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tymcarter's review against another edition
I didn’t think I’d like this book because how the words are formatted in the page, but surprisingly it was much better than expected. Solo is a is an interesting story of one teenaged boys quest to discover who he is after a lifetime of feeling out of place. Throughout the story is the underlying message that love while intricate, complicated and often life changing, is all around.
agswil04's review against another edition
3.0
Solo was another book that I listened to. There was a definite benefit in being able to hear some of the songs that were being played in the book. I enjoyed the story, however I felt that the story was a bit rushed. I would have liked a bit more plot and character development.
readingwitherin's review against another edition
4.0
TW: substance abuse, parent neglect, grief, adoption, and death of a parent.
Blade is the child of one of the most popular rock stars in the world, people think his life must be great, but every family has problems and he is no different. The only difference is the problems tend to come to light in front of the media because of his dad’s substance abuse which just continues to get worse the more time goes on and his dad’s career starts to falter. The only thing everyone in Blade’s family seems to have in common is music, but even that they can’t agree on because of the difference in music styles it seems. When Blade ends up learning a secret that was kept from him, he runs off in order to find his birth mom and learn why she gave him up.
This trip ends up being on of a lifetime and we see Blade grow a lot in this time away from his family. He sees the simpler side of life and learns why he was adopted as a baby. Along the way, his family ends up showing up as well which creates chaos but also helps them come to terms with things from the past and have hope that the changes will continue into the future as Blade decides what he wants to do with his future.
Overall I loved this book! I was able to read this one in one day because I needed to know what Blade was going to do and what in the world his dad was going to do next in order to get attention. I was not expecting the trip to happen, nor for his dad to show up and not actually ruin things like he had a history of doing. Instead in some ways he helped, but I did like how Blade was aware of what his dad was trying to do and kept him in check as much as possible.
I cannot wait to read more by this author in the future! I believe this one might have a companion novel that goes with it so I’m going to have to check that one out from the library soon.
Blade is the child of one of the most popular rock stars in the world, people think his life must be great, but every family has problems and he is no different. The only difference is the problems tend to come to light in front of the media because of his dad’s substance abuse which just continues to get worse the more time goes on and his dad’s career starts to falter. The only thing everyone in Blade’s family seems to have in common is music, but even that they can’t agree on because of the difference in music styles it seems. When Blade ends up learning a secret that was kept from him, he runs off in order to find his birth mom and learn why she gave him up.
This trip ends up being on of a lifetime and we see Blade grow a lot in this time away from his family. He sees the simpler side of life and learns why he was adopted as a baby. Along the way, his family ends up showing up as well which creates chaos but also helps them come to terms with things from the past and have hope that the changes will continue into the future as Blade decides what he wants to do with his future.
Overall I loved this book! I was able to read this one in one day because I needed to know what Blade was going to do and what in the world his dad was going to do next in order to get attention. I was not expecting the trip to happen, nor for his dad to show up and not actually ruin things like he had a history of doing. Instead in some ways he helped, but I did like how Blade was aware of what his dad was trying to do and kept him in check as much as possible.
I cannot wait to read more by this author in the future! I believe this one might have a companion novel that goes with it so I’m going to have to check that one out from the library soon.
whitcam430's review against another edition
5.0
Like Swing, this was beautiful, fun, and heartbreaking.
melliesimps's review against another edition
3.0
If you’re looking for a beautiful story in verse that travels from Los Angeles to Ghana and explores what it means to be home, you definitely have to check out Solo. This novel follows Blade, son of a drug addicted rock and roll celebrity. Blade has never felt quite at home in his life of luxury, as the luxury was never able to fill what was truly missing. A heart to heart connection with his family. Throughout the novel, we do get to see the different relationship dynamics between father and son, sister and brother, and so on, and how money and fame plays into not only the relationships among themselves but amongst the world and within themselves. All that glitters is not gold.
Being the child of a celebrity is not always what it’s cracked up to be. For Blade, he witnesses his father in a state of grief that lasts for years, drugs playing a huge part in the rift between the two. Aside from this, Blade deals with infidelity for seemingly the first time in his love life, and it’s just one more huge dent in the rock that hits his world. This rock forces Blade to re-examine who to trust, how to trust, how to forgive, how to love.
