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Sarak Weeks is the author of "So B. It" but I read her book "Jumping the Scratch." In this book it related to the skip of a record after having been scratched. As easy a read as this book was and as simple as it had been written, it sure did knock me for a loop.

"Jumping the Scratch" is primarily about a little boy, Jamie, who moves from Battlecreek where he was "normal as cornflakes" into a tiny trailer far away where people treated him like dirt. His Dad left him and his Mom for a cashier and then his Mom's sister had a tragic accident at a cherry factory where she ended up losing her short term memory. So, they moved in with her and began a new life.

Jamie's aunt's name is Sapphire and they call her Sapphy. She has an amazing memory of everything up to the accident, but everything after is quickly forgotten. Every morning she wakes up and asks why Jamie and his Mom are a her house. Jamie is saddened by this deeply because his Aunt Sapphy had been his confidante of sorts, someone who truly listened and understood him.

In addition to the children bullying Jamie they also pick on a little girl named Audrey. Audrey claims she knows ESP and she wears black framed glasses that are missing the lens'. She clearly takes a liking to Jamie and sticks up for him often, much to his dismay.

There was a person in the story who came to his 5th grade class for a day to teach them about descriptive writing. Jamie referred to this man as Arthur even though that was not his name. Arthur, an outsider, made Jamie feel "normal" more himself then he had in a long time. It was from that point in the book that things began to mend.

Through the story there are references to something that happened to Jamie at this trailer park, something dreadful. Though it was obvious to me he must have been abused in some way, it wasn't clarified until the end of the book. The owner of the trailer park had sexually abused him while decorating the office for Christmas. This was explained in the middle of the night when during a bad dream Jamie had woken his Aunt Sapphy up. She stumbled into the living room and tripped over his cherry cans. Yes, Jamie placed stacks of empty cherry cans around his bed as a sort of security system. She asked him was was wrong and since he figured she would never remember he decided to tell her everything. Turns out the "trigger" Aunt Sapphy needed to regain all memory, what she needed to jump that scratch in her record was to hear what happened to Jamie. It was his tragic story which brought her out of her short term amnesia. Justice was served once Aunt Saphhy explained everything to Jamie's Mom.

The story hit home on many accounts. Jamies felt perfectly normal as he was until having been uprooted and placed in an environment where people treated him as a misfit. After the bullying and abuse from the owner of the trailer park, Jamie simply gave in and gave up. His dreams and best memories were about Battlecreek where he and his family were "normal as cornflakes." Though what he doesn't realize is just because his location changed doesn't mean he did.

Having only touched on key points in the book I have to insist you check it out, borrow it or buy it because it's really a fantastic story. It isn't life altering or anything but for me it was a tad bit therapeutic. And you know something...cornflakes are normal, but they are also very boring. =o)

Labels: abuse, adolescence, bully, fiction, memory, Sarah Weeks

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| 8:52 PM | 1 comment(s)!

How far would you go to keep the hope of love alive?

Whether you read this blog or not, I don't know, but if you do then you know I am an avid and proud Nicholas Sparks reader. Some of the earlier posts on the book segment are about his books.

This book is called "The Choice" and it is written in two parts. As is with all his novels there is a love story with all sorts of ups and downs. He wrote "The Notebook," "Message in a Bottle," and "A Walk to Remember" just to name a few. If you are familiar with those stories then I am sure you can sense the type of writing style he is best known for.

Travis Parker and Gabby Holland are neighbors in North Carolina. (Another thing about his books are their locale...always the beautifully serene coast of N.C.). Gabby is a strong female character, a physician's assistant living on her own with her dog Molly. She has a boyfriend who seems to have major commitment issues and it is obvious right off the bat that he's not going to be an important character. Yet it does end up coming down to the choice of her leaving the boyfriend for...you guessed it...Travis Parker.

Travis is the local vet and ends up saving Molly's life after she gave birth to puppies. The cute part is that it was his dog that got Molly pregnant and so Gabby was furious with him. Can't be furious anymore after he saves the day though right? And so the "friendship" begins.

All is well and lovely and super romantic.

Cut to part two in which our characters are faced with another choice. Or rather Travis is faced with one. He and Gabby ended up getting married and by this time in the book they have two daughters. But after a tragic car accident, Gabby is lying in the hospital in a coma and it has been three months. Travis has to decide whether to "pull the plug" or send her to a nursing home because she can no longer stay in the hospital. Gabby has made him swear once that he would let her die if ever they were in this type of situation. Little did they know...

Inevitably, Travis couldn't do it. He said he could handle sitting by her side while she was in a coma and having that be a part of his new life. But he could not handle his life knowing she was no longer there. As you can imagine this was very emotional and yes, I sobbed.

***DO NOT READ THIS IS YOU PLAN ON BUYING THE BOOK***

Once you get to the last two chapters of the book there is yet another twist. The nursing home called to tell Travis that Gabby was awake. She had no recollection of her time in the coma. Of course she required hours of physical therapy each day because of having been bedridden for so long, but she was awake and she was Gabby again.

Gabby's daughters and Travis all had a hard time when she first woke up because they were afraid she might slip back into a coma. So the realization that their Mom and wife was back was something the whole family needed time with.

***

Of course I loved the book. Parts were very predictable (if you are a fan) but I have to admit that there were twists and turns along the way as well. It was an easy, casual read that was real and applicable in my life. The love between Gabby and Travis was something dreams are made of and it definitely was a romance that instantly made you feel warm while reading.

Highly recommended for fellow saps. =o)

Labels: love, Nicolas Sparks

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| 10:11 PM | 1 comment(s)!