Sweetblood [Paperback]

Pete Hautman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 31, 2010

Lucy Szabo is sure that that the first vampires ever were dying diabetics. And she should know. She has diabetes herself. When she gets involved with Draco, a self-proclaimed “real” vampire she meets in a Transylvania chat room, her world starts to crash down around her. Soon, her whole life—grades, relationships, and health—are spiraling dangerously out of control. Lucy needs to make some important choices to take back control of her life…but is it already too late?

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The author traces a vampire-obsessed 16-year-old diabetic's steep slide downward as she is intellectually seduced by a middle-aged cybervamp via the Internet. "The exotic theme coupled with the heroine's highly recognizable feelings of oddity and isolation make for a tantalizing read," said PW in a starred review. Ages 12-up.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

Grade 9 Up-Hautman is known for tackling unusual topics in his fiction, and this book is no exception. Lucy Szabo has been an insulin-dependent diabetic since she was 6, and now, at age 16, she has developed an interesting theory that links vampirism with diabetic ketoacidosis. When she explains her theory in a creative writing paper, however, her teacher, counselor, and parents become concerned that Lucy may finally be "too weird" and take steps to find help for her. When her computer is removed from her room and she is unable to frequent the Transylvanian chat room, Lucy decides that perhaps real-life adventures are in order. With a new friend, she ventures into the world of tarot cards and goth, perhaps meeting a real vampire in the flesh, while allowing her diabetes to spiral out of control. Teens eager for vampire stories will find Lucy's link between diabetes and vampirism fascinating and plausible. Most of the characters are stock, but the protagonist stands out as being an intelligent, curious young woman who is dealing with all of the usual adolescent angst, compounded by her condition. No longer wishing to be controlled by anything, she decides to stop conforming completely, with almost deadly results. This book should appeal to a wide range of interests, from those looking for a good vampire book to those touched by the illness.
Lynn Evarts, Sauk Prairie High School, Prairie du Sac, WI
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers; Reprint edition (August 31, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1442407557
• ISBN-13: 978-1442407558
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 6.4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (36 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,165,410 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #70 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > Science, Nature & How It Works > Health > Diseases > Fiction

More About the Author

Okay, here's some miscellaneous personal info. I'll try to be as brief as possible. I was born in 1952 in Berkeley, California, or so I am told (I don't really remember). At age five I moved to St. Louis Park, Minnesota where I went to Cedar Manor Elementary School (also the alma mater of Al Franken and the Coen brothers, and no, they are not close personal friends of mine) and eventually graduated honor-free from St. Louis Park High School. This is so tedious. Why do you keep reading? For the next seven years I attended the Minneapolis College of Art and Design and the University of Minnesota. Contrary to recent news reports, I did not graduate from either institution. After college I worked various jobs for which I was ill-suited, including sign painter, graphic artist, marketing executive, pineapple slicer, etc. Eventually, having exhausted other options, I decided to write. My first novel, Drawing Dead, was published in 1993. Today, I live with mystery writer and poet Mary Logue in Golden Valley, Minnesota and Stockholm, Wisconsin. We have two small dogs (are you still reading?) named Rene and Jacques. There you have it. Fifty-plus years compressed into a few short paragraphs. Feel free to copy and paste for your book report, but don't tell anybody I suggested it. Need to know more? Check out the FAQs page on my website at http://www.petehautman.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sweet Book!, May 18, 2005

By 

J. Swide "diabetic dani" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Sweetblood (Hardcover)

One of my friends recomended this book to me. I was thrilled to hear of a vampire book about a girl with diabetes that was actually written by a guy who is diabetic. I figured he could do a pretty accurate job of showing what its like. Ive read a typical vampire books before and they all seem to use a similar plot and charecters. This book really stood out because of its originality and creative outlook on the history of vampires. "Sweet Blood" is centered around the cynical Lucy Szabo, who as you might have guessed, is diabetic. She has a theory that the first vampire legends were based on untreated diabetics, (untreated as in: when they dont get their dose of insulin when they eat.) She explains the disease and what happens when a diabetic is deprived of insulin. She describes these symptoms as being vampire-like. The story begins with Lucy talking about blood and how she can feel it in her body whooshing around. The imagery is amazing. Very poetic and descriptive. It goes on to explain her theory and the story unfolds as she meets new people who help bring her into the goth subculture. However, this book is not just about vampires, (although a lot of it is....thats hella cool!. It does talk a lot about her disease. It really gives an inside look on growing up diabetic.

Im an insulin-dependant diabetic like Lucy and was happy to hear someone,(even if it was a charecter in a book)felt similar to the way I do about my disease. She talks about diabetes so much during the book because it really does take over your life! Just because you can live with it doesnt mean its easy. Like any disease, it takes effort. With the added vampire element, I think the author created a really well written and poetic book. This is one of my favorite books and will be for a long time.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best books ever., May 1, 2005

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Sweetblood (Mass Market Paperback)

"I am not cool. Dead people are cool. I am not dead. I am Undead." Lucy Szabo, a sixteen-year-old diabetic, believes she is a vampire. She believes that she is not among the Living. When she enters the Transylvania Internet chat room, she meets Draco, a supposedly real vampire. Lucy and he crush, Guy, or Dylan, go to a party where she encounters a strange man named Wayne. Although she believes they have never met, Wayne somehow knows all about Lucy and her vampire theories. But what she also doesn't know is that Wayne will be changing her life. She soon gets lost in her Goth world of vampires, and loses all stability of her life. Lucy knows she needs a change, but how?
Sweetblood is an amazing story of teen angst and Goth culture. Hautman invites readers into a world they may never experience. He creates a universe you can enter, but never exit. As I read this book, I followed Lucy through her life as a young, diabetic Goth, and it opened my eyes to the different worlds and cultures around me. Pete Hautman does an excellent job using amazing dialogue to unlock a story that would have never been thought of.
Sweetblood is a tantalizing, anticipating, and breathtaking read. It will blow you away. I recommend this exhilarating novel to anyone who is not quite aware that there are vampires among us, and all you have to do is believe.

Erica Caruso
Reed Business Information, Inc., 2003, 256 pp., $5.99
ISBN 0-689-87324-7

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Sweetblood, October 18, 2004

By 

Elisabeth Hegerat (Calgary, AB) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Sweetblood (Hardcover)

Lucy is a bright, depressed-with-goth-leanings diabetic teenager with a theory that historical accounts of vampires are based on the physical effects of untreated, undiagnosed diabetes, who starts hanging out with vampire-wannabes. Lucy's cynical snarkiness gets a bit anooying, but it was nice to see a diabetic character who wasn't part of a problem novel about "oh no, I just found out I'm diabetic! Angst, angst, however shall I cope? Oh, guess what, I coped!" However, be prepared for the vampire stuff to play a less than pivotal part of the book.