Hollis SeamonRecensioni

Richie was such a fun character to read. Even though he knew he was dying, he still lived everyday to the fullest. So did Sylvie.

At first, I had thought that this book seemed so much like The Fault In Our Stars. Two teenagers, suffering with cancer fall in love.

But it's not. Because Richie and Sylvie already know they're going to die. That's why they're in the hospice. And yet they fall in love.

My favorite part though, was the ending. Because the author did not tell us whether they die or not. In a way, they're both still alive. And that's a happy ending, isn't it?

Oh and I also loved how the author didn't go into the technical (medical?) details of their illness. I'm glad Richie thought it'd be too boring for us to read, because he was absolutely right.

I picked this book up on a whim, but I'm glad I did. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this.

Corporeality by Hollis Seamon
Able Muse Press, 1/31/2013
Paperback, 204 pages
ISBN-13: 9781927409039
http://hollisseamon.com/

Overview
In Corporeality, Hollis Seamon’s latest fiction collection, we meet the cat lady, the professor dealing with a plagiarist while coping with personal hardships, sibling rivalry of the unnaturally cursed kind, the dog that goes beyond everyday dog sense and scent to protect its owners. These are some of the eclectic characters and settings that make Corporeality irresistible and difficult to put down once you’ve started reading. Like her preceding collection Body Work and mystery novel Flesh, this book is a testament to Seamon’s ample gifts as a storyteller.

My Thoughts:
Corporeality by Hollis Seamon is a collection of short stories that follow the state of mind of various quirky and beleaguered characters.
The collection features 10 stories (in my advanced readers copy):
"SUTHY" - a 17 year old and a 15 year old are terminal and in hospice care with SUTHY: "Somebody Up There Hates You" syndrome.
"Annus Mirabilis" - a professor who walked out on teaching to offer Bread and Books from the front porch of her home but troubles follow her there
"Leave It Lie" - garbage men Gary and Echo become heroes when they find two babies in a garbage bag and rush them to the hospital.
"Fatty Lumpkin vs. The Reaper: Rounds One, Two and Three" - an old, fat, blind, but very intuitive terrier protects his owner from the grim reaper
"Gigantina" - three sisters, one strangely deformed, experience sibling rivalry
"The Plagiarist" - a professor deals with an obvious case of plagiarism while experiencing her own personal problems
"Like a Virus" - A woman with agoraphobia meets a paranoid neighbor
"The Trojan Cat: A Drama in Three Acts" - a woman rescues her first cat, which leads to another, and another
"Praise Be to an Afflicting God" - two misfit neighbors and friends suspect that life on their street is changing
"Cabbage Night" - three girls fear their neighbor is killing their mother

This outstanding collection is masterfully written and the characters Seaman astutely creates are unforgettable. Several of the stories evoke raw emotions ranging from fear, anger, terror, and heartbreak. Most of the characters could be anyone you might see, a family you hear about in passing, or the neighbors you wonder about. My favorites were SUTHY, Annus Mirabilis, Leave It Lie, Fatty Lumpkin vs. The Reaper, and The Trojan Cat, but all the stories are certainly worth reading in this notable collection.

Very Highly Recommended - especially for fans of short stories

No quotes since I had an advanced reading copy.

Disclosure: My Kindle edition was courtesy of Able Muse Press and Netgalley for review purposes.
http://www.netgalley.com/

I have read over 80 books this year and this book moved me the most. This story talks of Richard and Sylvie, teenagers, who have "Somebody Up There Hates You" syndrome. They are kids with cancer and in a hospice. What is different from them and other hospice residents is that they are still teenagers and despite their angst behave for the most part like teenagers. The book is poignant and funny at the same time and even raunchy but I, could not complain about the raunchiness because it was totally in keeping with the characters. There is a lot of drama at the end and I would have to say a real tearjerker but don't let that deter you. Whether you are a boy or girl or an adult this book is a must read.

For more reviews, Cover Snark and more, visit A Reader of Fictions.

I’ve got to admit that I started this book laughing for totally childish reasons. Apparently this author’s last name is pronounced “semen” and I’ve got the humor of a preteen in the first health class that gets into sex. Still, Hollis Seamon’s name sort of sets a nice stage for the audiobook of Somebody Up There Hates You, because there’s a whole lot of humor of that sort, juxtaposed with the seriousness of dying young.

