Saturday, June 23, 2012

Guest Post: Review of Jellicoe Road, by Melina Marchetta

Please welcome fellow blogger and reviewer extraordinaire, Jessie, whose blog, Ageless Pages Reviews, always features very interesting, well-written reviews!  You can find more of them on Goodreads, too.  Just click HERE. 

Here are Jessie's thoughts about a young adult book that sure sounds absolutely fabulous, and is going straight into my TBR pile!



Title: Jellicoe Road
Author: Melina Marchetta
Format: Hardcover, 419 pages
Publisher: Harper Teen
Published: August 26, 2008 (first published August 28, 2006)
Series: N/A
Source: Purchased
Genres: young adult, contemporary, mystery


Goodreads Synopsis

Abandoned by her mother on Jellicoe Road when she was eleven, Taylor Markham, now seventeen, is finally being confronted with her past. But as the reluctant leader of her boarding school dorm, there isn't a lot of time for introspection. And while Hannah, the closest adult Taylor has to family, has disappeared, Jonah Griggs is back in town, moody stares and all.

In this absorbing story by Melina Marchetta, nothing is as it seems and every clue leads to more questions as Taylor tries to work out the connection between her mother dumping her, Hannah finding her then and her sudden departure now, a mysterious stranger who once whispered something in her ear, a boy in her dreams, five kids who lived on Jellicoe Road eighteen years ago, and the maddening and magnetic Jonah Griggs, who knows her better than she thinks he does. If Taylor can put together the pieces of her past, she might just be able to change her future.

Jellicoe Road was my first Marchetta novel - though this is an author highly touted and often recommended, I was strangely hesitant to read any of her books. Example? I bought Marchetta's acclaimed ya fantasy Finnikin of the Rock for Nook over two months ago, when it was on sale for $2.99, and haven't yet peeked at a page. Hype is often a double-edged sword, as many other anticipated YA novels can attest and I didn't want to feel the sting of disappointment here. I have to say that the first 50 pages of Jellicoe certainly intrigued me, but they didn't quite convince me as I had hoped. I can certainly see why some readers find the beginning off-putting and hard to comprehend initially, but even after the dual narrative of past and present were cleared up, I just didn't get It, the Big Deal about this book and this author. Then, near about 100 pages later and a "save yourself, Taylor," I got it in a big way. This book made me Feel Things. All of the feelings really: happiness, amusement, sorrow, anger, fear, love. I'm stuck with the feeling that no matter how much I edit and revise and rethink, I will never be able to do this beautiful novel justice. As soon as I finished this, I knew I didn't want to think about other characters, other stories. I wanted to stay here, in Jellicoe, with these characters. So I did the only thing that made sense and flipped the book over and immediately began rereading all my favorite parts. It still packs a punch the second time around, even knowing explicitly what will happen.

I grabbed this on a whim three days ago, having been close to finishing the excruciatingly emotional Code Name Verity but with 100 pages and hours of work to go, I opted for a longer novel that hopefully wouldn't make me cry at work. How wrong I was; tears were streaming down by my lunch break (aka p. 255) I engulfed this absorbing, heart-breaking tale in just over twelve hours, covering work and family dinner, starting just before I left at 9 am, sneaking in pages whenever - wherever - I could. Melina Marchetta is the real deal: an inimitable and simple but striking style, a masterful storyteller with impressive authorial sleight-of-hand, capable of rendering complex, fallible and damaged characters I still wholly and completely loved. This novel is a masterpiece of young-adult fiction (the 'territory war' was obviously the weakest part of the novel, but it brought together the core four [Taylor, Santangelo, Raffaela, Griggs] initially and eventually was revealed to have a larger purpose) and Melina Marchetta deserves all the accolades she's garnered. As the
lovely Emily May so aptly put it: "[She] plays my emotions like Jimi Hendrix played guitar." Skillfully, elegantly, and above all subtly, Marchetta takes utmost time and care with crafting both her storylines and her compellingly damaged and so so real characters.

And let me tell you: oh boy, did I ever care about Taylor, Jonah, Jude, Hannah, Tate, Jessa, Webb, etc. While it took a while for these many personalities to manifest, I think this might be one of my most beloved ensembles. From Jonah to Jude, these characters are real, vibrant, and dear to me. Jonah Griggs: I officially Get It. I officially Want One of My Own. Everyone take note for in Jellicoe Road, with Melina's hand at the wheel, there is an authentic, believable and touching YA romance with a swoon-worthy broody love-interest. I don't go in for broody as much now that I'm not 17 and I certainly don't say "swoon-worthy" as a descriptor for men I like, but Jonah Griggs defies that. He is broody and swoon-worthy, but that's not all he is. Like Taylor and Jude (Oh, Jude <3. I think he broke my heart as much as Griggs did.) this damaged young man is developed and rounded. The scenes between him and Taylor - fighting, teasing, loving - all have electricity, a palpable tension, and their relationship is one of the few credible romances in YA. Jellicoe Road is moving, powerful and dramatic without being emotionally manipulative - when Taylor lashes out at whoever is convenient (not my Griggs!), I feel for her wild pain instead of rolling my eyes at her melodrama. Most of the characters have significant tragedies in their pasts, especially Taylor and Jonah, but this is an author that appreciates restraint and how to show emotion without overdoing it and making it a Production. I finished this novel nothing if not in awe of the talent shown throughout from the author - from plot development to character reveals, this is one of the best.

