After all, I believe life is too darn short to read books that don't truly interest me. I have reserved the right to review only books I feel I can review positively. My focus is on books for middle grades and high school age readers. For anyone not familiar with my posts, I review mostly YA fiction. I still teach at the college level - Children's and Adolescent Literature - and I truly enjoy connecting my students with great books. Hello fellow readers! I retired after 40 years of teaching middle and high school English. Thank you to Little, Brown and Company for supplying the Advanced Reader Copy of this book. I challenge anyone to read SORTA LIKE A ROCK STAR and not come away with a smile and a decision to make the best of what they have just like Amber Appletooooooooon. How can she carry on with a positive outlook and hopeful spirit when the worst thing possible has happened?Īuthor Matthew Quick uses a combination of humor, quirky characters, and inspiring events that will touch every reader's emotions.

That is until she experiences a tragedy that threatens to ruin it all. She does everything from volunteer at a nursing home to simply wishing everyone she passes a good day. There is also Bobby Big Boy a tiny dog Amber rescued from certain death in a shoebox she found on the street.Īmber prides herself on giving people hope. She has a support system that includes her four video game playing friends, an attorney who keeps her clean and fed, and a Korean Catholic priest who helps her keep the faith. She is doing well in school and hoping to attend college. Seventeen, homeless, and living on a school bus with her alcoholic mother seems like it would be the worst thing ever, but Amber doesn't see it that way.

It's the bus her mother drives every day. It took me a bit, but I soon figured out they were living on a school bus. Since leaving her mother's boyfriend's apartment, she and her mother have been living on Hello Yellow. Her name is Amber Appleton, and though life is most definitely not giving her a fair shake at the moment, she is making the best of what she has. The main character, known for her up-beat, always optimistic view of life, jumped right off the page. SORTA LIKE A ROCK STAR grabbed my attention right from the start.

Sorta Like a Rock Star by Matthew Quick