Likely following in the trend of The Fault in Our Stars, Somebody Up There Hates You is about a romance between two teens in hospice. In case, like me, you didn’t actually know what a hospice is, I’ve learned that it’s where people are sent when they have less than a month to live. The main character is a seventeen-year-old boy named Richard Casey. He’s obviously not too happy with his life, since he’s dying of cancer. Still, he’s got a pretty good sense of humor in the face of his impending demise.

Also in hospice is Sylvie, younger than him at fifteen, but more popular than he ever was. The two strike up a romance rather quickly. Frankly, it’s a bit instalovey, but that really didn’t bother me, because, were I going to be dying immediately for sure, I would probably try to eke out as much life in what time remained to me. I honestly didn’t feel the connection between them, but I was sympathetic to their need for that attachment.

The best part of Somebody Up There Hates You is the dark humor. For example, the title refers to what Richard likes to tell people he’s dying of: SUTHY disease. What other reason is there for a teen to die of cancer? The humor’s definitely off-the-wall. The narrator Noah Galvin does a really good job capturing Ritchie’s voice, which really helped me enjoy Somebody Up There Hates You.

While Seamon does get into the uncomfortable realities of hospice life (the assisted showers, the weakness, not eating), Somebody Up There Hates You still feels way too wish fulfillment-y. Like, I get the whole carpe diem element, but I did not expect a dying teen in hospice to get so much action View Spoiler ». Plus, I feel like he got away with a lot more stuff then would ever be allowed in an actually hospice. I don’t really know, but it didn’t strike me as particularly believable.

Somebody Up There Hates You was an entertaining listen, but its similarity to The Fault in Our Stars and Cold Hands, Warm Heart kept it from being particularly impressed.

Richard Casey is dying of cancer but he is determined to make the most of his lat days. With the help of a crazy uncle and an amorous fellow patient, he has a wild and crazy Halloween, his first sexual experiences, and more.

This reader was underwhelmed with the story, however. The voice seemed false, the sex actually gratuitous (no prude here but lots of penis stuff) and the characters half-baked. It's no The Fault in Our Stars.

Death, its inevitable for us, as our lives are short, it makes it worth doing crazy and ridiculous things before our inescapable end. Some die from sickness, some die from accidents, and some die from another one of their own. For now, lets focus on the ones who are sick, the ones with cancer or another form of sickness that causes their already short life to become even shorter. Somebody Up There Hates You, by Hollis Seamon, is the perfect book for this type, as the main characters are so realistic in their own sense, and portray how we humans desperately cling onto the one life we have.

The story starts off by introducing our lovely dying main character Richie. He's sarcastic, witty, and one of the most relate able characters you'll read out for a long time. He's not exactly ready to die, so he spends his last days trying to get the most out of his life. Now, I must say, this is a typical young adults book, so there is some vulgar language and some adult themes. But if you are mature enough, this book has such deep meanings, and gives readers a sense of life is really all about. Though the beginning of the book may seem boring and not too interesting, and almost made me stop, but it really shines in portraying human emotions and actions.

Wherever you can find this book, go read it, its a nice realistic story that a lot of us can relate to nowadays. Its mature, and has dark and witty dialogue that may throw some off. The story has a slow start, but if you can get past that, you will find this book to be a diamond lost in the abyss of books in recent years. Whether you believe in god or not, it does not matter, Somebody Up There Hates You is a wonderful book that tells a tale we can all shine some empathy on. And hey, you may just have someone up there who do hates you.

Richie is terminally ill with cancer and is living in hospice. So is Sylvie. And so. The book is a little funny and a little sad but there are other similar books out there that deal with such things that are better reads.½

This book made me both cry and laugh out loud. Great cast of well fleshed out, believable characters. Realist plot, great pacing kept me turning the pages.

Let’s acknowledge right away that there are some similarities to The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. Two spunky teenagers dying of cancer are in love, and want to live out the rest of their days in a validation of their existences. But there are differences enough to justify reading this book as well as the wonderful book by John Green.

This story takes place in a hospice. As the 17-year old narrator Rich Casey explains, “you only get into hospice if your prognosis is under a month.” He continues, “You arrive and thirty days later, you either go home or Go Home.”

