Frey, Spinelli

Two more books from the TY Extended Essay projects:-

Rob Nolan's is James Frey's controversial A Million Little Pieces: "I got the idea to read this book from a few pages of a friend's copy while on holiday. I soon bought one myself on my return to Ireland. James Frey's memoir tells the story of his time in rehabilitation centre following his long ongoing struggle with drugs and alcohol. His unique writing style is very honest and fearless. Often he doesn't use punctuation, and is very direct.

The book is both shocking at times, and very amusing at others. It gives a great insight into the mind of an addict. Though parts of the memoir have supposedly been fabricated, I thought it was definitely a great read, and would certainly recommend it to others."

And Amelia Shirley writes about Jerry Spinelli's Stargirl: "This book is about the relationship between the 'new girl' Stargirl and the narrator of the book, Leo Borlock. Stargirl is different. She has come from nowhere and is full of confidence, and doesn't care what anyone thinks of her. This soon makes her hated by all the other pupils. They are burdened by insecurities that lead them to see her free spirit as a threat.

Throughout the book Leo and Stargirl's relationship grows stronger and stronger and they begin to realize that they are falling for each other. The story unfolds to reveal Stargirl's spontaneity and Leo's surprising profundity. This means that the book finishes with an unexpected twist. It is an extremely enjoyable story, and lets readers lose themselves in the extraordinary lives of these two young people."