Author of Funny How Things Change
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It's not very often that you read a love story from a guy's point of view. FUNNY HOW THINGS CHANGE by Melissa Wyatt is not a typical love story, either, which makes this book all the more desirable.
When you grow up you, you move out and move on, at least that is what Remy's girlfriend, Lisa, is doing when she heads to Pennsylvania in the fall for college. Of course, Remy wants to go - it's what Lisa and him have been talking about for years. The
Reviewed by coollibrarianchick for TeensReadToo.comIt's not very often that you read a love story from a guy's point of view. FUNNY HOW THINGS CHANGE by Melissa Wyatt is not a typical love story, either, which makes this book all the more desirable.
When you grow up you, you move out and move on, at least that is what Remy's girlfriend, Lisa, is doing when she heads to Pennsylvania in the fall for college. Of course, Remy wants to go - it's what Lisa and him have been talking about for years. The start of a whole new life, everything they have always wanted.
Or is it? It's okay to be uncertain, especially at seventeen. You are not expected to know everything, but if you are going to leave, make sure you are doing it for all the right reasons.
For Remy, Dwyer, West Virginia, is his home and no matter where he goes or wants to go it will always be his home. Some people may look at Remy and think that because he is one of those mountain people that he is a hick, a redneck, or a hillbilly. Home is where the heart is.
While he doesn't have much, he and his pops live in a trailer up in Walkers Hollow, Remy knows every nook and cranny of that place, and he looks forward to seeing those mountains every day. He knows he is home. His family all lives there and his roots are deep into the soil of the mountains.
The two loves seem to be in competition with each other. Which one is stronger? There are a lot of factors that play into this tug-of-war. His family, money, and even an outsider's opinion will weigh heavily on what he decides. What is the right choice?
I think there should be more characters like Remy Walker. By no means is he perfect, but he has a good heart and head on his shoulders. Through Wyatt's characterization, you get a real good feel as to who Remy really is. To me, Remy is a hero.
Thoughtfully written, this was a good, quick read that made me want to go to the mountains of West Virginia and see the same beauty Remy saw.
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Remy is a salt of the earth kind of guy with a quick wit and he's one a girl can bring home to Mom and Dad. He loves Lisa (almost to a fault) and is willing to do anything for her even if it means giving up the mountain that his family settled over 100 years ago.
Lisa is beautiful and kind and while she loves Remy, she wants nothing more than to get out of Dwyer. She has big plans for her life and doesn't always realize that he may not fit into them long term. Because of this, her selfishness is often overlooked by both of them at times.
Dana is cute, free spirited, fun loving and full of sass. (LOVE her!) She brings out a side of Remy that both scares and excites him. With Lisa, he's always felt safe but whenever he's around Dana he feels alive.
This book is full of good characters and really does the people of West Virginia justice. The only thing I wasn't crazy about was the cover. I'm a sucker for a pretty cover and this one just didn't do it for me but. The title is what caught my eye and I read the summary and thought it sounded interesting. Like author, Melissa Wyatt, my husband has family from West Virginia and I've visited there several times in my life so being able to relate to the scenery she describes was an added bonus.
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When a new young woman comes to town to paint a mural on the water tower, Remy is surprised to find himself noticing her. He hasn't had eyes for anyone but Lisa in years. But does it actually mean anything? He still feels the same way for Lisa.
Remy likes working at the local garage for Duff, who has been teaching him about working on cars, and says that he's a natural at it. He likes feeling the connection to the land that he lives on. Is Lisa worth giving that up. When Remy's dad comes up with what seems like a solution, Remy wonders how much he is willing to give up for love.
This is a coming of age story, a story of a nice young man who thinks of others and wants to do the right thing, but isn't sure anymore what he himself wants. I have to say that I wasn't enamored of Lisa, who doesn't have any depth here, and therefore wasn't rooting for their relationship.
Remy's tale is also one that is seen across rural America, where young people are leaving and not coming back. Where the environmental concerns may be winning battles, but the towns are dying as people leave.
