Twisted
Anderson, Laurie Halse
ISBN-13 9780670061013
ISBN-10 0670061018
Publisher: Penguin Group, 2007
Genre: Young Adult Fiction
Reading Level: HL 680 Lexile
Interest Age: 15-18
Reader's Annotation:
One mistake leads to one summer of work and suddenly Tyler Miller is wanted by the most popular girl in school.
Plot Summary:
Tyler Miller is smart and nerdy. He is made fun of by the jocks and the girls did not pay attention to him. His dad works for the father of the prettiest girl in school, Bethany. At the end of eleventh grade, Tyler decides he wants to do something to change his persona. He tags the school and gets caught. As part of his punishment, he must work for the school doing yard work all summer. During the summer of working outside lifting heavy things, Tyler grows into a man. By the time school starts again, Tyler is buff and tan. He is gaining attention at school that he never has before, even from Bethany.
Bethany's brother does not like Tyler at all and has picked on him for years so when the two start dating, the brother is mad. One thing leads to another and suddenly Tyler is facing charges of sexual assault against Bethany. Did he do it? If he did, there would be much more than a summer doing work in store for him.
Critical Evaluation:
This book is a classic story of someone who feels like they are not good enough until they look beautiful on the outside. This story has been told many times, but most of the time the girl has the self esteem issues not the boy. It was nice that his personality did not change through the book. In this way, Anderson changed the story. Tyler was the same nerdy boy from before and his insecurities were still in tact. This made the story more believable because outside appearance does not change the person inside.
The story was well thought out and Anderson did not dwell too long on any scene. She moved the story forward at a pace that the reader never has a chance to get bored with the content. This makes it great for low readers because the content is interesting but the reading level is not very high.
About the Author:
Laurie Halse Anderson was born in 1961 in Potsdam, New York. She has loved writing since she was in second grade but had to work hard to get her writing skills where they are today. She worked for a newspaper, but when she started submitting books, she received many letters denying her publication. When she finally found a support group to help critique writing, she improved enough to publish.
Anderson started publishing children's book and then moved to young adult fiction. She has also written non fiction for young adults. Two of her many books, Speak and Chains have earned her a place as a National Book Award finalist. In 2009, Anderson was awarded the Margaret A Edwards Award by the American Library Association. She is a fabulous writer and has plans to write many more book in the years to come.
http://madwomanintheforest.com/laurie/
Curriculum Ties:
Social networks in societies and family dynamics.
Tyler Miller is smart and nerdy. He is made fun of by the jocks and the girls did not pay attention to him. His dad works for the father of the prettiest girl in school, Bethany. At the end of eleventh grade, Tyler decides he wants to do something to change his persona. He tags the school and gets caught. As part of his punishment, he must work for the school doing yard work all summer. During the summer of working outside lifting heavy things, Tyler grows into a man. By the time school starts again, Tyler is buff and tan. He is gaining attention at school that he never has before, even from Bethany.
Bethany's brother does not like Tyler at all and has picked on him for years so when the two start dating, the brother is mad. One thing leads to another and suddenly Tyler is facing charges of sexual assault against Bethany. Did he do it? If he did, there would be much more than a summer doing work in store for him.
Critical Evaluation:
This book is a classic story of someone who feels like they are not good enough until they look beautiful on the outside. This story has been told many times, but most of the time the girl has the self esteem issues not the boy. It was nice that his personality did not change through the book. In this way, Anderson changed the story. Tyler was the same nerdy boy from before and his insecurities were still in tact. This made the story more believable because outside appearance does not change the person inside.
The story was well thought out and Anderson did not dwell too long on any scene. She moved the story forward at a pace that the reader never has a chance to get bored with the content. This makes it great for low readers because the content is interesting but the reading level is not very high.
About the Author:
Laurie Halse Anderson was born in 1961 in Potsdam, New York. She has loved writing since she was in second grade but had to work hard to get her writing skills where they are today. She worked for a newspaper, but when she started submitting books, she received many letters denying her publication. When she finally found a support group to help critique writing, she improved enough to publish.
Anderson started publishing children's book and then moved to young adult fiction. She has also written non fiction for young adults. Two of her many books, Speak and Chains have earned her a place as a National Book Award finalist. In 2009, Anderson was awarded the Margaret A Edwards Award by the American Library Association. She is a fabulous writer and has plans to write many more book in the years to come.
http://madwomanintheforest.com/laurie/
Curriculum Ties:
Social networks in societies and family dynamics.
Book Talking:
What would you do if you were falsely accused?
Challenging Issues:
If this book were to be challenged, I would go through the selection process with the challenger as well as explain the rationale for the book. There are many good qualities in this book that could be reason to have it in a collection.
Why Read this Book:
This book deals with the issues of family dynamics, the social hierarchy of high school and how one summer can change everything. Anderson is an award winning writer who has written yet another book full of emotions and energy. This book was interesting from page one to the end.
What would you do if you were falsely accused?
Challenging Issues:
If this book were to be challenged, I would go through the selection process with the challenger as well as explain the rationale for the book. There are many good qualities in this book that could be reason to have it in a collection.
Why Read this Book:
This book deals with the issues of family dynamics, the social hierarchy of high school and how one summer can change everything. Anderson is an award winning writer who has written yet another book full of emotions and energy. This book was interesting from page one to the end.
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