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Leaving Paradise (A Leaving Paradise Novel) Paperback – April 8, 2007
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Nothing has been the same since Caleb Becker left a party drunk, got behind the wheel, and hit Maggie Armstrong. Even after months of painful physical therapy, Maggie walks with a limp. Her social life is nil and a scholarship to study abroad―her chance to escape everyone and their pitying stares―has been canceled.
After a year in juvenile jail, Caleb’s free . . . if freedom means endless nagging from a transition coach and the prying eyes of the entire town. Coming home should feel good, but his family and ex-girlfriend seem like strangers.
Caleb and Maggie are outsiders, pigeon-holed as "criminal" and "freak." Then the truth emerges about what really happened the night of the accident and, once again, everything changes. It’s a bleak and tortuous journey for Caleb and Maggie, yet they end up finding comfort and strength from a surprising source: each other.
- Print length312 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherFlux
- Publication dateApril 8, 2007
- Grade level7 and up
- Dimensions5 x 1 x 8 inches
- ISBN-100738710180
- ISBN-13978-0738710181
- Lexile measure680L
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one
Caleb
I've been waiting a year for this moment. It's not every day you get a chance to get out of jail. Sure, in the game of Monopoly you just have to roll the dice three times and wait for a double, or pay the fine and be free. But there are no games here at the Illinois Department of Corrections- Juvenile complex; or the DOC as we inmates call it.
Oh, it's not as rough as it sounds. The all male juvenile division is tough, but it's not like the adult DOC. You might ask why I've been locked up for the past year. I was convicted of hitting a girl with my car while driving drunk. It was a hit-and-run accident, too, which actually made the judge in my case royally pissed off. He tacked on an extra three months for that.
"You ready, Caleb?" Jerry, the cell guard, asks.
"Yes, sir." I've been waiting three hundred and ten days for this. Hell, yeah, I'm ready.
I take a deep breath and follow Jerry to the room where the review committee will evaluate me. I've been prepped by the other guys in my cell block. Sit up straight, look full of remorse, act polite, and all that stuff. But, to tell you the truth, how much can you trust guys who haven't gotten out themselves?
As Jerry opens the door to the evaluation room, my muscles start to twitch and I'm getting all sweaty beneath my state-issued coveralls, state-issued socks, and yep, even my state-issued briefs. Maybe I'm not so ready for this after all.
"Please sit down, Caleb," orders a woman wearing glasses and a stern look on her face.
I swear the scene is out of a bad movie. Seven people sitting behind six-foot-long tables in front of one lone metal chair.
I sit on the cold, hard metal.
"As you know, we're here to evaluate your ability to leave here and begin your life as a free citizen."
"Yes, ma'am," I say. "I'm ready to leave."
A big guy, who I can tell is going to play "bad cop," puts his hand up. "Whoa, slow down. We have a few questions to ask before we make our decision."
Oh, man. "Sorry."
Big Guy checks my file, flipping page after page. "Tell me about the night of the accident."
_
The one night in my life I want to erase from history. Taking a deep breath, I say, "I was drinking at a party. I drove home, but lost control of the car. When I realized I hit someone, I freaked and drove back to the party."
"You knew the girl you hit?"
Memories assault me. "Yes, sir. Maggie Armstrong . . . my neighbor." I don't add she was my twin sister's best friend.
"And you didn't get out of the car to see if your neighbor was hurt?"
I shift in my chair. "I guess I wasn't thinking straight."
"You guess?" another committee member asks.
"If I could turn back time, I swear I would. I'd change everything."
They question me for another half hour and I spurt out answers. Why I was drinking while underage, why I'd get into a car drunk, why I left the scene of the accident. I don't know if I'm saying the wrong thing or right thing, which puts me on edge. I'm just being me . . . seventeen-year-old Caleb Becker. If they believe me, I stand a chance of getting released early. If they don't . . . well, I'll be eating crappy food for another six months and continue rooming with convicts.
Big Guy looks right at me. "How do we know you won't go on another drinking binge?"
I sit up straight in my chair and direct my attention to each and every one of the committee members. "No offense, but I never want to come back here again. I made a huge mistake, one that's haunted me day and night since I've been here. Just . . . let me go home." For the first time in my life, I'm tempted to grovel.
