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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Harsh Realistic Story Wrapped Up in a Pretty Package, July 11, 2010
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
From the cover of this book, this looks like it will be your normal, fluffy, Chick-lit YA story. Well as the old saying goes, don't judge a book by it's cover. The cover may be light but the story is heavy and deep. As soon as you start reading, Jessie's situation hits you from the get go. She's only 15 but she's experienced a lifetime of hardships that some adults will never have to face. It made me sad to think that she's had to deal with her mother who is bipolar all by herself and with no one else to help her out at all. It's caused her to have to lie about it to her friends her entire life and there's no one to turn to when she's in desperate need of help. Then out of the blue, she gets a phone call from a man who says he's her biological dad who she thought was dead all these years. Jessie's life begins to change starting on that day.
It's easy for a while to get annoyed with Jessie's behavior. Her mother mentions several times that she has the maturity of an 8 year old in a 15 year old body. And it's true, that there are times when I don't understand why she acts so immaturely sometimes and want to get frustrated with her behavior. However then it's explained about her ADHD and all the problems she's had to deal with living with a mother who is bipolar and it all makes sense. I'm not excusing her behavior but it's good to see that this book does NOT condemn the use of medication or psychiatrists.
This book does feature passages from the Bible but they are portrayed in the form of the mysterious book that Jessie finds. She discovers that it speaks directly to her and helps her in times of need. I really liked how the version of the Bible used is The Message as that is one of my favorite versions because I feel that it really speaks to people who normally avoid reading the Bible because they think they cannot understand it. Jessie's usage of the book is sprinkled throughout the story and is not overtly preachy. Instead it helps and guides her instead of dominating over her life.
Topics such as ADHD, mental illness, alcoholism which are normally avoided in most Christian fiction is brought to full attention here. There are even multi cultural characters to help develop the story more. There isn't a happy ending and there is no miraculous event where everyone gets well and lives happily ever after as a family. I wish more adult Christian fiction authors would take note of this as they tend to avoid almost all those elements in their books. Why is it that teens are more open to understand that life is not all roses and sunshine but adults want to avoid reality?
Overall, I really enjoyed this book and I think it's a great start to the series. I'm looking forward to reading the rest of the books and discovering how the RL Book will affect all those who come across it. Again, don't dismiss this book as fluff. Be prepared to be affected while you read.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great title, fairly good book, August 11, 2010
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
Jessie was fifteen and living with her mother, her mother's mood swings, and her own medication when, out of the blue, the father she'd thought was dead turned up. Perhaps her father's arrival was the catalyst, but Jessie's mom attempted suicide. No holds barred when this redhead was shuttled down to Florida - Jessie isn't one to hold in things - to live with this father she barely knew.
In the airport, a book found its way to Jessie.
Jessie was thrilled to learn that her father owned a Harley Davidson and a sushi restaurant. Less thrilling was learning that her father was a very pious man who prayed regularly.
The book that found Jessie was a contemporary story of Jesus, modernized and simplified so that it was more than palatable to a teenager. The lessons in the book mirrored Jessie's experiences, down to and including the nasty surprise of a little step-sister added to the mix.
While I was disappointed that the book wasn't all Motorcycles and Sushi because I really wasn't in the mood to read a religious book when I picked this up, I found that I did, indeed, like the writing and that I liked Jessie. The religion in Motorcycles, Sushi& One Strange Book is as gentle to the reader as it is in Jessie's "Real Life" book. I can see a teenager who enjoys this book picking up, in a few years, a copy of God on a Harley.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Motorcycles, Sushi & One Strange Book, July 9, 2010
With a title like this you know it's going to be a good book. Motorcycles, Sushi & One Strange Book was written by Nancy Rue, and is part of a Real Life series.
What is normal in a teenagers life? This book is about 15 year old Jessie Hatcher, who suffers from ADHD. She lives with her mother, who suffers from Bi-Polar Disorder. She has been brought up, not knowing that her father existed, until one day he shows up on her door step.
Her Father reappearing in her life, is the final straw that sends her mother into a complete breakdown, and Jessie is sent to live with her father, a man she doesn't know.
Jessie's dad is a man with a past life of alcohol abuse, who has committed to turning his life over to God. On the way to her father's home in Florida, Jessie finds a mysterious book in the airport and she picks it up and takes it with her. The book is about Yeshua and seems to speak to Jessie just when she needs it.
As Jessie tries to hide her ADHD from her dad and new step-sister, she is taught some valuable life lessons. She learns to work in a Sushi restaurant, meets new friends, and finally confronts her mother and her mental illness. The whole time she is reading the Real Life book and learning more and more about God and His plans for her life.
Overall this is a book written for teenagers, but adults would enjoy the book also. The author does a wonderful job portraying how hard it would be for a teenager to have ADHD and what it is like for them. With the subjects of mental illness and alcohol abuse it is not a light read so I definitely think it should be read by kids 12 and up. The Real Life book is meant to portray the Bible, and really I personally don't care for the way that it is modernized, but that is just my personal opinion. There is never any real direct plan of salvation and I think that is the most important message left out of the book. It is a quick read, and the next book entitled Boyfriends, Burritos & an Ocean of Trouble looks to be like another good book from an author who is hitting on tough teenage subjects.
***Disclaimer*** I was not paid for this review. I was sent a free copy to review. Thank you to Zondervan publishing for the review copy.
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