Simon Says (Hardcover)

~ Elaine Marie Alphin (Author) "The mirror acts like a frame..." (more)
Key Phrases: hasp lock, true drawing, Graeme Brandt, Charles Weston, The Eye of the Storm (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

High school junior Charles Weston, whose paintings convey "truth" so powerfully that all who see them promptly fear and/or dislike him, has just arrived at Whitman, a boarding school for artists. The school's amenities notwithstanding, Charles has enrolled simply in order to meet Graeme Brandt, a senior, and author of a YA novel that Charles finds brilliant in its send-up of people's shallowness ("Life is just one big game of Simon Says.... Nobody even wants to admit they're playing"). Charles, who now refuses to let others see his paintings, is hoping that Graeme can show him "how to get beyond the game... show me how to keep from locking myself away inside a studio forever." While the boys connect immediately, Charles realizes that Graeme is also "playing," just like Graeme's protagonist ("He knew what Simon wanted before Simon even said anything"). When Charles pushes Graeme to find his true self ("You're nothing but a lifeless mirror that reflects everyone's expectations!"), Graeme commits suicide and camouflages it as a heart attack, leaving a note explaining his actions to Charles. Alphin (Counterfeit Son) adds texture by inserting Graeme's journals between Charles's narration, and she brings unusual candor to her portrayal of gay characters. But while the author taps into adolescent visions of the artist's life and the difficulties of being an individual, her constant reiteration of these themes grows tiresome. Metaphors run a little thick, and the quagmires seemed overcooked. Ages 14-up.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Grade 8 Up-In this psychological novel, Charles enters a boarding school for the arts hoping to find a place where he can stay true to his nonconformist nature. Absorbed with painting in a vivid and distorted way, he wants to make friends with people who like him for himself and teachers who will accept his work. As in the children's game Simon Says, he finds himself mirroring others rather than pleasing himself. Charles knows that Graeme, a student writer whom he idolizes, shares a search for identity. Excerpts from Graeme's journal appear at intervals, revealing a parallel childhood. Elements of a homosexual crush draw the two together but the path to self-realization has a tragic end when Graeme commits suicide. As in many YA novels, the adults here are peripheral and antagonistic, providing a perfect setting for self-perceived isolation. Charles's musical roommate, Adrian, and the editor of the student journal, Rachel, are well-developed supporting characters who, as grounded individuals, become the ones who ultimately help the protagonist feel a sense of belonging. Plot development is emotional rather than eventful, and some of the details surrounding Graeme's death are not plausible. It defies logic that, in a small boarding school, Charles would learn about the teen's "fatal heart attack" from the newspaper. Still, adolescents will relate to the disconnected characters who feel painfully alone and will be encouraged by the acceptance of their uniqueness.
Vicki Reutter, Cazenovia High School, NY
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Harcourt Children's Books; 1st edition (May 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0152163557
• ISBN-13: 978-0152163556
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.9 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.1 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,507,667 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The themes of this book are desperately thought-provoking., July 29, 2004

By	Teenreads.com (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

Even in kindergarten, Charles knew that he didn't want to play Simon Says. He didn't want to do what somebody named Simon said. He wanted to be himself. If it was a choice of playing Simon Says or standing in the corner, he stood in the corner. Charles is a sophomore in high school now, and he is still determined that he will not play Simon Says.

But people have always been dissatisfied with who Charles is. His life is full of Simons telling him to be different. Don't use his left hand; don't paint pictures that make them feel uncomfortable; make them proud of him; study for the right kind of job. The more he uses his paintings to show people how he feels, the more they hate him. They make fun of him, tear up his class assignments, and call him names. Teachers harass him, and his parents are ashamed of him.

That's why Charles wants to meet Graeme. When Graeme was a freshman at Whitman High School for the Arts, he wrote a book, The Eye of the Storm, that was published and made people sit up and blink. Charles knew as soon as he read it that he had to go to Whitman, too, and meet Graeme. Here was somebody who knew all about the Simon Says games people play, and yet he obviously never played them himself. Charles knows that he can learn from Graeme how to be himself without playing the game, either.

But Graeme is not what Charles expected him to be. Graeme is a senior at Whitman now, and he hasn't written another book since his first one. Graeme himself doesn't know why. Nor does he know why he's a disappointment to Charles. What does Charles want from him? The relationship between the two boys becomes more and more complicated, until it erupts in a storm that will change them both forever.

The themes of this book are desperately thought-provoking --- Always be yourself, because the alternative can be deadly. But to be yourself, you have to know who you are. And what we are in any given moment is not the whole truth of us. It can be more terrible to live than to die, but death takes away everything. And Simon Says might be a game we all play, even when we don't want to.

--- Reviewed by Tamara Penny

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Must Read!, October 7, 2002

A Kid's Review

I couldn't believe this book! It's so TRUE! I opened it Saturday morning and I couldn't stop reading until I finished it that afternoon. It just sucked me into Charles's world. I felt like I was part Charles and part Graeme, and like I wished I could be more like Adrian even though I didn't like him at all at first. But these guys were so REAL to me!

I thought I was the only guy who had these thoughts and these fears and was struggling with these issues. But this book says it all. It's okay to be different. It's okay to tell your parents you can't be the person they expect you to be - they might even accept you as you are. Or maybe they won't. The book doesn't promise any happy endings, but it's honest.

All I can say is that every teen, whether you're into painting or writing or music, or whether you're a jock or a geek or a Goth or WHOEVER you are, you have to read this book!! I feel different after reading it, and you will too.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Repetitious, July 24, 2008

By	S. Dahlin (Port Orchard, WA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Simon Says (Paperback)

While I enjoyed the story and the insight into the creative mind and process, I was thoroughly annoyed by the theme. Constantly repeated, over and over again. Simon says this, Simon says that. I got what the author was saying about conformity and being true to yourself, but I didn't need to be reminded every page. The repetition robbed the idea of its dramatic weight.

I did like the matter of fact depiction of gay characters. I'm heartened to see this becoming more common in YA literature.