Robyn Schneider's book, originally titled Severed Heads, Broken Hearts is a witty and heart-wrenching teen novel that will appeal to fans of books by John Green and Ned Vizzini and novels such as The Perks of Being a Wallflower.
Golden boy Ezra Faulkner believes everyone has a tragedy waiting for them—a single encounter after which everything that really matters will happen. His particular tragedy waited until he was primed to lose it all: In one spectacular night, a reckless driver shatters Ezra's knee, his career as a jock, and his social life.
No longer a front-runner for homecoming king, Ezra finds himself at the table of misfits, where he encounters new girl Cassidy Thorpe. Cassidy is unlike anyone Ezra's ever met— achingly effortless, fiercely intelligent, and determined to bring Ezra along on her endless adventures.
Together, Ezra and Cassidy discover flash mobs, buried treasure, secret movie screenings, and a poodle that might just be the reincarnation of Jay Gatsby. But as Ezra dives into his new studies, new friendships, and new love, he learns that some people, like books, are easy to misread. And now he must consider: If one's singular tragedy has already hit and everything after it has mattered quite a bit, what happens when more misfortune strikes?
With lyrical writing, nerdy humor, and realistic romance, Robyn Schneider's The Beginning of Everything is a story about how difficult it is to play the part people expect, and how new beginnings can stem from abrupt and tragic endings
My Review:
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
3 1/2 Platypires for The Beginning oF Everything by Robyn Schneider.
"“We have all been fooled into believing in people who are entirely imaginary—made-up prisoners in a hypothetical panopticon. But the point isn’t whether or not you believe in imaginary people; it’s whether or not you want to.”
This is my book clubs book for July and I can't wait to discuss it with them. I am honestly up in the air about how I feel about this book. On one hand I really liked it but then there were times I was annoyed with some of the cliches. The jocks are bad and the smart kids are the really cool kids. A lot of the characters fit their stereotypes but even though their were common tropes I felt the story was unique. I am a huge fan of smart, quotable dialogue and this book had a plethora. Plus it had a lot of nerdy pop culture references. Any Harry Potter references gets a gold star in my book.
Like the cover picture this book was a roller-coaster but with less twist and turns. There were a few lag moments and I think its due to how I felt about Cassidy. I wasn't that big of a fan and didn't see the aura about her. Yes, she was smart, pretty girl who went against the grain of what other thought but I still thought she was fitting some stereotype of someone above high school.
Overall, I did like the book. I liked Erza and really liked Toby. I thought the book was really refreshing to read I and it wasn't your typical YA read. It had a lot of depth and it had me contemplating life even after I finish reading it.
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