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Take Me There

by Carolee Dean (Goodreads Author)

3.84 · Rating Details · 6,775 Ratings · 333 Reviews

Dylan has a bad-boy past and a criminal record. He knows that rich, beautiful Jess is way too good for him but she has always been the one person who sees through his tough exterior and straight to his heart, and he has been hopelessly in love with her from the first time they met. He would change his life for a chance with her.

But trouble follows Dylan wherever he goes, ...more

Paperback, 325 pages

Published July 20th 2010 by Simon Pulse (first published July 1st 2010)

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Does Jess go with Dylan on the road trip?

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Community Reviews

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Feb 21, 2015 Reading Teen rated it it was amazing

Shelves: young-adult, favorite-contemp

Where do I begin with this book? Is it enough for me to say, just go read it? Probably not, huh? Take Me There was sent to us a couple of months ago, and has been sitting on my shelf ever since (while I try to tackle this never-ending TBR pile). It looked, from the cover, like a cute little fluff book. A romance that might be fun to read sometime. Let me just tell you, DON'T JUDGE A BOOK BY IT'S COVER!! (Have you heard that before?) This book was NOT fluff!

So many things happened and so many is Where do I begin with this book? Is it enough for me to say, just go read it? Probably not, huh? Take Me There was sent to us a couple of months ago, and has been sitting on my shelf ever since (while I try to tackle this never-ending TBR pile). It looked, from the cover, like a cute little fluff book. A romance that might be fun to read sometime. Let me just tell you, DON'T JUDGE A BOOK BY IT'S COVER!! (Have you heard that before?) This book was NOT fluff!

So many things happened and so many issues were tackled that I just don't know where to start or how to end. When Dylan Dawson was just six years old, his father was arrested for murder. He has grown up his entire life believing that he was worthless and had no future. Add to this the fact that he can't read or write very well, and you have a recipe for disaster. Dylan was recently released from Juvie for working at a chop shop (stealing cars and selling the parts), and has vowed to turn his life around. If not for himself, then for Jess, the girl he hopes to one day be good enough for. But trouble seems to find Dylan wherever he hides, and soon he is running from his past, from the cops, and for his life. His journey takes him to Texas, where he hopes to visit his imprisoned father and find the answers to the questions he's been asking his whole life.

Dylan takes us with him on his journey to escape his past. We travel with him and his best friend, Wade, to Texas, where we meet his convict father, his eccentric grandmother, and her very interesting pig. The story jumps from the present, to the past, where Dylan paints a picture of the life he was hoping to have with Jess, the girl he has loved since childhood. He shows us the poetry he has to fight to write because he doesn't know how to spell. Then there are excerpts from a book that his father, Dylan Dawson Sr., has written from prison, explaining how illiteracy is like brand that marks people for prison from childhood. These excerpts were so moving, and all I could think was that it makes me so sad to think that the people who most need to read this book, probably can't.

It was an incredible thing to fall in love with the main character of a book. Dylan is a "bad-boy" in the sense that he can't quite seem to get it right, but he certainly is not when it comes to the way that he treats Jess. He is so incredible to her that I just melted! And his poetry! I'm not a person who usually enjoys poetry, but I loved it in this book. It was the story behind the poems that made them so beautiful. To read about the emotions and experiences as he is going through them, then to read the poetry he uses to express those feelings was amazing.

The storyline has so many different twists. Just when you think one thing is resolved, WHAM, you're hit with something else! There are murders, and gangs, and jail fights, and executions, there's mystery, and dealing with illiteracy, and betrayal, and then there's friendship, and love....romance, yes, but also the love between family and friends and how far they will go to protect each other. I just can't say enough about this book!

Take Me There is heartbreaking, but hopeful. I can't tell you how many times I sighed, wiped tears from my eyes, and said out loud to whoever was in the room, "I love this book!" Is it my favorite book? I don't know. But what I do know is that it was the most moving story I've ever read.

Andye (http://ReadingTeen.net/) ...more

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Feb 24, 2013 Jude rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites, in-my-shelf

The cover of this book caught my attention, it's a really good cover, and next, the title. I though: Susan’s Colasanti Take Me There? I picked up the book and read the summary. Long Summary Short: Bad 'gang boy' fall for pretty 'it' girl. And then I though: Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles! So I immediately bought the book, considering I’m a big fan of Colasanti’s and Elkele’s work, I assumed it would be a story like Perfect Chemistry, with the light bubbly factor of Take Me There.

