Passing through the transition hallway at South Park High School was as mundane a task as passing along a text message. But not for Jackson Wolf and James McDougal. Bullies randomly target them, a fight ensues and suspensions are handed down. After school, Jackson is indifferent to McDougal’s overtures of friendship until the whiz-kid proposes they jam the security cameras of a local drug store … store with his iPhone and steal some beer. From there the two fringe boys, biracial Jackson and undersized McDougal, become fast friends. Together they combat the bullies, their alcoholic fathers and bond over the beautiful—Syd and Lexi, indie music and extreme biking. But as the boys grow in strength people start to exit from Jackson’s life, leading to him to question his choices and believe forces in the universe are conspiring against him. With the help of McDougal and the stunningly competent Jessica Lee, Jackson learns that he must draw on his own power and goodness as he confronts the possibility of his greatest loss yet.
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Leaving Jackson Wolf by P. A. Kane is a five star novel. Teenage angst runs rampant in this book and this is my guilty pleasure. I love young adult novels and actually prefer them. I was also drawn to this novel because of the intriguing cover. I don’t know what it is exactly but as soon as I saw the cover, I knew I needed to read this novel. I didn’t look at the synopsis or any reviews or anything before picking it up. I was right in knowing I needed to read this book. Jackson is a teenage boy with a love interest and trouble at school. As we get to know more about him, we find out about his mom leaving and his dad being a bully. No wonder Jackson tries standing up for his classmates who are being bullied. As the book progresses, Jackson and his friends navigate their lives and try to make themselves better people than the crappy role models they have had in the past.
Leaving Jackson Wolf by P.A. Kane. This is a new to me author and I truly enjoyed this book. This is a coming of age book. Jackson and McDougal bond over a lot of negative things they have in common: bullies, being social outcasts and they both have drunks as fathers. All Jackson is trying to do is figure out his place in life.
This book will have you turning the pages unbelievably fast, trying to see what happens next. You are guaranteed to love this book and get choked up along the way. I can not wait to see what this author has up his sleeve next.
Leaving Jackson Wolf is the first book I have read by P.A. Kane. I would definitely read more, because I really enjoyed this story. It is short, but has so much deep content. It is a coming of age story, but with more intense content. It is the story of Jackson Wolf and James McDougal, two teenage boys who started a friendship over being bullied. During the story, other teens are introduced, and they each seem to bond over their drunk fathers and rough lives. Jackson is biracial and his mom split when he was young, and he is left with an alcoholic, abusive father. James is scrawny and smart, so bullied for being a nerd. They soon become each others shoulder to lean on while they both go through some rough times, including breakups and losses of friendships and family members. Jackson learns to find strength in the strangest of places and what started as a chance, and reluctant encounter, was the change in his life he needed.
Leaving Jackson Wolf by P. A. Kane
4-stars
This coming of age novel follows a young Jackson Wolf. He has several incidents that allow him to view life differently. He was a great main character and I really enjoyed following his story. It took me a little bit to get into the story but once I did it was hard to put down. Good book!
Leaving Jackson Wolf by P.A. Kane
Four Stars
Leaving Jackson Wolf is a new coming of age/YA book by P.A. Kane. This is the first book I have read by P.A. Kane, and I love the powerful writing style emotional issues this author tackled in this story. This book deals with bullying, emotional abuse, and racial issues. This book follow Jackson Wolf and James McDougal, two boy that form an unlikely friendship when they are bullied in school. The boys find they have more in common, and bond through the hard times they find themselves in both in school and at home. The author brings up difficult issues, and does a great job letting readers feel the emotions running through these characters. I really enjoyed this story and would highly recommend it to everyone looking for a short emotional read. I look forward to reading more books from P.A. Kane.
Leaving Jackson Wolf is a brilliantly YA Coming of Age book by P.A. Kane. Kane is a new author to my list of authors. He has an amazing way of telling a story, He brings you into the story from the very first page until the last page. It seems to me that there are many Coming of Age stories and most of what I had read is about a girl/woman. Now that does not mean there aren’t any about boy/man but I have not found many of them. This story makes you think about things you may know about teenage boy/male struggles. Kane provides this insight and I am thankful he did write this book. This story was breath taking, tearful, and emotional. I would recommend reading this story with a box of tissues because you maybe surprise how a teenage boy sees the world.
This book was a heck of a ride. I will warn you now there is no fairy tales here, no reminiscing over happy childhoods and not fond memories to be had really. One thing I can be sure of is P.A. Kane sure can write one emotive coming of age novel sure to well remembered by me for a long time to come.