I really enjoyed Remy and this book, but then I also fell for a guy who has the touch with cars. ...more
But I think I got too attached to the hero, maybe projecting too much onto him, and somehow
I loved this book until the last 15 or 20 pages. I mean I loved, loved, loved it – while I was reading it, I was already savouring the idea of rereading it. It's a rare YA book that has such strong rural characters. I just loved this protagonist, and the way his story is told, and the fact that his story is a microcosm of a hugely important story of a whole society. I would definitely recommend this book.But I think I got too attached to the hero, maybe projecting too much onto him, and somehow I fell out of perspective near the end. Instead of going along with his story fully as I had been, suddenly I could see the same story written from another point of view, in which I wouldn't like this protagonist much at all. I don't know how that happened since I agreed with his choices and with making him choose. Maybe the last scene was just too easy-going so it made him seem more shallow than he had throughout. Maybe I'd have been more satisfied if it had ended with the hero alone. Or maybe I just looked too long at the cover. I don't know. Teens would probably like the very ending (and the cover) as it was. I will read it again sometime and see how I feel - it is beautifully written and an exceptional novel.
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Loved every moment of it.
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The interesting thing about this book, is that it told a fairly simply story in
Remy is seventeen and in love with Lisa. The roots of his small hometown run so deep into him. The question is, do they run deep enough to hold him there? This book was a creeper, meaning the story slowly crept over me and pulled me right into it. It wasn't long and I could feel Remy's desperation at wanting to escape his small town. Then the reader gets tossed about with his confusion. Remy is a very relate-able guy.The interesting thing about this book, is that it told a fairly simply story in an eloquent way. Before long the reader can sense his strong familial and geographical connections. It's not just the town that he's tied to but the land itself. The description in this book is beautiful. Remy thinks of the mountains as beings with water filling their capillaries. Check this book out and find out how Remy answers the age old question, should I stay or should I go?
For all it's loveliness, I give this one four big kisses!
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There's something about novels set in Appalachia that I just adore, like I'm reading about home. Both my dad's side of the family and my husband's mom's side are from WV/VA/MD/OH, so I understand these characters - the concept of having hardscrabble lives yet being satisfied with what they have. This short novel was such a pleasure to
A small town West Virginia teen thinks he wants to leave with the girl he loves, but over the course of a summer considers whether he might love his hometown more.There's something about novels set in Appalachia that I just adore, like I'm reading about home. Both my dad's side of the family and my husband's mom's side are from WV/VA/MD/OH, so I understand these characters - the concept of having hardscrabble lives yet being satisfied with what they have. This short novel was such a pleasure to read: sort of a YA romance from the boy's perspective and sort of a YA contemporary about appreciating your roots and following your true heart. With elements of family ties and friends who are just like family, it was the perfect length at about 200 pages.
Short, sweet, heartfelt and well written. I loved it.
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Melissa Wyatt really fleshes out the lead character and makes me want to visit Dwyer, West Virginia. Wyatt's writing made me fall in love with that place.
It seems Wyatt knows boys/men really well. The relationship between Remy and his dad is very believable, it could have been me and my dad. The descriptions of how he feels when he is with Lisa are so spot on. Wyatt has an amazing way of getting into the male mind. Great coming of a
Remy is in love with 2 things; his girlfriend and his hometown.Melissa Wyatt really fleshes out the lead character and makes me want to visit Dwyer, West Virginia. Wyatt's writing made me fall in love with that place.
It seems Wyatt knows boys/men really well. The relationship between Remy and his dad is very believable, it could have been me and my dad. The descriptions of how he feels when he is with Lisa are so spot on. Wyatt has an amazing way of getting into the male mind. Great coming of age story it flies by in a flash.
No I wonder how will I ever get to Dwyer?
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I love the way Wyatt writes. It is both direct and lovely. She captures a quiet and firm determinat
This is one of the best books I've ever read, and I was devastated to see that the book I bought was one that was removed from a library "because it is worn (it wasn't), damaged (it wasn't) out-of-date (um - it's timeless), or no longer needed (this breaks my heart). I have half a mind to send it back to Sparrows Point High Library with a note telling them that they need to put it back on shelves.I love the way Wyatt writes. It is both direct and lovely. She captures a quiet and firm determination in Remy and his dad that reminds me of my grandpa and great uncles. I also felt like I was at home in the speech of the characters which, for me, authentically depicted the cadence and charm of Appalachian English without rendering it in caricature. And every time I open it, I discover something new - something I missed on my first reading. Those are the best books - when you can come back to them over and over again and still learn something new.
Some of my favorite lines:
"Having just enough ought to be enough to make anyone happy" (p. 126) - definitely the philosophy I grew up with.
"That reaching ache you sometimes heard in bluegrass music that had come to the mountains in the folk songs of the first settlers, an inheritance that traveled down over him and twisted itself around his heart" (p. 89) - Gah! I love bluegrass for this very reason and the way Wyatt connects place and time and people over and over again in this book.