You guessed The cover of this book caught my attention, it's a really good cover, and next, the title. I though: Susan’s Colasanti Take Me There? I picked up the book and read the summary. Long Summary Short: Bad 'gang boy' fall for pretty 'it' girl. And then I though: Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles! So I immediately bought the book, considering I’m a big fan of Colasanti’s and Elkele’s work, I assumed it would be a story like Perfect Chemistry, with the light bubbly factor of Take Me There.

You guessed. I was wrong. Take Me There does follow the Perfect Chemistry theme: a bad boy falling for the good girl, thinking he doesn’t deserve her and he’s in a gang- Or was. The Difference is that this story has so much more depth, in Elkele’s work, it wasn’t so much depth, but more like drama and action. Do not get me wrong, I LOVED the Perfect Chemistry series; but Take Me There was just. . . I have never loved a character as much as Dylan ever in my life.

I know the idea of a guy being in a gang and having trouble with it sounds supper exiting, but I don’t think it applies to Take Me There. It does have some gruesome shocking parts but, it's more of the self-discovery of Dylan, his internal fights, deciding to do the easy thing, or the right thing. Fighting for Jess’s love, trying to hide a past that seems to haunt him, and trying to be someone else, to change, when it seems like it's in his veins to be a criminal.

I really liked this book, or maybe I even loved it, I’m not quite sure yet (02/21/13 Update: Yep, I loved it.). It made me feel sad, happy, angry, frustrated and so many more things. After I finished it, it was as if I had a hole in my chest, it was a. . . I don’t know how to describe it, it wasn’t a happy ending, it wasn’t a sad ending, it wasn’t angry. . . but I was full of hope, love , uncertainty and freedom in many ways; like life itself, but specially hope. I can relate so much to Dylan in the way he needs to write down what’s in his mind, but there doesn’t seem to be enough ink or paper or words to put them down. It's the book that has moved more emotions inside of me, the one that I have marked more pages in because I love them, and so far the one who has leaved more marks in my mind and in my heart.

I think Take Me There is a road we should all cross, Dylan is a great character, the story is thrilling in many ways, Jess’s character is simply beautiful, and Dylan’s life. . . it’s a tangled up, and bumpy road. ...more

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Mar 30, 2011 K. rated it it was amazing

Shelves: this-shelf-is-divine, hit-me-in-the-heart, ok-fine-its-ya, slippery-as-waterweed, goosebumps, identity-and-psychology, society-culture-and-politics, 21st-cent

I don't know if I can put my feelings and thoughts into words, such is the gravity of my love.

Take Me There takes you by surprise. The cover and summary leads one to expect an ordinary, yet another young adult novel about a bad boy with a troubled past falling for a good girl with a bright future. But any preconceived judgments readers might have are immediately dispelled by, not the first chapter, but the dedication. Dean dedicates the book to individuals who actively make a difference on the " I don't know if I can put my feelings and thoughts into words, such is the gravity of my love.

Take Me There takes you by surprise. The cover and summary leads one to expect an ordinary, yet another young adult novel about a bad boy with a troubled past falling for a good girl with a bright future. But any preconceived judgments readers might have are immediately dispelled by, not the first chapter, but the dedication. Dean dedicates the book to individuals who actively make a difference on the "youth of today who will become the leaders of tomorrow." I love that. It shows that she's trying to do something with this book (other than entertain).

I really don't mean to be such a hater or a downer but we all know that right now, in the book business, YA is where its at. I don't think this genre has ever been more popular - not to mention lucrative. I look around and I swell with excitement knowing young people are reading so much. But then I read the books and think they might as well go back to being illiterate...okay, I'm exaggerating but you get my point. I read the array of mindless characters they try to throw at us and the inane storylines where the emotional crux of the plot is whether or not they get together.

I like books that has more at stake. I like complex characters that have more going for them other than a romance. And I feel this book achieves that. I felt for Dylan as a young man in love, yes. But also as a young man neglected by his mother; really, who lacks any guiding authority other than the authorities. As a boy who deserves better friends. A boy who tries to do good but seems so out of luck. A boy trying to escape a fate he feels has been set before him long ago by the father he lost. So much more. I'm just not articulate enough to explain it all.

