Customer Reviews

Bottled Up

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Pip is bottled up. He has an alcoholic father prone to violent rages, a zonked-out pill-popping mother, and a little brother who looks up to him as the biggest hero in the world. To escape from the pressure of protecting his brother from his father, Pip escapes in drugs and alcohol. The narrative is told from Pip's flippant, jaded point of view , mocking authority figures and just trying to ease the pain of everyday life.

A concerned principal steps in to urge Pip to turn his life around. Is Pip ready to accept personal responsibility and deal with his family issues? Does he have the strength to avoid repeating this father's mistakes and treating his own brother like Pip himself was treated? The book doesn't deliver any magic solution wrapped up in a nice little bow. This is a powerful and realistic book about the pressures that teenagers keep bottled up inside.

Bottled up is a moving story about a teen on the brink of disaster who has to make a choice as to which path his life is going to take. I loved the characters in the story and found them very believable. I really liked the realistic portrayals of alcholism in a family. The main character, PIP is strongly developed by the author and easy to identify with for any teen I would think. I found the story kept me interested and I read it all the way through quickly, I couldn't put it down. The ending was my favorite part because it was realistic, everything had not gotten better for the character but he had changed and had made his own choices as to how to live his life. I loved the sense of hope that left the reader with. I also loved the theme throughout this story that everyone deserves a couple of chances and that sometimes giving a kid a chance is more important than following procedures or punishing. I would recommended this book to any teenager, mature adolescent or grown up. Its a great find!

Despite the fact that this novel doesn't have huge revelations about teen life or a tantalizing twist in the end or even a plot that is overly unique, Bottled Up is a fantastic read. I had trouble putting it down once I began it. My literary background kept waiting for "Pip" to have something in common with Dickens' Great Expectations, but that never happened, so I relaxed into Pip's tale of teenage woe--alcoholic father, mother in denial, endearing and annoying younger brother, meddling principal (who ultimately saves Pip's future).

Even though nothing in the story surprised me (other than Mikey's accident--I'd figured on the cause being the father rather than Mikey himself), I loved this book. Pip is so much like the students I teach, trying to act cool and unaffected when so much is going on inside his head. His drug use in his situation is understandable and so is his decision to stop, especially with the group therapy members who have been where he is.

A great book that doesn't preach, yet has the ending it really needs: a brighter future for Pip and his family. I have recommended this book to so many people, I've lost count AND I've loaned out both of my copies.

This is one of the best books I have ever read. It shows that you have to let your feelings out sometimes, and even though your life can be really screwed up your the only one who can fix it. It shows a lot of conflict, and it makes you think about your life comparing to the book. I wish that Jaye had more books, because it took me 1 and a half days to read this. I could not put it down becasue I really wanted to no how it was going to turn out. The only part I didn't like was that Jaye should have made the Dad not look so innocent at the end. But overall the best book I have probably ever read.

I could not put this book down, once I started reading it. It has got to be one of the best books ever written. We all need to applaud Jaye Murray on having such amazing writing skills. She did an EXCELLENT job on it, hands down, one of the best books. I love how she made the characters seem so real, like you could just picture them in your head, and have an idea on what theyre like. She did wonderful at that. I always LOVED how she had Pip's inner thoughts written in italics. It showed a lot about Pip, and it was like I knew him. All about him. Like I said, I couldnt put the book down, I finished it in a few hours, and I had to look back at certain parts..just because I enjoyed it so much. It's a very moving book, for both adults and teenagers. Like another reviewer said, I loved how the ending wasnt all happy and fake. It shows you that YOU are the only one who decides what you do with your life, whether it be good or bad. Very very good book, I reccomend it to ANYONE.

My Aunt is Jaye's friend, so I got to read the book early when I met Jaye. I couldn't put it down. It is about a boy (Pip) and how he has to get consoling or get expelled. The book was highly interesting and I recommend it to ANYONE! I can't wait to get a copy of it myself, so I can read it again!

Why does no audio version of this book exist? This is a great book for students, and some could really benefit from an audio version. If anyone knows of audio for this book, please comment on here.

Bottled up is a novel about a 16 year old boy 'Pip' who was brought up into a disfunctional family. With a pill-popping mother, an alcoholic father, and a naive younger brother. His abusive lifestyle shows through his actions. From smoking weed all the time and skipping class daily, the school finally got tired of playing his games and hearing his excuses. The principal had "black mailed" Pip into councling by giving him the option of being expelled or going through councling. Pip may have seemed like a fearless teenager until he realizes his father wouldn't approve. "I want to not be afraid"(pg 120) Pip said talking about his abusive father. After councling he realized what a horrible path he had taken but refuses to change his ways. When he said "I want to know what it's like to wake up in the morning and be glad I did."(pg 44) was when he knew his life needed a change, but didn't know how to approach it. Pip's addictions and strength sent a message out that made this fictional novel, so realistic.

This book is great - it would be excellent for a high school literature class.!

Pip is a 15 year old boy that drinks and does drugs that you can usually either find at a cemetary or smoking behind a deli. Life at home isn't to great for him, his father is an alcoholic that is usually angry and his mother pops pills. His little brother looks up to him, even though Pip does not want him to, his little brother doesn't understand what really goes on. Pip has to keep good watch of him because he is exposed to alcohol and drugs and doesnt want his brother to get into those kinds of things even though he doesnt get a hold of them. In the book Pip has to death with trying to not get kicked out of school, family issues, forced counseling, drugs and alcohol addictions. This book is excelant because it talks about problems most teen-agers have and are trying to deal with.
-By Kayla