Josh SundquistRezensionen

Not quite what I expected but that’s both good and disappointing.

The good: Never would’ve guessed I would have so much in common with a Paralympian Presbyterian from Virginia. But the first chapter triggered some hilarious memories from my own evangelical upbringing and it set the tone for how real and relatable Josh’s experiences were.

The disappointing: Because I’m petty, I was expecting more direct closure with each girl. Like he sought them all out, told them about the book, and interrogated them. Which is delusional and weird so of course he would’ve have done that. I think the overall ending made up for it though. Also, along the same petty lines… a lot of those graphs had nothing to do with the story around them. They got more relevant as the book progressed but the early ones were very confusing.

This book was an uplifting read that tackled important questions in a reasonable manner.

Will is a lovely character--I enjoy how he manages to maintain an identity outside of being blind. I would have liked to see him have more of his own interests and passions, but despite him fitting into a character trait mould he was a lot of fun to read about. He maintained his independence and stuck up for himself and others.

I gained so much appreciation for the way I see from reading this book. Sundquist does an exemplary job of describing what it must be like to see for the first time. From the process of recognising colours to understanding the concept of objects being 3D, I definitely thought about my sight in different ways. Even terms like "perspective" are much more complex to describe than I previously would have thought.

I bought the fact that Will is eligible for a surgery that means he might regain eyesight for the sake of the book; however, I thought there was one other decision on a family member's behalf that was irrational. But this is YA, and though I rolled my eyes through the last part of the book, it came with the type of ending that one looks for.

Visually impaired people are definitely an underrepresented group in books, and though I was excited by the premise, I was simultaneously worried that this wouldn't be done carefully. However, I feel it was clear that the author carefully looked at many cases of blindness and formed an experience that was legitimate and gave me a new perspective.

This books gets extra points for bringing forward such a unique experience, but ultimately was a tale of acceptance and romance.

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Veramente un gran bel libro che, oltre a essermi piaciuto molto, è stato capace di farmi scoprire e, soprattutto, capire qualcosa che non conoscevo.
La cecità è una condizione molto particolare e capire cosa vuol dire acquistare la vista per chi è cieco dalla nascita è qualcosa che non si può immaginare ma che questo libro riesce a far comprendere in maniera unica. La realtà che si crea nella mente di chi non vede e non ha mai visto è ben differente da quella di chi vede, e anche solo capire cosa siano i colori è qualcosa che va al di là dell’immaginazione di chi li ha sempre visti.
Una storia scritta veramente benissimo e che, oltre ad entrare in profondità nelle problematiche di una realtà difficile e sconosciuta, riesce anche a divertire con i suoi personaggi unici, particolari e pieni di umanità nonostante le loro “diversità”.
Da leggere assolutamente.

teen/adult audio nonfiction/humor - abridged (~6 hrs, read by author)

25-y.o. man with hip-level amputation (childhood cancer) from conservative Christian homeschooling family in Harrisonburg (VA?) questions his former crushes to figure out why he's never been considered good boyfriend material, to see if it was more than average adolescent awkwardness, dumb luck and inexperienced judgment that led to so many (hilarious) dating disasters.½

I enjoyed this story more than I thought I would. It was sweet and heartwarming. It was a quick easy read and just overall a cute book. My only complaint is I feel like the pacing was a bit too fast. Im glad that there weren't any slow moments but there were a few moments that's I felt like could have used more threshing out and that we could have gotten to know the characters a bit more. Most of the characters felt a little flat.

Difficult to stop reading, once you start -- a strong imagining and sensitive portrayal of a blind teenager's integration into high school and opportunity to experiment with sight. I appreciate Will's voice -- he's a regular, snarky, misfit teenager, who just happens to be touch and hearing gifted, thank you very much. A good perspective and great read.

Meh.

I don't think that it's right to perpetuate the myth that people need girlfriends before they're a mature 21.* In fact, my favorite from his stories was Paulette (or Paulina?) who seemed to know how to stand up for herself and, bonus points, know what she stood for.

And, to be quite clear about my biased star rating, he gives homeschooled kids a bad name.

* Personally, I feel like this impossible myth also gives rise to unhealthy anger (against self and others) and, unfounded, poor self-esteem among many single young people. You are worth much more than your relationship status and the state of your virginity.

3.75??

this was a nice read, just a bit frustrating at times. i found it cute how cecily explained the paintings to will, though!

On his first day at a new school, blind sixteen-year-old Will Porter accidentally groped a girl on the stairs, sat on another student in the cafeteria, and somehow drove a classmate to tears. High school can only go up from here, right?

