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Author Kelly Oram
Kelly Oram wrote her first novel at age fifteen–a fan
fiction about her favorite music group, The Backstreet Boys, for which family
and friends still tease her. She's obsessed with reading, talks way too much,
and loves to eat frosting by the spoonful. She lives outside of Phoenix,
Arizona with her husband and four children.
V is for Virgin
When Val Jensen gets dumped for her decision to stay a virgin until marriage, the nasty breakup goes viral on YouTube, making her the latest internet sensation.
After days of ridicule from her peers, Val starts a school-wide campaign to rally support for her cause. She meant to make a statement, but she never dreamed the entire nation would get caught up in the controversy.
As if becoming nationally recognized as “Virgin Val” isn’t enough, Val’s already hectic life starts to spin wildly out of control when bad boy Kyle Hamilton, lead singer for the hit rock band Tralse, decides to take her abstinence as a personal challenge.
How can a girl stay true to herself when this year’s Sexiest Man Alive is doing everything in his power to win her over?
V is for Virgin is scheduled to be released on December 11, 2012.
For those who might wonder about content based on the title -
From Kelly: The book has a great overall message and promotes good strong moral values. For a book all about sex, there's not anything even close to a sex scene in it, but because of the nature of the topic there is a lot of innuendo/sexual humor and some name calling.
Book Review
I loved this book! When I first heard the title, it threw me off for a bit. Once I read the book I am going to champion this book! I want every teen to read this book, male and female! The message is clear and straight forward about abstinence, and waiting for marriage to have sex, but it is delivered in a very entertaining story. Main character Valerie is a girl that young women everywhere will be able to relate to. Valerie is not always confident, but she chooses the right moment to stand up for herself. I like how this character is not painted as perfect, she still has temptations along the way that challenge her. The characters' interactions and relationships seem real like you would find in any high school. I just really liked how this story shows how one person standing up for something good, like abstinence, can influence others to find the courage to do the same.
Overall, if you are a parent and worry about the content, by all means read the book first. But I want to assure you, as a mother of an almost 15 year old young woman, I would not hesitate in the least having her read this book. In fact, this is one I would like to read together, so if she wanted to talk about things, I would be ready there to answer any questions. Bravo Kelly Orem, for writing a book that will so powerfully influence young people in many ways.
Guest Post From the Author:
I asked Kelly why she wrote books for teens. Here is her answer...
Why do I write for teens? I think it’s because my maturity
peaked at age 16. Honestly, it’s just the genre that I enjoy the most. I love
coming of age stories, I love first-time romances, and if I have to pick a
“team” then all the better.
There’s never been any question that young adult was where I
feel most at home as a writer. I’ve never considered writing anything else and
probably never will. I have tried to step outside my genre before just to see
what would happen. It’s always been a disaster, and almost always ended in an
abandoned manuscript.
You have to write what you enjoy. If you’re not having fun
with a story it’s evident in the writing. Not to mention you spend so many
hours writing, and if you’re not enjoying it then that makes for one miserable
long project. (And one majorly cranky mom!)
As I get older, and my children get older, I think I
appreciate the genre even more because I understand the importance of having
good books for teens to read. I’ve never really thought about the influence my
writing could have on people until I wrote V is for Virgin. I didn’t set out to
write a book with a “message” but now that it’s written I find myself hoping
that people will be able to connect with it.
The topic of when to become sexually active is a very
sensitive, and often difficult one. Do I expect the book to change anyone’s
life? No. Of course not. But do I hope it might make people at least stop and
think about what they want before they have to make such a difficult choice?
Sure. What writer wouldn’t like to be a positive influence on their
readers?
But mostly, I just hope to entertain my audience. As a
reading addict myself, I know how much it stinks to pay for a book and then not
like it, so my ultimate goal is always to end up with something that I wouldn’t
mind paying for. I certainly had a lot of fun writing V is for Virgin, and hope
that people enjoy it just as much.
Tour Giveaway
$30 Amazon Gift Card or Paypal Cash
Open Internationally
Ends 1/6/12
The tour schedule can be found here: http://iamareadernotawriter.blogspot.com/2012/11/v-is-for-virgin-blog-tour.html
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