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26th out of 59 books
—
95 voters
Leap
by
Jodi Lundgren (Goodreads Author)
Natalie Ferguson has just turned fifteen, a momentous age that, happily, means that she's officially a grown-up. But while her mom doesn't seem to have got the memo, Kevin, her best friend Sasha's older brother, has. The school year is over, and Natalie is looking forward to a summer of perfecting her technique at dance camp. Caught up with the excitement of Kevin's attent...more
Paperback, 217 pages
Published
March 1st 2011
by Second Story Press
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I just never understood the protagonist of this novel. Her character jumped around too much- I never felt that her character was grounded. Same thing with her best friend and the love interest. Honestly, the minor characters of her sister and mom were the most believable in their actions.
I also think the novel was trying to do too much in one novel. Best friend issues, boy issues, dance issues, divorced parents issues, mom issues, identity issues... so much!
Also, the girl in this novel is only...more
I also think the novel was trying to do too much in one novel. Best friend issues, boy issues, dance issues, divorced parents issues, mom issues, identity issues... so much!
Also, the girl in this novel is only...more
Wow. I really liked this character (Natalie) from the first page, and I read it all in practically one sitting because I was so interested, not only in what would happen to her but in what she would say about it. The narrator kind of reminded me of a gentler Canadian Holden Caulfield in tights. I think her voice has a good mix of earnestness, bravado, irony, and fragility--very teen. I love the scenes in dance class, the interactions with dance teachers and peers--quite dramatic at times, someti...more
My first comment is that I really hope the back cover is completely different on the finished copy. At the top it says in huge writing “when life is changing, sometimes you have to take a LEAP of faith in yourself” and there’s a cheesy image to go with the cheesy words. Then the “blurb” tells basically the entire story, ruining any surprises the book may have offered, had I not read the back first. This is like when movie trailers give away the best jokes, it drives me crazy.
The book itself spen...more
The book itself spen...more
Natalie Ferguson just turned fifteen. Things are going to change, because, according to her, she’s a grown up now. To top things off, Kevin, her best friend Sasha’s brother, is suddenly interested in her and Natalie is thrilled. She jumps into the relationship with full force, but the honeymoon period can only last so long. While some days with Kevin are wild and amazing, others are awful. The biggest issue is she’s lost Sasha and has no one to turn to, not even her divorcee mother, who has deci...more
I loved this book, not only because it is about dancing (which made me pick it up in the first place) but it involved so many issues that in reality a teenager may face. Divorce, secrets, finding your talents and passions, finding out who your real friends are and saying no to a guy. It is all written in a diary like format which makes it actually to my surprise more interesting. Also, it takes place in Victoria, BC so the setting of it makes the story 10 times more interesting. Natalie (the mai...more
{Sited from my website TeenageBookaholic }
In Leap, Natalie is an aspiring dancer with teenage problems that suck. It's summer and Natalie just turned 15. Her Dad divorced her mother to go be a workaholic and leave her and her younger sister, Paige. Her summer dance classes are about to start up again, but has time weathered some relationships between the dance team? Natalie begins to fall for Sasha's, her best friend, brother, Kevin, and Sasha is protective of her friends getting into a relation...more
In Leap, Natalie is an aspiring dancer with teenage problems that suck. It's summer and Natalie just turned 15. Her Dad divorced her mother to go be a workaholic and leave her and her younger sister, Paige. Her summer dance classes are about to start up again, but has time weathered some relationships between the dance team? Natalie begins to fall for Sasha's, her best friend, brother, Kevin, and Sasha is protective of her friends getting into a relation...more
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I won the ARC of this book on one of the book blogs.
The books is a diary of coming of age summer of a teenage girl.
First times drinking, weed smoking, sex, break-ups, as well as dealing with lacking love or attention from divorced parents, learning to accept and re-negotiate the relationships and dealing with a life full of questions, choosing what's right or doing things to please others, and finally taking a leap of faith - that is what this book is about.
The books is a diary of coming of age summer of a teenage girl.
First times drinking, weed smoking, sex, break-ups, as well as dealing with lacking love or attention from divorced parents, learning to accept and re-negotiate the relationships and dealing with a life full of questions, choosing what's right or doing things to please others, and finally taking a leap of faith - that is what this book is about.
I really related to Natalie. I could see why she got attracted to the older guy, even though he was obviously trouble. I also felt for her when her friends and family let her down. She goes through a lot of ups and downs in this one summer. I had to keep turning the page to see how she would deal with the latest challenge. No matter what happens, she keeps right on dancing and pursuing her dreams. An excellent story with an inspiring message about finding your passion.
I gave it 50 pages, but it felt like this story starts in the wrong place. I'm not interested in Natalie at all because all we get is a string of events happening, and none of them are all that interesting. I wanted to know more about her dancing and more about her relationship with Kevin than I'm given. 50 pages in and I know nothing that the back cover promises the story holds. A little disappointing.
Jun 06, 2011
Myfannwy
added it
Jodi Lundgren has a gift for creating resonant emotional situations layered with finely crafted physical details. I'm not a dancer (though I did start to take a modern dance class once) and my teenage years were very different, but she made her main character's experiences feel universal. A complex, carefully interwoven novel of trust, betrayal and love.
I was sort of interested for a while. But it took me about two weeks to get halfway through a 200 page YA book....last night I decided I really didn't care anymore. I had high hopes when I came across it in the YA section and read the cover. Oh well!
Okay, so as I expressed to my friends, this book, at the beginning, had a bad writing style. Plus, the character was displayed to be quite stupid. Once I passed about two thirds of a way through it, the writing style seemed to improve and I liked it more. If the same style that was used in the ending of the book was used in the rest of it, I probably would have liked it more than I actually did. And even in the beginning, the situations that came into play were quite random....and sometimes very...more
Beautiful descriptions of dance, whole lotta stupid everywhere else.
not exactly what i expected, wanted a little more dance involved, but good overall
I received a free copy of this book from First Reads, and I am kind of glad that I didn't pay for it. I had a really difficult time finishing this book. It just couldn't hold my attention.
I couldn't connect to Natalie at all and I wished this book had involved more dancing, like I was expecting it to. I also didn't care for the writing style of the author.
It was disappointing to me, but I think a younger reader may enjoy it and not be as critical.
I couldn't connect to Natalie at all and I wished this book had involved more dancing, like I was expecting it to. I also didn't care for the writing style of the author.
It was disappointing to me, but I think a younger reader may enjoy it and not be as critical.
I found this book quite good. Although towards the end kind of bore me.
May 14, 2013
Coco_Chanel Babe
marked it as cpl-paper
May 14, 2013
Mary E
marked it as to-read
May 13, 2013
Maisha
marked it as to-read
May 04, 2013
Avery Williams
marked it as to-read
May 04, 2013
Emy
marked it as to-read
Apr 30, 2013
Katie Parker
marked it as to-read
Apr 24, 2013
Yonatan Weiss
marked it as to-read
Apr 22, 2013
Elin
marked it as to-read
Apr 14, 2013
Brenna
marked it as to-read
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May 01, 2011 10:57am