Review: Instructions for a Broken Heart by Kim Culbertson

Instructions for a Broken Heart by Kim Culbertson

Three days before her drama club's trip to Italy, Jessa Gardner discovers her boyfriend in the costume barn with another girl. Jessa is left with a care package from her best friend titled "Top Twenty Reasons He's a Slimy Jerk Bastard," instructing her to do one un-Jessa-like thing each day of the trip. At turns hilarious and heart wrenching, Instructions for a Broken Heart paints a magical Italy in which Jessa learns she must figure out life-and romance-for herself.

Review:

After reading and falling in love with Kim's debut novel, Songs for a Teenage Nomad, I was extremely anxious to find out what was next for her. While I wasn't as completely enraptured with Instructions for a Broken Heart, I still enjoyed it and am glad I picked it up.

After discovering her boyfriend, Sean, and big-boobed Natalie making out in the drama club's costume barn, Jessa is broken and shocked. Still, she decides to venture to Italy with the rest of the drama club (including Sean and Natalie) with nothing but a broken heart and a set of twenty envelopes from her best friend at her side. I liked the idea of the envelopes, because they did encourage Jessa to do things that she may not have done otherwise, but they also revealed things about Jessa, Sean, and her best friend, Carisa, that she never knew before. Jessa was a character that I both loved and hated at times. She often didn't see what was right in front of her until it was too late and she moped about Sean for waaay too long. He was obviously a big jerk!

The setting of the story was the beautiful and romantic Italy. Reading about the different sites and cities they visited was a wonderful aspect of the story and added that much more to it. I have never been to Italy before, but definitely want to even more now. Reading about European countries just makes them come even more alive to me and I love seeing the monuments and places through the eyes of the character. Jessa was able to come to terms with so much on that trip and learned a lot of things, many of which were about herself and how she had been before the trip and all of the Sean and Natalie drama went down.

There were many interesting side characters in Instructions for a Broken Heart. I loved her close friend, Tyler, he stuck at her side through everything. Also, Dylan Thomas, even though he didn't have a huge part, he stole the show when he was included.

Instructions for a Broken Heart may not be for everyone, but I did like it. Jessa was a unique character who was dealing with a lot and learned a lot about herself and those around her over the course of the book. The scenery described in Italy was amazing and I liked imaging the different places Jessa and the rest visited. Kim Culbertson is a talented writer, and I do recommend both this and Songs of a Teenage Nomad.

Overall: 4 out of 5 stars

May 1, 2011/Sourcebooks/320 Pages/Young Adult

Source: Publisher (ARC)

Other books by this author: Songs for a Teenage Nomad

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Bookish News:

Just wanted to let everyone know you can download an e-book of Songs for a Teenage Nomad for free until May 9 here, so get on that ASAP! It's an awesome book, you don't want to miss out on this opportunity!

Also, be sure to check out the awesome trailer for Instructions for a Broken Heart!

Review: Songs for a Teenage Nomad by Kim Culbertson

Songs for a Teenage Nomad by Kim Culbertson

What is the soundtrack of your life?

After living in twelve places in eight years, Calle Smith finds herself in Andreas Bay, California, at the start of ninth grade. Another new home, another new school...Calle knows better than to put down roots. Her song journal keeps her moving to her own soundtrack, bouncing through a world best kept at a distance.

Yet before she knows it, friends creep in-as does an unlikely boy with a secret. Calle is torn over what may be her first chance at love. With all that she's hiding and all that she wants, can she find something lasting beyond music? And will she ever discover why she and her mother have been running in the first place?

Review:

Going into Songs for a Teenage Nomad I had no idea what to expect. The summary is pretty vague and I hadn't read too many reviews. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I loved it, and can't wait to start recommending it.

Calle was a fantastic and well rounded main character. She wasn't perfect and she didn't care what anyone thought about her. I felt bad for her- she had been through so much. Moving all the time, her mother's multiple marriages, never being able to settle down and make friends. When Calle and her mother move once again, this time to Andreas Bay, Calle finds herself feeling more accepted than ever. She finally found a terrific group of friends who understand and love her. Drew, Alexa, Eli… the drama kids were awesome and each of them stood out to me in different ways. I also really liked Sam and Cass, two characters so different than each other and Calle, but somehow they all connected.

Each of the characters had a lot more going on than it first appeared, especially Sam and Cass. I felt for all the characters and what they were going through, not one of them had an easy life. For Calle, her mother was trying to forget her dad and never told Calle anything about him. Her mom was a sweet and determined person, and I could tell she only wanted the best for her only daughter.

The plot was original and different. There was a lot going on and by the end everything tied together really well. Each of the characters learned a lot about themselves and each other, Calle especially. The ending was very satisfying, but emotional, but I think it was the only way things could have worked out.

One of my favorite parts of Songs for a Teenage Nomad was all the song references. Calle and her mother were music junkies so every chapter started with some song mention and lyrics, artists, etc were brought up throughout the novel.

Overall, I’m so glad I had a chance to read and review Songs for a Teenage Nomad. With an original plot, great characters, and fantastic writing- this book is for everyone. I can’t wait to see what Kim Culbertson writes next!

Overall: 4.5 out of 5 stars

September 7, 2010/Sourcebooks Fire/256 Pages/Young Adult

Source: Publisher (ARC)

Other books by this author: Instructions for a Broken Heart