"You're still working at the gas station?" Miss Carter asked the ways she might have asked him if he was cleaning outhouses for Satan." (p. 63) - I laughed out loud at this one.
There are so many more insightful and beautifully written lines - and in particular, a section where locals are telling stereotypical jokes about them and their town is excellently done - but I'll stop here and hope you pick it up for yourselves.
There are a lot of complex emotions that come along with being an out-migrant. Guilt, feeling like you really have no right to continue to claim a rural identity because you don't live there anymore even though you don't feel at home or like you belong in the suburbs or city either. And Wyatt does such an excellent job highlighting the complexities of staying or going in this book that, honestly, it knocked the wind outta me a little bit.
FUNNY HOW THING CHANGE depicts a number of different identities and reasons for staying or going that simultaneously connect to dominant narratives of leaving to be somebody while disrupting it. It seems like it's not the staying or going that's the issue but the why of it all. Remy decides to go, has his reasons, his dad respects those reasons, but he comes to realize that his reasons are the wrong ones and that he needs to stay.
Who Lisa is and wants to be couldn't be supported if she stayed in Dwyer (much like Remy's mom), so she kind of has to leave in order to be herself. After all, there's no place of higher education in Dwyer (or most rural towns for that matter). Dana is an outsider but is able to appreciate Dwyer and the mountains in a way that surprises Remy and even takes a more appreciative view of them than Lisa does at times, even though Lisa is from there. Miss Carter, Remy's teacher, stresses the importance of leaving but also returned to teach in the town.
And in the midst of all of this, there are interconnections related to class that are important to discuss and make this an excellent book to read with students in order to discuss how social class shapes our experiences in the world.
Remy says that "sometimes just loving a place wasn't enough to justify living there."
Sometimes even though you love a place you have to leave it. My family left east TN because they were starving and some of them have managed to buy land and build closer to where they were from because they've missed it. They made a home in a different state where the trees grew in clumps and they spent most of their days inside a factory.
Sometimes when you love a place, there's an opportunity to stay but it means giving up something or someone else that you want.
Sometimes leaving is your choice and sometimes it ain't, and it's always more complicated than we make it out to be. And I think that's one of the most powerful things about Wyatt's book - she somehow manages to show all of these various complexities in just shy of 200 pages.
Well, hopefully that gives you even just an inkling of how amazing this book is and encourages you to pick it up, put it in your classroom library, and/or teach it as a mirror or window for your students.
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Remy is comfortable in his hometown, despite the issues that Dana points out, he is in relative peace with his situation. Moving out with Lisa would mean more sacrifices to his life, more so than he realize than he is willing to commit. Throughout the novel, Remy knows he loves Lisa indefinitely, but he needs more than to reason with leaving everything behind for her. As Remy's father pointed out, one must have a good reason to leave and start from scratch, but also a good reason enough to stay. Remy understands that whatever decision he makes, it will come with its own consequences, but he must decide which is truly best for himself alone to give him the happiness he wants.
I thoroughly enjoyed Funny How Things Change: its themes, plot, and characters. The main characters in this story are likeable, but flawed, especially Remy with his indecisiveness. His character does develop over the course and he comes to fully comprehend the responsibilities he has to himself on his decision. And as the book states, major life decisions are never easy. Everyone has a reason for staying or for leaving, the book makes that a valid point. And while I'm glad the story ends with enough closure for everyone, I felt it still lacked something to make it worth a 5 stars. Overall though, I quite liked reading this book as it focuses on a topic that most teenagers would relate to when it comes to making decisions as adults. I think I will be revisiting this book in the near future.
...more One thing I love about the book is how it is a love story written from a guys perspective, which is not written about a lot of times. It gives readers a chance to read from the guys perspective about love and the girls perspective about love and get a better sense of the differences and the similarities. Another thing I liked about the book is how relatable it is to high school students especially senior high school couples. The couples have to choose to stay together or not. Do they give things up for that other person they love? Do they stay together and have a distance relationship? Melissa Wyatt does an amazing job at keeping the book at high school level and the actions and thought process she gives the characters is what high school students think and do.
One thing I didn't like so much is how short it was. I believe it Melissa Wyatt would have played out Remy's decision or even just fast forward a year or a couple of months it would answer so many questions. If she would have dragged it out a bit more I believe it would have satisfied the readers more also. The book ends abruptly almost, so carrying on a bit farther would have been great.
