Book Review: Crash into Me by Albert Borris

Title: Crash into Me

Author: Albert Borris

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Publishing Date: July 2010
Length: 258 pages

Genre: YA, Road trip, Self-discovery

3/5 *** Sometimes a road trip can be the shortest way to yourself! There is much to explore, so fill up your car’s fuel tank and start travelling with Crash into Me!

~ The Author ~

Albert Borris has tracked snow leopards in the Himalayas, backpacked through Iceland, and skated ultra-marathons in Georgia, but his favorite daily adventure is working with teens. Albert is a national award winning student assistance counselor. In spite of the bad jokes, he chooses to live in New Jersey.

Author profile by Simon & Schuster 

For further information check out http://www.albertborris.com/

~ The Novel ~

Crash into Me is Albert Borris’ first novel, which explores the idea of finding your way in the world, in a road trip with four troubled teens. So he does, everyday. It’s part of what he does as a writer, a counselor, and as a human being.

Extract by http://www.albertborris.com/

~ The Story ~

Owen, Frank, Audrey, and Jin-Ae have one thing in common: they all want to die. When they meet online after each attempts suicide and fails, the four teens make a deadly pact: they will escape together on a summer road trip to visit the sites of celebrity suicides...and at their final destination, they will all end their lives. As they drive cross-country, bonding over their dark impulses, sharing their deepest secrets and desires, living it up, hooking up, and becoming true friends, each must decide whether life is worth living--or if there's no turning back.

Summary by Goodreads

~ The Review ~

When I first saw the cover of Crash into Me, I was intrigued. A boy and a girl holding on to each other like they will never be able to fall again when stumbling. I expected a quite steamy romance, so when I read the book’s back I was surprised to encounter something very different. Crash into Me is about four young people who still need to find their place in life... or in death.

Everyone of the Suicide Dogs, as they call their group, has a different personality and other reasons for suicide. The group’s name expresses something wild and uncontrollable, just like the kids themselves are in their decisions to take their lives. As we learn more about their pasts, we are drawn deeper into their dark secrets and begin to understand how they feel.

Suicide is a very drastic and burdening act to be confronted with in a YA novel. It is still a very important topic, a problem no one should ignore so easily. Albert Borris treats the topic with respect, but still achieves to integrate funny scenes which relax the dark atmosphere of this suicide trip.

Sometimes the ironic way is exactly the right way to call attention to an important topic. That Crash into Me didn’t turn out too dark and depressed was achieved by adding some romance and even the time for wishes and hope. Between each chapter of the Suicide Dogs’ journey are Top Ten lists or extracts of chat sessions, which I really enjoyed and considered as softening up the whole serious story.

The journey was very exciting, but in the end I missed some more informations. Suddenly actions accumulated and the end came way to abrupt. In my opinion this novel could have contained a few more pages, but the overall story and plot idea are thrilling and interesting.

This is a novel about the darkest of your days and the way finding the path back to light. Four teenagers go on a road trip, but they will explore so much more than just a few famous American spots.

~ We love this book because… ~

1) miles feel like seconds when you are on the road with friends

2) we enjoy its hilarious Top Ten lists

3) a tent isn’t the worst place to spend the night

4) of credit cards, cars, pink socks, permanent marker tattoos and the fun they bring

5) even during the darkest of your days, love and friendship find a place in your heart

~ The Verdict ~

Crash into Me is about a road trip full of adventures, freedom and self-discovery. Sometimes even the darkest of your thoughts can be fought with the bright shining light of friendship, comfort and love.