~Marcella Nielsen ~
iReflect 2017
“We were perfect together. Until we met.”
Misha
I can’t help but smile at the words in her letter. She misses me.
In fifth grade, my teacher set us up with pen pals from a different school. Thinking I was a girl, with a name like Misha, the other teacher paired me up with her student, Ryen. My teacher, believing Ryen was a boy like me, agreed.
It didn’t take long for us to figure out the mistake. And in no time at all, we were arguing about everything. The best take-out pizza. Android vs. iPhone. Whether or not Eminem is the greatest rapper ever…
And that was the start. For the next seven years, it was us.
Her letters are always on black paper with silver writing. Sometimes there’s one a week or three in a day, but I need them. She’s the only one who keeps me on track, talks me down, and accepts everything I am.
We only had three rules. No social media, no phone numbers, no pictures. We had a good thing going. Why ruin it?
Until I run across a photo of a girl online. Name’s Ryen, loves Gallo’s pizza, and worships her iPhone. What are the chances?
Screw it. I need to meet her.
I just don’t expect to hate what I find.
Ryen
He hasn’t written in three months. Something’s wrong. Did he die? Get arrested? Knowing Misha, neither would be a stretch.
Without him around, I’m going crazy. I need to know someone is listening. It’s my own fault. I should’ve gotten his number or picture or something.
He could be gone forever.
Or right under my nose, and I wouldn’t even know it.
Punk 57
by Penelope Douglas
My Rating:
Status:
Read on 19th October 2017
Publisher:
Dystel, Goderich & Bourett LCC
Publication Date:
21 October 2016
Pages:
371
Genre:
Romance, New Adult
Format:
Kindle Edition
Purchase Links:
Amazon
About the author...
New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal Bestselling Author,
Penelope Douglas is a writer living in Las Vegas. Born in Dubuque, Iowa, she is the oldest of five children. Penelope attended the University of Northern Iowa, earning a Bachelor's degree in Public Administration. She then earned a Masters of Science in Education at Loyola University in New Orleans. One night, she told the bouncer at the bar where she worked that his son was hot, and three years later she was married. To the son, not the bouncer. They have spawn, but just one. A daughter named Aydan. Penelope loves sweets, The 100, and she shops at Target almost daily.
More books from Penelope Douglas...
First impressions before start:
I haven’t the slightest clue what “Punk 57” could possibly mean. It also doesn’t mention anything in the blurb about the title’s meaning or even any hints. My curiosity is definitely peeked. The cover does give an artsy vibe though, so maybe one of the main characters is an artist? The blurb is what captured my interest in this book; two teenagers who have been pen pals for seven years but have never met. Something big obviously changes that and I need to find out what!
Thoughts:
I cannot begin to describe how amazing this book was! As I mentioned in a previous review, it is very rare for me to find a book that moves me. With The Butterfly Project, I was moved in a way where my eyes and thoughts were opened to the hardships and cruelties in the world. With Punk 57, I was moved in a way that I felt this author was taking a part of me, my insecurities and displaying the raw honest truth of it. The ugliness, the loneliness, the reality. Douglas honed in on something majority of people have or are going through; being someone you’re not to fit in with others.
Characters:
Misha Lare - Ryen has unknowingly been Misha's muse when it came to his music. Lyrics flow out of him when he thinks of her, when she writes back and helps him word his songs. She's become his crutch for music. His sweet, nerdy, adorable best friend who he's never met before. But that changes one night when Misha comes face to face with a girl named Ryen. His Ryen. The betrayal hurts when she's nothing like he imagined her to be.
“My muse was a lie.”
Ryen Trevarrow - Ryen hasn't received a letter back from Misha in 3 months now. She needs him more than he knows. Her life is a lie, a game, a competition to stay on top. She needs to stay on top. She knows what it's like to be at the bottom and she will do anything to never feel like that again. Even if it means becoming what she despises most.
“We were kids once, and we liked ourselves. We were happy. How did that change?”
These two were connected in a way that even if they had never been pen pals, they would have still found each other. Their characters were relatable and real. They faced challenges and had the same insecurities all teenagers do; the want to fit in even if fitting in means being someone you’re not, standing by as others more vulnerable are mocked and bullied and not having the courage to stand on your own. As I said before, they were relatable and that made this book so much more meaningful to me.
Plot:
The story was told in first person dual point of view. Again, this book told the story of two kids trying to figure out who they were and where their lives were going. Where Ryen choices were based on others opinions, Misha lived life doing whatever he wanted. They unknowingly became reliant on the other through their letter writing.
“We kept writing because we needed each other, because we made the other one’s life better. But even after knowing her for years, it took no time for me to break what we had.
We were perfect for each other.
Until we met.”
Their high school had every cliché group and people; the dumb rich jock and his football friends, the cheerleader girlfriend and her back-stabbing followers, the ‘losers’ who were picked on mercilessly for no reason other than them being different. Though it was set in a typical high school environment the author honed in on the gritty and ugly details of what these ‘popular’ and ‘loser’ kids really felt and faced. It was written in a way that was relevant to kids today. This was a story that I immensely enjoyed and will forever cherish as it spoke truths that even I needed to hear about being true to you despite the opinions of others.
Last Note:
When an author writes romance, the key part is the development of the relationship/s between two characters. I have read countless ‘boy meets girl’ stories where the plot is fairly predictable. What Douglas has done is taken a common situation and turned it into a story that doesn’t just entertain but makes the reader reflect on themselves because the story is one that relates to many if not all. That is what I find so amazing about this book. It wasn’t just another cheesy romance, it was a re-telling of real life experience and Douglas did not sugar-coat any of it.
I have always loved reading a book that can bring more than just temporary amusement but a lifelong outlook on the world, on my relationships with others and most importantly on myself. This was one of those books, and I recommend this to everyone.
Author’s Note:
“Ryen’s need for recognition, adoration and inclusion echoes with us all. We see it all the time. No kid wants to be different. They want to belong, they desire the approval of others, and they, most often, aren’t yet mentally strong enough to be able to stand alone. As we get older, though, most of us develop that capability. We learn that nothing feels better than truly loving yourself, even if it means those around you do not. We just joyously find that we just don’t give a damn anymore” (Douglas, 2016).
References:
Douglas, P. (2016). Punk 57. New York; Dystel, Goderich & Bourret LLC.