Candor [Hardcover]

Pam Bachorz (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 22, 2009

In the model community of Candor, Florida, every teen wants to be like Oscar Banks. The son of the town's founder, Oscar earns straight As, is student-body president, and is in demand for every club and cause.
But Oscar has a secret. He knows that parents bring their teens to Candor to make them respectful, compliant–perfect–through subliminal Messages that carefully correct and control their behavior. And Oscar' s built a business sabotaging his father's scheme with Messages of his own, getting his clients out before they're turned. After all, who would ever suspect the perfect Oscar Banks?
Then he meets Nia, the girl he can't stand to see changed. Saving Nia means losing her forever. Keeping her in Candor, Oscar risks exposure . . . and more.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Pam Bachorz's debut novel was inspired by the six years she lived in Celebration, Florida–a "model" small town–when she thought, What if . . . ? She now lives in the Washington DC area, with her husband and son. You can visit her online at www.pambachorz.com.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 12 and up
  
• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: EgmontUSA (September 22, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1606840126
• ISBN-13: 978-1606840122
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.9 x 8.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (52 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #857,099 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Pam Bachorz grew up in a small town in the Adirondack foothills, where she participated in every possible performance group and assiduously avoided any threat of athletic activity, unless it involved wearing sequined headpieces and treading water.

Pam draws inspiration from the places she knows best: she wrote CANDOR while living in a Florida planned community, and set DROUGHT in the woods where she spent her summers as a child. She and her family currently live near Washington, DC. When she's not writing, reading, working or parenting, Pam likes to go to museums and theater performances, and watch far too much television.

As far as she knows, Pam has never been brainwashed. Or maybe that's just what she's supposed to say.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A quick, but satisfying read, October 5, 2009

By 

Sara "The Hiding Spot" (Kalamazoo, MI) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Candor (Hardcover)

Candor was a wonderful debut from author Pam Bachorz! Filled with suspense, secrets, and forbidden romance, Candor grabbed my attention right from the first chapter!

From the first time I heard about Candor, I was intrigued by the plot. Candor is The Stepford Wives taken to a whole new level! I could definitely see Candor being offered a movie deal in the future. It has all the elements of an amazing big screen hit! I also loved the ideas and questions that Candor raises about conformity and family relations. This novel seems to have a healthy balance of popular appeal as well as deeper meaning.

I'm always a little uncertain when I see books that have a main character that is not the same gender as the author. Perhaps it is unfair of me, but I tend to believe that when it comes to characters, a woman writing a male's point of view simply isn't believeable. Perhaps, that goes more for men writing a female's POV or maybe Pam Bachorz has a gift for understanding the minds of men, but I definitely saw Oscar as realistic.

The romance between Oscar and Nia was well written and fit the plot perfectly. Nia and Oscar are both such perfectly flawed characters - their relationship had just the right amount of passion and insecurity.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great, fun read, October 31, 2009

By 

A mom (Massachusetts) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Candor (Hardcover)

I loved this book and flew through it in a day. Right at the start, the author pulls you right in and doesn't let go until the end. I have to admit that I am a Stepford Wives fan, so that made me interested in the book from reading the jacket - but if you're not, don't let that stop you from getting it. It's fun for anyone who's up for a little rebellion, or doesn't want to have Martha Stewart organizing their closets. Very inventive, very good.

11 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars I really wanted to love this book but..., November 19, 2009

By 

Irish of Tickettoanywhere(dot)net (Central MA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Candor (Hardcover)

Candor is a book that there was a lot of early buzz about. All over the the blogs and twitter there it was talk of this amazing new book. It then became a book that I had to have. I needed to learn more about this town and kind of person who would brainwash his own son just to have the perfect society. Reading the book I kept waiting for that WOW factor. The moment which would seal my love for Candor so that I could join the hordes in proclaiming its brilliance.

However, that was never to be. At least not for me. I really like the premise and the writing of this novel but I didn't like any of the characters. The adults were underdeveloped and you never really learned all that you wanted to about the origins of Candor. And Oscar. Well he was just plain annoying. I was expecting someone sympathetic. Someone who wanted to fight the good fight, that last bastion of freedom in a place where your every thought is programmed. But Ocsar isn't any of those things. He is selfish and greedy and really isn't all that much better than the father who created a town filled with brainwashed kids.

I really wanted to rave about this book but I just can't. I didn't see very much in the book to like. But that said I didn't hate it. I was intrigued and I kept reading to see how it all might pan out. I was shocked by the ending. It wasn't one that I had expected and so was a nice twist. So while I am not going to be jumping on the Candor bandwagon anytime soon I will be watching Pam Bachorz because I do want to see what she comes up with next. Bachorz is gifted at world building even if I didn't always like the world that I was in while reading her words. She's a gifted story teller and I hope that I can click better with her next book then I did with this one