Final Thoughts

[Angie, YA lovin mod!!]

Now that you are done reading... what do you think overall?

[Lisa]

Unexpectedly funny. Thoughtful and thought provoking. A real page turner. I really liked it.

[*Mrs. Brightside*]

I liked it..Im still thinking if I want Will and Naomi to be together..even though it wont happen!

[Lisa]

Princess wrote: "I liked it..Im still thinking if I want Will and Naomi to be together..even though it wont happen!"

Do you mean someone other than Will? James? Because I do think Naomi & Will will happen.

[Dija]

I'm probably one of the very few people who didn't like this book...I really liked "Elsewhere" by Gabrielle Zevin, so it's not because of the writing style. I just didn't like the characters all that much. I read this book a while ago, so I can't give exact examples of why I didn't like the main characters, but I do remember really getting annoyed by the heroine. And James as well. Will was okay, no one particularly special. And I judge my books by their characters, so by the end of the day, if I love the characters, I love the book and vice versa. And I didn't love a single character in this book, ergo I disliked the book.

[Lani]

I enjoyed this book. I felt that the character of Naomi was very honest with her decisions and attitude. I was a bit surprised by the ending simply because it seemed like the obvious choice and I was hoping for more.

[Julia]

I liked the first half a lot, when she had to decide who she was and what she liked and why.

Lani, the second half I was disappointed with because she was so dishonest with everyone around her, even the people she said she cared for the most.

[Lani]

Julia, I can sort of understand her dishonesty. I read it back in December, so I may not remember everything-so correct me if I'm wrong on any points.

I just can't imagine how hard it would be to completely forget who you are, try to recreate yourself, and then have to reconcile both selves when your memory returns. I don't remember the specifics of why she didn't tell anyone she got her memory back, but I would assume taking some time to herself to figure out who she wanted to be wouldn't be out of the question.

[Kelly]

What did you think about all of the nicknames? Her dad caller kid, Alice called her cookie, Will and his chief. Even her mom called her no-me. The only person to call her by her name was James. Was that because he was the only one for whom she didn't have to be something? What are you're (collective) thoughts?

[Lani]

Kelly-I hadn't thought of that, but it's a good point. James was the only one she had a clean slate with and, you're right, she could be herself (whoever that was) around him because he didn't have any preconceived notions.

[Julia]

She felt she had to remain brain damaged to stay with James, because being at the mercy of brain damage/ wonky brain chemistry is what they had in common.

As for the nicknames, she didn't have one with James, because they were each fuzzy about their pasts, or that's what they told each other. Wasn't it her sister who called her No-me? Her Mom was too scared of more rejection to use a nickname, wasn't she?

I was really glad when her Dad laid down the punishments when she went to California! And I was amused that he had to ask her what being grounded involved...
Her parents were anything but perfect, but I really liked that they were there, even when she was treating them badly.
Also, Will's mom and James' mom were pretty wonderful. And the teachers had a presence in her school life, too. Too many YA books I've read recently have no parents or adults in the mix.

[Kelly]

@Julia. I was thinking the same thing regarding her parents. I thought she did a good job of having them be present in her life. The whole time at the beach in California I was reflecting on a past relationship I had with someone who needed some time to work on himself. She said she loved James, but what did she love about him? Just that he made no demands on her in the present? I thought the author was brave to show mental instability. I would have liked Naomi to realize that she couldn't fix him that he needed to walk that road, but he was mature to tell her to forget him. I am a big fan (now) of not dating/marrying someone who is broken. I'm not a repair service and we all deserve someone who is whole and "fixed." Let therapists do the rest of the work.

[Angie, YA lovin mod!!]

Love the paragraph on page 259 hardback when Naomi's dad tells her about how much you forget when you are older. Who your teacher's were, who was the coolest, who could get you pot, where your seats in class were. Eventually you forget it all. I love that!

[Kelly]

I just finished another book called "Gimme a Call" about a girl who is able to call her freshman self in the past and can make changes that affect her in the present. It reminded me a little of Memoirs, actually. It was interesting to read them both so close together.

[Angie, YA lovin mod!!]

Kelly wrote: "I just finished another book called "Gimme a Call" about a girl who is able to call her freshman self in the past and can make changes that affect her in the present. It reminded me a little of Mem..."

That sounds very interesting. I wonder what I would tell myself. I like the idea in Memoirs about how you realize you don't really like things. Like did Naomi really like yearbook? Or not? Did she really like Tennis? Did she like photography. I would hope this book would make people look at their own lives and think about if they really like something and why do they like it.

