Jerk, California

Jerk, California is the story of Sam Carrier, the kid who can't sit still. He jerks and twitches, in near constant motion. The only time he feels in control of his limbs is when he runs. High school is a nightmare. No friends, nothing. Then he meets beautiful Naomi, the girl who makes him feel like he can't remember which way is up.But everything changes after his embarrassing graduation. New job, new name-- well, not new. Suddenly he finds himself on a cross-country trip with only his questions and Naomi for company.I loved this book. Seriously. I read it in about 24 hours. I even read parts out loud to my husband-- the butter scene is hilarious!!By the end of the first chapter, I was hooked on Sam. He's funny and his struggles were so real and heartfelt. In reading the story, I felt like I could understand how it would feel to have Tourette's. It's definitely worth reading. I'm sure I'll read it again!

Literally one of my favorite books EVER!! I read this book before I lost my dad and it definitely spoke to me.. I read it a few years after he passed away suddenly and it brought the meaning of the book to a whole new light for me. Thank you Mr. Friesen... I needed this and I appreciate your work. It was great for me to read for my healing process.

Great book. A 12th grade student said it was one of his favorites so I decided to buy it and share with the rest of my class. It is a great book that has surprises you'd never expect and great character development. The young man has tourettes and has had a tough childhood due to an abusive stepdad. As a young adult, he takes a cross-country trip and learns that he is not the reject his stepdad has led him to believe. He learns about his late father and how much he is like him.

I have three grandkids withe tourettes. Please read it and get copies for those you love! My granddaughter devoured this book. She was thrill hey classmates are beginning to understand her behavior. Now they support her!

One of my students told me to read this and so I did. I think it is a wonderful book for young adults to be reading. I think that it would resonate with many teenage boys. I have gone on to purchase more by Jonathan Friesen and can't wait to read his book that comes out this May.

I teach this book in class as part of a narrative unit. Even students who hate reading have enjoyed reading this book.

Everyone I have shared this book with, loves it! If you are a teen or 40, it is a must read!!! Jerk, California I just finished his new book Rush, and I can not wait for another book to hit the shelves. Rush

This book kept my attention. My grand-daughter and I read this for a book club at her middle school. It gave a perspective of someone living with a chronic illness and how he handled it.I would definitely recommend it for young adults and adults.

Ah, what characters. Old Bill just radiated spitefulness. He was such an unlikable character with no redeeming features whatsoever. He even changed Sam's name when he married his mother, from Jack Keegan to Sam Carrier. Throughout the novel, we have to deal with the effects that his years of abuse have had on Sam/Jack and, to a lesser extent, his mother. A mother who was so cowed by Old Bill, she never once stood up for her eldest son, her late husband or even herself.At first I was a bit reluctant to read this book. The thing with books using disability or illness or sexuality or other `issues' as a plot device is that they can become preachy or sensationalised and fail miserably. Sometimes they are fantastic and other times they suck. This, thankfully, didn't. Yes, Sam/Jack had Tourette's, we never forgot that fact and, like Sam/Jack, were always aware of it. But Tourette's wasn't all that made Sam/Jack a person; he was awkward but caring and mostly aware of those around him. He was a character with a real personality and real flaws. I liked him a lot and could relate to him, if not his situation.Naomi was a bit of a puzzle, blowing hot one minute and cold the next. I liked her and loathed her in equal measures. She called Sam/Jack up on his Tourette's, asking him questions and trying to understand, something no one else ever does. On the other hand, she was a master of manipulation, bending Sam/Jack's will to suit her needs. She has had a difficult life with an overbearing mother and, in a way, she is more troubled than Sam/Jack because of this.The plot itself was simple and all of the content came from the main characters and the ones we meet along the way. In the end, it's a book about Sam/Jack and his road trip. A road trip where he unravels the truth about himself and his father from a lifetime of omissions and lies.The only spanner in the works for me, and which prevented it getting and five stars, was the religious aspects of the story. I did not see that coming at all. Religion is not for me and I get uncomfortable reading about it. Here was no different. And it just seemed to pop up out of nowhere, making it somehow more jarring.However, this was a book I enjoyed a lot and I'm definitely going to check out the author's other novel.