Customer Reviews

Paranoid Park

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PARANOID PARK is a dark and intense psychological thriller of a novel that puts a normal teen in a very difficult situation.

Written as a confessional letter, it starts after a fateful night at a Portland, Oregon skatepark known as "Paranoid Park." Paranoid is "an underground 'street' park, which means there are no rules, nobody owns it, and you don't have to play to skate." But Paranoid is also "kind of a street-kid hangout. There's all these stories, like how a skinhead got stabbed there once. That's why it's called Paranoid Park. It has a dangerous, sketchy vibe to it."

After going to Paranoid Park with his older friend Jared, the narrator (who remains unnamed throughout the book) is enthralled by the experience. Skating at Paranoid meant you were in the "big leagues." The boys planned to return to the skatepark together that weekend, but plans changed when a college girl invited Jared to a party. Still lured by the thrillride of Paranoid, the narrator returns on his own.

At the park, the narrator finds himself hanging out with a "streeter" named Scratch and a bunch of other street-kid types. Scratch tells stories about how he lived up and down the West Coast, hopping trains and living in bus stations. Somehow, our "prep" narrator gets talked into hopping a local train with Scratch and the evening turns into even more of an adventure. The fun stops abruptly when a security guard gets thrown in the mix and a teenage adventure becomes the cause of a crime.

With a dead body and no witnesses, the narrator is paralyzed with fear. What should he do? Who will he tell? Will anyone believe him that this truly was an accident? Trapped by his own paranoia and the possible consequences of one night on the rest of his life, the narrator spends the remainder of the novel in a CRIME AND PUNISHMENT-like dilemma.

Author Blake Nelson, best known for his lighter works like ROCK STAR SUPERSTAR, THE NEW RULES OF HIGH SCHOOL and the seminal GIRL, does a phenomenal job portraying the raw and troubled emotions of a teen in turmoil without casting judgment. It's up to readers to decide how they feel about the character and the moral dilemma he faces. PARANOID PARK is in pre-production with director Gus Van Sant, known for films like Elephant and Good Will Hunting. It will be interesting to see how this haunting novel translates to the big screen.

--- Reviewed by Kristi Olson

The plot of this book is very simple. An innocent skater kid gets in a scuffle with a psycho security guard and accidentally kills him. That's when the tension starts. What should he do? He thinks his family is too screwed up anyway, to risk putting them through a possible murder charge. Plus no one was there, no one who could tell on him anyway. But what about his conscience? And what about the girl he loves? And how is he ever going to look people in the eye with the innocence he started his life with. This book asks some big questions and gives no easy answers. It is also a page turner that will keep you up long into the night. Nelson has an ear for dialogue that is so clear you will think he used a tape recorder. Great book to make you think.

If you dare visit Paranoid Park in Portland, Oregon, you will find the Streeters and the Preps. In Blake Nelson's new novel, PARANOID PARK, the reader enters the dark side of the skate park world along with the main character, who happens to be one of the Preps.

Paranoid Park is the nickname for an old skate park being used by the less desirable Streeters. While visiting the park, the main character is dared to jump a train car with one of the Streeters. When they are discovered by a security guard, an unfortunate "accident" causes the horrific death of the guard. The Streeter takes off, leaving the Prep with the guard's remains and the decision of what to do next.

What should he do? Tell the police, tell his parents, tell a friend? He decides to keep the truth to himself, but mixed in with his parents' impending divorce, his girlfriend issues, plus school and grades, he may have more than he can deal with.

Nelson's PARANOID PARK is described as a psychological thriller, and I couldn't agree more. If you are a fan of getting into the mind of the characters, this is just the book for you. With its attention-grabbing title and its cool skateboard cover, it will be flying off young adult shelves.

Reviewed by: Sally Kruger, aka "Readingjunky"

This book is incredible. The inner world of this good kid who did a terrible thing is captured so well...I could only wonder how I would have dealt if I had been in that situation, how my friends would have dealt...and whether there is a "right" thing to do. It really makes you think about what secrets you could learn to live with--and what you could not handle. All teenagers (and their parents!) should pick this one up.
(I think it may be too intense for kids under 12 or 13.)
And by the way, I saw that Gus Van Sant is making this into a movie.
Coooool!

I became interested in "Paranoid Park" because I found out that Gus Van Sant made a film version of a book by the same name. I am not a fan of Van Sant, but I love skateboarding and the plot intrigued me, so I decided to pick up the book.

The story revolves arounds a young skater prep who decides to visit an underground skatepark for street kids called "Paranoid Park". It is upon his visit alone that a horrifying accident occurs out of what was meant to be no more than a thrill ride on a freight train. The ride ends up in an accidental death of a security gaurd, and the rest of the book revolves around how he deals with the fact that it was partially his fault that a man was brutally killed. The images play over and over as he tries to cope with everyday life and figure out if he should call the cops or keep quiet. He soon realizes that life is more than sleeping with woman and just coasting through life, and he wants to figure out what that life can be if he isn't imprisoned for the rest of his life.

