The Unofficial Addiction Book Fan Club: FFBC: Welcome to the Club, This Ordinary Life by Jennifer Walkup

This Ordinary Life
by Jennifer Walkup
Publisher: Luminis Books, Inc.
Release Date: October 1st 2015

Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance, Realistic Fiction

Synopsis:

Sometimes Hope is the Most Extraordinary Gift of All.

High-school radio host Jasmine Torres's life is full of family dysfunction, but if she can score the internship of her dreams with a New York City radio station, she knows she can turn things around.

That is, until her brother Danny’s latest seizure forces her to miss the interview, and she’s back to the endless loop of missing school for his doctor appointments, picking up the pieces of her mother’s booze-soaked life, and stressing about Danny’s future.

Then she meets Wes. He’s the perfect combination of smart, cute, and funny. He also happens to have epilepsy like her brother. Wes is living a normal life despite his medical issues, which gives Jasmine hope for Danny. But memories of her cheating ex-boyfriend keep her from going on a real date with Wes, no matter how many times he asks her.

Jasmine can’t control everything. Not who wins the internship, not her mother’s addiction, not her brother’s health--not even where her heart will lead her. She wishes she could just have an ordinary life, but maybe what she already has is pretty extraordinary after all.

This is so hard to answer, it probably changes on a weekly/daily basis, but one that stands out over the last few years would definitely be THE BOOK THIEF. Such a gorgeous, special, book.

It hasn’t been on in years, but I loved SIX FEET UNDER. Also, do cartoons count? Even as an adult, I still love cartoons.

Dirty Dancing or Empire Records

Oh wow, that’s impossible! No way I can pick just one. Most likely it would be something by Red Hot Chili Peppers .:)

I love all food, but Puerto Rican and Cuban food are hands down my favorite. Also, French fries are my kryptonite.

Wonderland, Narnia, Halloweentown

“When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace.”

Good music (especially live) and meeting authors I admire.

First of all, thank you so, so much for having me on your blog! This has been a lot of fun! Your blog is really great. Keep on reading and talking about books!

Hello Jennifer! We are super excited to have you in our FFBC tours.

The short version:

A teen with big dreams of making it in radio, struggles to hold her family together while dealing with her brother's epilepsy, her mother's alcoholism, and her own broken heart.

The back cover copy (long version):

High-school radio host Jasmine Torres's life is full of family dysfunction, but if she can score the internship of her dreams with a New York City radio station, she knows she can turn things around.

That is, until her brother Danny's latest seizure forces her to miss the interview, and she's back to the endless loop of missing school for his doctor appointments, picking up the pieces of her mother's booze-soaked life, and stressing about Danny's future.

Then she meets Wes. He's the perfect combination of smart, cute, and funny. He also happens to have epilepsy like her brother. Wes is living a normal life despite his medical issues, which gives Jasmine hope for Danny. But memories of her cheating ex-boyfriend keep Jasmine from going on a real date with Wes, no matter how many times he asks her.

Jasmine can't control everything, not who wins the internship, not her mother's addiction, not her brother's health, not even where her heart will lead her. She wishes she could just have an ordinary life, but Jasmine may just discover that what she already has is pretty extraordinary after all.

Jasmine is strong but vulnerable. No matter what life throws at her, she jumps back up and keeps fighting. She’s smart and determined, works really hard, and cares so much about those around her. The happiest Jasmine feels is when she’s broadcasting from the school radio station. Her big dream is to be a morning DJ on a NYC radio show and she’s on her way to making it.

Comic-book loving Danny is Jasmine’s kid brother, but smarter and more capable than his family gives him credit for. He’s had it tough – his mom isn’t really much of a mom, his dad left years ago, and his epilepsy keeps interrupting his life. But his big sister Jasmine is everything to him, even if he wishes she would back off a little – he’s growing up, after all.

Wes is hilarious and sweet, always more interested in cracking a joke than talking about something serious. He loves airplanes and has always dreamed of being a pilot. He’s also had epilepsy since he was a kid, but as a graduating senior, he can’t stand the way his mom babies him about it. Wes is strong and caring and a little confused about his future. He’s pretty crazy about Jasmine, though.

Like most of my stories, I started with just a kernel of an idea about my main character. Jasmine came to me first – a strong main character who loves working at her school radio station and works hard for her ultimate dream - to be a real radio DJ someday. But I knew she’d have struggles – a cheating ex boyfriend, an alcoholic mother, an absent father. Her brother’s epilepsy was also central to her character. I wanted at least one character who was struggling with epilepsy. And then Wes, with similar struggles, naturally entered the story. He was a fun character and took the story in directions I hadn’t originally planned.

“It’s probably not even perceptible to a normal person, but to obsessive analyzing old me, I watch the centimeters between us like the secrets of the universe are lingering there, just waiting to get pressed between us.”

There were a few scenes that were really fun. Wes was a fun character for me, and when he’s trying to win Jasmine over, he sometimes tries a little too hard. It was endearing, but also pretty giggle-worthy at times.

Jasmine: Victoria Justice

Wes: Alex Pettyfer

Mom: Debra Messing

Frankie: Ariana Grande

Ms. Hudson: Julia Louis Dreyfus

Sebastian: Luke Bilyk

Danny: Xolo Mariduena

Ice cream! (Those that read the book will get the reference) :)

Epilepsy is a topic that is near and dear to my heart and my family, as a few members of my family suffer from the disorder. I wanted to write a book that shows a little bit more about epilepsy, but even more importantly, a book that shows that these characters having epilepsy is secondary to them just being regular teens who like to do teen stuff. Epilepsy is a part of their life, but certainly not what defines them.

I’m working on a few different projects – all YA contemporary. My favorite at the moment is a summer YA where an unlikely duo teams up and tries to lose their real-life fears and worries in one crazy-fun and insightful summer at the beach.

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Award-winning author Jennifer Walkup is most often found writing, reading, and spending time with her husband and young sons. A member of SCBWI and RWA, Jennifer also works as an editor and creative writing instructor, and is an advocate for Epilepsy awareness. This Ordinary Life is her second novel.