Review: Jodi Picoult and Samantha van Leer - Between the Lines

Jodi Picoult and Samantha van Leer - Between the Lines

• Pub Date: June 26, 2012
• Publisher: Simon Pulse / Recorded Books
• Format: CD 8hr 45min
• Age Range: Young Adult
• Source: Library

What happens when happily ever after... isn’t?

Delilah is a bit of a loner who prefers spending her time in the school library with her head in a book—one book in particular. Between the Lines may be a fairy tale, but it feels real. Prince Oliver is brave, adventurous, and loving. He really speaks to Delilah.

And then one day Oliver actually speaks to her. Turns out, Oliver is more than a one-dimensional storybook prince. He’s a restless teen who feels trapped by his literary existence and hates that his entire life is predetermined. He’s sure there’s more for him out there in the real world, and Delilah might just be his key to freedom.

Delilah and Oliver work together to attempt to get Oliver out of his book, a challenging task that forces them to examine their perceptions of fate, the world, and their places in it. And as their attraction to each other grows along the way, a romance blossoms that is anything but a fairy tale.

AWWWWW! This book is like every bookworm's dream come true. Who wouldn't want to find out that the book boyfriend in your favorite book was REAL in the pages of the book!? It's such a cute, clever idea. I would love to have been there for a writing session between mother and daughter on this one. The ending is clever, and the whole book is adorable. The audio version of this book is really something special. I love the different narrators for each character, plus the storybook narrator.

One of my favorite things about this book is actually the fact that Delilah's mom is very involved in her life. In so many YA novels, the parents are extremely absent. I can't stand that. It's okay if that's the deal - busy working mom, single father, etc. But when they're "supportive" parents who aren't EVER involved, boooo to that. Delilah's mom was front and center, always worried and wondering about her daughter, trying to get her help when she thought Delilah was nutso. YAY for that!

But mostly I just loved Oliver and Delilah together. As they try to figure out how to get Oliver out of the book, they work together with so many creative strategies. They're determined. All of the side characters are wonderful, too. Rapscullio (or however you spell it - I listened to this, remember) cracked me up because his voice sounded like Hoggle from Labyrinth. The horse, Socks, was too funny with his insecurities. Every character stood out to me!

If you haven't checked out Jodi Picoult, this is NOT the place to start. It is not very representative of her other novels. This is purely a fun, fictional novel written with her daughter. I'd recommend this one to young readers. Picoult's books are much more dense and heavy, written mostly for adult readers. But this one is definitely a good book. :o)

Bottom line: Totally read this one! It's a cute idea and fun story.

Rating:

4/5 book sharks!