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    Metamorphosis: Junior Year
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    Metamorphosis: Junior Year
    Unavailable
    Metamorphosis: Junior Year
    Audiobook1 hour

    Metamorphosis: Junior Year

    Written by Betsy Franco

    Narrated by James Franco and David Franco

    3.5/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    Ovid's got a lot on his mind, and he pours it all into the pages of a notebook. Inspired by his namesake, he wryly records his classmates' dramas as modern-day Roman mythology. There's Sophie and Caleb, the Psyche and Cupid of cyber-couples; poetic Paula, who pursues filmmaker Franny like Apollo chasing Daphne; and graphic-novelist Duwayne, a Proserpina shuttling between divorced parents. Meanwhile, Ovid hides his own Olympian struggles and a disturbing secret.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBrilliance Audio
    Release dateNov 10, 2010
    ISBN9781441890221
    Unavailable
    Metamorphosis: Junior Year
    Author

    Betsy Franco

    Betsy Franco is the author of many books, including Zero Is the Leaves on the Tree and A Dazzling Display of Dogs. She lives in northern California.

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    Reviews for Metamorphosis

    3.5/5

    23 ratings7 reviews

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    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 4/5
      Metamorphosis: Junior Year by Betsy Franco is an interesting graphic novel that contains the thoughts and illustrations of a young man named Ovid. This book is more of a journal that contains Ovid's personal thoughts about his family and friends. He began writing in this journal to escape from the hovering and controlling parents he has and the sadness he feels for his sister. The book is compared to a Greek mythology poetry book written a long time ago by another man named Ovid. In the original poetry novel he tells the stories of different gods and goddess just like Ovid does in the current book only instead of gods and goddess, Ovid uses his friends. This story has no real ending because nothing gets resolved.A teacher could use this book to introduce mythology to children. Since many of the characters are compared to gods and goddess, it is easy to almost take this novel as a modern day Greek novel. I would also introduce different types of poetry that come along with this novel. The poetry in this novel does not rhyme, so it could show children that not everything has to rhyme. I also would use this to introduce graphic novels and show the students that graphic novels are not just pictures. This could enlighten students to more variety of books that could strike their interest.I personally thought this book was more graphic than I expected. Some parts just had too many cuss words for my taste. It was also a very big eye opener for me. I did not know teenagers even struggled such difficult experiences and bad decisions. Overall this book was very interesting, but I do not think that I would use this in my own classroom due to the explicit context. Metamorphosis may have been too extreme, but I did enjoy the comparisons to the Greek gods and the stories. This story was one with great deeper meaning and a good touch of art work. If you can get past the cussing and the harsh situations, I do recommend this book.
    • 3/5
      Metamorphosis is a graphic novel, by Betsy Franco, that focuses on a teenager named Ovid. Although he appears to be a normal high school junior, he is far from it. His school life isn't going so good. In fact, he's failing all of his classes except those in which he gets the opportunity to express himself in -art and science. He expresses himself in his notebook journal where he draws pictures and write poetry about his personal situations as well as his friends' problems and hardships. This book shows that you never know the things that a child may be facing. I consider this a must read for parents and teachers. This novel was definitely an eye opener.
    • 3/5
      Metamorphoses:Junior year by Betsy Franco, is an illustrated book about a young boy's collection of drawings and poems. The main focus of the story is Ovid, one of the protagonist's and narrator of the story. Ovid is a high school student struggling to fit in and not at school but at home with his own parents. Because Ovid's sister, Thena, has set out of on a path of destruction, Ovid's parents tries to do everything in their power to keep the same from happening to him. He, much like Thena, has an artistic gift. He can draw, paint, and write poetry really well. Through his work he captures moments in life that are important to him at the time. He introduces us to his friends and school mates and through this we learn that Ovid is not the only one with heavy problems.The contents of the text are really mature. This book would definitely