Ketchup Clouds

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Award-winning author Annabel Pitcher’s new teen novel is a taut and dramatic adventure with a deep yearning at its heart. Ketchup Clouds vividly captures the terrifying roller coaster of emotion that envelopes Zoe when she gets caught in a tragic love triangle between two brothers. Zoe’s heart races for the mysterious Aaron but, despite his seeming keenness, he already has a girlfiend. And then there is younger brother Max, unattached and very keen on Zoe. How can Zoe manage her own feelings without hurting the boys especially when she’s also coping with puzzling dramas at home?

At the party she meets a 'boy [...] brown eyes [and] messy blond hair' whom she feels she has chemistry with and in which she engages in sexual activity with Max Morgan and later on, a relationship. She soon finds out that the brown-eyed boy, Aaron, is Max's brother and unbeknown to Max, there are still feelings between them. It is the accident that follows after he discovers Zoe and Aaron together that lead her to identify both with Mr Harris as a murderer and his unfaithful wife whom she calls a "scarlet woman" and believes she deserved her death. There are also missed opportunities. Sooooo many missed opportunities. I could write a novel in response to all the things she didn't talk about. I'm tempted to writing a sarky fanfic series of letters from her prison pen pal telling her she's a twit. I'm so damn tempted to do that. Because I am going to say it. I'm not sitting in this shed for the fun of it. It's bloody freezing and Mum would kill me if she knew I was out of bed, but it's a good place to write this letter, hidden away behind some trees. Don't ask me what type, but they've got big leaves that are rustling in the breeze. Shhhhwiiishhh. Actually, that sounds nothing like them. So, I have to admit, I’m extremely underwhelmed by this book. I’ve never read My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece but I’ve heard it’s great. It never really appealed to me though, I’m not sure why. But Ketchup Clouds appealed to me, really it did. I was captivated by the gorgeous cover, the wonderful title and the intriguing synopsis.Ketchup Clouds by Annabel Pitcher is a gripping novel for teenagers that will leave them gripped. Pitcher perfectly captures the emotion and guilt that teenager Zoe is experiencing as she attempts to come to terms with a devastating secret that she has been hiding. Zoe reveals her dark and terrible secret to a serial killer on Death Row in letters. To Annabel Pitcher, this novel’s plot is so compelling that you will continue to read it. Throughout her letters, you can get an honest and humorous insight into her life, which includes her love life as well as her friendships and family life. Ketchup Clouds is a charming coming of age story that is both heartwarming and comedic in its many layers. Ketchup Clouds Age Rating It's a moving and ultimately highly compassionate tale. To be human is to err, after all. ( Martin Chilton, THE TELEGRAPH) I would definitely recommend this book for anyone looking for an invigorating, coming-of-age book. The young adult category can often come off as whiney and "woe is me" but this book proves that that is not always the case, even when the main character does have a lot to whine about. There are good authors of every genre if you just know where to look and Annabel Pitcher is one of them. ( THE GUARDIAN) Ketchup Clouds is a coming-of- age novel by the author Annabel Pitcher which tells the story of a fifteen-year-old girl, Zoe, who is dealing with a huge secret. She has written a series of letters to a murderer on death row and is trying to find the courage to confess her secret to her family and friends. Along the way, she learns about the importance of family, friendship, and making peace with the past. As she tells her story, Zoe discovers the power of words to heal and the strength of human connection. The novel is thought-provoking, heart-breaking, and ultimately uplifting. Ketchup Clouds Ending Dealing with some complex and difficult themes and issues, Ketchup Clouds is perhaps best suited to older teenage readers. Blending powerful emotion and darkness with ironic humour, it is a gripping and moving story about secrets, lies and growing up. Sometimes uncomfortable, sometimes wistful, often funny and always compassionate, this is a beautifully-crafted and unexpected coming-of-age story that will win readers’ hearts.

Full of heartache yet humour, Zoe tells her secret through a story in the only way she can - in letters to the man in prison in America. Armed with a pen, Zoe takes a deep breath, eats a jam sandwich, and begins her tale of love and betrayal. From the author of the award-winning My Sister Lives on a Mantelpiece this is a novel that will really make you think. I guess you know what they say: you shouldn’t judge a book by a gorgeous cover, a wonderful title and… well, you get the gist.Ignore the blob of red in the top left corner. It's jam, not blood, though I don't think I need to tell you the difference. It wasn't your wife's jam the police found on your shoe. . . .