As Will starts to find his footing, he develops a crush on a charming, quiet girl named Cecily. Then an unprecedented opportunity arises: an experimental surgery that could give Will eyesight for the first time in his life. But learning to see is more difficult than Will ever imagined, and he soon discovers that the sighted world has been keeping secrets. It turns out Cecily doesn't meet traditional definitions of beauty--in fact, everything he'd heard about her appearance was a lie engineered by their so-called friends to get the two of them together. Does it matter what Cecily looks like? No, not really. But then why does Will feel so betrayed?

Is the concept of this book funny or is it creepy? I'm not really sure.

Kind of funny, but kind of creepy. Some of my students have heard him speak, so they'll want to read this. It might work for some of my awkward boys, more as a how not to guide, rather than how to get a keep a girl. One of my female students thought it was pretty funny, though. I do have a little segment of memoir readers who'll be glad for a little levity.

re rating to a 5.0, based on how I rate in my profile. I just loved this book so much. At the end of the book Josh mentions how the book is about different perspectives, and that's something I could see in the book while reading it. It wasn't beat you over the head obvious, but subtle and the book was very well written, the story plot, characters. I might end up writing a review on this book, but I don't know if I'll get around to it because I'm a bit ocd/perfectionist when writing and it usually ends up never being writ. But anyway, I really loved this book.

again, Josh kills it, this book is awesome! just what I needed to read. Funny, and oddly informative since the lesson I needed/have been learning was the same/very similar to the one Josh summed up in the end of this book. Amazing, totally recommend. Easily one of my favorite books.

This book was a free YA book from Audio Sync summer program. It is a story of a young high schooler who is blind from birth. He decides to leave his school for the blind and mainstream. He has never experienced sight. The author makes that real to the reader - things we the seeing don't think about. During this year, he meets some other students and especially a girl who he really likes. He experiences difficulty with adjustments and misinterprets communications. The protagonists has the opportunity to go through a procedure which may give him sight. This is a decision that has pros and cons. I enjoyed reading this book.

Fabulous. My new go to book for kids in realistic fiction! Watch out John Green!

What's between these pages is pure honesty, and it's hard not to fall in love a little bit with Josh. He openly shares his whole dating experience, right down to those cringe worthy moments we all wish we could forget. He does it in a way that is sweet at times, hilarious at others, and touching in a way that's hard to ignore. I'll tell you, I've never been a big fan of memoir type books. Normally I'm all about getting lost in anything but reality. In this case though? Josh's story was so well written, and so engrossing, you couldn't have kept me from finishing it.

I think what struck me most is how genuine Josh's character in the book feels. It's like reading a really funny fictional story, but at the same time at the back of your mind you remember that he's telling you all about his real life. Sure things might be changed a bit, but all the events, all the funny moments, all the rejections, those actually happened. With a bit of wit, lots of graphs/diagrams, and some adorable musings on being a teenage boy, he made it through it all. I can't imagine how hard it must have been to share all of that, but I'll fully admit I loved every minute of reading it.

Read this. Trust me, it's worth your time! If you're looking for something that is going to hit you right in that big ball of emotions you call a heart, this is going to be it.

Update: Full review is up on Bestie Book Blog!

Hovering somewhere between 2.5 and 3 stars. Full review scheduled to be up on the blog tomorrow!

I first discovered Josh Sundquist by reading his memoir, and giggling the entire way through it. I'm not generally a non-fiction reader, but I devoured that book. That meant that when I found out that Sundquist had written a YA book, I knew I had to read it. I couldn't wait to see how his wit and honesty translated to a fiction novel.

First off, I have to give credit where credit is due. It's very obvious from the first few pages of this story that Sundquist did a tremendous amount of research on visual impairment, and worked hard to make sure that he was accurately portraying Will's day to day routine. Pair that with a lovingly crafted character, complete with Sundquist's signature wit, and you have a story that is a joy to read. I fell in love with Will, and the rest was history.

When the experimental surgery came into the picture, I found myself riveted. Everything was described in intricate detail, but it never felt overbearing. Instead, I found myself in the same situation as Will. Wondering if the surgery would be worth it, cheering him on when he was doing well, and lamenting with him when things weren't going well. His parents were so wonderfully supportive, if a little over involved at times, and there was this whole aura of growth and love to this book. It was a happy place to be.

Even if the friendship turned romance hadn't been a main portion of this book, I would have still loved it. Still, I couldn't help but fall for the slow growth of Cecily and Will's relationship. Cecily's acceptance of Will, her ability to open things up for him with wonderful analogies, tugged at my heart strings. I knew that fight was imminent, and of course I was right. What is YA without teenage tension? Still, it all felt so perfect. Not a single sentence of this book felt out of place. It all worked to build up Will, and show how amazing a person he was.

I'd highly recommend this for your reading list! If it's not there already, it's well worth a second look.

I don’t know if I choose books by females or if there seems to be more books for tweens written by women. I was happy to see a book by a male author. The narrator did a great job, for I listened to the audiobook from Audiobook Sync. I really enjoyed this novel and recommend it.