This book is short, and is a very quick read. What makes it so intriguing is that the main character feels like someone that you might know, and the other characters, even the stereotypical ones come off as real and people that might be in your school. Our lead character struggles with enjoying life and severe trauma. Can you enjoy life knowing that tomorrow you might be senetenced to life in prison? These are questions that kids shouldn't have to deal with, but there are so many children who struggle everyday to live and just enjoy life. This book is not for young children or for squeamish people, it does not spare the gorey details at all.

God Bless ~Amy

According to this book, there's two kind of skaters: preps and streeters. While this isn't always true, it is at Paranoid Park where the cool people skate. When a prep tries to hang with the streeters there's trouble. He gets in over his head. This book is a realistic look at a kid in trouble and it and will scare the **** out of you. Awesome. Read it. Out.

First of all, let me start by saying that I'm 25. I have to say that no story has ever made me feel quite the same as Paranoid Park. I've read the book and seen the movie, and I felt they both did the job extremely well. After I finished reading the book, I was amazed with how much the movie left out, but then again, the movie focuses more on the heavily introverted world that Alex falls into following the crime.

The way this story impacted me was shocking. I actually felt as if I had stepped into the shoes of the character, and when I finished, oh boy, I was definitely looking over my shoulder. This book literally made me see the world differently for at least the remainder of the day. It was also an easy and captivating read because the language is so simple, yet so effective. It almost demands you to listen and keep reading, which is how I ended up finishing it in two days. I felt like I had to know more of what was going on.

Throughout the entire book, I found myself wanting to jump inside and give poor Alex a much-needed hug. Everything that's going on with his family and his friends and how they have no idea what he did, but instead continue on with their own problems...it was really sad and intense, and you can't help but understand his view and feel that sheer panic with him.

It's vividly realistic and told from a teenager's point of view, which I think makes it extremely effective. It wouldn't be the same had it been written in third person. I can't say enough good things about this book. It's just...wow. The realism was stunning, the characters believable, and the plot itself sounds like it could be an actual news story.

Blake Nelson is definitely an inspiring writer, which is one of many reasons I used the story as an influence for one of the chapters in my own book, Blue Car Racer.

I'll definitely be picking up other titles by this author, because his talent in writing gripping YA stories is amazing. I wish the film version was done a little better and played up the drama, because there is a lot in the book that doesn't take place in the movie, i.e. the detective taking him out for a drive when he suspects Alex of the crime, the streeters getting mad and trying to beat Alex up for drawing police attention to Paranoid Park, etc. It made me understand the movie a lot more, because it was kind of confusing in some parts and the book has more action, but still, the film version of Paranoid Park is also well done and I highly recommend it for any fan of the book and of indie films or if you really like Gus Van Sant's work.

GREAT story, perfect length, easy to finish, and definitely unforgettable. I'd say this is a must-have for thriller/suspense fans. Even if you're not typically into short YA novels, this one is way worth the read.

Wrong place, Wrong time, someone ends up dead... One mistake and nothing will ever be the same again, your world is turned upside-down in an instant. If you call the cops, you could be charged with murder, but you're just a kid... it was an accident and there are no witnesses... What would you do?

In PARANOID PARK a 16 year old skater kid in Portland gets himself mixed up in a very serious situation and finds he has no one he trusts enough to turn to for help. Author Blake Nelson does an excellent job taking the reader through this skater kid's story, by means of a confessional letter of sorts, as the guilt and confusion eats away at the youth and he struggles with how to deal with a situation that is way beyond what anyone his age (or any age for that matter) should ever have to face alone.

Not really a story a skateboarding story, PARANOID PARK is more a physiological thriller, wherein the characters involved happen to be skaters. This realistic and heartfelt tale is full of raw emotion and tough ethical questions that Nelson explores flawlessly and without judgment. Let's face it, being a teen is hard enough in itself, add to that family issues and an unfortunate and tragic twist of fate, it can be downright unbearable.

I read this fabulous book after seeing the movie. Altho I thought the movie was done in a very bizarre way, I loved the story and the characters so I read the book. I read it in one afternoon - could not put it down. This is a must read especially for teens and parents of teens.

This book flew by. I read the whole thing in one night. It is the story of an ordinary boy who accidentally kills someone and then tries to live his like as normal but with a terrible secret. All the stuff about his life is realistic and true to life, like his girlfriend who just wants to lose her virginity and his friends who are a little clueless. This book was totally engrossing and made you think.