[Angie, YA lovin mod!!]

Lazuline wrote: "I'm probably one of the very few people who didn't like this book...I really liked "Elsewhere" by Gabrielle Zevin, so it's not because of the writing style. I just didn't like the characters all th..."

What is Elsewhere about?

[Angie, YA lovin mod!!]

Julia wrote: "I liked the first half a lot, when she had to decide who she was and what she liked and why.

Lani, the second half I was disappointed with because she was so dishonest with everyone around her, ..."

Makes me wonder if her real personality is a liar? She seemed to only lie when her memory came back.

[Angie, YA lovin mod!!]

Two points were brought up that I loved... the nicknames, and the parents being present. I find it interesting that she did have nicknames with almost everyone. Makes me realize that more and more nicknames are always from your past. And then she didn't have a past with James. In my life right now I have a friend staying with us who has totally changed since high school. And basically told all his friends to quit calling him by his high school nick name. I was surprised at how mad he got when people called him it, but he is trying to be ultra religious and now he wants to leave that past behind. It is hard though for his friends to let that past go... but everyone stopped calling him that nickname. Just goes to show how much meaning a nickname can have.

I too was glad about the parents being in the book. Too often do I think books leave parents out to make it more convenient for the plot. Why not make the teen 18 a senior in high school and then they could stay home alone?

[Kelly]

Good point about the nicknames being with people you have a past with. But, Naomi even started calling him Jims. Maybe we hide behind our nicknames and multiple hats we wear. James calls her Naomi, I think, because he doesn't want to hide anymore. He is trying to face his mental illness head-on. Or maybe it's because he's the only one who seems to know the new Naomi. IDK.

[Tatiana]

Angie wrote: "Lazuline wrote: "I'm probably one of the very few people who didn't like this book...I really liked "Elsewhere" by Gabrielle Zevin, so it's not because of the writing style. I just didn't like the ..."

Elsewhere is basically about afterlife and what happens to people when they die - in Zevin's interpretation they get younger and younger until they become babies and return back to earth to live again. I read this book but I didn't like it as much as I did Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac. It felt a little too juvenile to me.

[Michelle]

Just finished the book. I had read Elsewhere and loved it. This one... I loved parts but as a whole I think I gave it 3 stars. Maybe because I'm such an optimist and wanted James and Naomi to magically work out. I am one of those girls who believes I CAN fix everything so my not loving the book is just a personal issue. That aside, the writing was wonderful and I loved her character development between the parents, their significant others and Naomi. I did feel some similarities between Naomi and Liz (from Elsewhere).

[Angie, YA lovin mod!!]

I am curious why Naomi didn't feel the same for Ace when her feelings came back. I guess I thought feelings/memories would be the same thing but I guess not.

[Lani]

I'm thinking she didn't really like Ace when they were together (pre-amnesia). I got the sense that she was probably just with him as an image thing-I believe Will might have mentioned that or eluded to it. IMO, she wasn't really into him before the amnesia, then he was a bit of a jerk during her amnesia. So when her memory came back she saw it as an opportunity to stay away from him.

[Nikki]

I just finished the book today and thought it was good and was torn between 3 stars and 4. I was able to easily get into the story because Tarrytown is not all that far away from where I live so I'm not sure if the book had actual good descriptive words or if I was just picturing the setting because most of the places I've been before. Sadly I think the fact that it was in NY made me enjoy the book more then the actual story. I didn't like Naomi that much at all and was pretty disgusted of her "food journal". She seemed very bratty and shallow. I was happy her and James didn't work out because James was my favorite character in the book and I don't think she deserved him. I would of liked if James' character had more depth.

[Grace]

Angie wrote: "Makes me wonder if her real personality is a liar? She seemed to only lie when her memory came back. "

It looks that way but we really don't know. Based on the glimpses we have of the 'before fall' Naomi, I suspect that she lied even more before she fell but she just wasn't aware of it. It didn't sound like she was a 'genuine' person before.

She may tell lies when her memory comes back but I think, over all, she's more honest - with herself about herself.

As for labelling her a liar - everybody lies. Most of the time we don't realize it - often we do it to protect people.

In Naomi's case, she lied to her father when she went to California because taking care of James had a higher priority at the time than being a dutiful daughter. I find it hard to condemn her for that. She was faced with an ethical dilemna and took the route she thought was the lesser of two evils.

I enjoyed this book but I'm not sure how memorable it will be. I read Elsewhere a while ago and I don't remember anything about it. The only reason I know I read it is because I logged it somewhere. Time will tell if this book stays with me longer. In other words will I have a memory of the memoirs.

