Customer Reviews

Pure

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(19)
3 star:		(27)
2 star:		(19)
1 star:		(38)

 

 

In a nutshell: Pure is the story of a 14-year-old girl who makes very bad decisions. That's really all I can say about this book. And while I didn't dislike the story itself, I wasn't in love with it either. The prose was a little stressful at times and did not make for an entirely pleasurable experience. However, I believe Pure is quite an accomplishment for young author Rebbecca Ray, and she deserves much praise for this effort.

The narrator (never does give a name) starts out as your basic trying-to-fit-in high school teenager. Of course, her game -- allowing boys to feel her up -- is less than admirable. So begins the story of Pure, a bumbling, tedious, and never funny jaunt through the troubled mind of a girl who craves attention in the most unhealthy way.

As for the surrounding story lines with the narrator's embarrassing, awkward friend, Dawn, who becomes increasingly obsessed with her, and the relationship between Philip and Liz, the narrator's parents, who seem to have some problems of their own, I felt the author could have explored their stories more and closed up some of the gaps.

I was drawn into the story, but the writing was too descriptive for my taste. There were times when I read this book like it was my favorite, but there were also times when I was just plain tired of it. Pure is definitely one novel that teeters the fence. Also, by including more about the supporting characters and the reasons behind their actions, I believe Pure could have been more of a well-rounded novel. But I will be keeping my eye out for the next Rebbecca Ray book -- with maturity and experience under her belt, I'm sure the next one will be worth it.

I generally don't enjoy reading books with teenaged legs and sunflowers on the cover. I often read on the subway, and it can be a bit embarassing. If I chose to weather the pornographic implications of such cover art, I expect to be rewarded for my sacrifice--with, say--A GOOD BOOK. I'd even settle for full characters who change and grow. I'd settle for dialogue that occasionally rose above tediousness and pointlessness--perhaps dialogue that, in fact, advanced the plot or advanced character development. If I am going to sit on the L train with a book that slightly resembles a Baby-Sitters Club Epic, I would like for that book to be enriching/rewarding/entertaining/redeeming. Why is this book 400 pages long??!!!! Nothing happens. The family has the same conversations over and over again, and nothing ever changes, and the father character is so irresponsibly designed that his dialogue is virtually identical to that of her 31-year-old boyfriend, Oliver. No one comes alive, except maybe the mother. I found almost nothing to hold on to in the entire novel. The opening line was intriguing. From there on out, it becomes progressively worse. I felt only for one person: the mother. Because she sat in the background, hands folded meekly, kind of depressed and annoyed, for the entire book. Which was a lot like how RR made me feel, too.

I think most would agree that this book will hold your attention throughout. It's certainly an involving read, but it has some problems. First of all, I don't think (contradictory to what other reviewers have said) that this book is written poetically at all. I think it's an admirable first book for such a young author, but she certainly has much room for improvement. Her characterizations were quite shallow and much was left unexplored. Why would any parents (no matter how consumed with their own problems they might be) allow their 14 year old daughter to carry on an obviously sexual relationship with a 31 year old man? In their own house? We aren't talking about parents who are out of the house at all hours working multiple jobs/drinking/engaging in illicit activities. These are middle class parents with a stay at home mother. Not believeable. There are other issues left unexplored, which, if explored, would have made for a much richer novel. What was Oliver's (the 31 year old boyfriend) motivation for entering into a relationship with a 14 year old. We get glimpses, but ultimately, his characterization is shallow. What about the relationship between the father and Dawn, the gangly friend of the narrator? What about the ongoing war between the parents for their daughter's affections? If the author had spent a bit more time developing her characters and less time with the play-by-play, the novel would be deeper. We should somehow at least sympathize with the protagonist here. However, we cannot fully do so. So many of her actions are inexplicable. The author may have it all laid out in her mind, but there are too many gaps here. I'm not saying authors should lay out everything in black and white, but I do feel that fleshing out characters is necessary. Ultimately, an interesting read, but it may leave you unsatisfied.

If I were an English teenager, I would be furious at the way Ray has depicted a "typical" 14 year old.

That being said, I, too, found it impressive (albeit a bit implausible) that Ray was only 16 when she wrote this book; that was one of the reasons I bought it in the first place. What a disappointment. For someone who reads as much as I do, it's rare to find a book that's harder to pick up than it is to put down. Finally, I just skipped to the end, knowing that there was no point in reading the last 100 or so pages (repetition, repetition, repetition...) and thought "WHAT?!?". There is absolutely no resolution to this book. Then again, there is hardly any plot, so I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. Ray seems to go strictly for the shock value of situations, none of which are pretty and most of which, I'm sure, are not issues with a "regular" teen. From her descriptions, one would assume that the narrator's home life was one of depravity and squalor; as it was, it was simply a family struggling to get by on little money, with tempers stretched and tensions mounting. This is typical and nothing indicitive of an abusive household. What WAS indicitive of abuse was the fact that her parents willingly let her date a man more than twice her age. Not only that, but a masochistic loser intent only on control. This book is completely unrealistic and completely without merit. I believe that anyone who would consider this to be a "good book for teens" needs to take a closer look at what's going on throughout this novel (I use that term loosely)... I'll keep it short and sweet. A 13/14 year old girl is engaging in: oral sex on the grounds of her school; self-mutilation (for what purpose); masochistic sexual acts with an adult; drinking, drugs and violence. Her morals are EXTREMELY loose and her friends questionable. Her parents seem to care but let her run blithley along without consequence or discipline. Does anyone really believe that this is status quo?