Before, I was scared to read Marchetta because I feared she/the novel wouldn't live up to expectations. Now I just don't know where to start - I've ordered hardback copies of Finnikin, its sequel Froi of the Exiles, and Saving Francesca. I just can't do this novel justice - whatever I say feels inadequate. This book moved me, like The Book Thief did - at my core, in a place few novels and characters truly reach. I said before that Melina Marchetta could have been a victim of the hype machine but now all I want to do is force all my family and friends to read her novels. I've decided that the hype around this author and this book isn't big enough yet - everyone should be reading this author. Jellicoe Road is a gripping read, one that inspired a wide, fully-felt spectrum of emotions and reactions - all of them complimentary. I love this book like I love few others.

My reactions by page, because by 250 I couldn't think critically, I could just fangirl absorb the words as fast as my eyes would move and jot down impressions/thoughts:

p. 250: Oh my god. I <3 Jonah
p. 255: WTF! NO! What! Yass!
p. 297: I want a Griggs.
p. 304: This is heart-breaking, gut-wrenching and still so lovely. This book... "Who will be my memory" I can't.... this book...
p. 315: Could he be any more adorable?
p. 343: And THAT, ladies and gents, is how you write a credible, romantic teenage relationship.
p. 371: oh no oh no oh no I think I know where this is headed oh no
p. 394: damn right you better keep Raffy around - the rare female sidekick that is fully developed and awesome
p. 399 and on: tears
p. 407: Griggs.
p. 416: I love the narrative structure, the symmetry. "My father took a hundred and thirty-two minutes to die.  I counted."  "My mother took seventeen years to die.  I counted."  "Wonder dies."  "I wonder."

Favorite quotes (SPOILERY so be warned):

"I wrote you for a year and you never wrote back.
 I rang you over and over again and you would never come to the phone.
What part of that gives the impression that I didn't care?"


“What do you want from me?" he asks.
What I want from every person in my life, I want to tell him.
More.”


“If you weren't driving, I'd kiss you senseless," I tell him.
He swerves to the side of the road and stops the car abruptly.
"Not driving any more.”

“But grief makes a monster out of us sometimes . . .
and sometimes you say and do things to the people you love that you
 can't forgive yourself for.” 
“No," I say, looking up at Griggs. "It's actually because my heart belongs
 to someone else." And if I could bottle the look on his face,
I'd keep it by my bedside for the rest of my life.”



"We sit there, holding each other, kissing until our mouths are aching,
and then we're pulling off the rest of our clothes and I'm under him
and I feel as if I'm imprinted onto his body.
Everything hurts, every single thing including the weight of him
 and I'm crying because it hurts
and he's telling me he's sorry over and over again,
and I figure that somewhere down the track we'll work out
 the right way of doing this but I don't want to let go, because
 tonight I'm not looking for anything more than being part of him.
Because being part of him
isn't just anything. It's kind of everything."
“If I had to wish for something, just one thing, it would be that
Hannah would never see Tate the way I did.
Never see Tate's beautiful, lush hair turn brittle,
her skin sallow, her teeth ruined by anything she could get
her hands on that would make her forget.
That Hannah would never count how many men there were,
or how vile humans can be to one another. That she would never see
the moments in my life that were full of neglect, and fear,
and revulsion, moments I can never go back to because
I know they will slow me down for the rest of my life
if I let myself remember them for one moment.
Tate, who had kept Hannah alive that night, reading her the story
of Jem Finch and Mrs. Dubose.
And suddenly I know I have to go. But this time without being chased
by the Brigadier, without experiencing the kindness
of a postman from Yass, and without taking along a Cadet
who will change the way I breathe for the rest of my life.” 

JESSIE'S RATING:


Where To Buy:  Amazon



6 comments:

  1. Oh, Jessie....this review has just blown me away!! Everything you've written about this book makes me want to run into the nearest bookstore right now to get it!! (Heck, it's 12:40 on Saturday morning here in Miami, and I'm currently not driving...besides, they don't have 24-hour bookstores...RATS!!) And the quotes you chose show that Marchetta indeed has a masterful prose style. That's something that's very important to me when reading ANY book, whether fiction or nonfiction. If the style doesn't floor me, I won't want to read the book, although, on the other hand, I can tolerate a more ordinary style if the book has a LOT of action and romance...sigh...)

    Thank you for another of your in-depth, highly interesting reviews!! :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. I wish there were 24-hour bookstores! I'm pretty sure that I would keep them in business here!

    I am usually super nervous about so highly recommending a novel (hype cuts both ways and all that), but with Melina Marchetta and this novel, I am very very hopeful that you will love it as much as I did!

    My only caveat: if you're not sold on the first 60ish pages, KEEP GOING. All shall be revealed!

    Thank you SO much for the opportunity to guest post on your wonderful blog!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Gee, it would be SO cool if bookstores were to stay open 24 hours...a bookworm's dream come true!!

    I wasn't that familiar with this book before reading your review. Now that I am, though, and have read actual quotes from this novel, I KNOW I'll just HAVE to buy the book and read it!!

    You're more than welcome for the oppostunity to guest post! Thanks for the compliment about my blog!! I hope you can guest post again soon!! :D

    ReplyDelete
  4. I have had this on my TBR for a long while. I have read some amazing reviews. I appreciate your thoughts and am now more anxious than ever to make the time to read it myself. Thanks Jessie.

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  5. I love your review! Here's mine if you don't mind: http://lorxiebookreviews.blogspot.com/2012/09/jellicoe-road-by-melina-marchetta.html

    Thanks and have a nice day! =D

    ReplyDelete
  6. Hi, Loraine!

    This is not my review of JELLICOE ROAD. The review was written by Jessie, who ia a guest blogger. Be sure to check out her site at "Ageless Pages Reviews".

    I'll be sure to go over and read your review!

    Thanks for commenting!! : )

    ReplyDelete

THIS IS NOW AN AWARD-FREE, AND TAG-FREE BLOG. Thanks for the compliment, though! : )

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