Click

I ended up liking this a lot more than I thought I would. Not ALL of the stories really... uh... click, but the sum is greater than the total of its parts. I just recently finished reading Everything Matters and I felt this book was working towards similar goals in its message/execution and in the end I found Click to be the better of the two.

Ein ungewöhnliches Jugendbuch: Zehn Autorinnen und Autoren haben sich zusammengefunden, um dieses Buch zu schreiben. Jede/r hat einen Abschnitt dazu beigetragen, immer in Kenntnis der bereits geschriebenen Teile.
Herausgekommen ist nicht ein Roman mit zehn Kapiteln, sondern eher ein Buch mit zehn eigenständigen Erzählungen, in denen einige Personen immer oder immer wieder auftauchen.
Die Hauptfigur ist Gee, ein bekannter Fotograf, der eine große Lücke hinterläßt als er stirbt, insbesondere bei seiner Enkelin Maggie. Ihr vermacht er ein Kästchen mit sieben Muscheln mit dem Auftrag, sie alle zurückzuwerfen - in das Meer, an dessen Küste Gee sie erhalten hat. Jason, sein Enkel, erhält seine Fotoausrüstung, die sein Leben show more nachhaltig verändert.
Ein Teil der Kapitel beschreibt Maggie und ihre Familie, wie sie mit dem Tod des Großvaters umgehen, ein anderer Teil welche Geschichten hinter den Muscheln und dem Kästchen stecken. Zudem gibt es drastische Sprünge in die Zukunft, doch alle verbindet die Person Gee. Durch die sehr unterschiedlichen Schreibstile und die verschiedene Herangehensweise an dieses 'Projekt' fehlt jedoch das Verbindende, was einen Roman ausmacht. Die Figuren Gee und Maggie sind dafür nicht ausreichend.
Dennoch - es ist interessant zu lesen, welch unterschiedliche Ideen entstanden sind und wie sie dann umgesetzt wurden. Gute Idee auch, im Nachwort die AutorInnen zu Wort kommen zu lassen, was sie zu ihrem Einfall inspiriert hat.
Zu empfehlen ab 12, 13 Jahren, wobei Mädchen wohl eher von diesem Buch angetan sein werden. show less

The first time I read this, it was brilliance.

The second time I read this, I was disappointed.

Despite my memories of mixed feelings, I still felt fond of this strange little novel, so I decided to read it one more time for Reread Your Favorite Book Month. And I must agree with my original judgment.

It is brilliance.

It's just so UNIQUE. Ten authors got together and actually came up with something original, which is real hard to do these days. And not only is it original, it's cool and interesting to read as well.

It operates a lot like an anthology, because many of the stories are vastly different in style, characters, and setting. And yet it's all connected.

My absolute favorite chapter is Chapter 7: Min written by Tim Wynne-Jones. I just show more love love love it so much.

I enjoyed all of the chapters to some extent, but there are a few I find hard to get into. Chapter 9: Afela by Margo Lanagan is one, and Chapter 10: Margaret by Gregory Maguire, while sweet, isn't my personal cup of tea. Of course, Gregory Maguire has never been my cup of tea.

I just love this creation so much. Ten different stories about very different things, and yet they really are all about the same thing. Life. (not to get too cheesy). show less

I don't usually like books written like this, each chapter written by a different author, but this was a pleasant surprise. The first chapter hooked me hopelessly, and each of the subsequent chapters increased my interest. The authors have obviously been kept on a pretty tight leash (except for David Almond who will do his own thing regardless) and the whole book just works.

Sponsored by Amnesty International, this is a testament to the individual's ability to change people's lives and, apart from a couple of flights of fancy (by D.A. and Margo Lanagan) it is a triumph!

Click (not "Clicks," as amazon thinks) is a very unique book. It has 10 authors.
At first I found the concept cheesey; 10 famous authors get together to write a book for charity....I was skeptical of how good it might be, but I gave it a chance.
The story focuses on Gee, grandfather of Maggie and Jason, famous photographer, and friend of people all around the world. Each chapter stands on its own as a part of either Gee's life or Maggie's life and how she was affected by Gee's death.

There is not much that can be said without giving away too much of the plot, so I will just say that is a book that makes you think. Also, someone of almost any age could read this book, and different people will get different things out of it. Click is as show more much of a "children's book" as Harry Potter is; it is meant for kids/teens, but really appropriate for adults, too. Enjoy! show less

Click is a collection of interconnected short stories written by ten well-known authors (David Almond, Eion Colfer, Roddy Doyle, Deborah Ellis, Nick Hornby, Margo Lanagan, Gregory Maguire, Ruth Ozeki, Linda Sue Park, and Tim Wynne-Jones) in order to raise money for Amnesty International. The stories center around the life of photojournalist, George Keane (who is known as "G"). Some of the stories relate how G touch someone's life and others tell how other people influenced him. The stories take place in many different places in the world, and over a long period of time (from Post-World Japan to 2030 Australia). Many of the stories, but not all, can be classified as magical realism. I really enjoyed this collection. My favorite stories show more included the story of G. taking pictures in the aftermath of WWII in Japan and his friendship with a Japanese veteran who lost his legs in the war and the story of a young Irish boy that got to meet Muhammad Ali, thanks to G. show less

I was intrigued by the concept of this one. Ten authors each wrote a chapter. I’d love to know what the process was. From what I’ve read (one interview is here), it seems that the chapters were completed individually, in order, although perhaps not the order they appear in the final book. I enjoyed seeing how it starts out as Maggie’s story, but is really Gee’s, despite a half-hearted return to Maggie at the end. I don’t remember who was responsible for the fantastical twist (it might have been Nick Hornby, but it was developed by Greg McGuire), but that element didn’t quite fit in. Besides, I’ve never really been able to just accept fantasy elements in an otherwise realistic book without some kind of explanation. “Just show more because it’s magic” doesn’t cut it. show less