Catalogue

Record Details

Catalogue Search



Breathless  Cover Image Book Book

Breathless / Lurlene McDaniel.

McDaniel, Lurlene, (author.).

Summary:

A high school diving champion develops bone cancer in this story told from the points of view of the diver, his best friend, his sister and his girlfriend -- t.p. verso.

Record details

  • ISBN: 9780440240167
  • ISBN: 0440240166
  • Physical Description: 165 pages ; 21 cm.
  • Publisher: New York, New York : Delacorte Press, 2009.
Subject: Cancer > Fiction.
Assisted suicide > Fiction.
Friendship > Fiction.
Brothers and sisters > Fiction.

Available copies

  • 1 of 1 copy available at BC Interlibrary Connect. (Show)
  • 1 of 1 copy available at Prince Rupert Library.

Holds

  • 0 current holds with 1 total copy.
Show Only Available Copies
Location Call Number / Copy Notes Barcode Shelving Location Holdable? Status Due Date
Prince Rupert Library J McDa (Text) 33294001758325 Juvenile Fiction Volume hold Available -

  • Booklist Reviews : Booklist Reviews 2009 July #1
    McDaniel's raw take on a teen's right to die will jerk so many tears that they should bundle the book with Kleenex. Travis is a high-school diving champ whose sudden broken leg reveals both a malicious bone cancer and the dedication of the three people closest to him: his best buddy, girlfriend, and younger sister. In alternating first-person chapters, McDaniel leads the reader down a grim path, but the alacrity of the characters prevents the plot from feeling like a senseless series of sucker punches. Once the central dilemma is set in motion, it becomes impossible not to hurry toward the haunting final pages. Copyright 2009 Booklist Reviews.
  • Kirkus Reviews : Kirkus Reviews 2009 April #2
    The prolific author's latest novel features her signature pull at teen readers' hearts. In the slim volume, four distinct voices describe Travis Morrison's terrible health situation. Travis is a champion high-school diver until his femur snaps while cliff diving at a rural Alabama lake. It's bone cancer. In alternating chapters, the fragile emotions of his best friend Cooper, his girlfriend Darla and little sister Emily come forth. Travis's health deteriorates after his leg is amputated and he bounces between chemo treatments and false remission over the next year and a half. But there are other story lines. Cooper's mother is an alcoholic prostitute, Darla is labeled the school slut and Emily is the kid sister in love with her brother's friend. The pages drip with angst as Travis's health fades to a point where he pressures the other teenagers to help him commit suicide. Melodramatic scenes, stock characters and stiff phrasing blemish this work. Despite—or perhaps because of—these formula-wrought flaws, McDaniel's fans, who seemingly read with tissues in hand, will snatch it off the shelves. (Fiction. YA) Copyright Kirkus 2009 Kirkus/BPI Communications.All rights reserved.
  • School Library Journal Reviews : SLJ Reviews 2009 April

    Gr 8 Up—Travis, a champion diver about to start his junior year of high school, is hanging out with his friends and sister on the first day of summer vacation. The cliffs over the lake call to him, and he climbs up to dive from them, only to hear his leg snap when he jumps. Still in the hospital days later, Travis finally hears the diagnosis: bone cancer. Facing amputation and chemotherapy, he knows he'll never get back to the life he had. As Travis gets sicker, his only comfort is his research into death-with-dignity and right-to-die groups, and his only hope is that his friends will help him once he can no longer help himself. The narrative rotates among four teens: Travis, his sister, his girlfriend, and his best friend. Each voice is distinct and shows a different perspective on Travis's life since his diagnosis. The ending is heavily telegraphed from the beginning (the book opens on an unnamed character who admits that "right and wrong dissolved into what I knew I had to do"), but this does not diminish the impact of the final chapters. This is a heartstrings-tugging read that retains the central character's dignity and peace in the face of insurmountable odds. A sensitive book on a delicate topic.—Brandy Danner, Wilmington Memorial Library, MA

    [Page 139]. Copyright 2008 Reed Business Information.

Additional Resources