Unforgettable - Loretta Ellsworth

Young Adult
Pages: 272
Publisher: Walker Childrens
Release Date: September 27, 2011

Baxter Green isn’t like everyone else. While most people would forget about the little details of everyday life, Baxter never forgets—not pain, not hurt, not embarrassment. In fact, Baxter never forgets anything—not even a string of account numbers, flashed before his eyes by his mother’s criminal boyfriend, Dink, for use in a credit card scam. Years after his testimony has locked Dink away, Baxter and his mother are in a new town, trying to forget the danger Dink brought into their lives. Baxter wants to hide his unique ability, but it becomes increasingly more difficult when he reconnects with Hallie, a girl from his childhood who has lived on in his memory long after she has forgotten him. Can Baxter win Hallie’s heart? Loretta Ellsworth’s newest novel is one readers will never forget.

When I started this book I thought it would be awesome to be like Baxter. To remember EVERYTHING? Never forget a thing? Except, think about it. You'll remember the bad things just as well as the good ones. Every single detail. Gee, poor Baxter.

Then as I started reading, I thought the author had threaded too many plots and themes together and it was just too much and too slow. But as the novel goes on, there was some other aspects that really fascinated me.

1) Baxter has synesthesia which "is a neurological rarity in which two or more senses are connected." In Baxter's case, he hears voices as colors or sounds or textures or smells. 

2) As the novel goes on and Baxter is changing and understanding things he starts realizing that yes, he remembers everything, but the interpretation of different situations are connected to your level of maturity and your age. So his memories are actually his interpretation of the moment. Think about it, we all remember things differently, or we have labeled certain memories a certain way just because of our mood or our lack of maturity in that time.


So the subplots and details of this book plus the writing, made it so much more great than it would've been otherwise. The pace was indeed slow, but I believe once you settle and accept that fact the story is very enjoyable. It also has a bit of mystery, and romance and coming of age story. 

I always love reading about the awkward outcast and in the case of Baxter it was twice as interesting. Descriptions and details were also very rich, and overall, this was very interesting and unique read.

Goodreads / Amazon

Unforgettable Memories (Guest Post by Loretta Elsworth) - Unforgettable Blog Tour + Giveaway!

I’ve always been fascinated with how our memories work. As a Spanish teacher I often used mnemonic devices to help students remember new vocabulary and used them myself to remember students names (both their English names and their chosen Spanish names).

When my great-aunt died of Alzheimer’s disease I started reading articles and following studies on memory, including The Nun Study, in which researchers have been gathering data on a group of nuns from Mankato, Minnesota since 1986 (over 90 percent of the nuns have donated their brains to research).

So when I read about Brad Williams from La Crosse, Wisconsin, who has an amazing biographical memory, I was drawn to his story. No one has been proven to have a perfect memory, but some people have biographical memories that are almost perfect. They remember everything about their own lives, down to the most trivial details of events and dates – things like what they ate on a specific date, what was on TV that same day and what the weather was like.

I wondered what it would have been like to grow up with that kind of ability, and whether it would be a gift or a curse. Out of that wondering came Baxter Green, a fifteen year-old boy who has such a memory after he hits his head when he’s three years-old. Baxter is someone who wants to fit in, but his memory abilities have made that difficult. So when he moves with his mom to a new town and new state, he tries to hide his ability. But the past has a way of catching up with him.

While most of us won’t ever have the kind of memory that Baxter does, we do have the ability to nurture and make the most of our own memories. As we become more dependent on technology, it seems that we remember less. Writer Joshua Foer spent a year learning methods to train his memory and ended up winning the US Memory Championship. As he states in his book, Moonwalking with Einstein, “We need to cultivate our ability to remember. Our memories make us who we are.”

I hope you enjoy Baxter’s story. To celebrate the release of Unforgettable, I’m giving away a Nook on my website – just post a comment about your earliest memory and you’re entered to win. The giveaway ends Oct. 6.

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Thank you SO MUCH Loretta! 

Check out the trailer:

Giveaway!

One winner will receive a SIGNED copy of Unforgettable!
US Only. Ends October 15th.

In a Heartbeat - Loretta Ellsworth

Young Adult
Pages: 224
Publisher: Walker Books for Young Readers
Release Date: February 2, 2010

When a small mistake costs sixteen-year-old Eagan her life during a figure-skating competition, she leaves many things unreconciled, including her troubled relationship with her mother. From her vantage point in the afterlife, Eagan reflects back on her memories, and what she could have done differently, through her still-beating heart.When fourteen-year-old Amelia learns she will be getting a heart transplant, her fear and guilt battle with her joy at this new chance at life. And afterwards when she starts to feel different—dreaming about figure skating, craving grape candy—her need to learn about her donor leads her to discover and explore Eagan’s life, meeting her grieving loved ones and trying to bring the closure they all need to move on.Told in alternating viewpoints, In a Heartbeat tells the emotional and compelling story of two girls sharing one heart.

I really connected with this story. It felt powerful and compelling. It talks about the connection that can exist between a heart transplant patient and the donor and also, about how little we appreciate what we have. I really liked the alternating points of view of the two girls. I also liked that the after-world or the in-between world was not really relevant, just given.

I think that what I liked the most was actually the subject. I had never read about organ donations before. I had never given much thought into how it must feel to have someone else's organ inside you. And this book made me think a lot about it. I could feel my heart aching in some parts.

The characters were really well done. I think Eagan's character was really interesting, her attitude and temper felt incredibly real. Plus, I really like the cover. Overall, if you enjoy realistic fiction and exploring interesting subjects this is a great read for you.

Goodreads / Amazon