This book is heartfelt and heart-wrenching; it is yearning and sad; angry and tired. It suffers inner turmoil but stands resolute. It is brave and afraid. It is desperate but not without hope.

I didn't fully understand just how invested I was in the story until I got to the end. I suddenly felt this grip on my soul, my heart, my lungs, what have you, which I then realized had been there for a while, getting tighter and tighter the further I read. It was a very deep and filling breath gathering inside me.

Its so unfair sometimes. Just when you wish a book is the first of a series, its a stand alone. Carolee Dean, please continue this story. I need more. ...more

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Nov 22, 2014 Cari rated it it was amazing

Read the FULL gif-filled non-spoliery review @My Addiction:Books

Rating:

Actual Rating: A gazillion stars

My Opinion Of This Book: I'M SPEECHLESS. THIS IS MY 2nd FAVORITE BOOK EVER.

Liked:
-The Writing
-The Plot/Storyline
-The Romance
-The Poems
-Dylan
-Jess
-Wade
-The Ending

I never knew I could finish a book in a blast,
I never knew I could cry this whole bunch,
I never knew I could love a book character so much so fast,
I never knew I could love a book so much.

The Characters

Dylan

"I know a girl with sea gr

...more

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Jun 30, 2011 Natshane rated it it was amazing

People luk at me and wok akros the street.
So tired of the suspishus eyes
On all the faces that I meet
And tell me, if I try
To be a difrent guy,
Will you be the girl
To rearrange my wirld?
You take me up,
You take me down,
Take me to the sky,
Take me to the ground.
I'd go anywhere
If you would take me there.

Dylan Dawson was trouble, no matter how hard he tried to stay away from it's path, trouble will come knocking down his doors. He believed he inherited the trait from his dad, who was sentenced to a People luk at me and wok akros the street.
So tired of the suspishus eyes
On all the faces that I meet
And tell me, if I try
To be a difrent guy,
Will you be the girl
To rearrange my wirld?
You take me up,
You take me down,
Take me to the sky,
Take me to the ground.
I'd go anywhere
If you would take me there.

Dylan Dawson was trouble, no matter how hard he tried to stay away from it's path, trouble will come knocking down his doors. He believed he inherited the trait from his dad, who was sentenced to a death penalty of lethal injection. Then he met Jess, a girl who makes him believe in himself again.

This book is a journey of a teenage man embarking on the road to redemption, to reconnect with his past and seek the future. Take me there has a way of undoing my insides, because I was bawling by the time I closed the book, and instantly, I felt my few hours of reading had changed me emotionally and mentally, I had definitely aged a lot.
What started out as a typical bad boy meets good girl story took off an interesting twist when Wade, Dylan's best friend decided to go on with a robbery, things spiral out of control from there and they found themselves on the run. And who knew, when Dylan planned to pay his dad a visit, he let loose a chain of bitter memories?

5/5 proves an amazing book:

1. The cover drew me in, and the fact that the summary was quite similar to Perfect Chemistry I knew that this was the book I must get, instead, I was emotionally tangled and I don't think I ever felt this intense reading Perfect Chemistry, and I loved Perfect Chemistry.

2. The characters were well developed, from every single family dramas to boyfriend girlfriend dramas, each was fill with emotions that gripped me so hard.

3. Who knew a teenager mind could be so complicated? I find myself screaming GO! HIM! HER! THERE! WHAT?! all the time when I was reading this book, partly because the story plot was adrenaline junkie, and a huge part because the book was unpredictable. I have no idea what to expect, for an example, I thought Dylan's dad could be (view spoiler), or that I don't know who's the real murderer of Jack Golden, everyone was a suspect. It's one of the most brilliant mystery/romance/thriller novel I ever read.

4. I love the poems, I think Carolee is another version of Suzanne Collins and Veronica Roth, because she writes great story plot.

5. I adore every single poems, every single quotes, and every single words touched me deeply.

Take me there, to the place, where I finally belong. This book is so much different from Perfect Chemistry, and if you're looking for romance, you may not find much here, instead you might find yourself being pulled into this sad life of a young boy.
...more

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Aug 06, 2010 Samantha rated it liked it

Shelves: teen-fiction

I picked up this book because the back page summary reminded me of Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles. Usually I don't like books that are similar but I wanted something a little edgy, a little sweet and totally romantic.

