Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac

Age Range
14+
ISBN
0374349460
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19 reviews
 
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4.5
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Confusion at its clearest
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4.0
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Reader reviewed by Caroline Meyer

Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac
I didn't think much of what I was picking out when I took this book off the shelf, but I'm really glad that I did. Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac by Gabrielle Zevin takes you on a ride through confusion and heartbreak with Naomi, a teenage girl who, at the beginning of senior year, fell down concrete stairs and suffered severe amnesia. She wakes up in a world completely foreign to her, with a boy she doesn't even recognize standing over her. The author really makes you feel for Naomi as she tries to figure out what kind of girl she really was, and whether she really wants to be the same or not. I felt it was a very relatable book that shows the drama of high school with cliques and rumors and all of that. Seeing the world for what felt like the first time through her eyes really made me as the reader feel like I was going through this experience with her. She had no prior judgements of the people she saw so neither did the reader. This book has drama, emotion, and even a little bit of suspense although I wouldn't really consider is suspense more as anticipation. All of those put together made for a great book.

Recommendation by Caroline Meyer
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Going one, going twice......NOT sold!
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2.0
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Reader reviewed by VioLetSlieZ

I absolutely loved "Elsewhere" so it was a no brainer deciding to read Memoirs after I finished it. Unfortunately I was wrong. 

I do my best to give a book a minimum of 50 pages before I completely give up on it. It's not that I expect every book to capture my undivided attention immediately but as an avid reader I must maintain a standard. I easily passed page 50 and continued and labored on hoping that somewhere along the way Naomi would dazzle me! I finally gave up on page 118. 

There just wasn't that fluid way of words that I felt Ms. Zevin displayed in "Elsewhere". Please take a chance on this book because aside from my review she is a great author I just feel like this book wasn't for me. Hope this helps in aiding your decision to purchase :o)
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Unforgettable!
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4.0
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Reader reviewed by Amy Ward

Have you ever wanted to just forget the past, start clean?  Or reinvent yourself?  This is what happens to Naomi when she falls down the steps at her high school.  She doesn't remember her friends, her boyfriend, basically the last four years of her life.  Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac by Gabrielle Zevin is a truly entertaining and moving story.  It's shocking the things that Naomi forgets and then has to learn all over again.  Secrets about her family, secrets about her friends.  It all becomes a little easier after she meets James, a lost soul like herself.  But James has some big secrets in his past too.  Secrets big enough to keep them apart.  And what about Will, Naomi's best friend?  What is he hiding?  Read to find out!


I really enjoyed this book.  I had been wanting to read it forever and it was worth the wait.  Naomi is a sympathetic character but not perfect.  I like characters that are flawed.  It is true to real life.  Naomi doesn't make the best decisions but that is also true to real life.  I also love Will, her best friend.  The supporting characters, including James, add a lot of depth and emotion to the story.  It wouldn't be the same book without them.

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All because of a coin toss...
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5.0
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Reader reviewed by WilowRaven

One little coin flip and her life will never be the same. After a head
injury, Naomi must face the fact that 4 years of her life are missing
to her. She doesn't remember her best friend, her boyfriend or why her
parents are divorced. She can't recall why she was going to drop her
photography class or how she came to be so passionate about being the
editor of the school yearbook. Life moves on however, and so does Naomi.
I
absolutely loved this book. Every character Zevin created was intensely
real and completely believable. I felt a connection to Naomi from page
one. Hers is a story that could really happen to anyone. One of my
favorite characters is Naomi's dad. I feel that a lot of teen books
today portray parents in very stereotypical ways. Not so in Memoirs.
Naomi's dad felt like a real person to me - one that Naomi could
actually relate to. Their relationship is only a small part of the
whole story but to me it was important and I was impressed with the way
Zevin wrote him.
I don't want to say too much for fear of giving too much away - this is really a story you need to experience for yourself!
I highly recommend this book to YA fiction and / or romance fans - 5 stars.

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EXCELLENT!
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Reader reviewed by Anna

I literally just finished reading this book. I loved the characters and their personalities. This book had me on the edge of my seat. I couldn't wait to find out what happens to certain characters. This book was touching and breath-taking. It was sad in some parts, and it had me crying on  one page, but that's just me. I really recommend this book for people who like surprising twists in the storyline.

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Memories of an Amnesiac
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4.0
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Reader reviewed by SDaugherty

I really enjoyed this one..You often wonder what you would do if you
lost your memory, would you be a different person than you were before?
Naomi doesn't loose her whole memory, just about 4 years. But when you
wake up and find that you are 17 and can't remember anything after the
age of 12, that is a lot of ground to cover. Her views have become
different than they were before and she gets a figurative second chance
at who she has become over the last couple years. Grudges that she
doesn't understand seem to be unimportant, friends are seen for their
falseness and those who are close are nothing but strangers to her. Yet
one actual stranger catches her eye and his name is James.

This book was not filled with the happy endings but it was real. Not
everything works out for the best, yet it's what we do with the hand
that we are dealt is sometimes the most important part of the journey.
Naomi's journey is one that you definitely want to go along for the
ride.

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one of my favorites!
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Reader reviewed by Brianna

there was something about this book that i loved. i read the whole thing in less than two days. this is one of those books that you could read over and over and not get tired of it. Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac is one of my favorite books. I think the reason i liked it so much was because i could relate to the main character.

I loved the whole idea of the book. it was creative and well written. i dont know how else to explain it. but i loved it!
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something to remember
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Reader reviewed by blob

If she had picked tails everything would have been different-but she didn't! Naomi bumped her head falling down the school steps...when she next woke up she had forgotten the last four years of her life! Naomi then has to make decisions about things she cant even remember.
This book is about discovering yourself and the others around you. It is about being positive and making the best out of a bad situation. I definitely recommend it.
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remember high school?
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3.0
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Reader reviewed by mearley

Many of us would like to forget high school; this girl actually did. A high school student's accident causes her to forget the previous four years of her life. Starting with a "blank slate" lets her reevaluate her friendships, loves, and family relationships. In some ways, she can make better choices. In other ways, she doesn't have the necessary information to make good choices. This book makes you think and consider your own choices.
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page turner!
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Reader reviewed by nhunggnguyenn

excellent. i loved this book. its a relatively quick read but maybe thats because i finish all my books the day i start them, that is, if theyre good. i loved how the author doesnt start the book giving us a background of the girl who loses her memory but instead just goes to the accident because it makes me wonder what she was like and i knew it would unravel eventually. this book made me imagine certain scenes. its quite inspiring, and makes me wonder what i would do if this ever happened to me. crazy!
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