The Improbable Theory of Ana and Zak
Brian Katcher
The Improbable Theory of Ana and Zak is Stonewall Book Award-winning author Brian Katcher’s hilarious he said/she said romance about two teens recovering from heartbreak and discovering themselves on an out-of-this-world accidental first date.
It all begins when Ana Watson's little brother, Clayton, secretly ditches the quiz bowl semifinals to go to the Washingcon sci-fi convention on what should have been a normal, résumé-building school trip.
If slacker Zak Duquette hadn't talked up the geek fan fest so much, maybe Clayton wouldn't have broken nearly every school rule or jeopardized Ana’s last shot at freedom from her uptight parents.
Now, teaming up with Duquette is the only way for Ana to chase down Clayton in the sea of orcs, zombies, bikini-clad princesses, Trekkies, and Smurfs. After all, one does not simply walk into Washingcon.
But in spite of Zak's devil-may-care attitude, he has his own reasons for being as lost as Ana-and Ana may have more in common with him than she thinks. Ana and Zak certainly don’t expect the long crazy night, which begins as a nerdfighter manhunt, to transform into so much more…
It all begins when Ana Watson's little brother, Clayton, secretly ditches the quiz bowl semifinals to go to the Washingcon sci-fi convention on what should have been a normal, résumé-building school trip.
If slacker Zak Duquette hadn't talked up the geek fan fest so much, maybe Clayton wouldn't have broken nearly every school rule or jeopardized Ana’s last shot at freedom from her uptight parents.
Now, teaming up with Duquette is the only way for Ana to chase down Clayton in the sea of orcs, zombies, bikini-clad princesses, Trekkies, and Smurfs. After all, one does not simply walk into Washingcon.
But in spite of Zak's devil-may-care attitude, he has his own reasons for being as lost as Ana-and Ana may have more in common with him than she thinks. Ana and Zak certainly don’t expect the long crazy night, which begins as a nerdfighter manhunt, to transform into so much more…
I first want to rant about the cover. When we are introduced to the main characters we of course receive a few sentences in regards to their physical description. I am here to say loud and clear that Ana is NOT blonde, as it shows in the cover. She is very much a brunette and the discrepancy between Ana on the cover and Ana in the book annoyed the hell out of me every time the author wrote about the character's physical traits (which was quite a lot, actually). It's a shame, really, because that ruined the cover for me. It's not cute for me anymore. Not that it affects my review or anything, but it's very upsetting and I wanted to get that out there (I know it's not in the author's hands due to the book being a part of a publishing house).
Aaaanyway, let's grill this book.
So we meet our two main characters, each of them being on the opposite end of the social spectrum. You have the geeky boy and then you have the straight-As girl. While this arrangement is very typical, I realized something. As you read the story, you learn that Zak is the one who's outgoing. He's the one that knows a countless amount of people and when he walks into his all-time favorite convention, he practically owns the place. Ana on the other hand is quite and reserved. Yeah, she's ultimately the perfect girl in the eyes of parents and students alike, but no one tries to interact with her because she simply does not respond well to it. SHE'S the one who is secluded rather than Zak, which is kind of breaking the social labels each of them are under. It kind of makes you think. Katcher could be doing so many things here, like showing how a stereotype/label is not always true. Hmmm... Interesting play on the characters.
The story itself is appealing. It definitely wasn't one that made me read in one sitting, but it was very well enjoyable. Every time I put it down, I did not make an excuse to not pick it back up (hooraaaayy~!) and started to read as if I never stopped reading it in the first place. The concept is intriguing as well. I mean, come on: how can you not be curious about a girl who sticks out like a sore thumb at a geeky sci-fi convention?
Katcher does suuuuch a great job in describing the convention. I really wish it were an anime convention: I seriously would've loved to see him write a description on that and see what crazy-yet-totally-realistic stories/incidents he can conjure up. The things Ana and Zak go through at the Con are really amusing.
The ending of the book was... I wish it ended differently. I didn't like it much. Enough said.
This book definitely wasn't one of the best I've read this year, but it was an okay, quick read for me. So if you suddenly have free time and don't know what book you should pick up next, go ahead and try this one out!
Aaaanyway, let's grill this book.
So we meet our two main characters, each of them being on the opposite end of the social spectrum. You have the geeky boy and then you have the straight-As girl. While this arrangement is very typical, I realized something. As you read the story, you learn that Zak is the one who's outgoing. He's the one that knows a countless amount of people and when he walks into his all-time favorite convention, he practically owns the place. Ana on the other hand is quite and reserved. Yeah, she's ultimately the perfect girl in the eyes of parents and students alike, but no one tries to interact with her because she simply does not respond well to it. SHE'S the one who is secluded rather than Zak, which is kind of breaking the social labels each of them are under. It kind of makes you think. Katcher could be doing so many things here, like showing how a stereotype/label is not always true. Hmmm... Interesting play on the characters.
The story itself is appealing. It definitely wasn't one that made me read in one sitting, but it was very well enjoyable. Every time I put it down, I did not make an excuse to not pick it back up (hooraaaayy~!) and started to read as if I never stopped reading it in the first place. The concept is intriguing as well. I mean, come on: how can you not be curious about a girl who sticks out like a sore thumb at a geeky sci-fi convention?
Katcher does suuuuch a great job in describing the convention. I really wish it were an anime convention: I seriously would've loved to see him write a description on that and see what crazy-yet-totally-realistic stories/incidents he can conjure up. The things Ana and Zak go through at the Con are really amusing.
The ending of the book was... I wish it ended differently. I didn't like it much. Enough said.
This book definitely wasn't one of the best I've read this year, but it was an okay, quick read for me. So if you suddenly have free time and don't know what book you should pick up next, go ahead and try this one out!
My Rating:
1/5 I didn't like it
2/5 It was okay
3/5 I liked it
4/5 I really liked it
5/5 It was amazing
1/5 I didn't like it
2/5 It was okay
3/5 I liked it
4/5 I really liked it
5/5 It was amazing
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