12 April 2016

Today's Read & Giveaway: The Haters by Jesse Andrews

Review: The Haters by Jesse AndrewsImagine that you and your best friend were stuck at high school jazz camp with a bunch of other guys but then met a hot girl who decided the three of you could form a band and go on the road, playing your music in bars. What could possibly go wrong?

Jazz camp was mostly dudes. It was just a scene of way too many dudes.

Corey and I were in Shippensburg University Memorial Auditorium for orientation, and it was dudes as far as the eye could see. Dudes were trying with all their might to be mellow and cool. . . .
The Haters by Jesse Andrew (Abrams/Amulet, 2016, p. 1)

Quick Facts
  • Setting: modern times; life on the road, the U.S. South
  • Circumstances: After only one day, Wes and Corey have decided that jazz camp isn't for them, so they're grateful when Ash, one of the few girls, asks them if they want to jam with her. Convinced they're a trio made in heaven, the boys agree to Ash's scheme to ditch camp and head south, looking for bars to play in and soaking in the romance of being a band on the road. It doesn't hurt that both Wes and Corey think Ash is one of the coolest girls they've ever met. Plus, Ash has a car and seemingly endless money. The trip, of course, is nothing at all what they imagined it would be.
  • Characters: Wes, an electric bass player whose adoptive parents give him lots of leeway; Corey, a drummer whose parents are overprotective; Ash, a guitar player whose divorced mega-rich parents barely pay attention to her; people they meet on the road
  • Themes: friendship, first love/sex, coming of age, self-discovery, facing the consequences of one's actions, parenting, music
  • Genre: contemporary young adult fiction 
  • General thoughts: Although I am/was nothing like any of the characters, I really enjoyed their story. Wes, Corey, and Ash are basically good kids who are at that age at which they don't quite understand they're not yet adults. Each has a unique personality and is dealing with different family and personal issues, but in many ways, they're all very typical teens. I particularly liked Wes, who is the book's narrator. What happens to the trio on the road is sometimes funny, sometimes cringe worthy, and sometimes disturbing but is all pretty much believable.
  • Thoughts on the music: I loved all the references to songs and bands throughout the book: jazz, rock, rap, grunge, pop, blues, and more. No matter what your musical interests, there are sure to be many artists or styles you'll recognize.
  • Things to know: Author Jesse Andrews also wrote Me and Earl and the Dying Girl, which was adapted for the movies. Visit The Haters website for a video, a playlist, and the author's tour dates.
  • Recommendations: This is a fun and fast read that will strike a chord (ha!) with many readers. This is more of a coming-of-age story than it is a typical teen book. There is a bit of romance and sex, but the music, the road trip, and the interpersonal dynamics among the trio are what stand out. I suggest giving the novel a try.
  • Audiobook: The unabridged audiobook (Listening Library; 8 hr, 37 min) was read by Michael Crouch. Crouch's voice fits a teen boy almost perfectly, and his cadences, stresses, and accents brought the dialogue of all the characters to life. This is my first experience with Crouch, and I'm happy to have gotten a chance to hear him. This is a recommended listen.
The Giveaway

Prize pack for The Haters by Jess AndrewsThanks to Abrams Books, I'm able to offer one of my readers (with a U.S. mailing address) a copy of Jesse Andrews's The Haters, a fun bumper sticker, and a copy of his Me and Earl and the Dying Girl. Yep, one of you can win two books plus some swag. All you have to do to be entered for a chance to win is to fill out the following form. I'll pick a winner using a random number generator on April 20. Once the winner has been confirmed and his or her address has been sent to the publicist, I'll erase all personal information from my computer. Good luck!

18 comments:

Karen and Gerard 4/12/16, 6:12 AM  

This one doesn't sound like something I would like--I'm not big on music scenes.

