| Click | 
 enlarge | Author: Nick Hornby
Publisher: Arthur A. Levine Books
Category: Book
List Price: $16.99
Buy New: $6.68
You Save: $10.31 (61%)
New (37) Used (12) Collectible (2) from $6.68
Avg. Customer Rating:  8 reviews
Sales Rank: 39646
Media: Hardcover
Reading Level: Young Adult
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 224
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.4
Dimensions (in): 5.9 x 5.5 x 0.6
ISBN: 0439411386
EAN: 9780439411387
ASIN: 0439411386
Publication Date: October 1, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
| Showing reviews 1-5 of 8 | | NEXT » |
 Book Review: Click July 24, 2008
After putting this one down, I was left with a problem: how do I review a book written by 10 different authors? You can't expect the same things you do from a standard story. The criteria for "good" and "bad" has to be different. Like continuity for instance. The ten chapters in "Click" were each composed by a different writer, and the transition from one style to the next takes a bit of effort. Acceptable given the format? Yes. Acceptable in a standard, one author book? Not so sure. The result is a book that is fun to dissect and perfectly suited for classroom analysis and discussion. From a pure reading enjoyment standpoint, however, I was left wanting more.
At the heart of the story is George "Gee" Keane. The first chapter (by Park) picks up just a week after Gee's funeral. His grandchildren, Maggie and Jason, are reeling and their parents are doing their best to keep it together. Gee led a truly extraordinary life as a renowned photographer, traveling the world. He left gifts for the Mags and Jason. For his granddaughter, Gee left a box with seven shells, each from a different continent. The accompanying instructions saying simply "Throw them all back". For Jason, a camera.
After that first chapter, each author takes a different aspect of the story (Gee, Maggie, Jason) and expands it. Really, it's more like the book is ten short stories that are all connected, rather than one unified whole. Never does a chapter pick up right were the last one left off, which could be tough for some readers. There wouldn't be much fun in this book if everyone involved tried to work in the same style. I enjoyed detecting the shift for each author. Some leaps are bigger than others (David Almond to Eoin Colfer stands out), and I soon realized that this switch makes you think about what type of writing appeals to you the most.
The design of this book is in-shane. As you can see from the photo above, the book looks like a camera. But it doesn't just slap a lens on there and call it good. No, "Click" gets downright technical in its reproduction. Screws, switches, latches, and gears are all there. Since the driving force in the book is photography, and Gee's camera plays a big role, it is the perfect way to let readers know what they're getting into. Will it appeal to younger readers, not just 26 year old librarians? I'll be curious to see when it hits our library shelves.
I would recommend "Click" for its individual parts, with the caveat that those parts don't add up to be greater than the whole.
 More than a camera from their famed photojournalist grandfather. July 12, 2008
David Almond and 9 other notable authors join to create CLICK, a novel co-authorized by a group and centering around the mystery of a camera, some photos, and a box of seven shells. The puzzle slowly comes together and changes the lives of Maggie and Jason who inherited more than a camera from their famed photojournalist grandfather.
 Just didn' "click" for me March 25, 2008
I guess I'm a little different than the above reviewers. I did like the book, but I didn't feel that it gelled together that well. We start out hearing that Jason is a "big-shot senior", but later on, he's only 15 when he received Gee's photos, and soon to turn 16. I feel Gina and Maggie's characters don't follow through all that well. To much personality change. LOVE the concept of the many twists and turns of Gee's enigmatic life, and wish Park would write a continuation of her part. Almond's was everything I have come to expect from his writing, part myth, part reality, and wonderful prose in between!
I know without the mix of the 10 authors, the story probably wouldn't have played out with so many pieces of Gee's life...but the styles bounced too much for my personal taste. I never once felt that it was written by the same person, the individual styles were always there, and kind of "in my face", with each author's name at the top of their story.
It doesn't feel like a collection of shorts, but at the same time, not a novel either.
But don't get me wrong, each story is well written. Awesome authors! But a little too bumpy for this reader.
Completely unique and wonderful! December 12, 2007
I picked up this book to see which of my sons would like it more. It was fantastic. It is rather like a sampler of authors. One story throughout, but each chapter is told by a different author. It reminded me of the campfire game where one person in the circle starts the story and it continues on until everyone has had a turn. This is much better as it does not have several "and then..."s. Delightful and original!
click November 29, 2007
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I loved the book and I am buying one for every set of family members with latency age or above children. I had to read it first! Wonderful. I heard a review on NPR and had to check it out. I now have to read the other books each of the 10 writers has written.
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