I love books about body swapping and I'm going to be talking about a book
that I recently read entitled "Where I end and You Begin." So stick around to see what it's all about.
Hey friends! Roger here. And welcome to my channel Roger's Reads.
First off, I'll mention that I love the body-swapping trope.
And some of my favorite films include Freaky Friday, Big, 18 Again, Vice Versa, 17 Again and the like.
Now I've read a few body-swapping books and you know, my experience has shown
that this trope doesn't translate all that well to the written page. Body Swapping noves in book
often end up being frustrating and confusing so though I was intrigued by the premise of this book,
And the synopsis sound compelling, I was also a little bit hesitant.
But..I needn't have been because the author managed to pull it off quite swimmingly here.
So the story follows a somewhat shy young man named Ezra Slevin who is obsessed with a girl named Imogen.
And is working up the courage to ask her to the prom.
Now the only problem here is Imogen's overly protective best friend Winona -- a loud and annoying girl
Who has made Ezra's life miserable for as long as he can remember.
And she seems to derive enjoyment from tormenting him whenever possible.
So on the night of the total solar eclipse, something weird happens to Ezra and Winona.
They wake up in each other's body.
But what's especially strange -- if that wan't strange enough --
is that they both begin randomly swapping back and forth every day.
To make things even more interesting, Ezra learns that Winona has a crush on his best friend Holden.
So the two enemies are forced to come together to form an alliance
as they need to pretend to be the person whose body they're inhabiting.
They also agree to help each other with their crush.
So Ezra will help Wynona with Holden and Wynona will help Ezra with Imogen.
...with body swapping adding in all sorts of additional hilarious complications.
[hysterial laughter]
There's also the problem of the play that all four of them are in a rendition of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night.
in which a bit of gender-swapping is part of the story.
But what's comical here is the whole issue of learning your lines and being expected to perform
while in the wrong body, and having no idea that once it comes time to perform, `
which body you're going to be in.
So the entire novel is told through Ezra's perspective, which helps to keep track of the body swapping.
Also helpful is that when Wynona is in Ezra's body, he refers to her as "Wynezra."
which is super helpful in keeping everyone straight.
I actually was never overwhelmed or confused by the swapping and was actually delighted
when the author turned up the tension a couple of notches by throwing in themes of a
gender fluidity and homosexuality into the works.
This additional complexity worked well in this story especially as various characters developed feelings for each other.
And I thought that this added to the richness and the depth of an already gripping plot.
What especially worked for me with this book was the hilarity that would ensue
if you found yourself in the body of not only someone of the opposite gender,
but of someone whose personality is night and day different from yours.
Oh....and all of this taking place while in high school.
There are so many laugh-out-loud moments in this book
and I thought it was so much fun to go on this journey with Ezra and Wynona
as they struggled to figure out how to live in each other's bodies and navigate the challenges
associated with the other person's sex and personality.
I thought it was interesting how the story follows Ezra but is still able to give
a more in-depth look inside of Wynona's life though Ezra swapping bodies with her.
Likewise, it gave Wynona a deeper peak into Ezra's life
with each of the developing more empathy and understanding for the other....
for the other person's issues and baggage in the process.
So that being said, this is a story about how both people managed to find new wisdom
by being in the other person's shoes. I like how this story teaches empathy and understanding
And by using body swap as a tool, the author gets to show the world though the other person's eyes
resulting in a comedic contemporary with a heartfelt emotional relationship between two people
who couldn't be more different.
It also succeeded in illustrating how we cannot judge or make assumptions about others
based solely on outward appearances. And the author provides the means of
exploring one's own preconceived notions about others without being preachy in the process.
I also loved how the author dealt with sexuality in such a unique and interesting way...
A way that I haven't come across before in a novel.
So this book is a new twist on body swaps and with it come themes of sexual preference,
gender fluidity and figuring out who you really want to be.
There are also themes of family, friendship, forgiveness, grief and self-acceptance,
that rendered this quite a serious novel as well.
What worked nicely for me was how Wynona and Ezra learned to be their authentic
and best self at the end of the day.
You know, I liked how real and authentic these characters felt to me.
The author gives us real teenagers with real problems.
And in so doing, provides us with a cast of flawed, lonely, impulsive and quirky individuals that are total relatable.
Where I End and You Begin is as inventive as it is moving and ended up being a beautifully
rendered story of attraction, sexuality, family, friendship and love.
It's clever, engaging and a wildly entertaining read and I thought that the author
did an excellent job of brining these characters to life.
and allowing them to thrive in all their complexity.
So all in all, it's a lovely, subtle thought-provoking blow-me-away kind of book
that I'm still mulling over. So yeah, needless to say, I loved it.
And that about does it. As always, I wanna than you so much for watching.
I really appreciate all of your support. And if you liked this video, I'd appreciate it if you'd click the Like button below
as that helps my channel out. And also, if you'd like to be notified when I release new videos,
click the subscribe button and then click the bell icon.
And that about does it. I'll talk to you in the next video. Roger and out!
