Mundie Moms

Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Book Review: Who I Kissed by Janet Gurtler



Published by: SourceBooks Fire
Released on: October 1st, 2012
Source: ARC from publisher to review
4 stars: I Enjoyed It
Purchased from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

She Never Thought A Kiss Could Kill. . .

Samantha is new at school and just recently joined the swim team.  She’s been flirting with one of her teammates, Zee, who invites her to a party and just as quickly dumps her for another girl.  Hurt, but pretending not to care, she turns to his best friend, Alex, and gives him a kiss.  And he dies—right in her arms.  Alex was allergic to peanuts, and Samantha had eaten a peanut butter sandwich right before the party.  She didn’t know.  Overnight, Samantha turns into the school pariah and a media sensation explodes.  

Consumed with guilt, abandoned by her friends, and in jeopardy of losing her swimming scholarship, she will have to find the inner-strength to forgive herself for the tragedy.  Critics are already applauding the author’s insight and her ability to make her “character breathe with life” (Kirkus Reviews). Skillfully capturing the raw, honest emotions of her teen protagonists, Janet paints them into a searing portrait of a tragedy that uproots the lives of everyone it touches.

This book was a pleasant surprise for me. I'm trying to branch out a bit more in my reading of YA contemporaries, something I don't read a lot of, and I really liked Janet's writing style and her story telling. She did an incredible job at creating a realistic story that deals with heartache, grief, love, learning to forgive, moving forward, choices, consequences and variety of other topics readers will easily relate to. The thing I was most impressed with in Who I Kissed was Janet's ability to bring awareness to food allergies, and mental illness without it being preachy or heavy. While both things are a huge factor in the lives of the teens in this book, it's their relationships, and the choices they make that really drew me into the story.

Life is about choices. No matter how big or small they are, they shape us, and our future. I liked that, that was a theme with Samantha's story. It's those choices no matter how planned out or spur of the moment they are, that turned her life upside down, and took her on a different course that she had planned. Like that time she ate a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, not realizing the deadly effect it could have on Alex, the guy she barley knew and kissed at that party. I really enjoyed getting to know Samantha. She's someone I felt like I connected with right away, and I enjoyed her strong voice. I sympathized with and I cheered her on. I understood her pain, and sorrow as well as her motivation to continue on. I liked that while she had a support group of her dad, her close friend and her aunt, the choice was always hers to get through the tragic event that has now changed her life.

In this web of sorrow, heartache and grief, comes something powerful, and it's Samantha and her will to just live. To take one day at a time and to try and cope with all that's gone around her and try to make things right in a new kind of way. The thing I loved about this book is how real the characters felt. It's not just Samantha, but her dad, her aunt, her crush Zee, her best friend, and Alex's family. I got their emotions, I understood their motives, and I liked that there is more to what really happened that night at the party than we're first made to believe. This is a book that unravels perfectly revealing just enough I need to know at all the right moments. It's a story that includes first kisses, the first kisses you wish you got, new romances, hope, hate, bullies, crushes, family relationships, and so much more. Most importantly it's book about forgiving and moving one. I love the way Janet tackles all the emotional sides that happen in this book, and puts it in a realistic high school setting. It's not just about Samantha, but about Alex's family, his best friends, and those that surround both Samantha, Zee and those who knew Alex best.

There's so much more I want to say about this book, but I'll just say it's one I'd recommend picking up. I really enjoyed Janet's writing style and I'm looking forward to reading more of her books. There is some mild language, mentions of sex/fooling around, and tastefully written sex scene, and a lot of talk about grief and coping with the loss of a loved one/good friend. It's a book that may not be for everyone, but it's one I felt was realistically written, and one I'd probably read again.

Don't miss my guest post with Janet and enter to win a copy of Who I Kissed HERE.

Who I Kissed by Janet Gurtler; Blog Tour: Guest Post / Giveaway

I'm thrilled to have Who I Kissed author Janet Gurtler on the blog today! She's here to talk about her newest YA release, and the inspiration for the book, and that of her character development of Samantha and how she learned to forgive herself for a tragic mistake. 



Coming up for Air:  Gurtler explores her inspiration for the book and her character development of a girl who has to learn to forgive herself for a tragic mistake that upends so many lives.

**


I haven’t made a secret of the fact that this book was inspired by my son, Max, a cool dude who happens to have a severe peanut allergy.  This book takes my worst fears and puts them it into action. I used to joke with Max that before he kisses a girl, he has to ask her what she had for lunch. Or dinner.  He doesn’t find it funny anymore. 

We did have a talk when I decided to write this book. I told him that though it was fiction, it was partly to raise awareness of the dangers that kids with allergies face. And I told him of course, that it was something I never ever wanted to him to deal with. So no kissing girls.  Ever. Ha ha. Not really the last part. He didn’t find that funny either.


Long before the character of Sam came to life for me, I remember hearing a story in the news, similar to the storyline in WHO I KISSED, about a child dying from a ‘peanut butter kiss’. It stuck with me as a parent of a peanut allergy kid. How horrifying it would be for everyone. Including the child who accidentally caused a death. I also remember hearing a story about a kid at a birthday party who died when the knife used to cut the cake (peanut free cake) was tainted with peanut butter.  I don’t know if that story was true, but when you have a child with allergies those types of things make an impression.


