Customer Reviews

Ttfn

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

Just because some kids do drugs, swear, and have sex does not mean we need to glorify those for all kids. Didn't find anything redeeming enough in the book to pass it on to any teens. It went in the recycling. Hopefully it will do more good made into something else.

I don't like giving a bad review - but felt inclined to in this case.

My daughter received this series for Christmas. I was appalled after perusing them. The previous Lauren Myracle books were full of promise. These are full of trash. We took them back and purchased three more appropriate books.

I bought this book for my daughter only after asking the salesgirl in the store if it was appropriate for a 12 year old, I was assured it was. Last night my daughter came up to me and asked what a bl*wjob was. Apparently this is discussed in the book. Needless to say she will NOT be reading anymore books by this author or in this series

If "TTFN" is an acronym for "trivial, trashy, feckless novel", Myracle's work is aptly named. The clever use of of the texting/IM'ing format is eclipsed by a plotless mish-mash of underage drugs/drinking/sex, neglectful parenting, and a dangerously unrealistic example of "successfully" running away.

Open a random page of this book and you are almost certain to read language or descriptions of behaviors that are completely inappropriate for the age group. The language is foul, the situations adult. And I mean _every_ page. Page 174: "u made her glue marshmallows to her nipples?" Page 110: "actually I was wearing my Vandy sweatshirt and I wasn't wearing a bra underneath." And on, and on, and on. This book has no redeeming value what so ever.

They author have figured out that sex sells, especially to young teen girls. She concocts this IM narrative to capitalize on the trendiness of this mode of communication. The first book was dedicated to "the beer boys". uh, her intended audience is 12-16 year old girls. Hmm, I wonder if this is dedicated to "Rufus, her favorite drug dealer." or "The Ecstacy girls". I know these are real issues not to be avoided but to be brought out into the open. But glamorizing drug use, teen sex etc, is just irresponsible and exploitative. But I am surprised that she hasnt gotten sponsors like Trojan, Budweiser, and the like to boost profits.

On the top ten list of most frequently challenged books (2009) from ALA: nudity, sexually explicit, offensive language, unsuited to age group, drugs

TTFN by Lauren Myracle is the second in the Internet Girls trilogy. This volume follows Zoe, Angela and Maddie through their junior year of high school (having skipped right over the spring of their sophomore year and the summer prior to their junior year). I remember those being pretty big months for me, so it seems odd that the author chose to leave them out entirely. Sticking with the same instant message format as the previous book, we find the girls in a much more mellow state of mind; it seems the drama of the previous year is behind them and they have matured.

As with TTYL I can see why this book is challenged. Within the first 25 pages, there are mentions of underage drinking, a mother calling her daughter a slut and the possibility of an affair; the least harmful of those things being the affair, although those are not reasons to ban books. For me, this series has been fluffy reading, something I am not typically a fan of. But I chose to remain open-minded and will see the series through to the end.

As I get deeper into the series, a couple of things are happening: 1. I am getting very attached to the characters and am anxious to find out what is going to happen to them and 2. It is starting to make sense as to why the series is challenged: Zoe gets caught almost having sex with her boyfriend; Angela runs away from her home in California to her aunt's house in Atlanta (where the story takes place); and Maddie gets arrested for buying pot. Those are some pretty heavy duty things for teenagers to deal with.

There is also typical teenage drama moments peppered throughout the book, including boy drama when Zoe begins dating Doug (who had a crush on Angela in TTFN). Zoe is afraid to tell Angela what's going because she doesn't want her to be mad, but it ends up backfiring and she's more upset. But, inevitably, they work it out and Zoe finds Angela to be open to hearing about her and Doug's relationship.

As for Maddie, her pot smoking days are over. Getting arrested and finding out the object of her affection doesn't return the feelings was enough to make her stay out of trouble for a long time to come (although being grounded indefinitely will certainly help with that). Angela ends up at her aunt's house and somehow convinces her parents to let her stay and finish out the school year in Atlanta. I was glad when she found out she'd be able to stay, but I also wish she'd talked to her parents about it instead of running away.

My other issue with these books is the instant message format. Although it makes for a quick read, I think a lot gets left out of the story line. I sometimes wish there were interludes with the conversations they have with their parents - it would have been interesting to hear their reactions to the things their daughters did; instead we read it secondhand through the girls' conversations.

Overall, it's not a terrible series of books. I am looking forward to reading the third book, but have a few other things on deck first.

Writing one book in chatspeak apparently wasn't enough for Ms. Myracle. Just because something is "cool" doesn't mean it should be reinforced, or drawn upon for profit. As adults, we have a responsibility to make sure our children are the best that they can be. Writing a book in chatspeak most certainly is not one of them. Is it any wonder why so many people - especially young ones - today have such atrocious grammar and communication skills, and on top of that, think that promiscuous behavior and drugs is okay? I'm no prude or grammar Nazi, but this series makes me weep.

If I want to get a book for the teenage kids that I will probably have one day, I'll get them 'Are you there God, it's me Margaret'. I enjoyed that book as well as many other classics for teenagers (or just overall classics such as Oliver Twist or 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, for example) Ms. Myracle's Internet Girls series is a embarrassment to civilization, her generation, my generation, teenage generations, and to anyone with even a whit of commonsense. There's a universe of wonderful books out there, this book is not one of them.

ttfn was definitely an interesting book. It follows best friends Angela, Zoe and Maddie. It is a sequel to ttyl, but I never read the first book and could follow the plot fine. I really did not think I would enjoy this book, so I was surprised to find myself enjoying it about halfway through. The entire book is written in instant messages, so it was sometimes hard to follow the IM lingo.

Just a bit of a warning: there are many bad words and mature subjects discussed in this book. I did think this was a fun book, but it was just not my thing. If you want to read a book written in a completely different way, this is the book for you.

The winsome threesome, Zoe, Angela, and Maddie, are back for more as we follow their IMs through their junior year. With last year's craziness still in mind, Zoe is catapulted into a relationship that goes much farther than, let's say, her parents would allow, Angela is unsure about a secret her parents have, and Maddie becomes involved with drugs in order to impress her bad boy crush. Lots of excitement and fast-paced fun. It's a wonder that an adult can write about high school so vividly and realistically.