Rebbecca Ray has a long, long, long way to go. (...)

First and foremost, I think this author shows a lot of promise, and not just because of her age. Yes, the author is 16, and its amazing that she wrote any kind of novel at all. But beyond her age, she has some really innovative ideas...I thought it was very creative to not give the narrator a name--it creates an "everygirl" type image. I also thought the characterization of her parents, and the narrators' growing appreciation for her mother as a person, were remarkable. The parents are disillusioned former hippies. As things have not gone well for the family economically, the narrator's father has become bitter and hostile toward Liz, the narrator's mother, using the children as a pawn and lurking deep in the depths of self-pity.

That said, there are huge problems with the novel. Integral characters just drop out of the story with no further mention. Most problematic is the ending. It seems as though the author simply got tired of writing the book. There is no resolution whatsoever of the narrator's relationship with her 31-year-old abusive boyfriend, or of the narrator's cutting, or of her relationship with her friend Dawn. The narrator's hostility toward her father seems to surface with a vengance out of nowhere in the final scene. I really wish the author of this book would have either started to tie things up sooner or written an additional 50 pages or so.

However, all in all, I think the book is a rough gem. The author needs some time to develop her style and to work out some of the kinks, but since she was only 16 when she wrote the book, I'm sure she'll be able to do it.

Ugh. What a waste of time. I also picked up this book because of the back cover's recommendations. I spent the whole time saying, 'Do British girls really grow up that differently than American ones? Would parents really let a supposedly 27 year old man take their 14 year old daughters virginity right upstairs while they watch tv? Do I really believe that some girl is going to cut herself up and let boys feel her up when her family life is not that bad?' (Her parents argue, but there is no mention of sexual abuse.)

I just found everything so irritating and unbelievable. I was incredibly disappointed and frustrated that I wasted the time it took to get through this mess. Not once did the author generate any sympathy for the main character. Maybe that was her intent. How does a 16 year old come up with this ugliness? (I also really enjoyed She's Come Undone and I found no similarities between the two.)

I bought this book about two years ago after reading the back of the cover and finding it mildly intrusting. It seemed to take me forever to read it and none of the plot or characters grabbed me. It seemed like the author was trying to fit everything she could(warning a odd description of oral sex, abusive boyfriend, sexual confusion, teenage pregnancy). The writing is a bit flat for a young adult. The main character came off stupid and superficial with her worries about everything. I was board about 50 pages in but forced myself to finish it. By the time I finished the book I hated everybody in the story.

I thought Pure was going to be a touching coming of age story. It was not. Rebecca Ray seems to have talent as a writer-this was easy reading and I got good visuals of the characters, the setting and what was going on around them. However, the characters remain static throughout the entire book. Maybe that is why Rebecca Ray chose not to name the narrator/main character-we never really get to know her. All we see is her quirks-her apologizing and men abusing her, but we never get to see why. She cuts herself up, literally, but this is not explored any further. The family is dysfunctional from beginning to end, but all we end up with is a 400 page snapshot of examples of the dysfunctionality without any insight or resolution. The ending is abrubt and without conclusion, resolution or insight. I feel that Rebecca Ray is promising and capable of great things, but she needs a little development.

(That award goes to American Psycho). But for such a young author, Rebbecca Ray shows a considerable amount of promise. It would've been nice if the book had been broken up into chapters, instead of just running on and on. Also, I found it a little ridiculous that this 14 year old girls parents didnt seem to mind the fact that she was dating a 31 year old man.

There were flashes of promise in this book, but those seemed to be left by the wayside as the plot seemed to stumble along at points, never really coming to any kind of closure at the end.

All in all, like I said, it isn't the worst book I've ever read, but there are so many good books out there, I wouldn't spend time reading this one.

I really, really wanted to like this book. It has all the right attributes for my liking... the main character is a troubled girl (my favorite), and it was written by a young person such as myself (like to help them out.) But none of this could save the story.

The book starts out decent enough but it soon becomes apparent that the 14 year old main character is incredibly unlikable. Unlike other troubled characters I liked reading about, she seems to strive for it, never once learning from her mistakes. Everyone else in the book is just about as bad. She has a miserable family, abusive boyfriends, and an annoying best friend.

The author, Rebecca Ray, uses a lot of description on things that aren't necessary or interesting. That's what fills up most of the 404 pages. Then at the end it would seem, Ray, just tired of writing. No loose ends are tied up and there are plenty, in fact she really opens a whole new can of worms in just the last chapter.

Do yourself a favor and skip this one. I could have finished 3 books in the time it took me to drudge through this one.