Blake Nelson

The latest from contemporary YA powerhouse Blake Nelson is so filled with joy and voice that it's impossible to put down. And I say joy not because it's necessarily a happy story -- some pretty messed up stuff happens in THE PRINCE OF VENICE BEACH. After all, it's about a homeless teen and his street kid pals, solving mysteries and trying to stay out of trouble. The joy comes from Cali, the aforementioned homeless teen, who is perhaps slightly less homeless than usual, since he's taken up show more residence in a kindly woman's tree house. Cali left home to find a new life. And he has. And he's happy. Especially when word gets out that he knows everyone and everything that happens on Venice Beach, and the local police want him to help in investigations.

It's not long before Cali's reputation gets him involved with private investigators, inspiring him to become a PI himself, and maybe even get his GED. But, he thing is, the PI's he works with don't always tell him what's up with the people they're looking for. He thinks he's doing a good thing, but he isn't so sure when he's asked to track down a runaway girl -- a beautiful girl, who doesn't want to be found, ever, and for possibly good reasons. Cali has to decide what's more important -- his being a PI or this girl's wishes. And he has to figure out if this girl is even telling him the truth.

Blake Nelson's characters are genuine, as gritty and real as the streets they call home. Cali's story manages to shine a light on some of this grit, and find heart-warming truths in these "throwaway" kids -- kids like traumatized, sweet Strawberry and the basketball prodigies with whom Cali spends his afternoons. THE PRINCE OF VENICE BEACH is beautifully written, a great summer read, and a great book for those who'd like to see a little more sand and sun in their noir. show less

I swore I would never start a book review by saying, "Such and such, the main character in such and such's young adult novel, is a latter-day Holden Caulfield." But, you know, if the shoe fits. So...

James Hoff, the main character in Blake Nelson's young adult novel, is a latter-day Holden Caulfield. (Well, I didn't actually start off the review that way; this is already the second paragraph.) He hates cars because they pollute, hates materialistic modern life because it's destroying the show more planet, and hates most people for not caring enough about either. James is a major pain in the ass, and doesn't really do much to actually advance his cause, except bitch (which doesn't, incidentally, make him any less right about what he's saying). He's also still hung up on his old girlfriend, Sophie, who actually goes out and works for change instead of just bitching about it.

Destroy All Cars is so hilarious at times that it's another one I was embarrassed to read on the subway because I kept laughing out loud (a lady was actually staring at me for a while, trying to figure out whether I was laughing at the book or was just crazy, I guess). For example, when James goes with his friend to the New Technologies Convention:

"The worst was a Chevy Avalanche they had right in the middle of the convention center. For those who don't know what a Chevy Avalanche is, it is a Deluxe Luxury Pickup Truck built in the shape of a penis. I think one could safely say it is one of the stupidest vehicles ever invented."

Riding to the mall in his best friend's mother's SUV:

"We took the Ford Expedition, all of us spaced far apart and strapped in so we could withstand impacts from other Sports Utility Vehicles. If anything smaller than an SUV crashed into us, well, that's too bad for them. Those people should buy bigger cars if they want to survive collisions. God knows we needed a big car -- we're buying bath towels."

Fun book, with good characterizations, and highly recommended. show less

It's remarkable how powerful a story can be when you focus on every single detail -- good, bad, or indifferent -- over a high school kid's sophomore, junior, and senior years. The reader becomes attached to the character in such a deep way. And because the author's giving you the entire story -- not just some exciting, dramatic, finish line sort of conflict -- when you're done with the book, you're like 'wow, I'm not sure what the story was there, but damn, was it good, and wow, I feel very show more conflicted about all of it.' That's my reaction to Boy. I'm not sure what the story was, but I absolutely loved following our hero through it. With no obvious conflict and no obvious climax, arriving at the end is really quite poignant. You're not sure if there were winners or losers, but you're a little sad you can't follow the character further. show less

The unnamed narrator (no, he's not named Alex -- that's the name he was given for the movie, so those of you who keep saying, "Alex, the narrator" and what have you -- well, guess what, you just tipped your hand and I'm going to tell your teachers on all of you, so FEAR ME) accidentally kills a security guard in a train yard and has to live with the aftermath.

Another very fine, well-written YA from Blake Nelson. Nelson maintains tension throughout while still deftly examining the moral show more issues surrounding the narrator's predicament. Nelson also shows considerable courage in his dramatic choices: if you're expecting the feel-good, prescriptive Lifetime TV movie ending that tends to accompany books aimed at teens, you should look elsewhere -- Nelson's ending is pleasingly ambiguous. show less