Customer Reviews

Klepto

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is a fast-paced, entertaining YA book that all girls--young and old alike--should read.

Some say it's about how peer pressure can get kids into trouble, but this beautifully-written novel is much more than that: It's about teen-age insecurity, friendship, first experiences ... and, above all, it's about how being honest and doing the right thing pays off in the end.

When the main character, fourteen-year-old Julie Prodsky becomes friends with Julie Braverman at her new high school, she looks up to her popular new friend, desiring to be more like her. So when Julie B. introduces her to shoplifting, Julie P. bows to peer pressure and goes along with it. It soon becomes a habit and she builds a wardrobe of the hottest designer clothing of the '80s. She knows stealing is wrong and her heart isn't in it, but she finds it hard to resist and begins to suspect she may be a kleptomaniac. She also fears angering and upsetting her new friend.

And just her luck, while she's trying to think of a way to stand up for her own principles and express her true feelings to Julie B., they get caught! Poor Julie P.!

Author Jenny Pollack does such a fine job of bringing her characters to life that your heart will break for these troubled teens, especially the heroine who is very sad at parties when she's not "cool" like the rest of them. Readers will empathize with Julie P. as they look back on their own anxieties during their teen years. I, for one, rooted for Julie P. from page one; she was quite endearing as she struggled for self-acceptance, struggled to remain true to herself while trying to fit in with the others.

And stealing isn't the only age-inappropriate thing that Julie B. does! So how does the more honest, sensible Julie P. get out of this mess? What happens when she quits letting Julie B. control her life? Will their friendship survive? And how does Julie P.'s old boyfriend figure into this exciting, timely plot? And where are the kids' parents?

You will have an exciting reading adventure finding the answer to those questions as this young author leads you from one exciting scene to the next, with great skill and seeming ease.

This is a very good book, written in the voice of Julie P., whom the author portrays in such a realistic way you will think you're in the book, sharing the troubles and triumphs right along with the characters.

I recommend this book very highly and can't wait to read Jenny Pollack's next novel.

Reviewed by Betty, Dravis, 2008
The Toonies Invade Silicon Valley

I loved this book. It talks about things that actually happen to teens that parents like to ignore and pretend dont happen. I just loved this book and can realte to it not becuase i steal but becuase of the friedship problems and other issues in the book.

Julie Prodsky is absolutely thrilled, yet anxious, to start at the famed High School of the Performing Arts in New York City. Julie feels like such a loser compared to all the talented and smart students in her freshman class, not to mention the upperclassmen. She worries about fitting in, and can't believe her luck when popular, pretty Julie Braverman notices her in the crowd and invites her to hang out at school.

The Julies' friendship starts to intensify, which thrills Julie P. because she hates hanging around her apartment with her dad, her overbearing mother, and annoying older sister. Julie P. is totally impressed with Julie B.'s fantastic wardrobe - the girl always has the latest jeans and the best brands. At first, Julie P. can't understand how she can afford everything, and then she learns the truth - Julie B. loves to shoplift. And she wants Julie P. to join in the fun.

What starts out as a harmless adventure begins to turn into an obsession for both the girls. The risks carry over into their social lives, too. Worried about being too good and too nice, Julie P. begins to smoke and drink with Julie B. at parties thrown for upperclassmen. She is determined to get her first kiss - and even more if she can.

Just when Julie P. thinks her life is about as good as it can get, the bubble bursts. How she handles this sudden crisis is about to change her life forever. All she knows is that her parents do not trust her, her friends are dropping her, and she can't make any relationship work out.

Jenny Pollack brings the 1980's back with her debut novel set in New York City. Pop culture references are everywhere and the retro tone will appeal to teen readers. Regardless of the time setting, teens will relate to Julie P.'s desire to fit in and how hard it is to resist peer pressure.

Give KLEPTO a try - it's definitely addicting.

Reviewed by: Samantha G.

"Oh my god, I'm gonna have a brand-new pair of Fiorucci jeans for free!" Said Julie Prodsky, as she was about to steal for the first time. In this novel, Julie Braverman introduces Julie Prodsky, the main character, to shoplifting. Julie P. and Julie B. became best friends, and they eventually started to do everything together-even stealing. Julie and Julie also (as they were known around school) met on the first day of school and they noticed that they rode the same bus. The Julies sat together on the bus, hung out after school, and went to get things together. Julie P. started to examine her stealing habits when both girls named Julie and a Jennifer got caught. She thought she was a kleptomaniac because she couldn't stop stealing. Julie P. decided to ask her mother if she could see their psychologist to talk about her stealing issues. When Julie P. told Julie B. about not stealing anymore J.B. got upset and they lost their friendship. With the help of the "shrink" she tackled the issue of stealing, and she got her friend back. I liked Klepto because it interested me to the point where I couldn't put it down.

Klepto was a great book because it dealt with an issue that some teens face today. In Klepto, by Jenny Pollack both Julies stole from the local department stores, and they were caught. Julie Braverman always thought of stealing as something you could do anytime, but Julie Prodsky always felt bad about it but did it anyway. A lot of the kids in their high school stole on a regular basis, and Julie always followed Julie B. so she stole too. I liked that in the end both Julies solved their stealing problems, and I think this book helped other teens deal with their stealing problems if they had one.

