kpreads24's review against another edition
1.0
It's actually more like 1.5. I know this is young adult but it read like it was written for even younger audiences at times. I felt like this was written by someone who knows little about the music scene or at least not of the 2000s and on. It includes stereotype after stereotype. The characters sucked, and it was written with so much cheesy dialogue. Just wasn't for me no matter how cool the premise sounded.
ubalstecha's review against another edition
4.0
Leo has it all planned out. He will go to Harvard on a scholarship and continue his membership in the Republicans. That is until he is accused of cheating on a test by a vengeful principal. This one act unleashes Leo's inner McMurphy, the part of him that makes bad choices. Before his mother knows what's happening, Leo is working as a roadie for King Maggot, lead singer of the band Purge. Maggot is unaware that he is also Leo's birth father, but Leo hopes that he will grow closer to Maggot and get his university paid for. The summer is a learning experience for both men, but Leo is not as prepared for the truth as he thinks he is.
Fun book from perennial favourite Korman, with a twist you don't see coming. There are plenty of rich characters and memorable scenes to keep the average Intermediate/Senior student interested. Good stuff.
Fun book from perennial favourite Korman, with a twist you don't see coming. There are plenty of rich characters and memorable scenes to keep the average Intermediate/Senior student interested. Good stuff.
bethanymiller415's review against another edition
3.0
This was a fun story, but I wouldn't necessarily call it realistic.
neekelf's review against another edition
3.0
It was good. It was a mix between Korman's original style and his modern stuff. However, to the wise, a warning. If any of this would offend you, don't read; two characters are gay, there is drug usage, there is a womanizer who we see with many different ladies, mild swearing and one b-word, possibly a sex scene where a boy and a girl were in a tent alone (all we know is that they kissed but it's vaguely implied there was more there). I'm not sure where I stand with the homosexuality; I know I don't like reading sex, and the language wasn't cool. I doubt I'll read it again.
However, let me say; from the snippet I had read before, I was not expecting it to go the way it did. It was a good read. It had humor. And Korman did pretty good. It's enjoyable, but there was a little bit too much stuff in it for me to be okay with it.
However, let me say; from the snippet I had read before, I was not expecting it to go the way it did. It was a good read. It had humor. And Korman did pretty good. It's enjoyable, but there was a little bit too much stuff in it for me to be okay with it.
williamsdebbied's review against another edition
5.0
Leo Caraway is poised for success--member of the Young Republicans and all set to attend Harvard on a full scholarship--when he is accused of cheating on a test. He loses his scholarship and finds out that his biological father is the infamous and angry lead singer of a punk rock band called Purge.
Leo spends a summer traveling with the band as he tries to work up the courage to ask his dad for the tuition money he needs.
Witty, dialogue and one of the best first lines I've seen in a long time make this one a keeper. It starts like this: "There are two kinds of people in this world--those who have had a cavity search, and those who haven't. This is the story of how I wound up in the wrong category."
Leo spends a summer traveling with the band as he tries to work up the courage to ask his dad for the tuition money he needs.
Witty, dialogue and one of the best first lines I've seen in a long time make this one a keeper. It starts like this: "There are two kinds of people in this world--those who have had a cavity search, and those who haven't. This is the story of how I wound up in the wrong category."
tswanson103's review against another edition
3.0
I knew I would like this book instantly because it's a book about music. Korman creates a wonderful story about a boy that is doing what he can to fight what he wants and winds up being sucked into the incredible reality of the live music and festival scene. It was enjoyable, interesting and punk rock.
There was nothing that wowed me but it was a nice easy read.
There was nothing that wowed me but it was a nice easy read.
monty_reads's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars.
Born to Rock doesn't really aspire to be anything more than lightweight, fast-paced entertainment, but I can respect that when it does it so well. Leo Caraway – Young Republican and future Harvard student – discovers that A) his scholarship is being revoked, and B) he's likely the son of King Maggot, frontman for Purge, one of the best of the early-80s punk bands. After confronting King, Leo signs on to roadie for the band during their reunion tour, expecting at some point to hit his dad up for Harvard tuition money.
What follows is, at heart, a fish out of water story as straitlaced Leo attempts to survive the world of a punk rock band. Still, the book ends up saying some important things about family, relationships, and identity, and it's one of the more music-savvy Young Adult novels I've read (right up there with Rainbow Rowell's Eleanor & Park. A lot of books that strive for musical authenticity get the details wrong, but author Gordon Korman does a nice job of subtly whitewashing the band's backstage antics for a younger audience while getting the gist of the antics across.
The book won't change your life, but it will offer a pleasant diversion for the few hours it takes to read it.
Born to Rock doesn't really aspire to be anything more than lightweight, fast-paced entertainment, but I can respect that when it does it so well. Leo Caraway – Young Republican and future Harvard student – discovers that A) his scholarship is being revoked, and B) he's likely the son of King Maggot, frontman for Purge, one of the best of the early-80s punk bands. After confronting King, Leo signs on to roadie for the band during their reunion tour, expecting at some point to hit his dad up for Harvard tuition money.
What follows is, at heart, a fish out of water story as straitlaced Leo attempts to survive the world of a punk rock band. Still, the book ends up saying some important things about family, relationships, and identity, and it's one of the more music-savvy Young Adult novels I've read (right up there with Rainbow Rowell's Eleanor & Park. A lot of books that strive for musical authenticity get the details wrong, but author Gordon Korman does a nice job of subtly whitewashing the band's backstage antics for a younger audience while getting the gist of the antics across.
The book won't change your life, but it will offer a pleasant diversion for the few hours it takes to read it.
whitneyladon's review against another edition
3.0
I listened to an audio book, and I just do no seem to get as much out of just listening as I do actually reading the words. However, this is a fun story! A little unrealistic of course, but it would appeal to anywhere from middle school to high school readers, and to a group of students who might not be as interested in the current YA trends such as vampires, romances and dystopian societies.