Jerk, California

"We're all stupid sometimes."

I found this to be a fascinating read - although very dated and maybe doesn't age well. BUT there aren't a lot of books about Tourette Syndrome and I think that gives this one a definite additional star for tackling a subject many others won't/don't talk about.

This is the story of Sam that's been pushed and shoved down his whole life. His home life and his school life were both sad and horrible to read. I enjoyed reading about Sam taking control of his life and trying to ask some hard questions. I just didn't like the added religion in the end part but Meh, it wasn't too bad. I'm glad I gave this one a try - I feel like I learned insight into a syndrome I know little about.

Not since I read "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time" have I been so affected by a writer's style. At first, I was off-put by the halting, occasionally coarse writing. However, it soon dawned upon me that the writer has mimicked the main character's Tourette's Syndrome into his writing style (whether intentional or unintentional, I don't know). Once I recognized this, I was able to become fully absorbed into the plot and characters.

This book is excellent. The characters, especially Georgoe and Sam/Jack, are fully realized, complicated and very empathetic. A fascinating, realistic look at a mysterious disease with which Friesen does a great job describing. The plotting and the character development is wonderful and show more believable.

I recommend this book to both teens and adults. A refreshing, unique read. show less

Never still, Never quiet, never in control of your own movements. Jerk, California by Jonathan Friesen is a realistic fiction book about a boy named Sam Carrier who tries to cope with his Tourette's Syndrome. Ever since he began to show symptoms of his disease, his stepfather became extremely intolerant of him. He told Sam that his dad was left his mom and died while he was drunk driving with another woman. When Sam graduates from high school he is determined to get away from his stepfather and escape life worrying what everybody thinks about him. When his dad’s best friend, George, offers him a job, he accepts, but only after a lot of convincing. A few days later George passes away, but not before leaving Sam everything he owns and a show more map of places that he wants Sam to go to. The stops on the map run all the way across the country coming to a stop in Jerk, California. Determined to find answers about his father, Sam sets out from his small rural town on the journey that George set out for him with the girl he likes, Naomi.

I think that this book was extremely well written. The plot was very intriguing. The author continuously created new flawless, exciting events that kept me reading until the early hours of the morning. He artfully creates funny and nice characters that surprised me with everything they did. Sam, a gentle and caring boy who’s personality is devastated by his Tourette’s, is extremely passionate for things he cares about, but has a very nasty temper. Naomi, the girl Sam’s been after since he saw her on a rainy day running trails in the woods, is extremely funny and nice. She always pretends she doesn’t notice Sam’s uncontrollable actions and helps him through it every chance she gets. show less

Underwritten YA story of teen Sam/Jack who has Tourette's Syndrome. Friessen doesn't seem to want to let the reader know what is actually happening during most of the book. For example, two-thirds of the way through the book:
"We sit for hours. I can't locate any questions in my mind, and she must not have much to say. We speak about nothing in short, soft bursts, and fall back into safe silences. But somewhere in the middle, her hand grabs mine, and when we finally enter the house, I know things are okay with us."
This is after a crucial scene, when something should have happened between Sam/Jack and his "love interest." It is extremely frustrating to read when the author gives so little to the reader.
Book had a lot of promise, but did show more not deliver. show less

Have you ever read a book so real that it made you feel like a charcater in it? Well thats the feeling I got when I read the book Jerk,California by Jonathan Friesen. The author really pulled me into the book, captivating me from almost the start. With every crisp page I turned, I learned something new, and never knew what would follow.

Sam Carrier, a senior in high school, learns he has tourettes at a young age. His life will never be the same from that point on. He soon understands that his dad died when Sam was two, from a tragic accident. His father's "replacement" is a cranky old man who goes by Old Bill.Old Bill has given Sam trouble ever since he was diagnosed with tourettes. Sam's mother doesn't help the situation. All she does show more is try to stay on Old Bill's good side, if he even has a good side. Fortunately this all changes when Sam meets two important people.

Jonathan Friesen's descriptive language really helped me to understand the book. Without his carefully crafted sentences, I don't think I would have continued reading. It actually felt as if I was a spectator of the book, watching it unfold. Every word was crucial in order to comprehend what was happening. The following quote is an example of his descriptive language, "Room 14 is a morgue. Powder-blue walls and no window. Only the tick of the clock and the buzz and flicker of the flourescent light remind me I'm still alive." This qoute was so detailed, from the flicker of the ight, to the powder-blue walls, it really allowed me to visualize the room.

On a slightly sour note, I didnt give this book five stars. I didnt give it five stars because it started off slow. The beginning kind of dragged on and was bland, but got a lot better when I got to the meat of the book. Even though it took a little while for me to get into it, I would still give it four and a half stars out of five. The few blemishes in the beginnning really didn't matter at the end, because the gloriously peiced together ending of the book more than made up for it. All in all, I would definitely recommend this to anyone looking for a solid read. show less

The protagonist of this young adult novel, Sam Carrier, has Tourette Syndrome (or TS). TS is a neurological disorder characterized by multiple involuntary motor and vocal tics. (The most common motor tics are eye blinks, throat clearing, and shoulder spasms. Vocal tics can include noises, obscenities, repeating word of others, or repeating ones own words.) There is usually a family history of the disorder, and males are affected more than females. It is estimated that 200,000 Americans have the most severe form of TS, and as many as one in one-hundred exhibit milder and less complex symptoms such as chronic motor or vocal tics or transient tics of childhood. Unfortunately, there is no one medication that is helpful to all people with show more TS, nor does any medication completely eliminate symptoms.

Tics are often worse with excitement or anxiety and better during calm, focused activities. Importantly, most patients experience peak tic severity before the mid-teen years with improvement for the majority of patients coming not until the late teen years or early adulthood. Just the time you don’t want it to peak: when other kids are at their meanest.

Sam, a high school senior, is teased cruelly and mercilessly when he has attacks at school. Even the teachers are insensitive. It doesn’t help that he has a stepfather who hates him for his disability, and constantly calls him a freak and worse. His embarrassment and self-loathing intensify when he finally meets a girl he cares about.

After graduation, he meets some of his real father’s friends who try to teach him that TS doesn’t have to be the focus of your life in your own eyes or anyone else’s.

Discussion: The author also has TS, and has said in an interview appended to the book that Sam's “internal struggle with Tourette’s syndrome mirrors my own quite closely.” He also talks about how difficult it was for him to develop self-esteem and self-acceptance under the circumstances.

These issues are mirrored in Sam’s story, and I think accounts for the fact that Sam is so well-drawn. The other characters, including Sam’s mom and step-dad, his real dad’s best friend, and Sam’s love interest, didn’t seem as realistic to me. It’s a good story though, one that I didn’t expect to like.

Evaluation: This book has a lot to teach teens about what is really important in life. show less

This didn't grab me at first, but very quickly I was drawn to these characters. Then I re-read the beginning to get anything I may have missed. This seemed like a more realistic view of Tourettes than we usually see in the media.