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What I Saw And How I Lied Judy Blundell Books

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What I Saw And How I Lied Judy Blundell Books

"When Alice fell down the rabbit hole, she fell slow. She had time to notice things on her way down—Oh, there’s a teacup! There’s a table! So things seemed almost normal to her while she was falling. Then she bumped down and rolled into Wonderland, and all hell broke loose."

I really love it when I turn to the last page of a book, and the ending is so thoroughly perfect, but not too perfect. Some questions still remain, retribution is administered, and sometimes there's cake. I think, however, that what makes a Bildungsroman so amazing is when the adolescent protagonist matures, and their view of the world is altered in the most beneficial way possible. This book followed that recipe to the "t" and I love the author for it!

"Truth, justice…I always thought they were absolutes, like God. And Mom. And apple pie. But you could make apple pie from Ritz crackers. You could make cakes without sugar. We learned how to fake things, during the war."

Set in Queens and Palm Beach in 1947, Blundell created a world that was utterly believable and rich, down to the cigarette jingles. I felt like an awkwad, gawky fifteen year-old that hadn't quite grown into my bra and didn't really stick up for my values. That's good character writing. But Evie is also an observer, and the reader's only medium to the sinister events that take place that autumn in '47. Seeing things through her eyes, innocent but questioning, was so accurate and foreboding. I was fully invested from the first page.

I also loved Blundell's gregarious "Acknowledgments" where I learned that David Leviathan was her editor, and listed memoirs and history books about the era that helped her shape the novel. I'd love to read more by her and can't wait to look into the referenced works.


Tags : Amazon.com: What I Saw And How I Lied (9780439903462): Judy Blundell: Books,Judy Blundell,What I Saw And How I Lied,Scholastic Press,0439903467,Family - General,Mysteries & Detective Stories,People & Places - United States - General,Coming of age,Coming of age;Fiction.,Family problems,Family problems;Fiction.,Family secrets,Florida - History - 20th century,Problem families,Secrets,Secrets;Fiction.,Children: Young Adult (Gr. 7-9),Crime & mystery fiction (Children's Teenage),Fiction,Fiction-Mystery & Detective,Florida,Historical Fiction (Young Adult),JUVENILE,JUVENILE FICTION Mysteries & Detective Stories,Juvenile Fiction,Juvenile Grades 7-9 Ages 12-14,Mysteries, Espionage, & Detective Stories,TEEN'S FICTION - COMING OF AGE,TEEN'S FICTION HISTORICAL,TEEN'S FICTION MYSTERY & DETECTIVE,United States,YOUNG ADULT FICTION,YOUNG ADULT FICTION Family General (see also headings under Social Themes),YOUNG ADULT FICTION Mysteries & Detective Stories,YOUNG ADULT FICTION People & Places United States General,JUVENILE FICTION Mysteries & Detective Stories,Mysteries, Espionage, & Detective Stories,YOUNG ADULT FICTION Family General (see also headings under Social Themes),YOUNG ADULT FICTION Mysteries & Detective Stories,YOUNG ADULT FICTION People & Places United States General,Fiction,Historical Fiction (Young Adult),YOUNG ADULT FICTION,Children: Young Adult (Gr. 7-9),Crime & mystery fiction (Children's Teenage)

What I Saw And How I Lied Judy Blundell Books Reviews

This is the kind of book you want to curl up with and read cover to cover without stopping. Judy Blundell is a master storyteller, but this novel is compelling for other reasons — for its ability to make you consider moral questions without trying too hard. They are simply woven into the fabric of the book.
I have wanted to read 'What I Saw and How I Lied' by Judy Blundell as soon as I finished reading 'No Strings Attached'. I was amazed in so many ways by that book and here I am again! I know how Judy Blundell does it. This is a totally different story but she worked her magic again.

The story starts out a simply coming of age story and slowly at first and then a fever pitch turns into a story with suspense, murder, adultery and ends without knowing who did it. Few books can do that without making you feel cheated. But this one did.

