Amazon Description: "Bea, the new girl in a school where most of the kids have known each other since kindergarten, befriends Jonah, an outcast deemed Ghost Boy after a cruel middle-school prank. She finds herself torn between normal highschool activities and spending time with Jonah, listening to the bizarre but engaging Night Light, a radio show haunted by some of Baltimore’s loneliest weirdos. Theirs is not a budding romance, but a tumultuous, hot-and-cold friendship; they love each other, but should never even think about a relationship. Credit is due to Standiford for the delicate portrayal of Jonah’s home life, which could have veered into soap-opera territory, especially with the reappearance of his long-thought-dead, mentally disabled twin brother. The heart of this novel is neither cold and metallic nor full of romance and delusion. Instead, it’s very human." My Review: This book is not one of those typical romances or typical friendship books; in fact, there's nothing typical about it. I would call it an "indie read", but quite honestly, I can't describe what it really is. I can, however, say that it is REALLY good. It's raw and real. It doesn't sugarcoat anything. Bea's home life is spiraling out of control, and I really FELT Bea's helplessness mixed with her irritation and confusion. I really felt Jonah's heartbreak and volatile mood swing and euphoria and the intense love he had for his brother. Their shared love of late-night radio shows was just an awesome quirky little bonus to the book, giving it character and feeling. But what REALLY got me was Bea and Jonah's friendship. It wasn't the typical typical guy-and-girl-meet-become-friends-and-then-become-a-couple sort of friendship. They met and they became friends---BEST friends, the kind of friends where they connected emotionally in a way where no one else could connect to them. And they loved each other. Their love was stronger than just a crush or lust thing; it went deeper. They were never physically together, yet they still loved each other. And what happened at the end---I won't spoil it---made me cry. It honestly made me cry, as I thought about how Bea must have felt. THIS is the only book I have ever read that can accurately describe a guy and girl's friendship that is so deep that it defies all the expectations. It was just a lovely, quirky, unusual book, the kind you only stumble across once in a while.
Cover: I liked the nice pink cover of the book. The telephone was a nice, symbolic touch. The cover is simple and quirky, like the book. You see the pink cover and think, Oh, another girly book, but then the book defies your expectations---like Bea and Jonah's relationship did.
Overall Grade: A+
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