Customer Reviews

Lost It

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

The title of Kristen Tracy's LOST IT sums up the heart of the novel in two simple words, but like the novel itself, its simplicity is deceiving. "Lost it" could refer to many facets of the book. The narrator, Tess, starts things off by telling readers how she lost her virginity, and how she subsequently seems to have lost the guy she gave it to. At the same time, her rock-solid best friend is losing her grip after a parental divorce, Tess's parents are running off to recover the sense of self they think they've lost, and Tess, in the middle of everything, feels lost in the world as she tries to pull her life together without them. LOST IT is one of those rare books that gives you a light, fun read yet packs an emotional wallop you won't soon forget.

Like the novel, Tess is a rarity. Readers will relate to her insecurities and her struggles to understand the people in her life, but her constant fear of attacks by wild animals and her naivety due to her born-again parents's restriction of TV viewing give her voice an oddball, comic touch. Tess's voice is a far cry from the polished, hyper-mature tones of the Gossip and It Girls in teen fiction. She's not quite like any character I've ever read about, and that difference makes this book stand out.

Much of the story focuses on Tess's developing relationship with a new guy at school. Tess deals with many of the same questions teens face when they start dating: how serious to get, how far to go, how to make sure he'll stay. But, gradually, readers realize that despite its somewhat juicy opening, what's important isn't whether Tess should have slept with her boyfriend, or whether she's lost him for good. LOST IT proves that there are bigger issues than dating and sex. At the heart of the story is Tess lost in a sea of strong personalities and vague fears. She won't win by keeping the guy, but by keeping her head above water and accepting the uncertainties of life which threaten to overwhelm her.

LOST IT should appeal to a wide range of teen readers, but especially to those who value honesty and awkwardness over posh worldliness. While the novel contains some sexual subject matter, it's hardly glorified or graphic. And its themes of learning to cope with and even enjoy change and unpredictability may be just want teens want to hear. I suspect this is a book that will affect readers of all ages, and stick with them after they finish reading.

Reviewed by: Lynn Crow

Lost It has a perfect title. Yes, the book IS what you think it's about, but it's not ONLY about that. It's about losing your keys. It's about losing your focus. It's about losing your fears. It's about losing your heart.

Kristen Tracy populates her debut novel with memorable, unconventional characters, from the impulsive mother to the somewhat saucy grandmother, from the unpredictable and seemingly sinister best friend to the leading character herself, the unassuming Tess, who has exploding shoes and a tremendous fear of the outdoors.

The most stable character is Ben, the boy who comes into Tess' life during her junior year of high school. He is the catalyst for many of her changes, but in fact, these changes come about due to her own choices and actions. It is she who lets down her guard. It is she who fibs, just a little bit, then trips and falls on the snowball eventually created by that lie.

Lost It will make readers laugh out loud from the very first page. The word 'pageturner' is typically reserved for mysteries and thrillers, but it applies in this case as well. The narration zips along at the speed of thought, and as Tess hints at past and future events, readers will be anxious to find out what happens.

Utterly quirky, totally fun, and surprisingly engrossing, Lost It is a book you should find and keep.

Recommended for older teens and adults.

Amazing book for me personally.
The story line is a bit slow at the start, but once you get about 50 pages in you'll be hooked! I sat down and read this book in 2 hours. I loved it. Any teen who's been in a relationship will be able to relate to this book. It made me laugh, cry, and look at myself in a different light. Most teen girls can probably relate to the lead character Tess, her humor is perfect and really lightens the mood in a serious scene. Her grandma I personally thought was the best character. Her witty sense of humor completed the book. While many people have said the book is graphic I didn't find it to be that way. It never goes into detail and it doesn't cross the line in my opinion.
Great book you won't regret reading it =)

This book is written with a lazy humor that is hard to find. It literally made me laugh out loud at some of the situations and I found it a very enjoyable read for teens of all age. Though, as the title hints, it does focus on a girl losing her virginity, there are also life lessons along the way. Overall, definitely a worthy read!

At around page 23 I was seriously considering returning this book... it was just too weird and random and I just didn't like it.

And yet, I wasn't putting it down. It was around page 93 where I actually started liking this book, which, I'll admit is a very long time to wait for a book to get good... but it was worth it. The randomness ties in eventually since the book starts out with the MC already knowing everything.

Lost It was a pretty good book, it's one of those books where you want to smack the characters around a few times for being so thick headed... and I don't like the way things were handled with Tess's best friend, I felt like there was a much bigger problem than the way the author portrayed it.

This book does have an open ending, which I'm pretty sure no one likes, but it's still a good book.

