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Everybody sneaks out of the house now and then. It doesn't hurt anybody.
Description:
Cleo Neilson is the only one who knows why her mother was in a seedy part of town that one night, but she’s determined to keep the secret that’s breaking her heart. Walk through this teen fiction novel of grief, guilt, faith, and forgiveness.
You won’t forget the journey.
Shattered
ISBN-13:
9781600069499
Trim Size: 5.5 x 8.25
Cover: Paperback
208
Pages
$14.99
Percentage Discounts for Bulk Purchases of Single Items
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Downloadable
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Part of a Series
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Available in Spanish
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View all reviewsCustomer Reviews
Good book on morals/respect, but quick-paced.
http://lifeatdaybreak.blogspot.com/2011/06/book-review-shattered.html
I received the book Shattered by Melody Carlson from NavPress Publishers as part of their Blogger Review Program. This is my first book from them. There are spoilers in this review.
Unfortunately I wasn't pleased with the book. I was able to finish it quickly and it just didn't catch my attention. I am not sure if I would recommend this book to anyone. I think it would depend on who the person was. This book is geared towards teens. It would make a teen think about their consequences for the actions they might take. It will help with teaching morals and respect from teens to their parents. I still give this book only a three star based one how I responded to the book.
The story is about a girl named Cleo. She has an overprotective mother who will not even let her drive her best friend to a concert. She decides to sneak around her mom's back and take the metro to get to the concert. The day after the concert, two policemen show up at her door and announce that her mother has been murdered. Cleo finds out the truth of where her mother is murdered and now must live with the guilt of her lies. She turns to pills to numb her pain and goes through withdrawals. The book seems realistic but it all happens too quickly. If the storyline had been drawn out a little more, I would have liked it better. The quickness of the story seems to slap my face. Twice I put the book down because it had my head spinning with the fast change of pace.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from NavPress Publishers as part of their Blogger Review Program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."
Posted by
Grace
on
6/13/2011 4:24:02 PM
Speaking with the Dead?!!?
Overall
I like books where I know what the author is trying to impart to the reader. But in this one, I did not at all know what that was.
Was she trying to tell girls that even if your mom is "overbearing" you should still obey them?
Is she trying to relate how easy it is to slide in to a drug addiction?
Or is she trying to tell us that mom's should not be overprotective?
Or maybe we're supposed to simply realize that grieving is a normal process which should not be interfered with?
Plot
****spoiler****
The book begins with Cleo (Main Character) disobeying her mom (who is portrayed as being overbearing) and sneaking off to a concert. When her mom realizes what Cleo did, she goes to the concert to find Cleo. And then gets murdered. Cleo learns this the next morning, and the rest of the book deals with how she feels guilty about the murder. And then how she takes her mom's pills. And doesn't want to stop, so she buys drugs.
When her aunt figures out about the drugs, Cleo confesses about going to the concert, at which point her dad stops talking to her. (whether this is because of the drugs, concert, or both, we don't really hear)
What really bothered me was the ending. Rather than Cleo rejoicing in God's forgiveness, we have....communicating? with her (dead!) mother and finding healing in that. (Something which Scripture STRONGLY forbids!)
****end spoiler****
The first part was rather predictable, and even after that there were not any real surprises, except for the ending. (Which, as I have already stated, is something I strongly disagree with)
Characters
Cleo is the only character we really learn anything about, and even she seems rather shadow-ish. As if we are simply aware of the fact that she is there, and we know some of what she is doing...but not much.
I really wish that we had heard more about Cleo's mom before the murder. As it was, none of my emotions were really upset by her passing.
Undercurrents
Listed below are some conclusions the author draws that I noticed:
* Talking with dead people is portrayed as healthy and godly. (false)
* It is easy to become addicted to drugs. (true, although perhaps exaggerated in the book?)
* Confessing sin is the door back to happiness. (true, specifically for Christians, as they have a forgiving heavenly Father!)
* 17-18 year olds do not need much parental supervision. (Depends. If they were trained well, then this might very well be quite true. However, Cleo seemed to be very immature. Besides this the Bible says we are always to honor our parents, even if as adults we end up disagreeing with them.)
My Rating
4 out of 10 stars. Not recommended. *****I received a free copy of this book from Navpress publishers in exchange for my honest review.
Posted by
Hannah Jane
on
6/6/2011 10:21:45 AM
Grief, Guilt, Faith, and Forgiveness
Shattered: A Daughter's Regret by Melody Carlson
Melody Carlson has done it again. Shattered is a great story of so many of the realities of life.
Cleo Neilson is seventeen years old and nearing her high school graduation. Things begin to blow apart at almost the very beginning of this book. Then the “Secrets” begin.