This book was far from that.

Take Me There is not a bad book. It has a male narrator, that automatically gives it a plus in my book. Those, especially in what seems to be presented as a romance books, are pretty rare. Only a few come to mind, and those few are my favorite.

Dyla ...more

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May 26, 2011 Joy (joyous reads) rated it it was amazing

If I were creative (which I'm not), there will be a pic of a heart in a blender on this review.
If I were wordy (which I'm not), this review will be filled with words describing how wonderful this book is from A to Z.
If I were smart (which I'm not), I will stay away from these kind of books that rips my heart into pieces (I cannot).

You take a boy, normal boy.
Mom is alive (she lives in a bottle).
Dad is alive (he lives in prison).
He can't read, can barely write.
He's doing his best and is turnin ...more

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Jan 04, 2011 Say rated it it was amazing

Shelves: january-2011-reads

i had this book for quite some time already...and since one of my goals this year is to read my books that has been collecting dusts in my shelf, i pulled this one from the stocks i have. and my, i should have read this one when i bought coz the story was really good. ive read a few reviews saying that this one is like the books of simone elkeles...the perfect chemistry trilogy, a bad boy falling in love with a rich girl. but the similarity ends there. for me take me there has more depth and hea ...more

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May 30, 2012 Zemira (Kylo Ren fangirl) Warner rated it it was amazing

Recommends it for: fans of more serious YA books

Shelves: road-trip, realistic, surprised-me, heavy-stuff, best-of-2012

Wow. I am so glad I decided to pick up this book. It wasn't what I expected. No,it was so much more.

I was ready for a road trip and a romance that would blow my mind but I got a boy who is on a run from the police. He ends up looking for his father who is in line for the lethal injection. The biggest part of this book was revolving around finding out the truth and forgiveness. Romance is not an important factor of the novel and surprisingly I didn't have any problems with that.

I don't understa ...more

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Jun 03, 2011 Tee loves Kyle Jacobson rated it it was amazing

This book was a great read and it told a great story. A story of love, loss, and choices. A must read!

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Oct 22, 2010 Kerri rated it really liked it

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Sep 17, 2014 Cesilia Buenrostro rated it it was amazing

I knew that when I started reading thing book that I was going to enjoy it. Boy, what an understatement! Dylan, the main character, has had a tough life. His father being in prison since he was six years, his mother who never told him about him unless she was drunk, being illiterate and having a criminal record at just seventeen. I felt for Dylan, he tries his best to become a better person and stay out of trouble and yet it followed him. He met Wade in Juvie and since then Dylan was taken him u ...more

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Jun 03, 2011 Holly rated it really liked it

Shelves: realistic-fiction

I don't usually read books where the main character is in trouble with the law. I amend that statement. I don't usually read "realistic fiction" books where the main character is in trouble with the law. It happens in my supernatural books for obvious reasons sometimes. I think the last book I read with this kind of premise was Leaving Paradise by Simone Elkeles. They have a semi-similar premise, once you get into the story. But I feel that this one had more of a mystery behind it that was activ ...more

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Sep 03, 2012 PaperbackAnchors (Sabrina) rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites

Words can't even begin to describe how emotionally connected I felt to this book. I don't know why it got to me so much, but it did. Dylans struggles got through and sunk into me so deeply it hurt. I almost regret reading it because I found myself afterward having nightmares about dating a guy that had to go through the things Dylan did. The epilogue was what killed me. Before I spoil the ending , I recommend this book to the fullest. If you cry in books, get your box of tissues out for this one ...more

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Mar 21, 2011 Brooke T rated it it was amazing

Take Me There is brilliant! I love the way the book is set up and that the book is narrated from a boy’s point of view. There are poems at the beginning of most chapters. I don’t want to give away the reason for the poems, but it’s a good one. I can tell you that thes poems are written by Dylan and it shows he has a sensitive side that’s really sweet, but he doesn’t even know it. Even though his mom is depressed, he is still that good son who doesn’t want to disappoint her.

