nick Podehl is one of my favorite narrators. But I just never connected with the story in a positive way.

Part of the issue for me was the side story of Matt dealing with his feelings for Shauna. At first, it was okay and lent a certain depth to their relationship. But after the first few chapters, if I heard the word "tits" one more time, I was going to become a road rage statistic (I was listening in my car). The consta...more

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Jan 27, 2013 Terri rated it 4 of 5 stars

"Personal Effects" by E. M. Kokie is another entry into the LGBTQ, the contemporary after effects of war, and the family abuse novels. It is unique in that it combines all three of these genres/themes into one novel. This was definitely a plus. As a result, it is a contemporary young adult novel that will attract many types of readers.

Junior Matt Foster has lost both his mother (she left the family, apparently suffering from mental illness) and his brother T.J. (who was killed in combat). His fa...more

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Nov 05, 2012 Courtney Lavallee rated it 5 of 5 stars

My teacher recommended this book to me, so of course I took it. The title didn't quite draw me in, but reading the front cover did. Matt struggles with his father, the lose of his brother, his strained friendship with Shauna, and coping with everything while trying to prove to everyone, and himself, he's as strong as his brother was. I was in tears at the end of the book; I felt for the characters as if I were friends with them. This book doesn't just teach you how strong a teenager can be, it...more

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Feb 17, 2013 Laura Sibson rated it 5 of 5 stars

E.M. Kokie's PERSONAL EFFECTS blew me away. This was a book that my 16 yr old picked up in our local bookstore one day. I suspect he was drawn to it because of the cover, which features a teen boy (though you don't see his head) holding dog tags. My son is drawn to adventure/suspense novels and military stories. What he received in this novel is so much more.

The voice of the angry main character, Matt, and the opening scene, in which Matt loses control of that anger, grabbed me right away. Desp...more E.M. Kokie's PERSONAL EFFECTS blew me away. This was a book that my 16 yr old picked up in our local bookstore one day. I suspect he was drawn to it because of the cover, which features a teen boy (though you don't see his head) holding dog tags. My son is drawn to adventure/suspense novels and military stories. What he received in this novel is so much more.

The voice of the angry main character, Matt, and the opening scene, in which Matt loses control of that anger, grabbed me right away. Despite Matt's anger and tough demeanor, Kokie wrote him in a way that built empathy in me. After she revealed that Matt's older brother, T.J., had died in the war within the last year and that Matt's abusive father refused to acknowledge the death, I was hooked.

This book could serve as a lesson for writers in terms of creating a desire -- both concrete and emotional -- in a character and then setting up obstacles to him achieving that desire. Also, I found Kokie's pacing to be flawless. Matt needs to accept his brother's death and in order to do that, he needs to see and touch his brother's personal effects, something his overpowering father has forbidden.

There was suspense enough in Matt going through the personal effects while worrying that his father could walk in at any moment. Then, when Matt finds love letters, one of them unsent, he is compelled to meet the person his brother loved. Again, Kokie built in emotional and concrete motives -- Matt feels that he will better understand his brother through meeting the person T.J. loved and he has an actual letter he must deliver.

In order to go on the road, 17 yr old Matt faces additional obstacles including the possibility of expulsion from school, losing a job that he desperately needs and facing physical abuse from his father. But he has help in lifelong best friend Shauna. One of my favorite scenes in the book is when Matt is fighting his desire for his best friend because he assumes that she won't like him in that way. In my opinion, Kokie writes this boy very authentically. Granted, I'm not a boy, but his reactions to Shauna, his desire for her, felt real to me and Kokie handled the desire in a direct, unapologetic manner. Teenage boys get hard-ons, get over it. In all seriousness, this is an area that is often avoided in young adult literature and I found it refreshing that Kokie would address the competing feelings of a teen boy in a direct manner.

I won't reveal what happens later in the story. Suffice it to say that I cried and that I want everyone to read this book. Beautifully written at a compelling pace on a current topic -- PERSONAL EFFECTS is an excellent book that I highly recommend.
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Sep 21, 2012 Mirely rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012-50-states-challenge, 2012-its-raining-men-challenge, 2012-publication-read, 2012-reading-challenge, male-pov, war, 2012-reviews, ya-contemporary, faves, egalley, arc, abuse, interracial-relationship, cried-like-a-baby, military, mood-heavy, multicultural-peeps-of-color, us-pennsylvania, us-ohio, us-wisconsin, us-illinois, us-indiana, blessed-by-the-cover-gods

This here is one book you can’t possibly give any details about because anything at all would be a spoiler. Needless to say this is going to be one hard review to write.

Matt has a lot going on. It’s like the understatement of the year. He lives with his scary father who keeps pushing him to enlist after graduation, his older brother T.J. was blown to bits in Iraq about 6 months prior, he’s crushing hard on his best friend, his grades are non-existent, and he is angry… really angry.

A series of e...more This here is one book you can’t possibly give any details about because anything at all would be a spoiler. Needless to say this is going to be one hard review to write.

Matt has a lot going on. It’s like the understatement of the year. He lives with his scary father who keeps pushing him to enlist after graduation, his older brother T.J. was blown to bits in Iraq about 6 months prior, he’s crushing hard on his best friend, his grades are non-existent, and he is angry… really angry.

A series of events occur that lead Matt to want to know more about his brother while he was a soldier on duty. When T.J.’s lockers are delivered to their home, Matt does everything possible to keep a piece of his brother with him while doing right by his memory.

I was definitely impressed with the writing in the sense that you feel every bit of angst that is sent your way. It was incredibly real. It didn’t matter whether it was Matt or another character speaking at the time, you just knew exactly what that person was feeling and why, no questions asked. I honestly couldn’t put this book down. I had to know what was coming next. Let me tell you, this book is definitely NOT predictable. You won’t see anything coming and that too was impressive. Many props to the author. She pieced everything together in such a way that it unfolded seamlessly leaving you with a jaw dropping WHAT THE HECK just happened kind of look on your face one minute and a jaw dropping WHAT NOW look a minute after.

THE ONLY problem I had with the book was the use of some language that just seemed out of character for Matt and it really felt like a slap in the face. I literally felt the slap. Weird, I know. The words were U.G.L.Y. I can understand his initial shock that led to these ugly words AND he later had a change of heart, however, he never voiced how wrong he was to use those words or how ashamed he felt using/thinking those words. I needed to feel that resentment. I needed the reader to know that it wasn’t cool at all to think that way. Eh… It’s only my opinion but as a mom who would like to recommend this read to her kid, I’d like a book this powerful and possibly influential to ensure that words like that are definitely not ok.

Overall, this is a great read. I didn’t feel happy at the end of this book. I felt sad. The book doesn’t have a true happily ever after but it didn’t need to because like in real life some things are just a work in progress. Matt does walk away a stronger person with a plan to live happier and I couldn’t help but feel hope and love for this kid.

A week later, I’m still trying to process all of the thoughts and emotions this great read has provoked.

ARC provided by Candlewick Press via NetGalley.(less)

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