Cleo faced so many issues all at once. From grief, guilt, blame, drugs, a bugging aunt, an absent father and the list goes on.
This was a wonderful story and so you will want to read it, I’m not going into a lot of detail about the story line.
I will just tell you, if you don’t read Shattered, you will have missed a very wonderful Christian fiction book. It shows you that the Lord is with you no matter what and He will get you through what you thought was the worse of the worse.
I gave this book 5 out of 5 stars. I also published a review on www.amazon.com and www.goodreads.com.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from NavPress Publishers as part of their Blogger Review Program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commissions’ 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."
Posted by
Jane B. Stover
on
6/5/2011 6:00:33 PM
A Cautionary Tale for Teenage Girls
About the Book: Author Melody Carlson has a gift for storytelling and knows teenagers well. Cleo’s story was captivating, and, though the consequences she faced were extreme, they weren’t unrealistic. As Carlson intended, "Shattered" is a this-could-happen story, warning teenage girls of how quickly they can lose control once they begin to make wrong choices. All Cleo does, at first, is sneak out of the house to go to a concert—a Christian concert, no less. But the unintended consequences completely shatter her world.
A Caution to Parents: (Note: The following is not a criticism of the book. For the right audience, I highly recommend it!) If your daughter has already chosen to follow Christ and lives in obedience to Him and to you, this book may encourage her and affirm her decision. It may even help her to help friends who are struggling to do right things. However, if your daughter is making rebellious choices or seems to be sitting on the fence, this book may be more of a how-to manual than a cautionary tale. I’ve seen teenagers use books like this that way—writing off the consequences as fiction, while learning how to misbehave and get away from it—for a time—from the main character.
Again, I’m not criticizing the book. I’m just suggesting, as always, that parents carefully consider where their daughters are spiritually and how they may respond to the story before giving it to them. Books can be helpful, but parents shouldn’t rely on them (except for the Bible) to guide their children morally. Prayer, honest communication, and mentorship from trusted leaders and friends should come first—always.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from NavPress Publishers as part of their Blogger Review Program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."
Posted by
Janet
on
6/5/2011 8:26:32 AM
Shattered, A Heartbreaking Story
Cleo Neilson is 17 years old and thinks she should be responsible enough to drive her dad’s car into the city to attend a Christian concert with a friend. Her mom Karen has a prior commitment and can’t take the two to the concert, but she doesn’t have a good feeling about Cleo driving to the big city alone at night. Cleo is not happy, she says some very rude things to her mom, and she strikes up a plan that will make sure she and Lola makes it to the concert and back home without her mom finding out. Everyone sneaks out of the house at some point, it’s just what people do. Isn’t it? But as the story unfolds, what a horrible and shocking way for Cleo to find out how and when her mom knew the truth. After this night, after this one bad choice Cleo made to disobey her mom, her life would never be the same. Cleo doesn’t want to deal with what is happening, she doesn’t want to exist anymore. But will she find a way to survive this horrible nightmare, will she every be able to admit to everyone what she did wrong? And surely God could never forgive her, if He cared at all, this wouldn’t have happened to her family. Would it?
As I read this story, I could identify with Karen, because as moms, it is always difficult to start letting go of our children as they grow older. Cleo Neilson in this fictional story is no different than teens today. It is true that everyone sneaks out of their house, everyone disobeys their parents, everyone yells and makes rude comments to their parents. And many get by with it, but some do not. I will have to say this is one of the most heartbreaking books I have ever read. I grieved and cried with Cleo as she struggled with ways to deal with the consequences relating to her disobedience to her mom. I love the way Melody Carlson uses the characters she so awesomely created to show and teach young ladies in their teens the dangers out in the world. To teach them that their moms do love them and want to protect them from harm. I felt as though I was right there in the house with the family, crying with them, loving them, and trying to help them through this. She blends so many different feelings in the heartbreaking circumstances to teach us that God is with us and will see us through anything, if we let Him. He is the only one that can heal our hurts, and this fact was so strong throughout this book.
Numbers 32:23 says "But if you fail to do this, you will be sinning against the LORD; and you may be sure that your sin will find you out.” I think this would be one of the most heartwrenching ways for that to happen, to have to admit that one bad choice you made hurt so many people. I very highly recommend to everyone with a teenage daughter, get a copy of this book to her. If you don’t feel comfortable recommending it to her, let someone else.
Thanks to NavPress for the copy of this book review. The opinions are mine alone. I was not expected or required to write a positive review.
Posted by
Joy Hannabass
on
5/26/2011 7:59:15 PM
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