Oh My Goth (Paperback)

~ (Author)
Key Phrases: Bobby Richards, Miss Leigh, Mercedes Turner (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

A fiercely individualist Goth girl wakes up to discover that the whole world has gone Goth and she's actually -- gag -- popular.

Jade Leigh is a nonconformist who values individuality above all else. She has a small group of like-minded Goth friends who wear black, dabble in the dark arts, and thrive outside the norm. They're considered the "freaks" of their high school. But when Jade's smart mouth lands her in trouble -- again -- her principal decides to teach her a lesson she'll never forget.

Taken to a remote location where she is strapped down and sedated, Jade wakes up in an alternate universe where she rules the school. But her best friends won't talk to her, and the people she used to hate are all Goth. Only Clarik, the mysterious new boy in town, operates outside all the cliques. And only Mercedes, the Barbie clone Jade loathes, believes that Jade's stuck in a virtual reality game -- because she's stuck there, too, now living the life of a "freak." Together, they realize they might never get back to reality...and that even if they do, things might never be the same.

About the Author

Gena Showalter debuted her Alien Huntress series with Awaken Me Darkly, and followed that with Enslave Me Sweetly. She is also the author of eleven other novels.

Visit her website at www.genashowalter.com.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: MTV (July 4, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1416524746
• ISBN-13: 978-1416524748
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #433,011 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining., July 20, 2007

By	Betty (CA, US) - See all my reviews

I thought the book was cute. The plot was interesting. However, while reading the book I got a sense that the author did not quite understand the Goth subculture. To me it felt like she just went on Google and searched the word "Goth" and used whatever she found as a reference. An example of this would be how Jade kept referring to other Goths as cemetary Goth, asian Goth, and etcetera. In real life most Goths are not that easy to pin point. Most are rather varied in their interests and would fall under many different categories. I was also annoyed at how cheesy and cliche some of the Goths in the virtual world were. For instance, one girl walks up to Jade and says "Darkness rules!". Being a Goth myself I know for a fact that in real life a Goth would not say that to another Goth unless they were joking. I was also annoyed when one girl asked Jade to start a black magic club. Oh come on! Now, if she would've wanted a Peter Murphy or Siouxsie Sioux fan club then that would've been better. It would've been cool if the author could have slipped a few references to bands like Bauhaus, The Sisters of Mercy, The Mission UK, and Sex Gang Children in the book. Also, I think it would've been entertaining to see some new classes added to the virtual high school. Classes like Goth Rock Music History, DIY 101, and Proper Make up Application. Overall this is a very cute book. I would recommend renting it from your local library if you are bored and need something to do.

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Eh..., May 1, 2008

By	Steph "www.reviewerx.blogspot.com" (Blogger Land) - See all my reviews

I'm so surprised that I'm writing a negative review of this book. When I first got Oh My Goth, I thought it'd be one of those books that I'd recommend to all my friends. The premise was great! I mean--here's to showing everyone is human on the inside and labels/appearances should not be the defining factor of a person or their worth.

And then...

Well, first off, we get this huge contradiction right at the opening. Each chapter is prefaced with a blurb from Jade's private journal--here's the first one:

"When people look at me, they automatically assume I'm dark and weird. Why can't they see the truth? I'm just a girl, trying to find my place in the world."

I thought, Okay, we're off to a great start. This character has strong likeable potential. But then the narrative began. Three paragraphs down the first page and we've got:

"Honestly, I'd rather be anywhere else. Even home, where my dad begins almost every conversation with, "You should lose the black clothes and wear something with color." Puh-lease. Like I want to look like every Barbie clone in Hell High, a.k.a. Oklahoma's insignificant Haloway High School. Ironically, Dad doesn't appreciate the bright blue streaks in my originally blond/now-dyed-black hair. Go figure. That's color, right?"

So, Jade complains about being judged based on her appearance, but here she is doing the exact same thing. Is it any wonder people think that about her?

The book went on. Some passages were funny in a teen-angsty way. Others were bland. But mostly, my thoughts went elsewhere while I was reading. By the last page, I didn't care what Jade did, what the book's message was, or even how it ended. I won't say I was happy that it ended. I wasn't. I wanted to like this book. But I didn't and here's why:

Jade was impenetrable. I couldn't figure her out or relate to her at all. In fact, I thought she was highly superficial, which is not something I want from any character, especially one I'm reading about in a first-person narrative. I'll even go so far as to say this book was superficial. It meandered along the surface, never really digging deep enough for me to get any substance. Some passages were unbelievably contrived, like the ones describing all the types of goths there are and how they dress, like it's one big institution. Is this what this girl considers being a noncomformist? Comforming to the "norms" or noncomformity???

Which brings me to my next point. Jade "expresses her individuality" because her mother, at the exact moment before crashing with another car and dying from the collision, told her to always be herself, no matter what. And now Jade thinks she has to be unlike everyone else to be herself. Someone please tell this girl that dressing differently doesn't make you original.

Overall, didn't like the main character; thought the book's message was botched; didn't care much about about anything that happened. I had hoped this book would've gone to say something about how a person's essence is more important than their outer shell. It didn't. It focused exactly on the opposite, which makes it pointless.

Rating: 3/10

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars 3 1/2 stars, June 13, 2008

By	Jessie Potts "Book Taster" (Terre d'Ange) - See all my reviews

I love Gena Showalter and have been a fan of her adult books for years.
I currently picked up Oh My Goth on a whim at a used bookstore and it was well worth my 4.95

At first the story was way to cliché. Saying Fright instead of cool? Discussing the 'types' of Goth? I mean surely no teen would want to read something so... well obvious.

But once the girls get transformed into the video game I commend Gena Showalter for her eye to detail, she really captured the situation and I was able to cry and laugh with both Jade and Mercedes.

Having said that this book is a great easy read and should be given a chance past the first few chapters.

I plan on reading her teen alien hunter series next.