Before You Go by James Preller

by:  James Preller
published by:  Feiwal + Friends
publish date:  July 17, 2012

The summer before his senior year, Jude (yes, he’s named after the Beatles song) gets his first job, falls in love for the first time, and starts to break away from his parents. Jude’s house is kept dark, and no one talks much—it’s been that way since his little sister drowned in a swimming pool seven years ago when Jude was supposed to be watching her.
This book was going to be a DNF but some kind of morbid curiosity kept me reading.  The book opens with a fatal car crash.  That was the only thing that kept me reading.  I wanted to know who died.  The result was a bit of a let down.

The biggest thing I didn't like about this book was all the pop culture references.  Some here and there are ok, it gives a book a time and place, but I felt like this book had too many and would probably make it feel too dated too quickly.  Plus, I didn't get half of them which made me feel like I was that loser that wasn't in on the joke.

In the end, I just didn't really get what the book was supposed to be about.  It wasn't really about closure over his sister's death.  It wasn't really about the wreck.  Jude was just sorta hanging around throughout the book.  The whole mood of the book was sort of moody and glum.  It just wasn't really my thing I guess.  Maybe angsty teens will like it more.