Anonymous,  4/12/16, 6:23 AM  

This sounds a bit different and while it doesn't sound like my kind of book, I appreciated reading your enjoyable review of it - thank you:)
My TT this week is about an adventurous sneak thief... https://sjhigbee.wordpress.com/2016/04/12/teaser-tuesday-12th-april-2016/

rhapsodyinbooks 4/12/16, 6:57 AM  

Does the audio include any of the music? That would make the audio definitely worthwhile!

abookaddict 4/12/16, 7:34 AM  

Character development of the three holds lots of promise! I'm not sure I could get into this book at my age, but if I were significantly younger!.....
My teaser this week is from Vermilion by Molly Tanzer and can be found at http://abookaddictsview.blogspot.com/2016/04/teaser-tuesday_12.html

Unknown 4/12/16, 8:21 AM  

I'm on the fence about this one. Seeing it everywhere but not sure it's one for me. That's probably why I'll read it. Curiosity. LOL

My TT from Girl Of Mine

Unknown 4/12/16, 9:34 AM  

This sounds like something I would be into reading. I've had Me, Earl and the Dying Girl on my TBR for a while. I guess I'll be adding this one too.

Also, I love the cover. It makes me smile.


Here's my TT.

Daryl 4/12/16, 10:34 AM  

music and sports are two of my least favorite reads .. sorry .. but i do know someone who will enjoy this so thanks!

Laurel-Rain Snow 4/12/16, 12:21 PM  

Probably not my kind of read, except I do love books that make me remember music I loved.

Thanks for sharing...and for visiting my blog.

Anonymous,  4/12/16, 1:47 PM  

I guess that type of beginning would work for me if I were only, let's say, 30 years younger, lol!

Literary Feline 4/12/16, 2:48 PM  

This sound like it would be a fun read!

Margot 4/12/16, 2:48 PM  

Sorry, but the opening paragraph isn't calling to me. Am I getting too old? Nah, just not my thing.

Anonymous,  4/12/16, 3:02 PM  

Not my kind of read,but thanks for sharing.

jama 4/12/16, 6:32 PM  

I do like books with music themes. Thanks for the review and giveaway! :)

Unknown 4/12/16, 7:17 PM  

This sounds like it would be funny and full of teenage angst. I like it.

(Diane) Bibliophile By the Sea 4/12/16, 7:20 PM  

Nope, not for me based on the intro.

Maria Behar 4/12/16, 11:12 PM  

Oh, I LOVE reading YA Fiction!! I have another blog dedicated to this genre. It's named "A Night's Dream of Books". While I do prefer to read YA paranormal romance and urban fantasy, I also read contemporary YA novels from time to time. And this one sounds SO FREAKING AWESOME!! I LOVE the plot, and the fact that you can read about different types of music. Plus, the characters sound very engaging, indeed! The one thing I don't like about this book is the cover. I really wish they had designed a different one. I must confess I'm not too keen on the title, either, lol. In spite of these objections, I totally love this story, and am rushing over to Goodreads as soon as I leave your blog, so I can add it to my TBR!

BTW, I want to enter the giveaway, but the form is not showing up properly on my screen..... :( I'll keep trying!

Also, thanks for dropping by and commenting on my Tuesday Intros post!! :)

Maria Behar 4/12/16, 11:14 PM  

P.S. I figured out how the form works. There's a scroll bar on the right....DUH. So I've entered! I have all my fingers and toes crossed.... :)

Emma Litttlefield 4/13/16, 2:58 AM  

I like the cover ... but I really dislike the word Dude. It might be fun but I don't think I could keep reading. Sorry!

Thanks for stopping by. I read all comments and may respond here, via e-mail, or on your blog. I visit everyone who comments, but not necessarily right away.

I cannot turn off word verification, but if you are logged into Blogger you can ignore the captcha. I have set posts older than 14 days to be on moderation. I can no longer accept anonymous comments. I'm so sorry if this means you have to register or if you have trouble commenting.

Copyright

All content and photos (except where noted) copyright © cbl for Beth Fish Reads 2008-2020. All rights reserved.

Quantcast

Thanks!

To The Blogger Guide, Blogger Buster, Tips Blogger, Our Blogger Templates, BlogU, and Exploding Boy for the code for customizing my blog. To Old Book Illustrations for my ID photo. To SEO for meta-tag analysis. To Blogger Widgets for the avatars in my comments and sidebar gadgets. To Review of the Web for more gadgets. To SuziQ from Whimpulsive for help with my comments section. To Cool Tricks N Tips for my Google +1 button.

Quick Linker

Services

SEO

  © Blogger template Coozie by Ourblogtemplates.com 2008

Back to TOP