Instead, I sit back and wait for another question.
"Caleb, please wait outside while we make our decision," the woman with the glasses says.
And it's over. Just like that.
I wait out in the hall. I'm usually not a guy who breaks under pressure, and the past year in jail has definitely given me an invisible piece of armor I wear around me. But waiting for a group of strangers to decide your fate is majorly nerve-wracking. I wipe beads of perspiration off my forehead.
"Don't worry," guard Jerry says. "If you didn't win them over, you might get another chance in a few months."
"Great," I mumble back, not consoled in the least.
Jerry chuckles, the shiny silver handcuffs hanging off his belt clinking with each movement. The dude likes his job too much.
We wait a half hour for someone to come out of the room and give me a sign of what's next. Freedom or more jail time?
I'm tired of being locked in my cell at night.
I'm tired of sleeping on a bunk bed with springs pushing into my back.
And I'm tired of being watched twenty-four hours a day by guards, personnel, cameras, and other inmates.
The lady with the glasses opens the door. "Caleb, we're ready for you."
She isn't smiling. Is that a bad sign? I'm bracing myself
_
for bad news. I stand up and Jerry pats me on the back. A pity pat? Does he know something I don't? The suspense is freaking me out.
I sit back on the metal chair. All eyes are on me. Big Guy folds his hands on the table and says, "We all agree that your actions last year concerning the accident were reprehensible."
I know that. I really know that.
"But we believe that was an isolated incident never to be repeated. You've demonstrated positive leadership qualities with other inmates and worked hard on your jobs here. The review committee has decided to release you and have you finish out your sentence with one hundred and fifty hours of community service."
Does that mean what I think it means? "Release? As in I can leave here?" I ask the Big Guy.
"You'll be meeting with your transition coach tomorrow morning. He'll arrange your community service duties and report your progress to us."
Another member of the committee points a manicured finger at me. "If you screw up, your transition counselor can petition the judge to bring you back here to serve out the rest of your sentence. Do you understand?"
"Yes, sir."
"We don't give breaks to repeaters. Go back home, be a model citizen, finish your community service requirements, and have a good, clean life."
I get it. "I will," I say.
When I get back to my cell, the only one here is the new kid. He's twelve and still cries all the time. Maybe he should've thought twice before he buried a knife into the back of the girl who refused to go to the school dance with him.
"You ever gonna stop crying?" I ask the kid.
He's got his face in his pillow; I don't think he hears me. But then I hear a muffled, "I hate this place. I want to go home."
I change into my work boots because I get the pleasure of having to clean the dumpsters today. "Yeah, me too," I say. "But you're stuck here so you might as well suck it up and get with the program."
The kid sits up, sniffles, and wipes his nose with the back of his hand. "How long have you been here?"
"Almost a year."
That sets the kid plunging back into his pillow for more wailing. "I don't want to be locked up for a year," he cries.
Julio, another cell mate, walks into the room. "Seriously, Caleb, if that kid doesn't shut up, I'm gonna kill him. I haven't slept for three nights because of that crybaby."
The wails stop, but then the sniffles start. Which are actually worse than the wailing.
"Julio, give the kid a break," I say.
"You're too soft, Caleb. Gotta toughen these kids up."
"So they can be like you? No offense, man, but you'd scare a serial killer," I say.
_
One look at Julio and you know he's a tough guy. Tattoos all over his neck, back, and arms. Shaved head. When my mom comes for visits, she acts like his tattoos are contagious.
"So?" Julio says. "They gonna let you outta here?"
I sit on my bed. "Yeah. Tomorrow."
"Lucky sonofabitch. You goin' back to that small town
with a funny name? Wha's it called again?" "Paradise." "So I'll be stuck here alone with crybaby while you're
in Paradise? Ain't that a bitch." He gives the kid a wide-
eyed stare. If I didn't know Julio better, I'd be afraid, too. This sets the kid off again. Julio chuckles, then says "Well, I'll give you the num
ber to my cousin Rio in Chicago. If you need to hightail it
out of Paradise, Rio will hook you up." "Thanks, man," I say. Julio shakes his head at the crying kid, says "Later,
amigo," and leaves the open cell. I tap the kid on his shoulder. He jerks away, scared. "I'm not gonna hurt you," I tell him. He turns to me. "That's what they all say. I heard about
what goes on in jails." He scoots his butt towards the wall. "Don't flatter yourself, kid. You're not my type. I like
chicks." "What about the guy with the tattoos?" I fight the urge to laugh. "He's hetero, too. Dude, you're
in a juvenile facility."
