Amy & Roger's Epic Detour by Morgan Matson - MiniView

Synopsis via Simon & Schuster:

Amy Curry thinks her life sucks. Her mom decides to move from California to Connecticut to start anew--just in time for Amy's senior year. Her dad recently died in a car accident. So Amy embarks on a road trip to escape from it all, driving cross-country from the home she's always known toward her new life. Joining Amy on the road trip is Roger, the son of Amy's mother's old friend. Amy hasn’t seen him in years, and she is less than thrilled to be driving across the country with a guy she barely knows. So she's surprised to find that she is developing a crush on him. At the same time, she’s coming to terms with her father’s death and how to put her own life back together after the accident. Told in traditional narrative as well as scraps from the road--diner napkins, motel receipts, postcards--this is the story of one girl's journey to find herself.

Tonight, honestly I just wanted to sleep – all day, I was not feeling well, but  then I started, Amy & Roger's Epic Detour, and I could not stop! I just kept reading and reading, being drawn into the story of Amy's life further and further....

And then the end, with books like these – coming of age, beautifully crafted stories – I love, I pray, I root for the characters – then the end comes and while the characters are feeling uplifted, I am left feeling alone, and sad...why authors why do you do this to us? I loved the ending, in all honesty, Amy really comes into herself, grows and...really it's epic and beautiful...but just when it's ending, it's starting and I WANT MORE – darn it!

Anyway, this is a MiniView because honestly my feelings are crazy – it's 3:30 AM and, I can't even attempt to fall asleep until I get something about this one down! I loved it, I laughed, cried and really I wanted more! Don't get me wrong, the story is complete, and it's told beautifully – I just feel like I get to the end and I just WANT more...not, even sure that's possible with a book like this, with it's elegant words, and extremely real characters...

I felt tied to Amy, in a strange way, which I honestly can't talk about...but it hit home with me, in an oddly, weird yet painfully, amazing way! I am SO glad I picked this one up the other day while at Borders, it's insanely good!

If you took sweet, endearing, loveable, characters, wrapped them into a unique and original story, then tied it up with a hint of love, a dash of laughter, and a swirl of sweetness, not to mention a huge side dish of music and photos that just added to the “realness” – that's what Amy & Roger's Epic Detour would be...for me, it IS an Epic Detour, from our daily lives, reminding us to treasure the times we have always – though we tend to forget rather quickly!

Bottom Line – if your looking for a book that's about coming of age, told in an extremely beautiful and unique way Amy & Roger's Epic Detour is for you...it's got a little bit of everything, including some KICK BUTT music selections! I laughed a little, cried a little, and in the end was so wrapped up in Amy's story I could not sleep and did not want it to end! Sitting here at 3:30 this morning, I still cant, because I am still thinking about Amy, her life and her loves! I am hoping that now that I got a bit of my feelings out I can sleep a bit...wish me luck. I give Amy & Roger's Epic Detour a 5 mushrooms and am so excited to see or read ANYTHING else that Morgan Matson writes, because she's stellar in my book!

Oh and a note about the cover...it's perfect as well as heart stoppingly beautiful!

Amy & Roger's Epic Detour
By: Morgan Matson
352 Pages
Published: May 2010
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Received via my own cash via Borders.