25 May 2017

Review #608: Not If I See You First by Eric Lindstrom



My rating: 4 of 5 stars


“Have enough courage to trust love one more time and always one more time.”

----Maya Angelou



Eric Lindstrom, an American author, has penned a terrific debut young adult contemporary fiction called, Not If I See You First that revolves around a blind teenage girl, who recently lost her father and since then she hasn't cried at all, and she loves to play by her strict rule book, and if anyone breaks those rules, then there is no second chance for that person, but lately, this girl is finding it real hard to stop herself from falling in love with someone who once broke her heart and all her emotions are welling up on the inside upon learning some secrets from the past that she has buried.


Synopsis:

The Rules:

Don't deceive me. Ever. Especially using my blindness. Especially in public.

Don't help me unless I ask. Otherwise you're just getting in my way or bothering me.

Don't be weird. Seriously, other than having my eyes closed all the time, I'm just like you only smarter.

Parker Grant doesn't need 20/20 vision to see right through you. That's why she created the Rules: Don't treat her any differently just because she's blind, and never take advantage. There will be no second chances. Just ask Scott Kilpatrick, the boy who broke her heart.

When Scott suddenly reappears in her life after being gone for years, Parker knows there's only one way to react-shun him so hard it hurts. She has enough on her mind already, like trying out for the track team (that's right, her eyes don't work but her legs still do), doling out tough-love advice to her painfully naive classmates, and giving herself gold stars for every day she hasn't cried since her dad's death three months ago. But avoiding her past quickly proves impossible, and the more Parker learns about what really happened--both with Scott, and her dad--the more she starts to question if things are always as they seem. Maybe, just maybe, some Rules are meant to be broken.



Parker Grant, the high school teenager, is a blind girl whose other senses work better than normal teenagers' and hence no one dares to mess up with her in school and not to mention, she has a set of strict rules that everyone including herself needs to abide by and if they don't, there is no forgiveness or second chances for that person. Parker is a nonsense teenager, who advises her peers about the reality behind teenage love stories, but lately she herself can't escape from cupid's arrow when she finds herself feeling smitten over Jason and his charm, adding fuel to that fire is Scott, who broke her heart long time ago and now is back again to steal her heart. Even though she hasn't shed a single tear drop after her father's death and is learning to cope with her new life amongst her aunt and her cousin, yet she is bending the rules of her own for the first time ever, when she learns the ugly truth behind her father's death.

This is the first time that I read any teenage fiction which is quite profound and not cliched in any possible way. This book has exceeded all my expectations and turned out to be so brilliantly charming as well as thought-provocative. Nowadays, the YA market is full of cliched and melodramatic teenage love stories, where the hero or the heroine is flawed because of their mental illness or some fatal illness, and is finding love with someone flawless, instead this one turned out to be a fresh read for me. And I'm glad that I picked up a copy of this book. The best thing is that the author has kept the story line light yet he has managed to touch bases with some real-life teenage problems vividly.

The writing is fresh and coherent enough to let the readers comprehend with its eloquent prose. The emotions aren't too deep yet it will strike the readers with its force at the right places. The narrative is catchy and flows freely through the story line, and is laced with realism all throughout. The pacing is moderate, as there aren't much drama, but readers will follow around the life of the protagonist who goes through transition period after learning certain truths about her past.

The characters are well developed, here I would like to say only the main character takes the center stage and from her perspective, the readers will get to learn about the supporting cast, which fails to leave an impression on it's readers' minds. Parker is a great protagonist, who will inspire the young minds with her ordeal through life. Parker has a smart mouth, speaks honestly and that might annoy few readers for Parker being too selfish and frank, both at the same time. And gradually the readers can see the soft side of Parker which exists under layers of pain and grief that she has never shared, but eventually she learns to cope with everything, her feelings and all and that will make the readers fall for her.

The romance remains in the backseat of this whole story (thank god for that!) pretty much the entire length of this novel, as the author majorly focuses on teenage female friendships and the value of those who matter to us, despite not being related by blood, and also Parker's self growth from being too cynical to being thoughtful and mature. And that sums up the entire novel, where Parker learns to bend her own rules.

In a nutshell, the author promotes self love through this book, even though the main character suffers from a disability, yet she is depicted as brave and someone who needs no saving from anyone. A smart and fearless take on teenage friendships and dealings with grief and loss.


Verdict: A highly entertaining and an enlightening novel about a blind girl and her take on this world.

Courtesy: Thanks to the publishers from Harper Collins India for giving me an opportunity to read and review this book.
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Author Info:
In addition to writing Young Adult novels, Eric Lindstrom has worked in the interactive entertainment industry for years as a creative director, game designer, writer, and usually combinations of all three. As Editor and Co-Writer for Tomb Raider: Legend he received a 2006 BAFTA nomination for Best Video Game Screenplay, and then as the Creative Director for Tomb Raider: Underworld he received a 2009 BAFTA nomination for Best Action Adventure Video Game and a 2009 WGA nomination for Best Writing in a Video Game.
He has also raised children, which led to becoming first a school volunteer, then a substitute teacher, then a part time kindergarten teacher, then getting a credential to teach elementary school, and most importantly the discovery that YA literature is awesome. It’s pretty much all he ever reads, and now writes, in his house near the beach on the west coast, with his wife and, yes, cats.
Visit him here



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