Dylan tries so hard t ...more

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Nov 28, 2010 Michelle. D. rated it it was ok

I guess the book was alright. The plor was OK but the book itself wasn't all that appealing. The only thing that kept me reading it was the relationship between Dylan and Jess. I could really care less for all the pther thingand I feel bad saying that). The title kinda matched the book but the book cover itself didn't match the book at all. Maybe I didn't get the point of it, but... The setting was OK, some characters were pretty annoying and the past and present flashes were kinda confusing at ...more

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Jul 29, 2011 Savannah rated it it was amazing

The cover really misleads you so does the back of the book. It sound like a little teen romance but it really isn't at all. Its more of an action novel than romance by far. Dylan the main character has always gotten into trouble. Now he is fresh out of juvie trying to turn things around for him and his friend. But their gang is trying to find them again, Dylan's dad is on death row, he and his mother are just scraping by, and Dylan has fallen in love with Jess. He has been in love with Jess sinc ...more

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Feb 11, 2011 Aydrea rated it it was amazing

Shelves: recommended, recs-for-my-sister

So I have been thinking about what I want to write and I still don't really know. For me this book was so powerful and had a huge impact on me. The story is fiction but is based off of reality. Dylan is a character that I became attached to because of his situation and I found myself hoping that he could change his life around. This might have to do with what I want to do in my life, but I digress. Dylan realizes that his life isn't what he wants it to be and he tries to change it. I don't want ...more

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Feb 04, 2013 Holly rated it it was ok

For anyone who is considering reading this book:
DO NOT LET THE COVER INFLUENCE YOUR DECISION.

Looks like some sort of romance, huh?
NOT.

Title hints at something sexy, eh?
NOPE.

The so called "love story" made up maybe, MAYBE 1/8 of the story.

So don't get confused. Just saying.

That said, it was alright. I was just expecting that when Dylan and Wade ran, they'd take Jess with them, and it would be a whirlwind romantic adventure. Yeah, ROMANTIC.

However, I liked the endorsing of literacy, and I did li ...more

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Feb 24, 2011 berkalee rated it it was amazing

oh wow i loved this book though it is very much over my age limit if you like a mind boggling mystery that really only gets half figueed out this is the book for you

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Oct 31, 2015 Elizabeth rated it it was amazing

Shelves: own-hardcopy

I love books that tie in every single detail to make them all relate to the main story. This book is one of those books, where it seems as if you have 2 or 3 stories that are only related because the main character is involved in all of them, but as you read on you find out that they are all connected. And the filler 'fluff' actually is foreshadowing the next move and is helping to intertwine the two stories.

I usually just read one or two chapters of a book before going to bed because my work s ...more

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Jan 17, 2015 Danica Page (One Page at a Time) rated it it was amazing

Shelves: need-to-buy, young-adult, favorites, realistic-fiction, family-issues, family-relations, on-deck-1, death, out-in-2010, contemporary, road-trip, standalone, gangs, crime

Some books are heartbreaking and make you want to cry. This was one of them. It dealt with hard issues and was just so real. I loved it. It was one that resonated with me.

Official review:

Cover: Do not be fooled by the cover. This is not a romance novel.

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars.

My Overall Thoughts/Impressions: I had the opportunity to read this book for free otherwise I never would have come across it.

I loved this book. It was heartbreaking and yet was an incredible deep read. There are so ...more

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Oct 27, 2014 Brandi rated it really liked it

This was an amazing book because it was so much more than met the eye.
Take Me There takes you by surprise. The cover and summary leads you to expect an ordinary young adult novel about a bad boy with a troubled past falling for a good girl with a bright future. But any pre made judgments readers might have made can be immediately demolished in the first chapter. When Dylan Dawson was just six years old, his father was arrested for murder. He has grown up his entire life believing that he was wo ...more

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Dec 22, 2012 Arti rated it liked it

Okay. You see the cover. its flawless. Amazing. it shows Dylan and Jess in the middle of the road in a romantic position. You see the title with direction arrows and you think,
"Oh okay, this is probably going to be sort of a love story with adventure and excitement."
Then your read the blurb. The blurb is two paragraphs. One about Dylan and Jess and the other about Dylan finding answers. Honestly, Dylan's grandmother was in the book more than Jess. Wade had more dialogs than Jess. It was almost Okay. You see the cover. its flawless. Amazing. it shows Dylan and Jess in the middle of the road in a romantic position. You see the title with direction arrows and you think,
"Oh okay, this is probably going to be sort of a love story with adventure and excitement."
Then your read the blurb. The blurb is two paragraphs. One about Dylan and Jess and the other about Dylan finding answers. Honestly, Dylan's grandmother was in the book more than Jess. Wade had more dialogs than Jess. It was almost like, Jess was a minor character and not the romantic interest of Dylan. If I had to put it together, this story concentrated more on Dylan and his answers than Dylan and Jess. So the first part of the blurb is totally deceiving.