Through music and traveling to better get to know himself and the life he’s meant to live, we go on quite a journey with Blade…a journey that’s more than coming of age because he’s not just wise for his age but has experienced so much more than the average kid for his age. So, there’s a lot of baggage for Blade to deal with but he deals. He doesn’t run away, he runs towards. He wants to figure this out. Watching him figure it out (not all but enough for this point in his life) is something I think so many young readers will read at just the right moment in their lives and that feeling, that is priceless. So be sure to pick up your copy to read and/or give to a teen who needs a book like this.
Favorite Chapter:
- The heart (is a small and lonesome place)
Favorite Lines:
- Blade, if there is no destination, why take the journey?
- She is everything I never expected her to be. And hoped she could be. And prayed she would be.
- Blade, you cannot build a house for last year’s summer.
Being the child of a celebrity is not always what it’s cracked up to be. For Blade, he witnesses his father in a state of grief that lasts for years, drugs playing a huge part in the rift between the two. Aside from this, Blade deals with infidelity for seemingly the first time in his love life, and it’s just one more huge dent in the rock that hits his world. This rock forces Blade to re-examine who to trust, how to trust, how to forgive, how to love.
Through music and traveling to better get to know himself and the life he’s meant to live, we go on quite a journey with Blade…a journey that’s more than coming of age because he’s not just wise for his age but has experienced so much more than the average kid for his age. So, there’s a lot of baggage for Blade to deal with but he deals. He doesn’t run away, he runs towards. He wants to figure this out. Watching him figure it out (not all but enough for this point in his life) is something I think so many young readers will read at just the right moment in their lives and that feeling, that is priceless. So be sure to pick up your copy to read and/or give to a teen who needs a book like this.
Favorite Chapter:
- The heart (is a small and lonesome place)
Favorite Lines:
- Blade, if there is no destination, why take the journey?
- She is everything I never expected her to be. And hoped she could be. And prayed she would be.
- Blade, you cannot build a house for last year’s summer.
marquitar's review against another edition
4.0
Great book! Read it with high schoolers for book club. Even The boys liked it.
karenkonrads's review against another edition
4.0
4-4.5 stars
Oh my Kwame Alexander really has a way with words, doesn't he? This book both broke my heart and made me really happy, but that just means it's good right?
I didn't like it that much until about half way in though. It gets better the more you read, that's for sure. This was the first book written in verse I've read and at first I didn't really know how I felt about it, but the more I read, the more I fell in love with reading this type of writing. I will definitely keep reading books written in verse.
Oh my Kwame Alexander really has a way with words, doesn't he? This book both broke my heart and made me really happy, but that just means it's good right?
I didn't like it that much until about half way in though. It gets better the more you read, that's for sure. This was the first book written in verse I've read and at first I didn't really know how I felt about it, but the more I read, the more I fell in love with reading this type of writing. I will definitely keep reading books written in verse.
annamae1's review against another edition
5.0
Loved this novel, I listened to the audio book read by Kwame Alexander. A beautiful story that weaves the characters and music through out the journey. Highly recommend it.
emmzxiee_07's review against another edition
4.0
I can't deny the fact that despite the awkward things that happened in this book, I still liked it.
I accompanied my reading with an audiobook and it makes the experience so different since the author himself is singing some lines on the story. It makes the book so magical.
One thing that I didn't like is the way that it was written. Maybe I am not a fan of this kind of format but I am sure it'll also be a stepping stone for me to discover more genres and writing format styles.
Cheers to Solo!
STAR RATING: 4.0 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
I accompanied my reading with an audiobook and it makes the experience so different since the author himself is singing some lines on the story. It makes the book so magical.
One thing that I didn't like is the way that it was written. Maybe I am not a fan of this kind of format but I am sure it'll also be a stepping stone for me to discover more genres and writing format styles.
Cheers to Solo!
STAR RATING: 4.0 ⭐⭐⭐⭐