Will’s first week of high school is memorable. He uses the girl’s restroom; he sits on a guy; and, he makes a girl cry and run from the classroom. Poor guy! Will has only attended schools for the blind, but he knows that he needs to live in the real world and know how to navigate his way in a sighted world. They guy he sits on has a great sense of humor, so Will now has his lunch table and a group of friends. They are all part of the Academic Quiz Team.

Will wants to be a writer, so he is in journalism. He likes the journalism/English teacher because she doesn’t give him any slack and is honest with him. In this class, he volunteers to go to the art showing at a museum with Cecily when no one else volunteers. He’ll write the article; she’ll take the photographs. At the museum, Cecily discovers how much sight colors our world. Will is allowed to touch the paintings. He tells Cecily that he feels a triangle. She re-looks at the picture and agrees there is a triangle. When she explains the painting is of a road going into the distance, Will cannot understand how a road, which has parallel lines, can be a triangle. For someone who has never seen anything, Will cannot understand perspective. Cecily is able to explain art to Will. This is when they become friends.

Cecily has her own problems; she’s been bullied her entire life. Throughout the novel, you’ll wonder why. Is it what she looks like? Is it something else? What’s emphasized is that Will’s blindness allows him to just meet people and know them without being influenced by society’s perceptions of looks.

I enjoyed this mild love story; it’s hard not to like Cecily. She’s a good person. Sometimes Will annoyed me because he presented himself as victim when he couldn’t get beyond himself. When there is a possibility that a miracle surgery can bring eyesight to him, Will jumps at the chance.

The best part of the novel is how it deals with the concept of perspective. We judge and see life through our own perspective. What if sight were removed? Would we be kinder and accept more people? Would we take advantage of each other because no one can see? What does sight add? I learned a great deal about blindness and how much sight is part of our world, our choices, and our personality.

A fun and quick read. For teens; true story about a boy who has his leg amputated and how that affects his life. Very funny.

Fun story about Sundquist's relationships gone wrong. He had his leg amputated at the hip because of cancer at the young age. He tells funny encounters that he has with girls. Though many of the encounters have to do with his missing leg or his prosthetic leg, teenagers will relate. It is a great book about accepting yourself and having confidence in who you are.

The debut novel by this motivational speaking and youtube celebrity. Its a YA story of a 16 yr boy, blind at birth, and his first year in a new school. During the year he finds friends, a first love and an opportunity to see for the very first time. Sundquist does a very good job (IMO) of describing how a person who has never seen and who's vision centers of his brain were never used, handles seeing for the first time. As with any good YA/Rom-com story there are plenty of emotional ups and downs and misunderstandings and reconciliations. Pretty good first outing. 8/10

I am super impressed with this book, and TBH I wish I had read it sooner! I love the honest perspective we get from Will...a realistic view of what it is like for someone born blind. I had never thought in depth about what it might be like for someone like Will when being described something he had nothing to refer to in order to decipher or picture what's being described.

I really loved this book...it was funny and completely relatable in a sense that even if you couldn't relate to Will's blindness, you could relate to the way he feels about others, himself and his future.

#punkrocklibrarian #overdrive #audiobook #syncYA

Thank you to AudiobookSYNC for a chance to listen to this book. I will be honest, I would never have read this book. I’m not a fan of YA contemporary. Especially contemporary where the teens have problems that have to be overcome. Cecily has a batgirl esk facial birthmark, and our main character Will was born blind. But even though most of the story was completely expected, I enjoyed the trip.

Will has begged his parents to go to a normal school, instead of the school for the blind he has attended all his life. While trying to avoid right out telling everyone he is blind, he accidently upsets Cecily who doesn’t know that he wasn’t intentionally staring at her. It’s this incident that brings the two together, with another bunch of rag tag nerds who love to play settlers and lead the schools quiz team.

As I said, the story is exactly what you would expect it to be. Miss understanding between the two main characters, a miracle cure, and then learning to live with that miracle cure and the consequences that come with it.

As a fully able bodied person I appreciated details like how the brain “sees” and what things might be odd or confusing if you had never seen before. Things like relearning shapes, and how much perspective plays into what we see. How much we as sighted individuals take for granted. It has also helped me think about how I describe things to a blind, or visually impaired person.

But at the same time as I realize how bad I probably am at describing things to my blind patrons, I also realize that some may see this title as ableist. Will doesn’t mind his blind life, it’s all he has ever known. His mother however, just want’s a sighted or “normal” son and pushes him towards experimental surgery. The book does not glorify his experience of relearning things he already knows, but does glorify seeing new things, and glimpsing things he may never see again.

Overall, I enjoyed the listen, but stand by what I said earlier about reading this as a book. I would have DNF the book once it slowed down or got mushy.½

This was pretty cute and enjoyable.