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True Believer Audiobook
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(3.01) - 1,435 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
What's new in LaVaughn's life is Jody--a boy she knew as a child who's come back to the housing project where she lives. Jody is like a miracle: He smells like chlorine, he calls her "little buddy," he goes with her to the dance. It's just as if he's in love with her. Except not quite. As LaVaughn puzzles over Jody, as her best friends struggle with belief and acceptance, and as Jody wrestles with questions about his own identity, Virginia Euwer Wolff rises to the occasion with this astonishing and powerfully moving novel, the second in the Make Lemonade trilogy.
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"True Believer is a Printz honor book. After LaVaughn's experience babysitting Jolly's kids in Make Lemonade, LaVaughn sets off to tackle high school. As the school year starts, she realizes a childhood friend is back living three floors up in the apartment building. He is very attractive. She instantly falls in love. He is a swimmer and has the same goal as LaVaughn- to go to college. LaVaughn is offered a special language class to help correct her grammar. She joins this class and really gets some good guidance and fellowship from the other students and the teacher in the class. This is a important to her because her two best friends from when she was little have joined a church group that is too extreme to include LsVsughn. LaVaughn is very hurt. On top of this LaVaughn's mom is thinking about moving away to a house in the suburbs with her boyfriend. It really seems as if this will happen. There is a shooting at school. LaVaughn is sick about leaving the life and friends she has created for herself. Mostly she doesn't want to leave Jody. He is all she can think about. LaVaugh gets a job at the hospital folding laundry. She really feels for the little ones there who are sick. This will also have an impact on her life. LaVaughn deals with all of these problems very well. It is interesting to see how she copes with what life asks. I have already recommended this book to a student who was having trouble with the confliction religious beliefs of her friends. Poverty is faced head on in the Make Lemonade series. True Believer is a very strong message. I would give this book a 5 for quality and a 5 for popularity. This is such an easy read that creates many lessons and messages to help kids through rough times."
— Amy (5 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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“The language of this occasionally gritty story resonates with truth, personal growth, and the vision of a better life. While there are some mature themes, they are handled very gently. Every teenager should have the opportunity to meet LaVaughn.”
— School Library Journal -
“This is a coming-of-age story with both bite and heart, which poses more questions than it answers but never runs out of hope.”
— Kirkus Reviews (starred review) -
“Eight years after the publication of her groundbreaking Make Lemonade, Wolff surpasses herself with this sequel… In delving into LaVaughn’s life, the author unmasks the secret thoughts adolescents hold sacred and lets her readers know they are not alone.”
— Publishers Weekly
Awards
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A 2002 Michael L. Printz Award Honor Book
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Winner of the 2001 National Book Award for Young People's Literature
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Winner of Printz Honors, 2002
True Believer Listener Reviews
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" I love this book. It is one of the very few books that I wanted tho continue reading in my language arts class "
— Candice, 2/1/2014 -
" if u r having a hard time in life,this puts u into perspective "
— Maddie, 1/21/2014 -
" The 2nd book in the Make Lemonade Trilogy, this book continues LaVaughnn's story as a student at an inner city high school. She has her mind set that she will go to college in a few years, but first she must survive high school, which is getting hard now that her best friends are leaving her out, her mom has a new boyfriend, and she is in love with a boy that won't give her the time of day. It is heart-warming, hilarious, and inspiriring all at once. "
— Al_jessica, 1/21/2014 -
" This book really does a good job of staying true to some of the issues that many teens face. I really enjoyed this book. Lavaughn's plans to go to college and the issues she has with friends are things that anyone can relate to. THis book is positive and very enjoyable to read. "