have to be taught to an older group of high school students. One underlying lesson in the book however, is a history lesson. The text makes many references to Greek mythology with the book in particular being a spin off of Metamorphoses the play; a story of Ovid. The book could be used to teach about the Gods and Goddesses and possibly lessons on morality. Other issues in the book address serious problems that trouble teens everyday. The lessons could be used as example of how to and how not to handle troublesome situations.Personally I thought the book was a bit redundant and I didn't enjoy it much. It seem as if his inner thoughts were taking over the entire plot and at some point as a reader, I was ready for him to just get things off his chest already. The only thing I did enjoy were the poems Ovid wrote to address the issues his friends were dealing with. The way they were written made things interesting because the author didn't just bluntly reveal the problems. She masked them behind the poetry so you got a chance to enjoy the poems while discovering at the same time just what was troubling Ovid's peers. The drawings in the book were good also because although they were hard to understand, they did remind one of someone with a troubled mind. They were very exaggerated and elaborate.
    • 3/5
      Metamorphosis Junior Year is about Ovid, a boy who has family issues, friendship issues, and girl issues. His family is being hard on him because of his drugged out sister, his friends are not who he thinks they are, and he wants to find love. Ovid is writing down his life story in a journal that he has to hide from his parents. He includes pictures and poems in his journal so that we as readers can get a sneak peek of his life. In the end, Ovid realizes that not everyone is who they seem on the outside. Metamorphosis: everyone is constantly changing. If I were to use this book in my classroom, I would have my students read the book, and then come back to class and I would have them in a grand conversation of the book. This would allow other students to get different feedback and responses. Secondly, this book describes some myths and mythology. As a teacher, I could incorporate these ideas for students to write journals or papers on. This could also be used as a introductory lesson. My students could brainstorm what they know about Greek and roman mythology. This book was an easy and quick read. I do not think that I would use this book in my own classroom. This book had lots of foul language and drug references. It did, however, seem like it represented what a child might go through during their middle school or high school years. This book would be good for casual reading, but not for educational or instructional purposes.
    • 3/5
      Franco, B. (2009). Metamorphosis Junior Year. Somerville, MA: Candlewick Press.9780763637651114 pages.Appetizer: During his junior year, Ovid begins reading the myths recorded by his namesake. He begins seeing his own life and friends as characters from Greek myth and he records his observations in illustrations, narratives and poems in his journal. He's also working to express himself in other art forms, like sculpture. And he definitely needs the way to express himself ever since something happened to his sister and Ovid's parents began micromanaging his life.One of my favorite aspects of this novella was Ovid's hopes for getting a girlfriend. Early on he writes that he could use an intervention from the gods. Venus though, because he doesn't trust Cupid (p. 14). Then, after two different people do hit on him in his sculpting class, Ovid figures it is Cupids doing since "by sending me a man and an older woman--'cause he probably got word I was interested in this girl at Lambert" (p. 31). I was entertained.Of course, many of the other references to myth have darker nuances, but that still present issues that will be very relevant to teens. The Icarus-type-girl is getting high too often. The Narcissus-type-guy has a beautiful face, but cuts himself. Another of Ovid's friends has an eating disorder, another has been raped by a family member and on and on. With all the references to myth, I was strongly reminded of the poems in Psyche in a Dress by Francesca Lia Block. In fact, you could probably declare Metamorphosis: Junior Year to be the "guy version."With each chapter averaging two pages, the occasional poem that leaves a lot of space on the page, the illustrations and the fact that the book is only 114 pages, this story is a very quick read. It could also draw in a lot of reluctant teen readers who wouldn't normally give a full novel a chance. But having said that, this novella includes a lot of gaps in the text, things the reader is left to imply and references to Greek myth. Both of these could be discouraging. Personally, I also had trouble keeping all of Ovid's friends straight. I had to make a list of their names and