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Her highly-acclaimed, award-winning debut, My Sister Lives on the Mantlepiece was undoubtedly a hard act to follow, yet Annabel Pitcher’s second novel is equally impressive. Sadly, this fierce but delicately orchestrated novel ends on a bum note: a letter from the surviving brother to Zoe that is both patronising and mawkish. Its final words ("Spread those strong wings of yours. Fly") brought the wrong kind of lump to my throat. That cavil aside, Ketchup Clouds is risky, confident, compelling and ends, as all prize-winning teen novels seemingly must, with hope for redemption and self-forgiveness. Pitcher should clear her diary for next year's award ceremonies. Zoe has an unconventional pen pal-Mr. Stuart Harris, a Texas Death Row inmate and convicted murderer. But then again, Zoe has an unconventional story to tell. A story about how she fell for two boys, betrayed one of them, and killed the other. My last point will be that I like the book as a whole because the boys were not the perfect, heavenly boys that are portrayed in a lot if YA novels, it felt real and it was not a dream boy and I don't feel as though they are the boys from my imagination but, that sort of made me fall in love with them a bit more. That they felt real like all the characters just felt normal. They faced real problems and life did not revolve around the main character.

I'm hardly the type to say that teen characters need to act kindly to each other, or communicate effectively, because that's boring. It's more a problem that she gets away with being so heartless and clueless, when previously she painted herself as a bookish nerd who is laughed at by the entire school. IT DOESN'T MAKE SENSE. Ketchup Clouds is a 2012 teen novel by Annabel Pitcher. It tells the story of a girl about the age of 15 who has a dark secret she is afraid to confess to anyone but her pen pal, a murderer on Death Row. It won the Waterstones Children's Book Prize. [1] Synopsis [ edit ] The conversations between Aaron and Zoe seemed forced. I don't see these teens having such witty conversations. Only 20-something hipsters talk the way they do.

Vrah, jehož jméno už si nepamatuji. Jedna ze dvou původně nadějných postav. Jenže ... tam vlastně vůůůbec nebyl, protože veškerý prostor vyplňovala Zoe - jako obrovská tlustá okurka ve skleničce. Agggrwww! Annabel Pitcher creates a wonderfully lifelike and credible teenage voice in Zoe, allowing the reader to find out slowly and surely just what has happened to her over the past year. The family rows, the teenage angst, the blossoming relationships with boys, the responsibilities of being the older sibling, but at the same time she doesn't give much away. The sense of intrigue and the feeling of suspense builds up right up until the last few chapters when finally all is revealed to the reader. On her library shift, Zoe meets Aaron again. They nearly kiss before being interrupted by a woman needing directions. Aaron leaves, but he and Zoe continue to meet at the library. Laura throws a party, during which Zoe spots Aaron with the girl he was with before and angrily leaves. Zoe tries to flee but runs into Max. They begin to make out, and when Max asks Zoe to meet his brother, she reluctantly agrees. She meets Aaron and confesses she’s coupled with Max. When Max unwittingly leaves the two alone, Aaron explains the girl he was with is just an old childhood pal, not his girlfriend. Aaron says there’s nothing between him and Zoe anyway. Incredulous, Zoe continues dating Max as a means of revenge. Aaron’s mother, Sandra, tells him to drive Zoe home, and they part on ugly terms. At home, Zoe hears an argument between her parents suggesting Jane was responsible for Dot’s deafness. Annabel Pitcher is great at building suspense and you read almost the whole book until you find out who Zoe has actually killed. Zoe is very easy to relate to and has a good personality with lots of interesting quirks; this helps the book along, as the voice of Zoe is an intriguing one to listen to. The whole idea behind this story was something that immediately intrigued me. Our main character, Zoe, has made a big mistake, committed a crime, and has decided that she can no longer keep it to herself, so she decides to let it all out in a series of letters to Stuart Harris, a murderer on death row. I could not wait to start reading Zoe's letters!