Twisted (Laurie Halse Anderson novel)

Twisted

File:Twistednovel.jpg
Author	Laurie Halse Anderson
Publisher	Viking Juvenile
Publication date	March 20, 2007
Publication place	United States
Pages	256
ISBN	0670061018

Twisted is a recently released 2007 novel by Laurie Halse Anderson about a teenaged boy named Tyler Miller. The plot revolves around Tyler's experiences in his community after committing a crime at his high school which earned him a negative reputation. After attending a wild nighttime party, Tyler finds himself in the middle of a scandal involving one of the most popular girls in school, with Tyler himself being the prime suspect. This involves Tyler and this girl becoming the new sex image of their school. Facing another serious charge, Tyler sets out not only to fix his reputation, but his entire life.

During this novel, Tyler continues to play a video game, which he happens to get stuck on whenever theres a problem in his life, and when he finally completes his problems with the popular girl, he completes the game.

Laurie Halse Anderson has written numerous books dealing with both depression and death, but all of her novels were told from a female's perspective. This is the first novel in which she embarked on the journey of telling the story from a teenage boy's point of view. She claims that she heard multiple stories from teenage boys concerning the pressures they faced and was inspired to write the novel. As a result, Anderson has received a positive response from both her critics and teenage boys. The message she has heard and the message she has tried to get across is that it is difficult to be a teenager and for that she has earned both great acclaim and respect from fans and critics. With all of her success as a YA (Young Adult) novelist, Twisted was her first book to debut on the New York Times bestseller list.

Film Adaption

There may be a possibility of a film; the film right has been optioned.

Awards and Honors

There are have been numerous awards given out to this book on various levels:

• National Awards: ALA Best Book for Young Adults 2008
• ALA Quick Pick for Young Adults 2008
• International Reading Association Top Ten of 2007
• New York Public Library Best Books for the Teen Age
• New York Times Bestseller List.

State Awards

• Tayshas High School Reading List 2008 (Texas)
• Heartland Award Nominee (Kansas)
• Georgia Peach Book Award nominee, and Thumbs Up! Award nominee (Michigan)

Bookseller and Media Recognition:

• Amazon Editor's 2007 Pick for Teens
• Borders YA Book Club Pick
• New York Times Bestseller List
• Starred review
• KLIATT Starred review
• Kirkus
• VOYA rating: 5Q 5P S.

Trivia

Laurie Halse Anderson does not only write fictitious stories about depression and suicide she is a strong voice and advocate when it comes to teenagers and mental health. The following facts are in direct relation to Twisted:

• One out of every five teenagers considers suicide.
• One out of every ten attempts suicide.
• Every one hundred minutes, another teenager commits suicide.
• Suicide is the third leading cause of death for people aged 15-24.

Statistics were presented from the 2004 National Center for Health Statistics.

Possible Soundtracks

According to Anderson, if Twisted were to have a soundtrack the following songs would be definite choices for the album. (And maybe if it becomes a movie someday they will!)

• “Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah” The Pogues
• “Smells Like Teen Spirit” Nirvana
• “Brick in the Wall” Pink Floyd
• “Yoda” Weird Al Yankovic
• “Trogdor” Strong Bad
• “Come As You Are” Nirvana
• “Needle in the Hay” Elliott Smith
• “Munich” The Editors
• “Hurt” Johnny Cash
• “She Hates Me” Puddle of Mudd
• “How to Disappear Completely” Radiohead
• “For You” Staind
• “I Want You To Hurt Like I Do” Randy Newman/ Land of Dreams
• “Everybody Hurts” R.E.M.
• “Hallelujah” Jeff Buckley
• “Real Men” Tori Amos
• “Float On” Modest Mouse

External Links

• Official website of Laurie Halse Anderson
• "Twisted" Overview