[Cari]

I just finished reading memoirs and i liked it. I can't imagine not knowing who i am and who my family and friends are. I thought naomi dealt with her amnesia as well as she could. I'm glad that she did get her memory back and remember everyone and everything.

[Courtney]

I agree with PP about liking the first half (before Naomi got her memory back) more than the second. Although, her parents seemed to play a larger role as the book progressed, or maybe we just got to see more of them.

What did everyone think about her photography project? The whole footnote theme went throughout the book. First, Will had footnotes in his account of her accident. Then, she was mentioned in the footnotes of her father's book. Last, her pictures were footnotes to each other. It was like the footnotes told the real story, but lots of people just skip them altogether. At least, I never read the footnotes to anything before reading this book. Now, I think I'll take a closer look.

[Cari]

I thought her photography project was neat. I liked the footnotes theme through the book. It tied alot of things together in the book.

[Lynn]

I am not finished with book, I am on page 209. Something that struck me as out of whack was the lack of understanding of how schools operate now. No child with a traumatic brain injury would re-enter school without a meeting of the special education committee and even while out would have a home-hospital tutor in the hospital, rehabilitation and at home. TBI or Traumatic Brain Injury is a separate category for Idea so she would be eligible for many supports. Memory problems are common with TBI and most likely a 1:1 aide would be assigned or a special education support teacher would be nearby in her classrooms. I know that the concept might have interrupted the flow of the story but it would have been more realistic. It is very unlikely that a doctor would think that the head injury wasn't a cause of a memory problem but even then, there would be many more tests and assessments to be given.

[Lisa]

Lynn, I thought of all those things too. Her lack of medical care and f/u was strange. I loved the story anyway.

[Lynn]

I loved the story too. I found the book well written and you can't fault the author for not knowing music, literature and tennis! I felt this was a really sophisticated books for young adult reading but one that was respectfully so. Loved it.

[Angie, YA lovin mod!!]

Grace wrote: "Angie wrote: "Makes me wonder if her real personality is a liar? She seemed to only lie when her memory came back. "

It looks that way but we really don't know. Based on the glimpses we have of th..."

I agree about this book being non-memorable. I don't think this is one I will remember in a few months!

[Angie, YA lovin mod!!]

Courtney wrote: "I agree with PP about liking the first half (before Naomi got her memory back) more than the second. Although, her parents seemed to play a larger role as the book progressed, or maybe we just got ..."

Good point! The footnotes were everywhere, as if there were some points were just hidden thoughts underneath it all.

[Angie, YA lovin mod!!]

Lynn wrote: "I am not finished with book, I am on page 209. Something that struck me as out of whack was the lack of understanding of how schools operate now. No child with a traumatic brain injury would re-e..."

The book was really kinda lacking the medical information. I don't know much about how schools work but I did think it was very strange that she was just let right back into school where she left off. I thought for sure the school would have to test her in subjects to even see how much she still knew.

I also wondered if she was so tired and falling asleep in school that maybe her dad should've had her home schooled for a while.

[Lynn]

Actually schools would pay for home tutoring for up to two hours a day for home/hospital kids (ones that are unable to attend school because of illness). Another option would be putting a child on a half day schedule or a special class for the medically frail where she could do some school work but also have frequent breaks and be allowed to get therapy or support for her injury as ordered by doctors, etc. Even in a regular class, adaptations could be made for her to wear sunglasses, or have a "notetaker" take notes for her for awhile. She even could have a case manager -usually a special education teacher who consults with teachers and helps them adapt curriculum and tests to fit the needs of the child. No where would a girl with an injury to her brain not get services and support in school. Of course the plot line could be about the goof ups and misconceptions people have about her problem and where the actual support proves less than helpful at times. The difference would be that adults would focus more in the story and peers would have to relate to Naomi more with adults present and involved in her life.

[Angie, YA lovin mod!!]

It is nice to hear from someone who knows how schools would handle this type of situation. Otherwise I would've really only been able to guess at what a school would do in my head.

[Lynn]

I find it surprising how little authors do research to find out more about schools. Even on TV shows, the presentation of schools and education law is barely looked at and touched upon. Presentation of students who are immigrants and learning English is very poorly presented and understood. Usually authors/writers seem to go for stereotypes.

[ɐzzıɹʞ]

i read it and i think it's okay.

[jheepi]

I liked the book, but the ending was a bit anticlimatic. Naomi just gets her memory back without anything drastic happening... I guess I was expecting a bit more drama =)