LOST IT by Kristen Tracy was an okay read for me. The characters of the book were very realistic and I enjoyed reading some of the situations the narrator had to go through because the situations and problems she had experienced I could kind of relate them to my own and I find that to be very important. Why read a book if you can't relate to the main character(s)? I also like the little side plots such as her crazy best friend (everyone has one of those) who feels neglected because of her father starting a new relationship with another woman. But the only thing that caused me to give this book three stars instead of four or even five was because of some of the dull parts in the book and the ending. I suppose the dull parts were put in there to help proceed the story along which is fine with me but what got to me the most was the ending, it seemed unfinished to me and reminded me of the ending of some low-budgeted chick flick.

I was surprised how hilarious this small book was but I definitely remember almost losing it ( from laughing so hard) while I read it very late one night, page fifty had me in fits of giggles so hard that my cat kept giving me looks, I was disrupting his beauty sleep, that's for sure. Growing up is hard to do, especially if you're a girl pulled from all sides, never mind normal family because that never exists, even in books, and what about boy problems and maturing/doing the right thing and all that stuff. Mix in some truly crazy best friends, super cool grandma, a bad hamster, an amazing boyfriend who is a total catch, inexperience mixed with innocence and add a dash of the unexpected and you have a fun, charming book filled to the brim with wit. Getting the boy is easy, keeping him is the hard part!

Tess is a fun girl with a big heart, unfortunately she is also full of phobias and watching her handle her first serious boyfriend who has introduced her to some of the grown up things that life deals with is a hoot. Eccentric isn't even the word when it comes to describing Tess, sometimes you want to hug her and other times you want her to man up and do the right things, of course it's always easier to watch from the sidelines as the athlete is the one taking the beating, making corrective comments about perfect performance, but the book forces the reader to get involved; emotionally since you care and because it's engrossing and hard to put down.

"Lost it" deals with the loss of virginity but also the loss of many other things, the theme hums through the book and picks up different themes and makes the reader realize that something else was lost or gained, part of growing and learning. I loved this book so much that I want to read everything else this author wrote, her ease of weaving the story was magnificent, I had a blast reading this and can't recommend it enough. This has some twists and turns and an ending that I couldn't wait to read, especially since the beginning tells you what lies ahead, and it's not necessarily pretty. The tension is good enough to keep the reader on their toes, and it's also a great summer book that will put a smile on anyone's face.

- Kasia S.

I didn't hate this book, but I didn't love it either. It was a quick read, but there were lots of parts that I felt were unrealistic.

This book was definitely not worth picking up! The characters had no real life to them, Tess was so whiny the whole time, and I just couldn't relate to anything in the book. This book was such a dissappointment especially after having such a great cover!

"Lost It" is clearly about the innocence of a teenager. But, on top of the whole sex thing... it's also about losing your mind, losing your clutch on reality, losing your best friend, losing your sense of self.

Tess Whistle is a junior in high school. She opens her story with telling you that she lost her virginity to Ben (the new guy in school) after knowing him for only four months. She totally surprised herself with how quickly she fell in love with him because from the start, she firmly believed she would wait until she was married- or atleast engaged (as most of us start out hoping). Then, she tells the background of what happened before and during- and circles around again at the end.

Tess lives in EastBum (expletive) where there are constant worries about avalanches, hitting a moose on the highway, getting attacked by bears and wolves or having airplane pieces land on top of your house.

The characters are very strong. Each has their own personalities and they stay true to their characters in the conversations and reactions throughout the story.

-Ben is a pure gentleman who has a few secrets of his own that he keeps rightfully to himself. He is handsome, smart, encouraging, gentle and still passionate at the same time. It's obvious why Tess falls for him almost immediately.

-Zena is obnoxious yet sweet, insightful yet oblivious, and sometimes too smart for herself. I would want a true best friend like her too. A once-in-a-lifetime friend through and through.

-Grandma is spunky, funny, smart, old-fashioned yet also very up-to-date on buying things like thongs and bras. She teaches Tess how to string a man along just enough to get him interested (because nobody likes spoiled soup in their laps). She is one of the most vivid characters in this book and I love her.

-Minor but strong characters: Mom and Dad Whistle. They are in the book briefly but then lose pieces of their minds when running across a few states to go on a few months' expedition to rock climb, leaving Tess home alone until her Grandma flies in from out of state to take care of her. Even though they are only in the book through glimpses in the chapters, they are still strong characters.

Even though this sounds a bit heavy... Tracy keeps it really light! It's so easy to read that I finished it in only one sitting. I couldn't wait to find out what the next thing Ms Tess was going to say! Her outlook on the world is laugh-out-loud funny because she never seems at a loss for words. She will blurt out the most ridiculous things and because of my own warped sense of sarcastic humor... she says what I would've said- which makes me love her even more! haha.

I truly loved this book. I didn't want it to end and was hoping that Tracy wrote another book so that I could continue to read in this type of prose.

Truly an enlightening, deep, entertaining, nostalgic read. Could be a beach book, a backyard book, or a bathtub book. Really really good.