Customer Reviews

A Butterfly in Winter

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

High school - what a world! Clark manages to capture the world so accurately. At times, I felt like I was sitting in the room with Allison, listening to hear talk about her day. There were moments when I wanted to cry, and others when I wanted to grab her and scream at her. Rarely do authors understand what adolescence is really like for girls. Clark does, and it is so real that any girl who attended a suburban high school will recognize, if not relate to, Allison. I hope this book catches on, for both teen girls and parents!

Clark has written an outstanding coming-of-age YA novel, accurately depicting the struggle to find acceptance in high school. The protagonist leaves one relationship for another, not because she particularly stops liking the boy she was dating, but because her new "friends" think its a good idea. She stays with him in spite of growing disillusionment which culminates in a scene described in such a matter-of-fact way the reader is led to believe that it is a far-too-frequent experience for teenage girls. A must read!

Ok, so I graduated from high school years ago. Although Allison appears to be growing up in the same years as I was. I remember all of the awkwardness and cruelty that is so common in this novel. I really enjoyed it. I think teens will enjoy it. I also think parents will benefit, because I can only imagine high school has gotten far worse.

One of my favorite books of all time. All of my friends have borrowed it and read it, and we all love it. If you like Judy Blume, or Sarah Dessen, or Hailey Abbott, you will love this. I am a huge fan and I hope she writes a new book soon.

(Also, I have a huge crush on Tim. I know. I am such a dork, huh?)

Tara has done a great job at illustrating exactly how strange a new community, and high school, can be for the unfortunate soul who has to move in the midst of her high school career. The world of boys is portrayed as convincingly alien -- and a little bit dangerous, tempting, &/or thrilling, and the novel slowly builds to a climax that is both sad and artfully drawn.

Parts of the book moved too slowly for me -- I wanted more dialogue and less inner thoughts -- but that may reflect my own biases and not be your experience at all. There may be a male/female thing going on here with that, as Tara does allow you to enter into the thinking of a teen girl with great thoroughness and believability. She clearly remembers it ALL...

The book is a must-read for any teen whose family has uprooted them to move to a new, and supposedly wonderful, community. If you've ever felt like a misfit and all wrong in comparison to the perky people around you, you'll find a lot to relate to in this fine book.

For some inexplicable reason, my girlfriend made me read this. She insisted I had to. So, now, to make her happy, I have read it and I am reviewing it, as she requested.

The book is good. I am a guy, though, so it's not really my thing. It's definite chick stuff. I know Amy (my gf) loved it, though. She never shut up about it. So, if you are a girl, read this. If you are a guy, buy it for your girlfriend (and then be prepared to read it yourself. Luckily, it reads quickly.)

All I can say is thank God high school is over.

There are a lot of books for teens. Most of them are okay. Nothing great, but interesting. What I like the most about this particular book, and what makes it better, is that the characters aren't perfect. They are real. They act like regular people. The stuff that happens to them happens to normal people. It's what high school is ACTUALLY like.

this writer is definitely the next sarah dessen. you should check out this book now, before everyone else has read it. someday you can be like hey i read that way back when. i am a new fan! i cannot wait until there's another one from her.

I ordered this book for my 11-year old daughter, the content was not too mature for her. However, the cover shown online is not the cover on the book that I received. The pastel colors with butterflies was appropriate, the blood-dripping dagger hovering over a white flower all against a black background is not appropriate. I do not judge a book's contents on the cover, but I would not have purchased this for my daughter if I had seen this cover. She won't pick up the book because of the cover and is afraid of the content even after reading the introduction and cover information. I am a disatisfied customer.