I also liked Klepto because it showed that it takes a good follower to be a good leader. Julie Prodsky looked up to Julie B. as a role model. Julie Braverman was everything Julie P. wanted to be she was popular, had a perfect figure, and was confident. Julie wanted to be excepted by her so she did whatever she thought would make Julie B. happy. One day before she started seeing her psychologist, she decided that she wasn't going to steal anymore, but she ended up taking it anyway. She then told Julie B. that she was having doubts but she said not to worry about it, but Julie finally leaded for a change and told her she wouldn't steal. That ended up wrecking their friendship for a month.

Klepto was a good book because it shows that the person who resists peer pressure will be better off in the long run. At a party that the Julies went to everyone was off doing things that weren't age appropriate. Julie Braverman was doing all of these age inappropriate things while Julie P. sat around and seemed like a stick in the mud. Julie Prodsky felt sad at first because she didn't drink and nobody thought of her as cool, but in the long run she felt good because she didn't have to be a part of the crowd. Julie also had a boyfriend that she was pressured to be with, and he ended up going out with another girl at the same time. If she had resisted the pressure, then she wouldn't have been hurt so badly.

I really liked Klepto and the way the characters were portrayed. I always like a book with a happy ending, and this book fit that description exactly. The Julies became friends again, and they stayed friends forever. Julie P. decided to go back out with her old boyfriend that wronged her. Julie P. also started to be her own person, and didn't let Julie B. control her life. Klepto is one of the best books I have ever read.

By S.Moore

All the reviews seem to be from adults/friends of the author. I read this as part of a mother daughter book group, as an adult - I would not choose this for my own reading. The references to places and movies and actors from the eighties would not be anything the girls could relate to. For example - his hair looked like Scott Baio - My daughter would assume the reference was to a classmate... So many references to how fun and tasty alcohol is and how smoking pot is so much fun - at 14 - with NO consequences. You must be kidding me. Maybe thats how it was in the eighties, but hopefully not for my daughter. If you are a parent selecting a book for your child - there are SO many better books out there of this genre, that won't make smoking and drinking quite the given that this one does. Definitely not for teens - and too infantile for adults.

I only wish I had been lucky enough to have read this book when I was 13 years old - I know it would have instantly been crowned "my favorite book!" Ms. Pollack creates a world that feels utterly authentic from her description of the mega-popular jeans of the early '80's and the kind of dinner you make when your parents aren't home, to the giggling, late-night phone conversations and the incredible loneliness that one can only feel at a high school party. I winced when Julie P.'s parents argued, got chills at her first "real" kiss and felt just as bewildered as she did by her inability to control her overwhelming impulse to shoplift. Julie P. is a winning narrator - her unsentimental honesty has you rooting for her from the first page and readers of all ages will relate to her struggle for self-acceptance. This book has everything - a plot that moves swiftly, characters that are true-to-life and at its heart, a message that every teenage girl needs to hear: you have the power to be the person you want to be and nothing feels better than being true to yourself.

I grew up in the 80's and had the best time reading this book. I was just meaning to check it out for a gift for my neice, who's 13. But I got hooked and read the whole thing. Jenny Pollack has a knack for getting all the details just right. I was completely transported to that time in my life, growing up in NYC. I think moms in their 30's will enjoy sharing this book with young adult readers. Check it out for yourself!

This book was a rare find for my family. I enjoyed it very much, especially the details about NYC and theater school. My wife loved it, probably because she's a shopaholic (please don't tell her I said that) AND she's a complete freak for any and all things 80's related, which is charming until you're forced to watch reruns of Charles in Charge (a lot).

But we particularly love this book because, Bethany, our 13-year-old, loves it. She reads it repeatedly. And it has been tough finding good books that all three of us can enjoy. I don't particularly like the sci-fi, fantasy, warlock genres so it narrows our choices greatly when it comes to finding books that all three of us are going to read, and read to each other.

For that purpose, KLEPTO is a goldmine.

As for references in the novel to alcohol and pot use "without consequences." I would only say that parents should decide what's appropriate for your own children, based on their social developement and maturity. Our Bethany is aware of the consequences of such vices, probably because her Mom and I taught her the consequences of such vices. And fortunately for us, our daughter thinks of pot and alcohol as substances that, first and foremost, make people "laugh at things that just aren't FUNNY. Which is SO STUPID!" Her words, not mine.

Now if I could just get it through her head that The Backstreet Boys didn't "invent" pop music at the turn of the century. That's right. She thinks The Backstreet Boys are "cool" and "retro." Sigh. She got THAT from her mother's side, no doubt.

I saw Klepto in its "infancy" as a one-woman show in which actress Jenny Pollack read to us from her teen years' diary. And so I could see why so many in those audiences said "You must turn this into a book." Magically, she has turned a voice I am sure every teen will relate to into one that resonates just as immediately to adult readers like myself. Since I know the author and so, supposedly, how the book "turns out," I found it a magnetic "page turner" with equal parts humor, poignancy and solid good sense. Without ever preaching, Jenny Pollack captures the huge moments in a teen's life that bring hime or her to the point of taking a stand and deciding to become the one best person he or she can be. I am one of those who believe that readers read "authors" not just titles. So, I am especailly happy to find one of those authors whose every "next book" I will eagerly await.

Jenny Pollock beautifully captures the anxiety, angst and insecurities of a 14 year old girl in a new high school. Klepto is a tale of first experiences and friendships. Her protagonist is honest, endearing and readers will root for her in the end.