There are some difficult situations dealt with in the novel, from abuse to alcoholic parents, which also leads to emotional abuse which in my opinion is just as bad as physical abuse. As much as I hate attaching a warning label to a novel (I really think everyone should go into books with an open mind it could be exactly what you need.) I am going to say this even had some moments where I was struck in the feels and things touched some chords. Just keep in mind if you have some lurking substance abuse in your family history this could be a bit of a touchy novel for you to read.
This is the coming of age story about Jackson Wolf. His life is far from easy, actually it’s a nightmare and I was crying for this boy more often than not while reading this. We follow him and his new friend James McDougal as they attempt to steer through a world that makes very little sense and they are doing it the best they know how considering the role models that they have had. I really enjoyed each of their personalities and the way they managed to get through things, even when they are not very good. This is definitely not one you want to miss, especially if you love coming of age and emotional reads. I can’t wait to check out more of P.A. Kane’s work.
Leaving Jackson Wolf was a great coming of age 5 star read.
Jackson and McDougal meet when they end up colliding with each other in school. McDougal is small for his age and was being bullied, the same ogre also turned on Jackson and needless to say he ended up suspended for 5 days. These two end up stealing some beer and getting to know each other a little more.This is also when they meet Lexi.
These two boys unexpectedly start to bond. As I learned more about Jackson my heart broke for the home life he had with his dad. I’m glad he had his grandma. As the story moves forward, these two face quite a few tough subjects.
I loved this story of strength and finding acceptance. My emotions were all over the place. Once I started I couldn’t stop reading. P.A. Kane does a great job of pulling you in with his writing. You connect with the characters and can feel what they are. This was my first read from P.A. Kane and I look forward to reading more from him.
Leaving Jackson Wolf by P.A. Kane is a brilliant coming of age novel. This if the first book I have read by this author and I am blown away by how amazing it was. It is a unique story of two young boys, friends to only each other, on the outskirts of the teenage society. This novel really explores what their life is like and true troubles they have to face in a daily basis.
Everything about this book is the two characters. It is entirely their story being told. The author really goes into them in great depth, without really any distractions from the story or other characters.
He really knows how to grab your attention as well. The blurb is purposely vague and doesn’t really give away what to expect. It does nothing to prepare you for how deeply you will get sucked into this novel. A brilliant story, one I will be thinking about for a long time.
Leaving Jackson Wolf is a young adult novel by P.A. Kane about a teenage boy coming of age. This is a genre that I very seldom read but was intrigued by the blurb and decided to give this novel a try. I must add that I’m so glad I did. I really enjoyed this story.
Jackson Wolf is a biracial (Black mother and white father) teenage boy growing up in a predominantly white area. His mother walked out years ago leaving Jackson with his alcoholic father Mickey. Let’s just say that Mickey will not be winning any Father Of The Year awards. Mickey is violent towards Jackson and can often be racist towards his son.
I really found Jackson to be a very inspiring young man. He’s had a really crappy start to life but he has a really wise head on his shoulders and has a fantastic outlook on life. His growing friendship with James McDougal, who has been the object of many school bullies is a very large part of this story and I loved reading about their friendship and how they both grew to rely on each other and supported each other through some very hard times. When the 2 boys first interacted with one another, you would never have guessed that they would become firm best friends.
This is a really heart-warming read about coming of age and I’m really glad I stepped away from my usual tried and trusted genres and gave this book a chance.
Leaving Jackson Wolf
By P.A. Kane
4 stars
I have to admit this book totally took me by surprise – the blurb I thought was quite vague and the cover doesn’t reveal much at all so going into it I had no preconceived ideas about what was going to happen and what I got was a fantastic story that I couldn’t put down until I had finished. The author told a really powerful story and I liked that it was through the eyes of a teenage boy and I think this may be a first for me. I have read many coming of age stories but the main character is usually a girl and the stories can be a little predictable but this one wasn’t at all. I could tell that the author had really thought about what he was writing – there weren’t a vast amount of characters in the story which made it feel more of an intimate read and I felt like I got to know them all really well. This is my first read by this author and I know that it won’t be the last; he has truly captured my attention with his engaging writing style and attention to detail with his characters.
A great YA/Coming of Age book that I would 100% recommend!
