Metamorphosis: Junior Year [Hardcover]

Betsy Franco (Author), Tom Franco (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 13, 2009

He’s a young artist obsessed with myths. But can he fix his own fate? Acclaimed author Betsy Franco and her talented son collaborate on a hip YA novel of "epic" proportions.

Life. Love. Death. Identity. Ovid’s got a lot on his mind, and he pours it all — as confessions, observations, narrative poems, and drawings — into the pages of a notebook. Inspired by his namesake, he wryly records his classmates’ dramas as modern-day Roman mythology. There’s Sophie and Caleb, the Psyche and Cupid of cyber-couples; poetic Paula, who pursues filmmaker Franny like Apollo chasing Daphne; and graphic novelist Duwayne, a Proserpina shuttling between divorced parents. Meanwhile, Ovid hides his own Olympian struggles: his meth addict sister Thena has run off, leaving him with a suffocating home life and a disturbing secret. In her striking YA debut, Betsy Franco introduces an expressive soul with a heartbreakingly authentic voice. Fantastical ink illustrations by her son Tom Franco enhance the intimate tone, delving deep into one intriguing teen’s imagination.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 9 Up—Franco pays homage to the poet Ovid's retelling of Roman myths. Her Ovid, a high school junior, is a budding, brooding artist, still reeling from the departure of his meth-addicted sister. His formerly permissive parents are smothering him with concern and attention as they desperately try to ensure that he does not travel the same road as Thena. Ovid writes poems about and draws his high school as Roman myths with students and adults playing the parts of Pluto, Midas, Athena, Ceres, Proserpina, and a host of others. Only readers well versed in mythology will catch all of the references. Mere mortals will need a handy reference source to get the full impact. The pen-and-ink drawings are interesting but sometimes border on the bizarre and don't all fit smoothly into the story. Regardless of readers' levels of knowledge of Roman religion, the story of a teen feeling imprisoned by overly concerned parents and abandoned by an addicted sibling will resonate with many young adults.—Anthony C. Doyle, Livingston High School, CA
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About the Author

Betsy Franco has written more than thirty books and anthologies for children. She originally wrote METAMORPHOSIS as a collection of poems, which called to mind her son Tom’s notebook and journal drawings. She lives in California.

Tom Franco has been a creative artist since the age of thirteen. The drawings in METAMORPHOSIS were created during his high-school years and reworked as a series for this book. He lives in California.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 14 and up
  
• Hardcover: 128 pages
• Publisher: Candlewick (October 13, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0763637653
• ISBN-13: 978-0763637651
• Product Dimensions: 5.9 x 0.6 x 8.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #847,682 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Courtesy of Teens Read Too, January 9, 2010

By 

TeensReadToo "Eat. Drink. Read. Be Merrier." (All Over the US & Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Metamorphosis: Junior Year (Hardcover)

Gold Star Award Winner!

Ovid, named after and inspired by the Roman poet, journals all of his thoughts into a notebook, adding his expressive drawings throughout. Ovid's journal tells of his high school experience, as well as his family life, from an interesting perspective.

Through narrative, drawings, and emotional poetry, Ovid gives the reader a snapshot of his life, as well as the lives of other high school students. Each new poem reveals a different student's background and current going-ons in their life. Ovid's writing is snarky, raw, and honest.

METAMORPHOSIS: JUNIOR YEAR was incredible. There was such honest emotion in Ovid's writing. He held nothing back, putting all of his feelings on the line. I was incredibly drawn to his poetry, each about a different high school student. These poems dug deep into the person's life and showed their secrets, unknown to others. They were truly wonderful. The drawings, often abstract, were difficult to understand at times. Ovid, however, does describe many along with their meanings, creating a clearer image of what he is expressing through them.

Ovid also gives each student a separate identity, connecting each one to a Roman mythological character based on their personalities and struggles. Fans of mythology will love this concept. The book has a strong theme of, you guessed it, transformation. In such a short book, it's amazing how each character, including Ovid, grows and changes to become something better.

METAMORPHOSIS: JUNIOR YEAR by author Betsy Franco is a true masterpiece. I could find absolutely nothing wrong with this book. I recommend it to all readers. This one is a must-read.

Reviewed by: McKenzie Tritt

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Flamingnet.com Top Choice Book-really pulled me in, March 1, 2010

By 

Flamingnet Teen Book Reviews "FLAMINGNET COM" (Baltimore, Maryland USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Metamorphosis: Junior Year (Hardcover)

This book follows a boy named Ovid through his junior year.
All of Ovid's classmates have changed over the summer. Ovid
draws pictures and writes poems about his classmates. He is
really good at art. He keeps his journal in between his
mattress. He hopes that people care about what he draws.
Read this book and find out how Ovid's classmates progress
through their junior year.

I thought this book was really
good. Whenever I started to read it, it was kind of
confusing, but when I got into it, the book really pulled me
in. I loved this book! The book had really good descriptions
of the characters in it. There are a lot of interesting
poems and drawings of his classmates.

NOTE to parents: This book had bad
language,and talked about stuff that little kids should not
read without an adults permission.

Reviewed by a young adult student reviewer
Flamingnet Book Reviews
Teen books reviewed by teen reviewers

4.0 out of 5 stars A lovely study in Ovid, December 23, 2011

By 

E. Kristin Anderson "EKAnderson" (Austin, TX) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Metamorphosis: Junior Year (Hardcover)

This book told with prose, poetry, and illustrations is the story of high school student Ovid as he breaks away from the mold his family has created for him. He's still reeling from the disappearance of his sister, who can't break from her meth addiction long enough to come home. He has a sketch book where he draws strange things that he doesn't dare put on his bedroom walls, for fear his parents will ask too many questions. In the sanctity of his art class, though, he is encouraged to explore these ideas, and it is through his art and poetry, that Ovid begins to understand his relationships with the people around him, and that he begins to find himself despite the expectations of his strict mother and father. With a beautiful narrative and complimentary art, METAMORPHOSIS: JUNIOR YEAR is both a lovely study in Roman poet Ovid's original METAMORPHOSES, but also a captivating story all its own.