As a parent of a kid with severe food allergies, you get used to people who don’t understand the severity of the allergy. People who complain about not being able to take a peanut butter sandwich to a peanut free school when it is “all their child will eat.”  On one level, I totally get that. Confession. I LOVE peanut butter. But on the other hand, something innocent has the potential to cause my child harm, or even cause death and I don’t want to let that happen. I’ve had to shake off my loathing to make people uncomfortable. I have to speak up. I understand that most people don’t mean harm when they send a peanut butter sandwich to school or open a bag of peanuts beside me in the airport. But I have to ask them to put away peanuts or nuts when my son is around. Or to ask their kids to wash their hands after eating something with nuts before playing with my son. 


My strongest argument for why other people should care is -- how would YOU feel if your child (or you) caused the death of my son. I know I would feel pretty darn awful (to put it mildly), but what would it do to your child and/or you? How could a child possibly deal with something like that? How could a parent possibly deal with their role in something like that?  And the thing is, it’s possible.   


It’s about taking ownership of that possibility, but also dealing with the consequences of a very honest mistake.  WHO I KISSED looks at how an innocent girl, who unwillingly and unknowingly is involved in the death of a boy who dies. A boy who is allergic to peanuts.  It’s about thinking how that would affect you? How would you cope? What would you do?


Ultimately, like most of the books I write, I think there’s also hope in this book. And some lighter moments too. I created two characters, Aunt Allie and Fredrick to help Samantha deal and also to help the reader deal with the emotional intensity of the book.  Plus there’s hot boys. I like them too.


**********

Thank you Janet for stopping by Mundie Moms today!

Follow Janet via her: Website | Blogon Facebook | on Twitter


Published by: SourceBooks Fire
Released on: October 1st, 2012
ISBN: 9-781-4022-7054-3
Trade Paper/$9.99
Ages 13+
Purchased from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

She Never Thought A Kiss Could Kill. . .

Samantha is new at school and just recently joined the swim team.  She’s been flirting with one of her teammates, Zee, who invites her to a party and just as quickly dumps her for another girl.  Hurt, but pretending not to care, she turns to his best friend, Alex, and gives him a kiss.  And he dies—right in her arms.  Alex was allergic to peanuts, and Samantha had eaten a peanut butter sandwich right before the party.  She didn’t know.  Overnight, Samantha turns into the school pariah and a media sensation explodes.  Consumed with guilt, abandoned by her friends, and in jeopardy of losing her swimming scholarship, she will have to find the inner-strength to forgive herself for the tragedy.  Critics are already applauding the author’s insight and her ability to make her “character breathe with life” (Kirkus Reviews). Skillfully capturing the raw, honest emotions of her teen protagonists, Janet paints them into a searing portrait of a tragedy that uproots the lives of everyone it touches.

Look for my review to go up later today! This is one contemporary I really enjoyed.

The Giveaway: Thank you to SourceBooks Fire I have one copy of Who I Kissed to giveaway! To enter, please fill out the form below. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway


TMI Related News: Teasers, the Hottest Men of 2012 List & More oh my!


Recently Cassie treated fans to a different kind of teaser. In response to a question from pink-giraffe, "Will you ever post a happy snippet from CP2? Right now seems like it may possibly be the most depressing book the history of depressing books.... 

Cassie responded with this, along with the picture posted above:
"Hee. It’s really not. Hopefully there are bits that will be heartbreaking in the right kind of way, but most of the more lighthearted/adventurey bits are spoilery, so I tend not to post them.

I have however been having Cassandra JP illustrate scenes from Clockwork Princess, so consider this a visual snippet/spoiler from a scene about halfway through the book: (see picture above)

Will! (I hope to have all her drawings printed and packaged together as a giveaway for the Clockwork Princess tour in March.)" 



Hello Jace and welcome to the sexiest man a live list! Okay, not really Jace, but we all know he'd say he deserved to be in the #1 spot. Instead of Jace, the person who's playing Jace, Jamie Campbell Bower  was named to Glamour's Hottest Man of 2012 list! Let's right TMI fans, our Jace is on this list and let me just say he belongs on this list. I'm sure a few other fans sites would agree (looks to TMI Source). Having met him a few short weeks ago, I can say this guy has more than just looks, and he definitely deserves to be on this list. YES Sophie, I just said that, and Yes Sophie, you told me so. ;) 


#45. Jamie Campbell Bower
Age: 23
Single? Jamie Campbell Bower is currently dating his Mortal Instruments co-star Lily Collins. 
See Him Next: Jamie is set to become even hotter property next year, aft the release of the highly anticipated fill adaptation of aforementioned The Mortal Instruments, where he'll take on the role of Jace Wayland. 

Wow, hotter property next year. Oh Jamie, I feel bad for you, because after people see you as Jace, you'll want to move and go under cover. I think Jace stalking will take on a whole new meaning.... just remember what TMI fans loved you first. lol


Speaking of Jamie, have you seen the new Breaking Dawn II pictures that are out? 



That's right, Jamie's last segment in the Twilight series will be out in a mere short weeks! Hmm I wonder what Jace would say.... He goes from playing a vampire to a Shadowhunter. I think I'll take the Shadowhunter please.... though I do love the vamps. I'll totally admit it, I'm actually excited about seeing this! I'm just hoping we get more of fight scene that we got in the book *crosses fingers* (clocked picture found here)



Speaking of Jamie, photos of he and Lily out about in Toronto this week have been posted on various TMI fansites. You can see more of their pictures here


Just in case some of your Kevin aka Alec fans might have missed this, Just Jared posted pictures from Kevin's recent photo shoot, which you can find here

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