Someday This Pain Will Be Useful to You

Book Title: Someday This Pain Will Be Useful To You      Author: Peter Cameron
Pages: 230 Publisher: Frances Foster Books, 2007     
Why did you decide to read the book? Well when I was a sophomore my mom recommended me this book and I started to read it but never finished it due to time constraints. So I decided to pick it back up for this project.
Brief Summary of Book (6-8 sentences): Eighteen year old James Sveck is a adolescent who doesn't get along with people of his own age. This book chronicles two years of his life as he learns to cope with his introvertedness. With a divorced mom and a sister he cannot stand James begins to learn about the way the world works through some awkward situations. Many times throughout the book James' condition makes many of the people who love him to ask him if he is a homosexual, while he is James refuses answer any of them it is revealed at the end of the book that he is in fact homosexual after he crashes a party he is not invited too to become closer to another homosexual friend of his. In the novel the only person James seems capable of relating to is his grandmother. She seems to be the only one capable of dealing with James psychotic ways in a way that is not annoying to James (who has many pet peeves). Unfortunately at the end of the book James' grandmother died, so James inherited her house and went forward to live his life the way he wanted too and not the way people told him to live.     
Audience:
I believe the audience for this novel is angst ridden teenagers or to be honest any person who feels left out or awkward with their position in the world. A good book to compare it to is The Catcher in the Rye, so if you liked that book you would love this book.                                                                           
Writing Style:
Description -     The Story is written in first person, so the writing style is that of how a smart-aleck 18 year old would speak.
Passage - “I hate when people say “I see”. It doesn't mean anything to and I think its hostile. Whenever anyone tells me “I see” I think they're really saying “Fuck You”. I was going to ask her what she saw, but I realized that wouldn't get us anywhere, so I said nothing.(87)”     
Vocabulary:
Word: Culvert Definition: A conduit used to enclose a flowing body of water
Sentence & page it came from: “I walked deeper into the woods, down a slope, and into a sort of culvert…(119)”
Word  Alienated     Definition: to make unfriendly, hostile, or indifferent especially where attachment formerly existed
Sentence & page it came from  "I felt very bad that i had alienated John" (160)    
Passage #1:    "But it seems reasonable to me. I'm only eighteen. How do I know what I will want in my life? How do I know what things I will need?"(229)  
Passage #2: “I knew I was gay, but I had never done anything gay and I didn't know if I ever would. I couldn't imagine it, I couldn't imagine doing anything intimate and sexual with another person, I could barely talk to other people, so how was I supposed to have sex with them? So I was only theoretically, potentially homosexual.” (192)     
Theme:     I believe the theme of this story is to live life the way you want to and be happy with who you are on the inside. I believe this because throughout the whole story James is struggling to accept himself the way he is. Many people also try to “help” him be normal but he doesn't want nor need this help because he is just trying to be happy the way he is.
                         
Letter Grade: If I had to give this book a letter grade I would give it a B+. I say it's a very good read for many kids who are feeling left out or abnormal. The only problem I have with the book is there is practically no action whatsoever so at times it gets very monotonous, but it is kept alive by James' idiosyncrasies.

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Book Title: Someday This Pain Will Be Useful To You Author: Peter Cameron
Pages: 240 Publisher: Macmillan
Why did you decide to read the book? I felt that I could relate to the main character, and was interested in reading.
Brief Summary of Book (6-8 sentences): A young boy named James Sveck lives in New York City with his sister and mother. He lives a boring, secluded life, uninterested in people his age, his life, or girls. Instead he visits his grandmother and works in his mother's art gallery. His disdain for humanity even sent him to therapy because of his “escape” from a field trip to Washington D.C. His goals aren't to go to college, to get a successful job, or even marry; instead, James wants to live in a nice old house and read, staying an introvert where he would be happy. His life is one giant whirlpool of drama because of the people in it.
Audience: The book is directed mostly towards teens.
Writing Style:
Description - The writing style is informal, like a friend telling a story, yet uses some complex language and manners of speech.
Passage - She signed the book and handed the pen back to me. It was a Waterman fountain pen; my mother thought it was very classy to have such a pen, but of course people were always trying to walk out with it, so it made things very difficult. Whenever anyone signed the book I had to watch them and make sure I got the pen back. I thought the resultant asking for the pen back pretty much countered any classy aspect it provided, but my mother was undeterred.
Vocabulary:
Word- Indoctrinated Definition- To imbue with a partisan or ideological point of view
Sentence & page it came from- p100: “It was this supposedly nonpartisan program that brings two supposedly intelligent students from each state to Washington D.C., for a week so they can be indoctrinated in how wonderful the American government is.”
Word- Deterred Definition- Discouraged or prevented
Sentence & page it came from- p100: I chose not to respond to this blatant attempt at flattery, but Dr. Adler was not deterred. “So what was it then?” She asked. “What was the problem?”
Passage #1:      
Passage #2:      
Theme:     
                         
Letter Grade: I think the book is definitely worthy of an A. It has a good story, decent lessons, and is enjoyable to read. Many people in the targeted audience have a high likelihood of being able to connect with the main character, and even some adults might. The book is well written and one of the better ones I have read in years.