All in all, I recommend this book to high school students especially high school couples in their senior year. The book gives you a different outlook on relationships and doing what you want and believe is right for you. Stay with the love story or chase after your own dreams and worry about yourself. This book gives you a great example on that thought process. ...more
This is a totally valid question teens face. Often in YA, it's the girls wrestling this question. This was a refreshing change. I also appreciated knowing more about a place I'd never seen and a kind of life I haven't experienced.
I also like the exploration of doing what's practical vs. what's in your heart.
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Minor point: I wish in the end his conversation with Lisa had been more truthful. She loved him but on her terms. She didn't see his strengths and didn't appreciate what he did. Mountain or no mountain, it's important that the person you love believes in you.
...more I love how this book made me see Remy's rather different point of view. I don't know about the book being a love story, if it is, then it is highly unconventional.
I loved the ending
I loved it though. It helped me in seeing if someone was right for me
This book is beautifully written! I got to know the characters, and their wants and longings. I also got a vivid picture of the West Virginian atmosphere and character. Though it is known for its poverty, I think I would be able to see its beauty and majesty if I were to ever visit.
This book deserves five stars, and I encourage all to read it. ...more
I loved this story a lot, one reason because I feel connected to each character in some inexplicable way. I really feel empathy for Remy, whose heart is being tugged in all different directions with hard decisions to make throughout the story. Another thing I loved was the setting; I. LOVE. MOUNTAINS! They're my favorite place to be in the whole world! It's not often that I get to read a good book taking place in the mountains. But this book was perfect, the mountains putting a big impact on Remy's life. And the plot was great too! Though it's not full of heart wrenching action, it was a softer book with an enjoyable easy plot that I loved.
Funny How Things Change was very enjoyable! I'd definitely recommend it to anyone! ...more
Add to the mix a backstory of the depressed mining situation in Appalachia and the horrors of mountain top removal mining, where they basically blow the mountain to smithereens (destroying it forever) to get coal, because it's cheaper than traditional mining.
So the kid finds himself confused, as you would guess, and conflicted, as you would also guess. I liked the way the story flowed, I liked the writing, I liked the characters. What he ends up deciding is expected of course, no surprises.
But I really liked the way Wyatt described his actions at any particular time, which painted a portrait of a brain dead teenager AND a thinking teenager - very realistic. ...more
It's basically about a young guy who loves his girlfriend. Lisa's going away to college and she wants him to go with her. Remy Walker is a towns boy, lives on the mountain, apart of the mountain and apart of that dying town. So why not want to just go and experience something new? Change? As long as he could be with her. Things were settled and while it wasn't all worked out, Remy and Lisa were going
There was no really huge in depth story to this book, but I think that's why I liked it so much.It's basically about a young guy who loves his girlfriend. Lisa's going away to college and she wants him to go with her. Remy Walker is a towns boy, lives on the mountain, apart of the mountain and apart of that dying town. So why not want to just go and experience something new? Change? As long as he could be with her. Things were settled and while it wasn't all worked out, Remy and Lisa were going away.
So why did it take a new girl in town to make Remy question everything about his life that makes him think twice...about, well, everything?
I enjoyed this book more then I thought I would. It was nice, easy, simply read about a boy who struggles to find what he really wants out of his life. It's about growth and the tough choices that life throws at you. Remy is a great character and he really knows how to love, it's the question of that love being strong enough to break him free of the only world he's ever known?
Even the simplest of storylines can make a big impact. Makes you think. Funny How Things Change is a book, that will do just that.
Loved it.
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However, I did like that the ending wasn't TOO pat, and I loved the West Vir
This is definitely a book I'd like to hear a teen's perspective on. Because as an adult, I had a tough time not wanting to tell the character what to do. And this is not a problem I usually have. Clearly, Lisa was not the girl for him, and maybe where it's telegraphed (like at the family reunion where the "wife" hates the small W. Va. town) seemed a bit heavy handed to me. Going to PA with her would have been a DISASTER.However, I did like that the ending wasn't TOO pat, and I loved the West Virginia setting, where my husband is from (that family reunion was too spot on) with one exception. There is no Dwyer, W. Va and there is no McGuire County. There is a Beckley, and a Bluefield, and a Martinsburg. I wish she had picked one of the many small towns. No one would probably care about this except for people who know WVA small towns, but I always like to find my setting on a map, and I didn't like having to make this up. My deal, I know.
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