Youth in Revolt

by C.D. Payne

Book Overview

The hilarious, take-no-prisoners novel about a cynical, sex-obsessed teenager's pining love for an intelligent girl--the basis for the major motion picture starring Michael Cera.

Youth in Revolt is the journals of Nick Twisp, California's most precocious diarist, whose ongoing struggles to make sense out of high school, deal with his divorced parents, and lose his virginity result in his transformation from an unassuming fourteen-year-old...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0385481969
• ISBN13: 9780385481960
• Release Date: March 1996
• Publisher: Crown Publishing Group (NY)
• Length: 512 Pages
• Weight: 1.36 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 6.1" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Modernized and Souped Up Adrian Mole

My first impulse in discussing Youth in Revolt is not to compare it to Adrian Mole, however I have spoken with people who bashed it as an A.M. rip off, so having read the A.M. diaries (and the sequel) in 6th grade, let me address this opinion: While they're both early teen boy diaries, the commonalities end right about there. The boys also have a similar object of focus (girls!!), but I think you should overlook this human imperative as an inevitable recurring literary theme. Youth in Revolt's Nick Twisp is a much smarter, faster, and hillariously rebellious character. Makes Adrian Mole look like a zit-counting loser dweeb. The language alone blows nearly every book I've ever read out of the water (I kept a vocab list through the book, and having just finished I have 93 words I never knew before, including amelioration, subterfuge, opprobrium, imprecation, magnanimous, and more.) The book is written by a Harvard Grad who lives in the CA bay area, and it absolutely takes place here and now, with allusions to actual land marks and stores. But don't let the sophistication stop you! Under its elaborately woven language, Youth in Revolt is a very simple story about a super genius pre teen chasing his one true love through THICK and thin. This book had at least a laugh a page, and included such enormous catastrophies that I would read passages aloud at parties (I'm 21), like the "Automotive ballet" that destroys more than you would ever expect one to. Or the unyielding saga of his dog, camus, which takes twists that are SO CLOSE TO UNBELIEVABLE, but still lay within the realm of plausible reality that you just end up laughing at the possible absurdity of the world while banging your head on the nearest hard surface. At nearly 500 very dense pages, not only is this a very fun book, but this book is jam packed, and it can take an intermittent reader (like me) months to finish. Think of it as your favorite TV show, and continue at your leisure. Nick takes so many twists on his adventure in this book, that it's sure to keep anybody laughing at the creative story, as it keeps on piling up on itself. I was asked late in the book "why did you laugh just then?" and I found in order to explain a single late-book joke, I had to explain nearly the whole book up until then. Thus is the nature of Youth in Revolt: A creative pile of modern possibilities as told through the words of a classic romanticist.

Excellent Story No Matter What Your Age

For the sake of being interesting, I will review this book in the style which it was written: Day 1: Finally started reading this book. Many years ago, a friend suggested I read it. Ever since then, the title was always stuck in my head. When I would see it in print I would think, "You know. I really should pick that book up." Eventually I did pick it up, but it ended up in my overly large "to read" pile. Finally, something made me pick it up today. After 50 pages, it seems interesting. Day 2: I read more of the book today. I'm having trouble getting into it based on the nature of how it is written. The entire book is written in the form of journal entries. Don't get me wrong, it's easy to read. Still, I find that the short entries lend themselves to reading only a few at a time. Still, over the course of the day I read 100 pages. Certainly an interesting book. Day 3: I read 250 pages of the book today. I can't put it down. The short journal entries have gone from being a hindrance in reading to an aid in getting rapid snapshots of how the story unfolds. The narrative transpires in small doses which leave you wanting more. As soon as I put the book down I want to pick it up again and get another dose. I cannot remember the last time I was so engrossed in a book. It's uncanny. Day 4: Today is the final day with the book. That sounds funny, but it's true. I wish it were 1000 pages long and I could get 4 more days out of it. No, make that 2000. For the first time in a long time, I am saddened to see a book coming to a close. I don't want it to end, I enjoy it that much. Normally, I look forward to the close of one story and the beginning of a new one. Not this time. I want this story to go on forever (or a reasonable length of time). It's that enjoyable. Day 5: I am sitting here the day after, thinking about the book. The ending was good enough, not Earth shattering. Nothing amazing could have happened to make everything right in the world again. I honestly didn't expect a lot from the ending and I would have been disappointed if he had tried to do make everything perfect. The bulk of the story ties up, which prevents it from merely hanging. Still, some questions remain, like: How did Paul know? I wish I could pick it up and read it again. But it's too early for that. Being honest, the book wasn't philosophically deep enough for me to learn anything new if I were to reread it immediately. Still, the book was really good. Sitting down with it every day was a pleasure. If every book were this good, I would read constantly. As it is, I read every day, but not like this. I read this book while brushing my teeth or making coffee. I'll miss this book. It was a great ride which I am sad to see end. As a final note, I think those who give the book bad ratings are not able to stray from their usual genre of reading and accept this book for what it is. It is a well written and silly narrative about 14-year-old kids that is not really based in reality,

THE BEST!!!

This book is by far the funniest i have ever read. and being a 14 year old girl as i am, i am almost frightened to think that this is the stuff going through my friends minds. this book is an excellent read, before i finished it i would find myself sitting in class waiting anxiously to get home so that i could find out what happens to the outrageously hilarious Nick Twisp, this book really does consume you. So it may be a little unrealsitic, it made me think about things that had never crossed my mind before. Of course it wouldnt be a favorite of adults, that seems obvious, but i dont think a teenager could find a better book!!!

The teenage-male Mind is Exposed

I'm writing this as a 14 year-old boy, having just read this book for the second time. Now I have read many many books about teenage guys, but NOBODY gets into the male-mind like C.D. Payne. The teenage sex drive is captured perfectly, and everything that Nick Twisp (our protagonist) thinks and tries to do is something that I and all my friends have thought or fantacized about every day. I believe that ALL teenage guys should read this to set themselves free from the toil of every day life. In addition, C.D. Payne is the most hilarious author I have ever read, excluding Bill Watterson. Each page is packed with jokes that will make you laugh so hard that it hurts, which is something that everyone needs in their lives. Many parents I have talked with question this book's suitability. Parents,my response to this is as follows: Regardless of whether you know it or not, your son masturbates, thinks about sex, thinks about going against your parents, and all the other escapades that Nick Twisp experiences. If you let your son read this, it will help them get in touch with their sexuality and the difficulties in their lives...it did for me. And kids: read this if you want to laugh, because nothing else will make you laugh at a level this crude, yet intelligent. In conclusion, read this to get in touch with the male-mind.

Obligatory Reading!!!

Youth in Revolt is one of the most insightful books I have yet read. When I read it, Nick was a real person with whome I suffered, laughed and just spent time with. This is the ultimate goal of a writer: to make a character real. This book was so good that while in school a friend of mine started reading it. She finished reading it between classes, during classes and any spare moment she could muster during the schoolday. This book, then roamed the campus of my school, and, inevitably disappeared. That's why we ended up buying another copy. I was very angry when I saw that Youth in Revolt was not voted as the best book of the year, or at least the funniest. This book should be obligatory reading in all classrooms, most safely college classrooms. If I were a creative writing teacher I would make all my students read it. I've recommended it to everyone I know, and to those who I don't. If you haven't read it yet, I suggest you go to the nearest bookstore and buy it! ! now!!! Out of a possible 5 stars, I would give it 6.