Saving Francesca in Nothing But Reading Challenges

Oct 27, 2011 Ronyell rated it it was amazing

Shelves: ronyell-s-epinions-reviews, manners, sexy-bad-boy-hero, young-adult-teen-books, my-blog-reviews, contemporary-romance, australian-books, italian-hero-or-heroine, 1st-person-pov, melina-marchetta

“If you are one of the few girls attending an all male school, then it is a dream come true, right? Well…”

After reading so many great reviews on Melina Marchetta’s classic novel, “Saving Francesca,” I just had to give this book a shot and man, was I blown away by how awesome this book really is! “Saving Francesca” is author Melina Marchetta’s second book and the first book I had read from author Melina Marchetta and after reading this book, I definitely am looking forward to reading more of “If you are one of the few girls attending an all male school, then it is a dream come true, right? Well…”

After reading so many great reviews on Melina Marchetta’s classic novel, “Saving Francesca,” I just had to give this book a shot and man, was I blown away by how awesome this book really is! “Saving Francesca” is author Melina Marchetta’s second book and the first book I had read from author Melina Marchetta and after reading this book, I definitely am looking forward to reading more of Melina Marchetta’s works!

Francesca Spinelli was your average teenage girl who actually attends an unusual school called St. Sebastian’s where the student body is predominately male, but as much as that sounds like a dream come true for any female, to Francesca it is anything but a dream come true. Francesca has to deal with school bullies and being in a totally different environment that she was so used to at her old school St. Stella’s Academy that was predominately an all female school. Not only that, but Francesca’s mother, Mia Spinelli had suddenly succumbed to depression and Francesca is left wondering who she really is and how she will survive her life without her mother to guide her.

Wow! I was just so blown away by the writing and the characters of this unique little novel that I wish I had discovered years ago! Melina Marchetta has done a brilliant job at writing this story as it HILARIOUS, EMOTIONAL and INTERESTING all at the same time! I loved the character of Francesca Spinelli herself as she is shown to be extremely feisty, caring and independent at the same time and I loved the relationship that she shares with her mother Mia. There were many moments in this book where I actually felt sympathy for Francesca because of her mother going through depression and even though there were moments where she seems to lash out at other people who were trying to comfort her, I can actually understand what she is going through as she does not quite understand about why her mother is so depressed and why she refuses to get out of bed. This is a topic that can scare children, especially if they do not understand about why their parents are depressed and Melina Marchetta had done an awesome job at exploring this topic without ever going too overboard with Francesca’s feelings on this matter. I also loved the fact that Melina Marchetta made this story be told from Francesca’s point of view as we truly get inside her head about how she feels about attending a school where the student body is predominantly male and how she felt about her mother’s sudden depression and the toll it took on her emotions. Probably the best part about this book was Francesca’s relationship with her friends Siobhan Sullivan, Tara Finke, Justine Kalinsky, Thomas Mackee and Jimmy Hailler as they are all misfits (Tara Finke is an ultra-feminist, Justine Kalinsky is the school nerd and Thomas Mackee is the burping champion) and I loved the way that Francesca just connected with each of them. Francesca’s relationship with her friends sort of reminds me of the friendship that Jerry, Elaine, George and Kramer share in “Seinfeld” (“Seinfeld,” yeah I know) as they do argue with each other, but they remain close friends with each other through good and bad times (not to mention the random dialogues such as school parties and politics that usually pop up between these six friends).

The only problem that some readers might have with this book is that the language is pretty strong for a young adult book (although it has happened many times before). There are various uses of strong language used in this book such as the “s” word and dropping the “f” bomb and it might be best to skim over these words if it is uncomfortable reading these words. Also, this book deals with a parent having depression, so if anyone has ever gone through this experience before, then it might be a bit uncomfortable to read through.

Overall, “Saving Francesca” is a truly brilliant novel about how a teenage girl has to deal with the stresses in her life while trying to find out who she truly is. This is definitely one novel that anyone who is a fan of Melina Marchetta’s works will easily enjoy for many years! Now, I am off to find some more novels by Melina Marchetta!

I like to thank my Goodreads friend Tatiana for recommending me this book!

Review is also on: Rabbit Ears Book Blog
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Mar 02, 2009 Lady Jayne *~*The Beach Bandida*~* rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, favourites, author-melina-marchetta, aussie-ooohh-yeeeeaahhh

LOVED this!!! This was my first Melina Marchetta book and it kept me reading into the wee hours of the morning.

Melina Marchetta's stories feel real. Her characterisations are wonderful and even her secondary characters are so three dimensional.

This was such an engaging and emotional read.

Full review to come.... ...more

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Mar 09, 2018 Trisha rated it liked it · review of another edition

“You go shake your foundations, Will. I think it's about time I saved myself.”

I actually really thought this was a great book. It's a good one about growing up and finding your way - especially with being the new kid and leaving your friends for another school. But it's also about that scary time of starting to push off and be on your own - apart from your parents. Although Frankie isn't really ready yet (and her brother is definitely not ready) but her mom isn't coming out of her room.....and ...more

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Jun 15, 2009 Bonnie rated it it was amazing

Shelves: young-adult, ya-contemporary

I've read a lot of disappointing YA books this year. Sometimes I worry that I'm outgrowing the genre. And then a book like Saving Francesca comes along and I fall in love all over again. THIS is why I read YA. For a wonderful book like this that is romantic and funny and touching and keeps me locked in until it's finish, even if it keeps me up until 3am and I know I'll be getting only 3 hours of sleep and be mainlining coffee the next day. This book is the best YA I read this year and literally ...more

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Apr 24, 2015 Carrie rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: library, family, social-issues, coming-of-age, young-adult, brother-sister, realistic-fiction, australia, depression

I liked it, I never loved it. I was quite happy whenever Buffy was mentioned though.

This book has a lot of 5 stars and I really couldn't give it that many. It was just an okay book for me. I normally love a good coming of age story but this one for me personally just never lived up to its hype. Don't get me wrong I am in no means bashing the book, I am just stating that I personally felt it wasn't has good as I made myself think it would be. Or how it seemed like it would be at the start.

3.5 st ...more

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Sep 28, 2012 Jessica rated it it was amazing

Shelves: young-adult, almost-read, contemporary, five-stars

Francesca is having a tough year. Her Mother is suffering from crippling depression, and she's had to start out at a new school, where she's one of only 30 girls in a sea of boys.

Marchetta's characters tend to talk a little bit older than teenagers actually would, but I'm ok with that because her dialogue is so delightful. Even secondary characters are delightful and well rounded. Francesca herself is fantastic - she's funny and uncertain and feels very real to me.

Highly recommended. ...more

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Sep 22, 2016 Marla rated it really liked it

Shelves: young-adult, zz-2016, girl-power, chick-lit, with-reservations, challenged, romance, recommended-to-me, award-winner, francesca-or-frankie

Considering this book deals with depression, it was a delightful book about being one of 30 girls among 750 boys in a private Catholic high school while coping with her mother's depression.

How this relates to my life: (view spoiler) ...more

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Jun 13, 2012 Deyara rated it really liked it

Shelves: young-adult, ya-romance, depression, setting-school

Very good. Liked the relationships between the characters, and it seemed pretty realistic. Didnt realise it was set in Australia til half-way through and even then I didnt keep hearing Australian accents so it was okay :) Might re-read this some day - and theres only a handful of books I have ever re-read.

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