Besides that, I thought the book lacked some excitement. Don't get me wrong, the gang, finding out his father's going to die, getting shot at; that's some badass stuff, and if it was phrased and written better into the story, it definitely would have made the book more interesting. I did like the small touches that the author added. I thought those were absolutely amazing. Like the fact that Dylan couldn't read or write or that he and Wade were friends because of an incident in juvi. I loved the small poems in the book, especially the one with the misspelled words. That gave it a very real touch.

The characters. Well, I'm a bit iffy about them. I'm not sure if they were all described well. I got the general physical appearance, but besides a few flashes of their emotional appearance and how they were as a person, there wasn't much to work with. The author touched up on Dylan beautifully. It was easy to understand what he was thinking. It also helps that it was from his point of view, which I should point out, male character very rarely get to have their point of view for the entire book and not alternating, so I liked that. But I still feel the characters were underdeveloped. The only emotional thing said about Wade was, the incident in juvi, where he was beaten up and left scarred. There was no real background behind the characters. It was sort of like reading a summarised story:

Dylan meets a girl Jess who he met long ago. Jess has read hair and likes to sing. He quits school and he and his friend Wade go and works at a car shop because they have to.

That's sort of how the story went.

The plot line is amazing, and I think if it was written differently and maybe thought out differently, it could have been a great book. ...more

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Aug 13, 2011 Erjane rated it really liked it

At first, I thought this book was just one of those chick lit, young adult novels about bad boys turned good because of a certain girl, blah blah blah. But boy, I am so ready to admit that I AM SO WRONG!

Take Me There is more than just meets the eye. The cover didn't do the book any justice. This isn't a cute love story where the hero falls in love with the heroine and then they live happily ever after. This is a story about love that encompasses a lot of things. A love deeper than anything else At first, I thought this book was just one of those chick lit, young adult novels about bad boys turned good because of a certain girl, blah blah blah. But boy, I am so ready to admit that I AM SO WRONG!

Take Me There is more than just meets the eye. The cover didn't do the book any justice. This isn't a cute love story where the hero falls in love with the heroine and then they live happily ever after. This is a story about love that encompasses a lot of things. A love deeper than anything else. I know I'm being a bit dramatic here but that's what I felt when I read this book. This will trigger a lot of emotion from its reader.

When I just started to read it, I felt kinda bored because it was really a narrative type, and I'm the type who wants a lot of conversations from the characters. I felt compelled to finish it though, because I don't want to be left hanging. Then things gradually changed. They started revealing things about the plot, blah blah (I don't really want to put it here. I'm not a fan of spoilers.) Dylan, the main character in this story, is not just your typical rebel. I love that he treasures and loves his parents, and even his grandma, despite the circumstances in his life. I also love that Jess has a nice and interesting part of the story. And most especially, I love the poems in this book! (I'm sorry, I just can't help myself to reveal this one)

Overall, I am very deeply moved by Take Me There. This has really taken me to a place where I can see that we really are the one in control of our lives. We can't blame other people for all the bad choices we've made. After all, there's always a rainbow after the rain. Let's just hope that the people we love will not leave us while we're traveling through that difficult path. For we can always find the strength to move forward through them. :)

Note: This is the first review I have written ever. When I want to share my thoughts in the past, I just left a comment and it's usually a short one. I don't know what came into me to do this, so please bear with me. I just hope that this will not also be my last to do this. :) ...more

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Dec 01, 2010 Mundie Moms & Mundie Kids rated it liked it

Shelves: 2010-100-book-challenge, mundie-moms-reviews, signed-books-arcs, books-i-own

Take Me There is a story that leaves a lasting impression on you days after you read it. It's one of those books that really makes you think. What Carolee presents in Take Me There is an important message about illiteracy and the limited options illiteracy presents. It's also about choices, as the choices that are made today can and will determine where we end up a few months from now, to years from now.