The story begins on Halloween, a holiday that used to be Rich's favorite; when he was little, he loved to dress like a werewolf. Richie explains that three years earlier “the real monsters” marched into his life: “Surgeons, oncologists, radiologists, all those guys with knives and poisons and lethal rays.”

And yet, as Richie wryly notes, somehow, suddenly, he has girls actually competing for his sexual favors! In spite of this “hot-guy heaven” however, he doesn’t forget that he also has “the SUTHY Syndrome”:

"...six years of chemo, radiation, a zillion surgeries, loss of a couple major organs, watching your mom age twenty years in twenty months - if that’s not some kind of mistake, if that’s part of the Big Dude’s plan, well, then, it’s pretty obvious, isn’t it?”

In other words, Somebody Up There Hates You.

Nevertheless, Richie is still a teenager, and there’s the matter of the pretty 15-year-old girl down the hall, Sylvie, with whom he falls in love. Richie not only likes the way she looks (hairless and all), but also admires her sophistication, her honesty and her fierceness.

In his effort to have some solitary time with Sylvie (not easy in a hospice with crying family members constantly about), he enlists the help of the staff. He is so focused on his own needs though, he forgets that those who take care of him night and day are people too. After a number of episodes in which he causes a lot of trouble and pain, his favorite nurse Edward loses patience with him:

"Everybody’s got troubles, you know that? The world’s a universally sad and fucked-up place. People hurt, all of them. You beginning to get that? Or do you still think it’s just you, man? Only you that suffers? Like you’ve been singled out?”

Edward tells Richie to grow up, and he agrees he ought to try, but he’s only got a month in which to do it.

Evaluation: This is a good book and an excellent depiction of what life is like in a hospice both for those who are confined there and those who work there. Yes, it can be heartbreaking from a philosophical standpoint, but the story itself is funny and enlightening.½

Richard Casey has terminal cancer. He’s living in hospice, but one thing sets him apart from the other patients there. He’s only seventeen. Somebody Up There Hates You could have turned into the typical heart-breaking tale of a dying boy, but it didn’t. Richard was the comic relief as a main character. He is determined to live every day to the fullest even as his health deteriorates.

Somebody Up There Hates You takes you through Richard losing his virginity, getting drunk for the first time, and growing up in a place where no kid should have to grow up. Richard focuses on falling in love, making memories with his family, and being a normal teenager.

I really enjoyed reading Somebody Up There Hates You. It was heart-warming and yes, sad, but not so sad that I needed to lay in my bed and cry all day. This novel was a great story of overcoming your problems and staying positive even in the worst of situations. Seamon created a very original story out of a topic that has been written about time and time again. I think that shows real talent as a writer.

Coming on the heels of John Green’s THE FAULT IN OUR STARS, it is hard not to feel like this is a “me too” book. Richie has cancer, he’s only 17, and he’s probably going to die. Soon. In the hospital, he meets Sylvie (slightly younger) who is also dying, and more quickly. The two become friends, indulge in some in and out of the hospital hijinks, and then must decide if and how they want to both experience sex before they go. Sometimes funny, sometimes tender, sometimes sad, sad, sad, this is a good book, but I don’t recommend reading it (or recommending it) right on the heels of John Green’s book. It deserves to be read and savored on its own (sometimes a bit crude) terms and not as another book about two dying kids in love.

(ART NOTE TO THE BOOK DESIGNER: what are you thinking putting clouds on the cover, and black clouds at the chapter heading? This seems like blatantly copying the artistic style of the John Green book. I have a review copy, so perhaps the final art will change, but surely there is some image other than clouds you can use to represent the story.)

Seamon deserves credit for trying to stretch the boundaries of literature. Her characters are unique and her story ideas fascinating. However, these ideas don't quite make it to development. Plots seem slightly underdeveloped and leave the readers wanting just a little more. Another round of editing, though, and any of these could become excellent. As it is, they each, at the least, get readers thinking in new ways and may provoke a new author's compelling story.½

Me propongo leer de principio a fin libros considerados "malos". Mi intención es encontrar al menos UNA cualidad buena en ellos y reseñarlos objetivamente siguiendo 20 puntos a desarrollar brevemente. (Los puntos varían según el género del que se trate.)

Si tienen ganas de No-recomendarme otros libros
pueden comentar acá o ACÁ. ¡Cualquier género es bienvenido! Cuanto más variado, mejor :)

No-recomendado por Luz