Review: Finny by Justin Kramon

Finny by Justin Kramon
Publisher: Random House Trade Paperback
Genre: Fiction
Trade Paperback 384 pages
Book Source: TLC Book Tours
My Rating: 95/100

From Goodreads:

We meet Finny Short as an observant, defiant fourteen-year-old who can’t make sense of her family’s unusual habits: Her mother offers guidance appropriate for a forty-year-old socialite; her father quotes Nietzsche over pancakes. Finny figures she’s stuck with this lonely lot until she meets Earl Henckel, a boy who comes from an even stranger place than she does. Unhappy with Finny’s budding romance with Earl, her parents ship her off to Thorndon boarding school. But mischief follows Finny as she befriends New York heiress Judith Turngate, a girl whose charm belies a disquieting reckless streak.


Finny’s relationships with Earl and Judith open her up to dizzying possibilities of love and loss and propel her into a remarkable adventure spanning twenty years and two continents. Justin Kramon has given us a wickedly funny odyssey with a moving and original love story at its core. Finny introduces us to an unforgettable heroine, a charmingly intricate world, and an uncommonly entertaining and gifted young novelist.

My Thoughts:

I have been sitting here trying to figure out how to write a review, when it really shouldn't be that difficult.  I adored this book.  It was a delightful story of a young girl who grows up to be a lovely woman.  Finny has a wry sense of humor who never really fits in with her family.  It's like she is the odd man out.  But as she grows up, the people she meets and stays in touch with, become the family she longed for.  They give her a sense of belonging and warmth.  They accept her as she is.

Early on Finny meets the love of her life, Earl.  Earl is a lonely, quiet, and sincere boy.  He also doesn't quite fit in with life, and maybe that's why when he and Finny meet, they click immediately, like two kindred spirits.  They find in each other someone who understands and accepts them.  Finny and Earl are rather sweet together.

Finny experiences many trials and tribulations, as we all do in life, and she manages them quite well.  Even when she experiences heartache and loss, she doesn't let it bring her down.  She remains positive and pushes on through life.  I think that's why I like her and this story so much.  Finny just rolls with the punches.

The secondary characters in the book, Finny's "family", are wonderfully odd, and I loved every one of them.  I especially liked Poplan who becomes a mother to Finny.  As for Finny's best friend Judith, some will probably not like her, but I did.  She is what she is, and I could see where she was coming from. Judith doesn't quite fit in with her life and family either.  Now that I think about it, almost all of these characters don't mesh with their original families and surroundings.  But by coming together and becoming friends they form a sort of misfit family that works.  They all accept one another and at the end of the day, that's all that counts.

I really enjoyed reading this book and it made up for some of the less entertaining stuff I had been reading lately.  It's like every other book was a stinker, and Finny reminded me how many fun books are out there waiting to be read.  I will certainly be on the look out for more books from Kramon.

For more information about Justin Kramon you can visit is website or stop by here tomorrow for an interview.
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This post is part of the tour for Finny, so please stop by the tour home page for more reviews and thoughts about this book. 

Thanks to Trish from TLC Book Tours for my review copy.

2010 Challenges Met: 100

 

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