Catch a Falling Star

Catching a Falling Star is a pretty fantastic example of how and why YA fiction - particularly, contemporary YA fiction - continues to be such a powerful, popular genre for all readers. This isn't just a breezy summer romance, with strong writing and engaging characters. (Though it most definitely is that!) This is a thoughtful, contemplative look into how each person finds their place in the world, even as they move beyond their original sphere to discover who they truly are and who they're meant to be. I think that readers will find Carter and Adam relatable and likable. Their struggles with defining themselves, trying to find their place in their mutually respective and chaotic worlds, are probably feelings that readers have had themselves as they've gotten older. Readers will undoubtedly connect with them and feel validated by their journey. As for me, this is my first Kim Culbertson novel, but it definitely won't be my last. I'm looking forward to seeing what other YA fiction she produces in the future, while going back and checking out what's already out there.

This was adorable. I loved our main character, Carter. I thought she was so genuine, and that so many people her age would be able to relate to some of her problems. She's a small town girl, who gave up something she loved, because other people's expectations ruined it for her. She's a teen, who doesn't like being outside her comfort zone. She's a girl dealing with a family problem and trying to help in any way she can. She's a girl, who loves an addict and is trying to figure out where to draw the line. That last issue is what thrusts her into Adam's orbit. This super private girl takes on fake dating to help her family, but it ends up being a life changing experience. Carter grows so much during the story and makes so many discoveries about herself. I was quite proud of her at times. Our other main character, Adam, is super complicated. He is very annoying at times and very lovable at others. Overall, a fun, cute read with quite a bit of heart and some swoon-worthy moments that made me smile.

I am not the frst person to note that the genre called Young Adult fiction has become steadily more sophisticated, more emotionally deep and true, and deal honestly and unsationally with contemporary issues. Kim Culberton's books have been at the forefront of this transition. Her previous book, and now one, present fully ralized characters in realistically rendered situations. Here, without giving too much of the plot away, a young spoiled fim star turns a small northern California town on its ear, and dramatically affects the quiet and careful life of the story's protagonist. Her family life and the beautifully rendered of her ith her two close friends change with surprising subtlety as the levels of the movie stars are revealed and explored. This is an accessible, readible, touching, enjoyable, humorous womderful story.

This is a book I wanted to like more than I did. I kept waiting for it to get better....and it didn't. I love the famous person/royalty stories where a celebrity falls in love with the average girl. Which this book sort of was, but didn't really let you know that until the very end. Some issues I had with the book - character's names. Not the main ones, but Carter has a best guy friend named Alien Drake, so named because of his love for all things UFO. And everybody calls him Alien Drake throughout the entire book. I'm not sure the author understands how nicknames work. If his name was Joe or Steve or Mike (something common) and they stuck Alien in front of if to differentiate him from all the other guys at school with that name - I could get behind that. Or if they called him AD. Believable. But it is such a mouthful to say Alien Drake every time that I could never buy into the fact that people actually called him that. Same issue with Carter's dog Extra Pickles. It also has some highly unlikable characters like Carter's mom - a woman who travels the country at the drop of a hat to protest stuff. Which is probably supposed to make us admire her, but I found her to be a very selfish mother who shouldn't be wondering why her son's a gambling addict and her daughter is renting herself out to a movie star. Her children are always being told that they're less important than her myriad of causes. In the acknowledgments the author talks about the things she wants to address - living in a small town, the nature of fame, etc., - problem is when you do things like that it becomes a Statement Book. Where those themes become more important than the actual story. Which means you have teen characters spouting off these ridiculously deep philosophical statements that you'd never imagine a real life teen saying. It's also supposed to be a love story, but as I mentioned, the love story is completely sidelined for the Important Themes. There's also some jealousy introduced from Alien Drake and it's not until the very end that you realize this won't be a triangle book and he doesn't have feelings for Carter. That's a problem - when the reader doesn't know who the love interest is and why we should be rooting for them. Carter's interactions with Adam are minimal - they share a single fake kiss and a single real one that gets zero description - if they were falling in love I didn't see it and it didn't come across. I'm very happy that she ended up with Adam, but this book could have just as easily gone that route where there was no HEA and just the impact two very different people from very different worlds had on each other. So i wasn't invested in their relationship, which is a problem in a romance. This book was okay. If there were sequels, I wouldn't be interested in reading them and I don't really want to pick anything else up by this author. If you're writing a romance, write a romance and focus on it because as a romance reader, I don't care about the nature of fame and achievement.

I especially liked the way the author creates Carter, the main character, as having strong, somewhat traditional values (she likes her parents and is intensely loyal to friends), yet as someone who insists on learning her own lessons through making choices and taking consequences for them. She deals with heavy stuff (for example, a gambling-addict brother) and learns that she is not able to solve every problem in the world, yet keeps her integrity. She has a rigged, fantasy kind of relationship with a movie star for which she is paid, and the relationship becomes real -- or does it? Although the end is a bit sugary, the reader is left with a sense of how manipulated we can be by media and their fawned-over creations, the celebrities. Even among celebrities like Carter's flame, the fictional Adam Jakes, it takes persistent effort and a reawakening to realize the difference between media creation and the self-driven life. Crisply well-written, a fine YA read.

I loved the small town life of Carter, and feel that the name of the town was perfect for the story. I don't think the story would have worked if it were placed in a big town. I even loved the movie that Adam was filming and wished I could actually see it's finished product. This was a great romance (a great little romance) and good for teens of any age (within the teen years).

As a small town girl, I just loved this book. Loved the angst, fears, and feelings going on in the book. Great read. Content: Completely clean. Language: completely clean. Religious: not at all Overall story: I thought the main character was very well developed. The story was also interesting even though it's been done a lot. I had a hard time getting into this, but once I did I couldn't put it down. Happy reading!!

I'm way over the age demographic for this book, mid 50's. I found out about it through BookBub. It sounded like a nice story, which it was, but I honestly didn't expect all the amazing philosophical moments that made me ponder my own life. Beautifully written. You could imagine the cute "little" town, the people and see it all happening. I loved the blog that was written between chapters, all the thought provoking questions. I can honestly say, I will definitely read this book again, I loved it THAT much. ❤