2 Novels by Jessica Blank
Requirements: ePUB Reader, 780 KB
Overview: Jessica Blank, born in New Haven, Connecticut, is an American actor, playwright, and novelist who has appeared in film, television, and theater. She has appeared in several movies.
Genre: Young Adult
Karma for Beginners
Fourteen-year-old Tessa has never had a normal life. Her mother, a frustrated hippie with awful taste in men, has seen to that. But when her mom pulls her out of school to live at an ashram in the Catskills, Tessa goes from being a freak among normal people to being an outcast among freaks. Freaks who worship an orange robe-wearing guru. And while her mom is buzzing with spiritual energy, and finding a little too much favor with the guru, all Tessa feels are weird vibes.
Unless she’s with Colin, the gorgeous boy who fixes trucks for the ashram. The connection they share is the most spiritual thing Tessa has ever felt. But he’s older-like illegally older-and Tessa’s taking dangerous risks to spend time with him. Soon her life is blooming into a psychedelic web of secrets and lies and it’s clear that something’s about to give way. When it does, will she have anyone to hold on to? Will she even know herself?
The concept for Karma for Beginners is really intriguing and entertaining. Tessa’s voice is funny, smart, and authentic, but in her narration you can really feel her insecurity and yearning for a normal life, to know her father, and to have a mother who isn’t a flake. Tessa’s perception of the other people at the ashram is humorous and oftentimes insightful as she learns more and more about the place, and it even takes on a slightly creepy air as its cult-like inner workings are slowly revealed. The romance between Tessa and Colin is sweet, despite their age difference, and will leave you smiling, but about three quarters of the way through the book everything turns sour as drugs are introduced, and many pages are spent on Tessa’s meandering thoughts as she is high. The secrets concerning her mother and what really is going on at the ashram are glossed over in the end, leaving you wondering about the details of what all really happened, and the conclusion seems a little too rushed and a little too unrealistic. However, overall Karma for Beginners is an interesting and unconventional novel about one girl’s coming-of-age with an engaging and sympathetic narrator that teens can really identify with.
Almost Home
Why would anyone choose to live on the streets?
There is Eeyore, just twelve years old when she runs away from her priveleged home, harboring a secret she’s too ashamed to tell anyone. Rusty is a sensitive gay teen who winds up alone when his older boyfriend ditches him in Hollywood. Squid has gone through too many foster homes to count. There’s Scabius, a delusional punk from Utah who takes the "me against the world" motto to dangerous extremes. And Critter is a heroin dealer with movie star looks and a vulnerable heart. Laura should be home studying, but she can’t face another one of her mom’s boyfriends.
And then there’s Tracy, the damaged thread that ties them all together, irrevocably changing each person’s life she touches.
This unlikely band of characters form their own dysfunctional family, complete with love and belonging, abuse and betrayal. Each will make their way home, wherever it may be.
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