Struck by Lightning: The Carson Phillips Journal

"Like having a great idea, life comes at you fast. It hits you and tries to escape and be expressed in any way possible. In a way, it's a lot like...lightning." 

 

Title: Struck by Lightning: The Carson Phillips Journal
Author: Chris Colfer
Series/Trilogy: No
Pages: 272

Synopsis:

  

Struck By Lightning: The Carson Phillips Journal follows the story of outcast high school senior Carson Phillips, who blackmails the most popular students in his school into contributing to his literary journal to bolster his college application; his goal in life is to get into Northwestern and eventually become the editor of The New Yorker. At once laugh-out-loud funny, deliciously dark, and remarkably smart, Struck By Lightning unearths the dirt that lies just below the surface of high school. At a time when bullying torments so many young people today, this unique and important novel sheds light with humor and wit on an issue that deeply resonates with countless teens and readers.

 

Personal Opinion

 

I wasn´t planning to read this book, and I never thought that this book could be so good, but it was, I had some issues with this book but I have to admit that this book was undeniably a good reading. This is one of those books that in spite of the fact that you really enjoyed it, you can´t put it into words, so, I will be a little short on this and I will try to put into words all my thoughts about the book.

The story is not the best I´ve read but I liked it because I could find many good phrases and there is a message within this book. It was funny in some parts and a fast paced book, I started to read this book at 11:00 pm and finished it at 3:00 am of the next day (I had a lot of time without experience that).

Speaking about the characters, Carson is one of those characters you read and you almost hate him. Actually I didn´t like the behavior he had with others, I mean, it is true that his life hasn´t be so easy; his father abandoned him, his mother spends all the day depressed and drinking, and other problems he has, is depressing; but that doesn´t give  him the right to treat others badly. One thing I liked about Carson is his determination to get what he wants, (to become a famous journalist) because even with all his problems it doesn´t stop him. Now, I have to say that I wasn´t agree with all that he does to get what he wants, because blackmail is not something I approve, doesn´t matter if the other person deservess it or not.  The only character I think I liked is Malerie, she´s so funny and If I could meet her in real life I probably would like to be her friend; the other characters are the typical high school teenagers: athletes, cheerleaders, etc.

The message the book left to me with Carson character was: no matter the circumstances that we are going through, what really matters is fight for what you want in this life, because although it is hard to realize about that: if you don´t fight for your dreams, no one will come to make them reality for you; the book also made me think about people´s hypocrisy, but I don´t want to talk more about this because I don´t want to spoil you anything.

Something funny happened to me, I realized there was a movie about this book and I started to watch it, and.. if you´re planning to read this book and watch the movie I recommend you to read the book first, because the movie spoils you the book. Besides, I usually look the book´s index, and.. no, it is not a good idea to look the book´s index.

I was speaking about the movie in the previous paragraph, I watched it and I think that both the book and the movie complement each other very well. The movie is just like the book, it is a good adaptation, I think it is because the author was part of the movie (the main character), but at the same time I think the movie´s ending was more emotional than the book´s ending.

In conclusion, I really recommend you this book, there are a lot of good phrases and you can check them out here.

Score

I hope you like this short review of the book and if you haven´t read it, you should do it, because it is worth.