Leaving Jackson Wolf By P.A. Kane
Four Stars
I’m seriously scared to have teenage boys now after reading this. I didn’t I could be more freaked out about my kids growing up. The author put this in a male POV and it was an eye opener. I have read plenty of books were the male is lead. But this is a teenage boy. There thought process is so weird and dangerous. They bond over the craziest moments. Jackson was low key nerdy. He was also adorable. I felt he learned and grew a lot throughout the story. Everyone that came and left his life had a purpose in being there. This was a good story that shows a kid going through life and making all the mistakes we make as kids. This was my first book by this author and definitely not my last.
Leaving Jackson Wolf is a pretty serious story about a high school boy going through some pretty life-changing moments. Some were bigger than others, but that time in high school, the people you are surrounded with, the way you view yourself and the world? There’s just so much going on, and it affects who you become as an adult. This was also pretty political, a modern day snapshot of how things are for our youth and how the adult decisions affect them. I found this enjoyable, emotional, and interesting.
Leaving Jackson Wolf by P.A Kane is a Young Adult coming of age story that is thought provoking and at times it was both heart wrenching and heartwarming with social issues and strong bonds of friendships. It is about a young man trying to come to terms with is ethnicity and where he fits both at home and in the world. It is a powerful and emotional read and one that you won’t be able to stop until it ends. P.A has done a good job at writing a story that will leave you a little raw as you take the journey in to a world that shows the best and the worst of human nature. I look forward to reading more from Mr. Kane.
Leaving Jackson Wolf by P.A. Kane a four-star read you won’t want to leave. This was a powerful and great story, but there was just something I couldn’t put my finger on that stopped me giving five-stars. The coming of age aspect and power that shines through this story are great, Jackson Wolf and James McDougal both show us a different aspect of life today, the struggles they face will astound you. The storytelling is second to none, the author has such a great flow and will surprise you no end.
Leaving Jackson Wolf by P.A Kane
4 Stars
This is not the type of book that I usually read but I decided to step out of my comfort zone a little. I’m glad that I did, this was a poignant story. On the surface it is a story about two teens who are bullied that become friends but it is so much more. It is a story about a friendship that grew from unlikely circumstances, about growing up and discovering the person you are and the person that you want to be. It is about facing harsh realities and overcoming them. It is about becoming stronger through adversity. It is about the bonds that tie people together.
I think that the book was well written and speaks volumes. It is my first book that I have read from this author and I will definitely be looking for more.
Leaving Jackson Wolf By P. A. Kane. While not my typical read I did enjoy this coming of age story that made me think about my own life a little. This is my first book by this author and I’m glad I picked it up. Like I said it was a bit different for me but it had me intrigued from page one. With its relatable characters and well written storyline it’s one you shouldn’t miss out on. There’s definitely hard times and situations faced in this story but the author writes about them well. If you’re looking for something a bit different and unique pick this book for sure. I’ll definitely be looking into this author again.
This coming of age story kept me engaged from beginning to end. I enjoyed the plot and characters and felt the author did a thorough job establishing each piece in rich detail. This story is one of discovery. This motional roller coaster ride did a noteworthy job tackling tough and relatable YA subjects that included bullying. This book and its subject felt very real, very true, and highly relatable, no matter the reader’s stage of life. I highly recommend reading this book.
Leaving Jackson Wolf by P. A. Kane. This is a young adult book that is so emotional and good. Its the story of Jackson Wolf and James McDougal who are both bullied at school. They get suspended together and after James keeps at Jackson he gives in and they become great friends. They love bikes, girls and music and they learn about both together. They both have alcoholic fathers and they bond over that as well. As time goes on and they both grow in strength, Jackson begins to lose people in his life and he’s wondering if something is out to get him. He ends up facing his greatest loss ever and he doesn’t know if he can handle it and if its all worth it. This is a great coming of age story that a lot of people can relate to. I truly enjoyed this book.
Leaving Jackson Wolf
By P.A. Kane
Rated 3 stars
This is a tough read for me. I really wanted to like it. The story is a good one and I like the theme running through it. McDougal has the wondrous ability and eases most people. He is sneaky in how he get under your defenses. Then you realize how great of a guy he is. Jackson, who I thought was a troubled youth, was really a good guy who surprised me more than once. He has teenage struggles as well as life struggles. The storyline moved forward slowly at times (all song titles) and other times moved along at a good pace.
This is a first time author for me. As previously stated I really struggled with this story keeping my interest. Probably since this is mostly narrative (thinking inside their heads) and bits of dialogue. I am a fan of more dialogue with active movement. This story was good the characters really grew on me as I read.