— Juliana, 12/27/2013 -
" it was an intresting book about a girl and a boy she liked and that boy turned out to be something else... "
— Ernesto, 11/13/2013 -
" well, the book is overall good, but it has a very complex story in the book itself. You have to be the kind of person who carefully reads EVERY SINGLE word to understand anything, because there is so much going on. all in all, it is a crazy book with no head or tail, so if you read it BEWARE!!! "
— Nisha, 11/11/2013 -
" I love this book and Make Lemonade-they are just amazing!! Inspiring and filled with hope. "
— Jillian, 11/6/2013 -
" Unique prose, complex setting, direct main character, wonderful interior monologues. "
— Holly, 9/19/2013 -
" I loved how this book was written. The way LaVaughn's life was portrayed was very unique to me. It kept me interested. I was able to feel the story unfold rather than just reading it. "
— Olivia, 9/18/2013 -
" Not as good as her first book, Make Lemonade, but it was nice to find out what happened to LaVaughn and Jilly and Jeremy. "
— jenny, 8/11/2013 -
" This is the second book of a series of 3. I would recommend this for girls. You would not have to have read the 1st book but it does make the story complete if read in order. "
— Bonnie, 7/31/2013 -
" LaVaughn's voice is very true to a confused 15-year-old who thinks she knows who she is and what she wants, but isn't always sure. I loved the sentences she and her group come up with during Grammar Build Up. And I'm dying to know what Jody wrote on that note. "
— Meredith, 12/14/2012 -
" My favorite quote in the book is "I have been punishing him for so long / for not being Jody (263)." "
— Betty, 8/20/2012 -
" it was okay i like the girl being a psycho in the story over some dude. "
— Ruben, 8/10/2012 -
" I really had a hard time with the charaters in the first book, even though I loved the story line. This book just made the charaters more real. I am so glad for my little boring life after reading this book. "
— Jennifer, 5/12/2012 -
" this book was a disapointment. i had very high standards for this book and it let me down. the end was poorly written. there was a little romance, not as much as i had expected. still good, but didn't met my standards. "
— Maya, 3/8/2012 -
" Loved this book! Thanks Amy for loaning it to me! And this wonderful author lives in our own Oregon City! : ) "
— Nancy, 2/25/2012 -
" A very well written book, all in verse. I just didn't enjoy the story itself very much. "
— Karolinde, 5/14/2011 -
" This is the second book of a series of 3. I would recommend this for girls. You would not have to have read the 1st book but it does make the story complete if read in order. "
— Bonnie, 5/1/2011 -
" Reread to get ready for release of the last in the trilogy. Unbelievable, gorgeous writing and wonderful storytelling. "
— Michael, 3/21/2011 -
" This book had a real shocker in it, hence making me read further on. This was a great book, well written and organized. The climax was perfect. This is recommeded. "
— Paige, 1/24/2011 -
" it was an intresting book about a girl and a boy she liked and that boy turned out to be something else... <br/> "
— Ernesto, 10/18/2010 -
" This is a great book. LaVagnn is a 15 year old girl who is in love with Jody, he acts like he loves her but does he? LaVagnn is very stressed about her parents and family. She is worried because her two friends are taking other paths that she might not want to take. "
— Kaite, 10/1/2010 -
" I think I'm in the minority because I actually liked this even more than <em>Make Lemonade</em>! I actually laughed aloud at parts, and felt myself fight back the urge to hug the book to my chest more than once. I adore LaVaughn so much.<br/><br/>(read: 95) "
— laaaaames, 6/18/2010
About Virginia Euwer Wolff
Virginia Euwer Wolff is the distinguished author of six books for young readers. Her books have won the National Book Award, the Michael L. Printz Honor, the Golden Kite Award, the International Reading Association Children’s Book Award, the Jane Addams Book Award, the PEN-West Book Award, and the Oregon Book Award, among many other honors. Virginia Euwer Wolff lives and works in Oregon City, Oregon.
About Heather Alicia Simms
Heather Alicia Simms is an AudioFile Earphones Award–winning narrator, finalist for an Audie Award, and an actress. Her filmography includes Broken Flowers, Flutter Kick, Shock Act, Kingscounty, Head of State, Third Watch, and others. She also provided voice acting for the video game Red Dead Revolver.