Please Ignore Vera Dietz

September 26, 2011 Uncategorized 0

Please Ignore Vera Dietz

Author: A.S. King
Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: Oct. 12, 2010
Pages: 336
Source: Purchased book and audiobook


About the Book: A 2011 Michael L. Printz Honor Book

Vera’s spent her whole life secretly in love with her best friend, Charlie Kahn. And over the years she’s kept a lot of his secrets. Even after he betrayed her. Even after he ruined everything.
So when Charlie dies in dark circumstances, Vera knows a lot more than anyone—the kids at school, his family, even the police. But will she emerge to clear his name? Does she even want to?
Edgy and gripping, Please Ignore Vera Dietz is an unforgettable novel: smart, funny, dramatic, and always surprising.

My Thoughts: I’ve tried to start this review about five times already. I can’t decide what I want to say first. Should I start by telling you that I think this book should be required reading for every teacher and high school student? Perhaps I should lead with the fact that Please Ignore Vera Dietz got to me on a level that most books don’t? Maybe I should tell you that I was listening to it in the car and had to pull off at a gas station because I was crying so hard? Or I could just start with this: Thank you, A.S. King. 


Thank you for writing a book that doesn’t ignore the issue. I’ll bet it wasn’t easy to do what you did. It put me through the wringer to read it. I can imagine what writing it was like. 


Thank you for accepting no excuses. None of this “It’s none of our business” or “It wouldn’t help” or “You can’t help people who don’t ask for it” or “It’s just the way things are sometimes” crap. Somethings are always wrong and should always be addressed.


Thank you for authentic characters, teenaged and otherwise. They make mistakes and hold grudges and doubt themselves and others and are in general real. This makes them awesome.


Thank you for making me laugh in the midst of my tears. Heartbreaking yet quirky. Bittersweet memories. Snarky comments. Flow charts. All so real! 


Thank you for teaching teens (and really anyone who reads the book) the importance of forgiving themselves, of moving on after mistakes, of not letting one mistake be an excuse to make more and more. 


Thank you for Please Ignore Vera Dietz. It is brave and beautiful and wonderful and wise. I think it gets it from it’s author 😉 


Giveaway:
I am giving away my audiobook of Please Ignore Vera Dietz. It is incredibly well done! To enter simply leave a comment with you email address. US only. You must be 13 years old or older to enter. Contest will end October 8, 2011. 

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