Take Me There is the story of Dylan, our broken, illiterate boy who tries to do the right thi Take Me There is a story that leaves a lasting impression on you days after you read it. It's one of those books that really makes you think. What Carolee presents in Take Me There is an important message about illiteracy and the limited options illiteracy presents. It's also about choices, as the choices that are made today can and will determine where we end up a few months from now, to years from now.

Take Me There is the story of Dylan, our broken, illiterate boy who tries to do the right thing. No matter how hard Dylan tries to stay away from trouble, it follows him. When something bad happens, he and his best friend Wade run from California to TX. Trouble always has a way of finding Dylan, even on the run.

Dylan is more than a tragic character, he's full of insight and wants to make something of himself, but he feels he can't do that until he meets his father who's sitting on death row in TX. As Dylan tries to piece together the tragic events that locked his father up, he learns more about himself and comes to understand why his father did what he did. What I like about Dylan, is even though he's a bad boy, he tries to do everything he can to do something better with his life. Carolee provides us with an insight to Dylan's more sensitive side by sharing his poems through out the book.

Carolee provides a whole cast of strong supporting characters for Dylan and while at times you want to yell at them, in the end each of their personal strengths shine through. From his best friend Wade who's the reason behind their run from the law to TX, to Jess, Dylan's girlfriend. Jess is the beautiful California girl who comes from a rich family, but even rich families aren't perfect and Jess's character is one I really liked getting to know more about. She's not your typical beauty queen and she offers Dylan hope and makes him realize he's so much more than he thinks he is. Meeting the rest of Dylan's family will be heartbreaking and empowering for Dylan.

Take Me There isn't a warm fuzzy read. It's a book with a powerful message. It's not a pretty story, but it's one that portrays real life for many people. This book has left me questioning our judicial system and what more can be done to end to illiteracy in this country. Carolee did a beautiful job at not only writing Dylan's story, but she wove together Dylan reminiscing about the choices that lead him and Wade to be on the run, to present tense and introduces us to Dylan's father, with pages of his father's writing. Carolee's writing is done so well, that I was never lost on who's voice was who's or what was going on. By providing small insights into Dylan's dad's story, you understand Dylan more and the fate that awaits him.

Take Me There is a thought provoking read, that will leave you cheering for the bad boy and hoping that everything works out for him and Jess. It's a book that will have adults remembering what it was like to be a teenager trying to find your own direction in life, and one that teens will relate to on many levels. ...more

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Oct 08, 2011 Katherine Marple rated it really liked it

Take Me There was a story about a 17 year old boy who grew up without a father because his father was states away in prison. Growing up, noone talked to him about his father or why his dad was locked away. He grew up knowing nothing about his family's past. As he travels down the "bad" road, winding up in juvie and struggling to break out of the gang crowd, he makes a last ditch effort to figure out who he is by running to meet his father who is waiting his execution date just two weeks off. Hal ...more

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May 25, 2011 Courtney added it

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Genre: Thriller
Take Me There is in the point of view of a teenage boy named Dylan, like any other boy, who’s in love and is living in the shadow of his infamous father. Dylan lives his life with a criminal record until he realizes he doesn’t have to make the mistakes as his father. When figuring his life out he ends up in a sticky and suspicious situation. The story goes on chapter by chapter, revealing the truth and lies of Dylan’s life.
Take Me There wasn’t one of my favorite novels but the t ...more

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Jun 11, 2011 Carina rated it really liked it

I thought this was gonna be a fluffy, cute romance story, between a 'bad boy' trying to be good for the girl he thinks he doesn't deserve.Well its about alot more tha that. Dylan is trying to go 'legit' after being in Juvi for a while. But everything seem to want to drag him back to the old ways of being a gang member, a drunk and a junkie. He is a misunderstood, closet poet, who can't read.

So he starts wondering if he can ever be a good person or if the bad person is impregnated in his blood? ...more

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Mar 15, 2012 Grace rated it liked it

I liked this book. I did. I just didn't completely connect with it. I loved Dylan's character and Wade's. There just two guys trying to stay out of the tough life that they were raised into. THe love aspect really left me wanting something. The whole "romance" takes place within the span of about a week and honestly I didn't really feel it. It was really rushed and kind of random. If the author had let Dylan and Jess take the time to get to know eachother, the love aspect could have been good. H ...more

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“Words are like people, I think. Put too many of them too close together and they cause trouble.” — 81 likes

“As long as you're breathing, there's still hope.” — 63 likes

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