Picture Perfect [Paperback]

Elaine Marie Alphin (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 9 Up-Ian's friend is missing, and no one knows what happened to him. Or do they? As Ian searches for clues, snatches of a forest glen and Teddy pleading for help keep creeping into his mind. On top of that, Ian's father, the school principal, has been putting extra pressure on his son to be perfect. The protagonist's three "personalities," School-Ian, Home-Ian, and Failure-Ian, all try to work together to do what is expected, but sometimes the expectations are too great and Ian "zones out." As he struggles to remember what he may have seen the day Teddy disappeared, he begins to understand what happened, what he is repressing, and what role his violent father played in his friend's disappearance. Once again, Alphin uses child abuse and the machinations of the mind to create her story, but this time it falls short of believability. While the setting is perfect and Ian's character is well developed, readers are likely to be puzzled by the initially unexplained voice Ian hears in his head. Also, some of Teddy's journal writing is obviously forced to advance the plot and may not ring true for teen readers. Because of the complexities of the relationships, reluctant readers will struggle, but better readers searching for a "male-oriented" mystery may be satisfied.
Lynn Evarts, Sauk Prairie High School, Prairie du Sac, WI
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Booklist

Gr. 6-9. Ian Slater, the principal's son, has many secrets. One is the hideout he and his best friend, Teddy, have created in an abandoned motel in the redwood forest surrounding their small northern California town. Here the boys take photos, read photography magazines, and keep secret journals. Yet, as close as the kids seem to be, they keep secrets from one another: Ian has an abusive father; Teddy is searching for the father he's never met. After Teddy fails to go home one day, Ian becomes a suspect in the disappearance. Told through Ian's first-person narrative, this psychological thriller has many twists and turns, incorporating multiple personalities, name games, and paternity riddles. Readers will relish following Teddy's trail of digital photographs and anticipating Ian's triumph. Debbie Carton
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 11 and up
  
• Paperback: 245 pages
• Publisher: Carolrhoda Books (September 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0822564688
• ISBN-13: 978-0822564683
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,378,448 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Elaine Marie Alphin knew she was going to be a writer before she could even read or write. On early morning walks with her father in San Francisco, she listened to the stories he told, and made up stories to tell him, and she realized then that she wanted to spend her life making up stories. Winner of the Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Young Adult Mystery (Counterfeit Son), the ForeWard Book of the Year Award for Young Adult Fiction (The Perfect Shot), the Society of Midland Authors Children's Fiction Award and Young Hoosier Book Award (Ghost Soldier, also an Edgar Award nominee), the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold Award (Dinosaur Hunter), two Society of Children's Writers and Illustrators Magazine Merit Awards, and the Virginia State Reading Association Award (The Ghost Cadet), Mrs. Alphin has made writing for children and young adults, and speaking to them at schools and conferences, her dream career. Although she started out as a journalist in Houston, a tip from her husband, Art, drew her to writing for children. Her fiction and nonfiction books for youngsters from beginning readers through teenagers have been selected for Bank Street College lists, TAYSHAS lists, VOYA Top Shelf lists, and 20 Children's Choice state award lists. Although adults occasionally ask when she's going to grow up enough to write for them, Elaine Marie Alphin explains why she loves writing for young readers instead: "I always wanted my writing to challenge readers to question their assumptions, and I discovered that a lot of grown-ups don't really want to question their assumptions. They've made choices and compromises in their lives, and they want to feel comfortable about them. But young readers are still finding out who they are, like I am, I guess. They're the perfect audience for me because they want to consider new ideas in order to decide for themselves which ideas they agree with and which they don't, and work out how they want to live their lives." Elaine Marie Alphin has written one book for adults: Creating Characters Kids Will Love. It's about writing for young readers. Get to know Elaine Marie Alphin better at her website: www.elainemariealphin.com. The Alphins live in Bozeman, Montana, and spend time in South Dakota and Wyoming.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A great book, September 28, 2005

By 

Tigers#1 (Versailles, Ohio) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Picture Perfect (Young Adult Fiction) (Hardcover)

Picture Perfect

Elaine Marie Alphin

4 out of 5

Ian Slater's best friend Teddy is gone. One minute Teddy was there and the next he was gone. Now that nobody knows what happened to Teddy; the people in the small town of Sawville start wondering if Ian is as good a guy as he seems. Ian doesn't know what happened to Teddy either but he is determined to find out. On the path to find his friend he finds out more about his father, his other friends, Teddy, some of the residents of Sawville, and even himself.

I very much enjoyed this book. It was mysterious, realistic, and quite a page turner. The ending wasn't what I had expected and I was shocked to find out what happened to Teddy.

If you are the kind of person who likes stories of other people`s realistic problems and like to read mystery book than this is a book for you.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Captivating, September 23, 2004

By 

What's-Her-Face (Mesquite, Texas, USA!) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Picture Perfect (Young Adult Fiction) (Hardcover)

This book kept me reading from beginning to end. I loved every minute of it! The mysteries kept from best friends keeps going on and on. Ian's abusive father, Teddy's obssession with finding his father, there are even some things that they don't know about themselves! A great story of determination fear and friendships. I read this for a school book report and I'm glad I came across it. For those of you who have finished this wonderful novel, it kind of makes you think of what's going on in your own head, huh? :-D!

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars ben - 12 yrs old, October 26, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Picture Perfect (Young Adult Fiction) (Hardcover)

I read this book for a school report. It wasn't the best book I ever read, but the ending was pretty good. I would not recommend it to my friends. I think I was too young to understand it fully, I am in 7th grade.