"He said he'll kill me."
"He says that because he likes you," I assure him. Julio has a sick sense of humor. "Now get off the bed, stop the crying, and go to group."
Group is group therapy. Where all the inmates sit around and discuss personal shit about their lives.
Tomorrow I'm getting the hell out of this place. No more group. No more cellmates. No more crappy food. No more cleaning dumpsters.
Tomorrow I'm going home.
Product details
- Publisher : Flux; 0 edition (April 8, 2007)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 312 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0738710180
- ISBN-13 : 978-0738710181
- Lexile measure : 680L
- Grade level : 7 and up
- Item Weight : 13.5 ounces
- Dimensions : 5 x 1 x 8 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #688,949 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #161 in Teen & Young Adult Fiction on Drugs & Alcohol Abuse
- #1,375 in Children's Fiction on Social Situations
- #10,006 in Children's Friendship Books
- Customer Reviews:
About the author
Simone Elkeles is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Perfect Chemistry series, Leaving Paradise series, How to Ruin series, Wild Cards series and Crossing the Line. All three books in the Perfect Chemistry series have been YALSA Top Ten Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers and the Illinois Association of Teachers of English named Simone Author of the Year. Simone's funny way of looking at the world shines through in novels that are bursting with sarcastic wit, edgy characters, and exhilarating drama. You can find her at www.simoneelkeles.com, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram!
Be sure to check out Simone's book trailers on YouTube!
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Being locked up for a year changed Caleb, and when he goes home, he realizes that it also changed his family. His mother his like a robot (she's there physically, but not mentally), his father can't stand up for himself, and his twin sister, formally Maggie's best friend, has turned Goth - always dressing in black and never leaving her room. But not only has his immediate family changed, his best friend started dating the girlfriend he left behind, and everyone at school and in town, thinks he's a dangerous criminal.
Things are not any easier for Maggie. Because of the damage done to her leg by the accident, she has been out of school for a year. She can't play tennis, she has lost all of her friends, and is still trying to deal with the divorce of her parents. But when Caleb comes back to school, Maggie gains an anger problem because she feels Caleb is sliding back into his normal routine and giving no attention to what he did to her.
I love the way Elkeles created this story - a story that could very well happen in real life. But there is so much more to it than just a love story and Elkeles did a great job weaving it all together. One of the great things about this book, is the alternating 1st person POV. Each chapter switches between Maggie and Caleb and I love being able to see how each of them is thinking and feeling.
Although the ending is a little upsetting, I understand that some of the best stories have to be tragedies. That is just the way the world works; accidents happen, and love (no matter how strong and pure) can be lost, but in the end, life does go on. Thankfully, there will be a sequel coming the summer of 2010, so I'm not too worried about the ending of Leaving Paradise...yet. I can't wait to see what will become of Maggie and Caleb.
To read how they both struggled through things, trying to get back to whatever normal they could was sometimes hard to read. They had each changed so much that what was, could really never be again.
Maggie wants nothing to do with Caleb when he returns home after being in jail for a year for the accident, however they find that to heal and become the people they are suppose to be they really need each other. The twists and turns each face to forgive and heal really shine throughout the story. It made both Maggie and Caleb feel more real from beginning to end.
The ending had my heartbreaking on many different levels. This was the first book in a long while that I was surprised at the ending. It was hard to read, but you felt it was the right way to end things... for now.
Simone Elkeles writes a great story about a hard subject, one that many can relate to on various levels. The forgiveness part of the story made me hope that if faced with something this horrible, caused by someone else that I'd be as strong as each of these characters and be able to deal with things as well as they did. I'm happy to say that I won't be forgetting about this anytime soon and am excited to read the next installment in the series out fall 2010.
