Winter Town

bookhounds

MY THOUGHTS

LOVED IT

Evan has lost his best friend, Lucy, in more ways than one when she moves away from New England to Georgia to live with her mother after her parents divorce. They still see each other once a year during Christmas vacation when she comes back to stay with her father, but in the last year or so, Evan has noticed Lucy has begun to change. She isn't the "Old Lucy" anymore and he finds her difficult to connect with as well as some other physical changes. Evan has always been the perfect son, striving in school and extra curricular activities so he can get into an Ivy League school for college. The story mostly covers a two week period over their latest holiday break and is told through a combination of cartoon strips, drawings and words. Both Evan and Lucy are gifted artists, but while Evan has tried to downplay his, Lucy has stopped caring about everything in her life.

Without being judgmental, Emond depicts a fact of life for most teens these days; that their parents are divorced, they must shuttle from one household to another and at times, their parents don't even notice them. Evan sees what is happening to Lucy, but is clueless as to how to help her. She is in such a dark place because neither of her parents take them time to make sure she is ok. This pretty much broke my heart. Evan tries everything to get her back to the "Old Lucy" but he only sees glimpses of the happy girl he used to know. He also has his own issues at home, with a father who only wants him to get into a good university and not whether he is happy in his life or not.

Overall, this is a very classic look about how childhood friends try to stay close while growing apart and the sad fact of life that not everyone has the perfect family unit and most are quite dysfunctional. The illustrations go a long way in providing the feel for this book and provide some much need humor to a story that could be extremely sad. Lucy and Evan do end up losing touch with each other by the end of the book and I only hope that they reconnect in better circumstances. There are mentions of alcohol, alcohol abuse and sex, but not in any graphic form.

3 out of 4 people found this review helpful.

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Perfect story for a chilly winter's night!

Evan and Lucy are childhood best friends. Ever since Lucy's parents split and she moved to Georgia with her mom, Evan only sees her over winter break. When Lucy shows up this winter, she's completely changed -- she's sullen and moody and rockin' a totally new goth style, and Evan just can't get her to open up. As the story unravels, their friendship is severely tested, simultaneously growing closer and breaking apart each time they hang out. I had no idea how things would end -- I just knew that I was rooting for them either way. I loved the dual boy/girl point of view; the well-drawn adult characters; and the cool music, book, and zombie references throughout. Part graphic novel, part romance, part adventure, WINTERTOWN is the perfect story for a chilly winter's night. It comes out in December, just in time to grab a mug of hot chocolate and curl up under your fave fuzzy blanket (dare I say Snuggie)!

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

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Unknown

*hugs tori then goes to the result where rebel is*

1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

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Arielle

Wow well its nice to meet you all! * the 13 yr old smiles *

1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

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Unique, With Illustrations That Bring the Story to Life

Winter Town combines the wondrous setting of a snowy New England town with the fun and action of a comic book. Stephen Emond somehow creates this complicated tale of love and pain and adolescence and growing up; and then throws a comic book into the mix, but makes it work. The wintry setting makes this book the perfect curl up by the fire read.

The main characters, Evan and Lucy, are nearly impossible to not love. Evan is endearing and sweet and tries so hard to please everyone. He’s an incredibly kind person and so perfectly fits Lucy’s somewhat icy exterior. Emond writes the two of them with some of the best and witty dialogue I’ve ever read. It comes off as intelligent, but still teen-like. The dialogue was just one of the many reasons why Winter Town is a fantastic book.

As great a guy as Evan is, Lucy can be a bit prickly and messed up and definitely emo. Her standoffish, hot and cold nature made me hate her at times, but I got her too. Things aren’t easy for her and she can be immature, but her insecurities and flaws bring her to life. Without them, the conflict of the story wouldn’t feel as genuine. That conflict is infuriating though. Evan and Lucy get into these fights, but then they sort of brush them aside and big, explosive fights turn into…nothing. It’s frustrating and I wish there was more to their arguments, but I got past it and still enjoyed the book.

Then there’s the comic book aspect and the illustrations. These things are beyond awesome. I loved Evan and Lucy’s history and their shared love of art. Emond’s artwork adds some depth to Winter Town and contributes in making it a truly unique and unparalleled story. The illustrations and Evan’s dreamy world of Aelysthia are what push the book into the territory of one of my favorite reads.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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WinterTown

In the description, they say that it is Garden State meets Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist. Well I completely agree. It had everything that this story needed. It had love, sorrow, and heart ache. This story was very fun and loving. You really feel for the characters what they are going through.

You meet Evan. Evan has lived in the same town, in the same house, on the same street all his life. Also all his life he has had the same best friend. Lucy. Lucy knows all of Evan's secrets and strengths. But then the unthinkable has happened....Lucy is moving away to another state. She is moving away with her mom because her parents are getting a divorce. But for two weeks during the winter holidays, Lucy comes back and spends that time with her father....and Evan. But during this visit things have changed. Lucy is not the Lucy that Evan remembers. This Lucy has a totally different look. Which is not the issue, the issue is how Lucy is acting. What happened to Lucy during that year that she was home with her mom? What is making her act like this? Well you are going to have to read this book. Which you really should. I literally could not put this book down. It was defiantly one of the best books that I have read all year. If you need a good read that makes you laugh and cry all in the same chapter, this book is defiantly for you.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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The book is amazing, especially if you love a normal, but yet so

The book is amazing, especially if you love a normal, but yet somehow exhilarating, book. I loved the normal-ness to it, and it really is good to read during the winter time. It makes you want to hang out with your friends at a local coffee shop or something. Evan and Lucy, they're both great in their own ways. And I know that this may not matter, but any of the characters are portrayed as an everyday "normal" person, like Evan and his family very much reminded me of myself and my family, this book makes connections to the outside world. it's very addicting, and just a great read.

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Ehh

It was an ok book. I didnt like the ending though.

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Tori

Hugs unknown back

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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GOOD READ

It was a good book. It claimed to be on the same league as Nick and Norah's infinite playlist, but i didnt really see it that way. I loved the comics and pictures throughout the book. A refreshing break from more serious book readers.

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I couldn't help being agitated with Lucy...I know that was how I

I couldn't help being agitated with Lucy...I know that was how I was supposed to feel, but still. The ending was pretty okay, but it could've been better.

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