note what their primary problem was to keep them straight. But then, I've always been bad with names.Metamorphosis: Junior Year would be awesome to pair with some of Ovid's myths or The Metamorphosis. And since the book is so short, it's an easy pair. As opposed to Going Bovine with Don Quixote, which together would send most students running.Dinner Conversation:"So here I am in my room with this notebook I got for drawing, and now I'm writing in it, too. In a desperate attempt to retrieve my sanity from the trash. There better be some god of journals and blogs who cares about what I'm saying, or I'm screwed" (p. 3)."Would things be different or better with me now if my parents had given me a normal name? Probably not. My name can't be what's screwing me up, because I've had it my whole life...and it wasn't till the family crisis that I wrote Is life worth living? on the bills in my wallet" (p. 7)."Bottom line, I could really use an intervention from the gods--Venus, to be exact. I don't trust Cupid" (p. 14)."Thena was center stagein her own tragedyof mythical proportionsand I didn't have much of a part to play.I was mostly backstage, wishing, wantingto go back to Act I.Missing her" (p. 42).Tasty Rating: !!!
    • 4/5
      Metamorphosis: Junior Year by Betsy Franco is a combination of drawings, poems, journal entries, and narration. Ovid relates his high school experiences to Roman mythology. Each person in his life becomes a mythological character. Through his poems we learn people's deepest secrets, ones that no one else knows. But Ovid's got a dark secret of his own.I could not put Metamorphosis down. Although it was a short book I was completely taken aback. It was comprised of short journal entries and poems, making it an easy read for middle school students that really do not like to read. Ovid's journal tells of his high school experience, as well as his family life, from an interesting perspective. Ovid is portrayed as a kid with a strong voice, and the writings in his journal writing are undeniable refreshing. Through the very pages of the journal Ovid becomes a real person the students can relate to. His words make you feel as though someone published their high school journey. He's easy to connect with, emotional, raw, honest, and edgy. Ovid's journal tells of his high school experience, he gives the reader a snapshot of his life, as well as the lives of other high school students in a unique way. Ovid also gives each student a separate identity. Other juniors wrestling with their demons include musician Orpheus, obsessed with his girlfriend; incest victim Myrra, trying to find what's left of the girl in her; Alexis, a female Icarus flying too high on weed; and Sophie and Caleb, an internet Psyche and CupidOvid reveals one of his friend's secret with each new poem. Each new poem reveals a different student's background and current going-ons in their life. They have such insight and meaning to them. The pictures were definitely odd, and I had a hard time understanding them, but they add expression throughout the book. With some help from Ovid and his expressiveness, I gained some perspective about the drawings. I can't say that the students will completely understand them, but they will grasp the general idea and I think that's the whole point as a whole. This book is what you make it and that is good for students. Perception plays a large role in reading this book. •I would use this book as a free verse poetry exercise, having my student use their own journal entries as poems.•I would use it to talk about Greek mythology and my love for it and give the students the opportunity to learn a little history.I really liked this book; I found that it is full of honesty that will probably relate to most kids. I think it is a book that will stay with the students for a long time. METAMORPHOSIS: JUNIOR YEAR by author Betsy Franco is a true masterpiece. I could find absolutely nothing wrong with this book. I recommend it to all readers. This one is a must-read.
    • 4/5
      This book told with prose, poetry, and illustrations is the story of high school student Ovid as he breaks away from the mold his family has created for him. He’s still reeling from the disappearance of his sister, who can’t break from her meth addiction long enough to come home. He has a sketch book where he draws strange things that he doesn’t dare put on his bedroom walls, for fear his parents will ask too many questions. In the sanctity of his art class, though, he is encouraged to explore these ideas, and it is through his art and poetry, that Ovid begins to understand his relationships with the people around him, and that he begins to find himself despite the expectations of his strict mother and father. With a beautiful narrative and complimentary art, METAMORPHOSIS: JUNIOR YEAR is both a lovely study in Roman poet Ovid’s original METAMORPHOSES, but also a captivating story all its own.