This is, without a doubt, one of the most authentic young adult books I've read in a long while. This is how teens think, feel, and speak, and I'm not sure how an adult like Simone Elkeles manages to channel her younger years, but it's impressive. There's a scene halfway through the story, where Maggie's mother gets up and dances with someone at a festival, and Maggie is ready to die of embarrassment. She's convinced that everyone is laughing at her mother, and by extension, her too, and it's such a quintessential teen moment, because the adult me knows differently. Nobody cared but Maggie, but in a teen's mind the world revolves around her public perception. Thank goodness most of us grow out of that, because it's an uncomfortable way to live.
This is one of those stories that is deceptively simple, short, and sweet on the surface. It makes for a fast read, but there are complicated emotions roiling underneath the narrative that alternates between Caleb and Maggie's point of view. I think the power in this book is that Ms. Elkeles took a realistic scenario that could happen to any teen, but twisted it so that the guilty and the victim end up finding their salvation in each other. If only there was a kind of cosmic justice that really did work this way.
The silver lining is that they both turn into better people because of what happened. Caleb went from being a thoughtless, carefree `popular,' into someone who learned that a person's core is more important than the outside fluff. He comes back from prison with new eyes, and sadly for him, he sees his former friends, girlfriend, and family in a new light. Maggie was messed up before the accident due to her broken family, but she comes out much, much stronger than she was before.
While I admire Leaving Paradise, it had one big flaw from my perspective, and that was its predictability. There weren't too many surprises along the way, and even though I savored how it all played out, the few twists were kind of obvious. I could see them coming from a mile away, and I wish I had been surprised.
The good news for everyone who read this book with me is that the sequel, Return to Paradise, will be released very soon - September 1, 2010. Leaving Paradise came out in 2007, and I can't begin to imagine what the wait has been like for people who read this three years ago, because Ms. Elkeles did not provide a tidy conclusion. Here's another bit of news; on the author's website it said that she's not writing a third book in the Leaving Paradise series, so book two will provide the conclusion to this story.
Top reviews from other countries
Das Buch beginnt ein Jahr nach diesem tragischen Unfall. Im Mittelpunkt stehen die beiden traumatisierten Teenager Maggie und Caleb.
Maggie hadert mit ihrem Schicksal: Nach vielen OPs bleibt ihr Bein steif und entstellt, sie hat Schmerzen. Vom einstmals beliebten Mädchen ist nicht viel übrig, nach einem Jahr außerhalb der Schule ist aus ihr eine Einzelgängerin geworden, mit ihrer besten Freundin hat sie nichts mehr zu tun.
Caleb war ein Jahr im Jugendgefängnis. Bei seiner Entlassung freut er sich, er denkt er kann einfach so in sein altes Leben zurückkehren. Doch er irrt sich: Seine Eltern behandeln ihn kühl und ohne Liebe, seine Schwester wurde zu einem Gothik und ist introvertiert. Seine Freunde dürfen sich nicht mehr mit ihm zeigen.
Für Maggie ist es kaum zu ertragen, neben Caleb zu wohnen und ihn wieder in der Schule zu sehen, deshalb nimmt sie einen Job bei einer alten Dame an, der sie am Nachmittag und Samstags Gesellschaft leistet und kleinere Aufgaben im Haushalt und Garten erfüllt.
Als plötzlich Caleb bei besagter Dame auftaucht und im Garten Arbeiten verrichtet, für die sie ihn angestellt hat, kommen die beiden sich zwangsläufig näher.
Was passiert eigentlich, wenn man sich in den Menschen verliebt, den man am meisten auf der Welt hasst???
Dieses Buch erzählt auf sensible Art die Geschichte zweier traumatisierter Jugendlicher, die durch falsche Entscheidungen und Schicksalsschläge schon sehr früh erwachsen werden müssen. Die Charaktere der Protagonisten hat Simone Elkeles sehr feinfühlig und sorgfältig ausgearbeitet, schwer zu glauben dass es die beiden nicht wirklich gibt. Auch die Personen aus dem näheren Umfeld, wie Maggies Mutter oder Leah, Calebs Schwester sind wunderbar echt und vielschichtig dargestellt.
Die Geschichte ist bis ins Detail absolut authentisch, weshalb sie mich sehr schnell gefesselt hat. Ich fand es sehr spannend zu erfahren, wie es weitergeht. Die Liebesgeschichte finde ich ebenso gelungen wie den Schluß und ich kann das Buch nur jedem empfehlen.
