1. Sophia de
Castro
Reading-Roche
Period 3
May 12,2012

2. oNatasha Friend was born to a English professor (her dad) and a
poet/actress (her mom). In 1972, in a college town in upstate New
York, Natasha was born. She had one sibling (her brother) whom
she dearly loved. Natasha had shown an interest in books by
going to the library. Friend was interested in “The Mature Readers
Only” section. At the age of 10, she received a type writer which
she used to write stories. It was only when she was in her late
twenties that she could sit down and write a novel. Before she
wrote, however, she had been a teacher for five years, but this was
not an experience she had liked. Due to this, she decided to stop
teaching and write. The year Natasha got engaged she wrote
Perfect, and this book won the Milkweed Prize for Children’s
Literature. Natasha than had a child (Jack). She then wrote the
book Lush. Friend than had another child (Ben). Following this,
Natasha wrote Bounce. Then she has her third child, Emma.
Natasha likes to be a writer and a mom. Natasha Friend likes to
wake up in the morning and do what she loves to do which is write.
http://www.natashafriend.com/
author_bio.html

3. oThe book Bounce is about a 13 year old girl, Evyn, whose life has just begun
to be perfect… Until Birdie (her father) tells her he is getting married. Evyn has
already experienced her mom passing away and does not want a step-mom,
but she wants her dad to be happy. When she moves in with Eleni (her step-
mom), she finds out that Eleni has six kids, who are Linus, Thalia, Clio,
Cassandra (Cassie), Ajax, and Phoebe. Evyn then has to go to the March
School for girls where she only makes friends because they want to know more
about her brother, Ajax. Meanwhile her brother, Mackey, is getting a new start
at school and even has a lead role in a play! In school, Evyn has a hard time
trying to find real friends (even her own best friend betrays her). Just as things
are starting to get better, bad things start to happen. First, her dog that she
loves passes away. Then she is told at a family meeting that Eleni and her
father are having a baby. Evyn just can not handle this and runs away to the
train station, hoping to be able to stay at her friend’s house in Maine. Right
before the train doors close, Evyn hops out and rests on a nearby bench. Then
she hears a familiar voice, Linus, who tells the family he found her and then
takes Evyn to his dorm. It is about time for Mackey’s show to start, but will he
be able to sing? Does Evyn find true friends? Does her best friend become
loyal to her again? Will Evyn truly adjust to her new family situation? What will
happen next? Read more to find out.

4. oMain Characters
1. Evyn Linney: narrator of the novel, 13 years old, female, sister of Mackey,
close to her friend Jules and her dad, attends March School for girls, and she
has brown short hair.
2. Birdie Linney: father of Evyn and Mackey, husband of Eleni, male, comforting
and caring, has a beard, big glasses, and wears dirty overalls.
3. Eleni Gartos: mother of six kids, wife of Birdie, good cook, female, short and
has head full of black curls.
4. Mackey Linney: brother of Evyn, male, teenager, addicted to computer and
video games, his face is red and has a lot of pimples.
o Supporting Characters
1. Linus Gartos : oldest, twenty, caring, in college, male.
2. Thalia Gartos : second oldest, kind of looks like mom, teenager, nice, female,
likes to sew, in college, responsible sibling.
3. Clio Gartos : third oldest, teenager, twin of Cassandra, popular, loves sister,
female, loves fashion.
4. Cassie Gartos : third oldest, teenager twin of Clio, female, popular, loves
fashion, loves sister.
5. Ajax Gartos : second youngest, teenager, plays soccer, athletic, popular,
male.
6. Phoebe Gartos : youngest, caring, loving, loves animals, typical eight year old.

5. oIntroduction
• Meet Evyn Linney, Mackey Linney, and Birdie Linney, Eleni Gartos, Linus
Gartos, Thalia Gartos, Clio Gartos, Cassie Gartos, Ajax Gartos, and Phoebe
Gartos
•Setting: Beginning: In a neighborhood in Maine, Middle and End: In a
neighborhood in Boston and in March School for girls.
oRising Action
•Birdie tells Evyn and Mackey that they are moving to Boston
•They pack and leave to go to Eleni’s house
•They meet Eleni’s kids
•Mackey and Evyn learn what school they go to
•Birdie and Eleni get married
•Mackey tries out for a play and gets the lead
•Evyn meets the “it girls” who adopt her
•Evyn finds out that she is only hanging out with the “it girls” because they are
using her to find out who her brother, Ajax, likes
•The March School for girls and the Thorne Fall School for boys have a dance
•At the dance Ajax asks a girl to dance that is not one of the “it girls”
•The “it girls” get mad at Evyn for saying that Ajax likes Andrea ( the “it girls”
leader)
•Evyn find a group of girls to hang out with that are actually nice
•Birdie and Eleni get home from their honeymoon

6. oClimax
•Birdie and Eleni tell the family that they are having a baby
•Clam, Evyn’s dog, passes away
•Evyn runs away to the train station because it is to much bad news
at once
Falling Action
•Linus finds Evyn at the train station
•Linus takes her to his dorm
•Evyn and Jules(her friend) start talking and catching up
•Evyn and Eleni go to a Mother-Daughter Tea
•Evyn and Eleni go to eat hamburgers
•They talk about personal things and form a bond
oConclusion
•Jules comes from Maine to see Mackey’s play
•Mackey starts to perform

7. 1. Cruller- n. a small sweet cake in the form of a twisted strip fried in deep fat
“Put that back. Do you know how many fat grams are in a cruller?” p.169
2. Dilemma- n. an argument presenting two or more equally conclusive
alternatives against an opponent.
“All around me, girls nod. They understand this dilemma.” p. 77
3. Gnarled- v. crabbed in disposition, aspect, or character
“She smiles at me, kindly, like a queen might smile at her gnarled, hunch-
backed lady-in-waiting.” p.77
4. Slob- n. a slovenly or boorish person
“Get your hair out of your face. Right now. You look like a slob.” p. 169
5. Bruiser- n. a big husky man
“This baby is going to be a bruiser.” p. 185

8. oEvyn Linney played by: Chloe Mortez
oBirdie Linney played by: Jon Hamm

9. oEleni Gartos played by: Angel Coulby
oMackey Linney played by: Daniel Radcliffe

10. oLinus Gartos played by: Brody Jenner
oThalia Gartos played by: Alexa Vega

11. oCassy Gartos played by: Mary-Kate Olsen
oClio Gartos played by: Ashley Olsen

12. oAjax Gartos played by: Taylor Lautner
oPhoebe Gartos played by: Joey King

13. oI choose this song because it has to do with how Evyn misses her mom, best friend, and home.
“A Year Without Rain” by Selena Gomez
Can you feel me when I think about you?
With every breath I take
Every minute, no matter what I do
My world is an empty place
Like I've been wondering the desert
For a thousand days
Don't know if it's a mirage
But I always see your face, baby
I'm missing you so much
Can't help it, I'm in love
A day without you is like a year without rain
I need you by my side
Don't know how I'll survive
A day without you is like a year without rain
The stars are burning
I hear your voice in my mind
Can't you hear me calling
My heart is yearning
Like the ocean that's running dry
Catch me I'm falling

14. I gave Bounce rating of…
4 out of 5 stars
The book was very good in describing the settings and
giving you a feel like you are the main character.
Another good quality is that the people and places were
very realistic. One negative thing is that the book
Bounce was very depressing at the beginning, but at the
end, all of the main characters problems were solved.
Another issue is that the vocabulary terms were very
basic so it was hard to find new terms. However, the
book overall was very good.