The main character is Evie Spooner who seems very naïve at first but aching to grow up. Then she had some experiences that she shouldn't have to deal with at her age. She was only 15 years old bonded closely with her mother but wondered why she seemed to hold her back when it came to putting on makeup and dating. Her step father, Joe Spooner, seems like a pretty good guy, standing up for her and protecting her when needed. But how much does she really know about her parents? Can she really trust them? Were they "normal"?

Into life comes Peter Coleridge, 23 years old, an ex -GI who served under her father in WWII. Why doesn't her father like him? Why does her mother act the way she does when Peter is there? The family meets Peter on a trip to Palm Beach, a vacation trip that each one of them wished they had never gone on.

This book brings up many questions about parents, secrets and trust. Plus the story starts twist and twist as revelations about the parents and more are disclosed. I really enjoyed this book and have lots more things to think about. Ethical questions abound in this book.

I highly recommend `What I Saw and How I Lied'.
I spent three years of my life dreading power outages, but I must say, I am truly grateful for the one I had yesterday.It allowed me to reread what was one of my most favorite books as a fifteen year-old. What I Saw and How I Lied is a brief, yet complex tale of growing up.

What I loved most about the novel was that it turns the widespread notion that the years following World War II were a golden age on its head. In fact, it works in an almost Gatsby way Evie starts out the novel with a bright, childish, innocence about her, and her experiences allow her to think twice about the world around her.

“I loved him like a fever. Then he left. He kicked through love like it was dust and he kept on walking.”

First, I must say that Blundell has a way with words- she has a way on inserting little flowery (prose wise) moments throughout the novel while still making allowing Evie's voice to shine through. If it wan't for Blundell's skill, this book would not be nearly as a good or as powerful.

“Darling, I have a tip," Arlene said. "Never, ever wait for a man.”

What I Saw and How I Lied is also a tragic love story- yes, in the conventional sense-> between a girl and a boy. But it also has a lot to do with the love between husband and wife, daughter and mother, daughter and father, and in some ways, a man and a woman. Throughout the novel, Evie struggles to figure out what real love is why trying to become an adult.

"But while I'd be their daughter, while I'd eat the roast and come home from dates and wash the dishes, I would also be myself. I would love my mother, but I'd never want to be her again. I would never be what someone else wanted me to be. I would never laugh at a joke I didn't think was funny. I would never tell another lie. I would be the truth-teller, starting today. That would be tough.
But I was tougher.”

There is also a serious Gone Girl quality to this book it's unpredictable, and it's characters fluctuate between downright ugly and downright cruel. You never known when the truth will rear it's nasty head, and makes for an exciting, interesting read.
"When Alice fell down the rabbit hole, she fell slow. She had time to notice things on her way down—Oh, there’s a teacup! There’s a table! So things seemed almost normal to her while she was falling. Then she bumped down and rolled into Wonderland, and all hell broke loose."

I really love it when I turn to the last page of a book, and the ending is so thoroughly perfect, but not too perfect. Some questions still remain, retribution is administered, and sometimes there's cake. I think, however, that what makes a Bildungsroman so amazing is when the adolescent protagonist matures, and their view of the world is altered in the most beneficial way possible. This book followed that recipe to the "t" and I love the author for it!

"Truth, justice…I always thought they were absolutes, like God. And Mom. And apple pie. But you could make apple pie from Ritz crackers. You could make cakes without sugar. We learned how to fake things, during the war."

Set in Queens and Palm Beach in 1947, Blundell created a world that was utterly believable and rich, down to the cigarette jingles. I felt like an awkwad, gawky fifteen year-old that hadn't quite grown into my bra and didn't really stick up for my values. That's good character writing. But Evie is also an observer, and the reader's only medium to the sinister events that take place that autumn in '47. Seeing things through her eyes, innocent but questioning, was so accurate and foreboding. I was fully invested from the first page.

I also loved Blundell's gregarious "Acknowledgments" where I learned that David Leviathan was her editor, and listed memoirs and history books about the era that helped her shape the novel. I'd love to read more by her and can't wait to look into the referenced works.