Es gibt noch eine Fortsetzung dieser Geschichte. In "Back to Paradise" begegnet man Maggie und Caleb wieder. Ob und wann diese Bücher auf Deutsch erscheinen weiß ich nicht, wünschen würde ich es mir sehr. Nachdem auch andere Romane der Autorin mittlerweile erfolgreich im Deutschen erscheinen ("Du oder das ganze Leben", "Du oder der Rest der Welt") besteht ja die Möglichkeit.
Caleb's spent most of the last year in juvie for the hit and run. Now he's out and he wants to prove their hometown, Paradise, still can be home.
Maggie has spent most of the year in hospital and physical therapy, relearning how to walk and planning her escape from Paradise before Caleb's release.
But then Caleb's released early and suddenly they have to face each other again. To deal with the aftermath of the hit and run, the effect it's had on their families and friends as well as themselves.
I completely love this book. I picked it up and didn't put it down until 3 and a half hours later, when I finished it. I thought Simone's book 'Perfect Chemistry' was great, but this was better. It blew me away. It's fairly predictable, you can figure out what's going to happen pretty easily, but it just doesn't matter. This is a heartfelt story where the characters are very real. It's told in first person switching smoothly every chapter between Caleb and Maggie, so you know and feel the full confusion of all the emotions they're going through. They're both very easy characters to relate to and empathise with as they work through their problems and issues. The side characters are well drawn as well, and I couldn't help loving Mrs. Reynolds (Maggie's employer), she is fantastic.
This book is angst heavy, and pulls no punches, but there are some really sweet lighter moments as well. But more than that, it's a story of hope, self belief and the power of forgiveness and acceptance. The ending was painful, but brilliant leaving me close to tears. I am very glad that I knew there was going to be a second book before I read this one, I just wish it wasn't so long to wait for it. I can not wait for 'Return to Paradise', the continuation of Caleb and Maggie's story. This book is a must read in my view. Amazing.
--------------
Schon länger hatte ich ein Auge auf die Bücher von Simone Eckles geworfen, aber die "romantische" Covergestaltung ließ mich zögern.
Ich bin kein Fan von klischeehafter Trivialliteratur.
"Leaving Paradise" verführte mich dazu, es einfach zu riskieren.
Die Geschichte klang vielversprechend und das Cover war anders, subtil und schön.
Und ich wurde keinesfalls enttäuscht!
Romantisch ja, trivial nein.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
INHALT
--------------
Caleb und Maggie sind Nachbarn und kennen sich bereits ihr Leben lang.
Doch alles verändert sich, als Caleb nach einer Party Maggie betrunken überfährt und Fahrerflucht begeht.
Die Handlung ist abwechselnd aus der Sicht von Caleb und Maggie geschrieben.
Sie beginnt mit der Entlassung Calebs aus der Jugendhaft und Maggies Rückkehr an die Schule nach zahllosen Krankenhausaufhalten und Therapien.
Sowohl Caleb als auch Maggie fällt es schwer, sich in ihrem alten Leben zurechtzufinden.
Nicht nur sie haben sich verändert, auch ihr Umfeld ist zu einem grotesken Zerrbild geworden.
Mehr alles andere fürchten sie jedoch, einander wiedersehen zu müssen.
Aber gerade ineinander finden sie die Person, der sie alles anvertrauen können, die wirklich sie sieht, nicht den Kriminelle oder Krüppel, und ihnen neue Hoffnung gibt.
Nach und nach erfährt der Leser, was wirklich in jener Nacht des Unfalls geschah.
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STIL
--------------
Simone Elkeles Schreibstil ist eindringlich und packt einen von der ersten Seite an.
Die Handlung ist realistisch, niemals kitschig und mit einigen überraschenden Wendungen.
Beide Protagonisten beeindrucken durch eine plastische Gestaltung und viel psychologisches Feingefühl.
Genauso viel Aufmerksamkeit schenkt Elkeles auch den Nebencharakter, die vielschichtig gezeichnet sind.
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FAZIT
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Ein gutes Buch, nur viel zur kurz mit 288 Seiten!
°^°^°^°
Paradise
°^°^°^°
1. Leaving Paradise
2. Return to Paradise