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Mel
Una squallida strada con le case tutte uguali, in un quartiere popolare di Londra: è qui che vive Mel, diciassette anni e una situazione familiare difficilissima e apparentemente senza speranza. Ma ecco che, quando le cose sembrano volgere al peggio, qualcosa cambia. Accolta e aiutata, lei bianca, da una simpatica famiglia nera, Mel riuscirà coraggiosamente a conquistarsi il diritto di vivere come vuole, ad avere una casa sua, e anche, in modo del tutto imprevisto, a trovare l'amore. Un romanzo allo stesso tempo drammatico e divertente, che dai sobborghi londinesi ci porta nel fantastico, folle mondo dei concerti rock.
239 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1988
About the author
Liz Berry
31 books131 followersLiz Berry was born and lives in London. She worked in offices, magazines, politics and for a well-known examination body, before becoming a careers guidance advisor, helping young people plan their futures and finding employment opportunities for them. Then, for twenty-two years, she was Head of Art in an East London Comprehensive school.
At the same time she started and ran the East London Gallery for four years
Liz Berry is an artist in oils and mixed media. She also makes experimental embroidered textiles. She exhibits her work mainly in London and southeast England and sells her paintings through Gallery 41.
At the same time she started and ran the East London Gallery for four years
Liz Berry is an artist in oils and mixed media. She also makes experimental embroidered textiles. She exhibits her work mainly in London and southeast England and sells her paintings through Gallery 41.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews
June 30, 2013
This is kind of a weird book. On the one hand, it's a Cinderella romance story between poor, abused, untrusting Mel and rich, glamorous, rock star Mitch. On the other hand, it's also the story of how Mel takes charge of her life after her mother's breakdown. And on the third hand, there's a hefty dose of social commentary involved.
Seventeen-year-old Mel lives with her widowed, deeply depressed and violent mother in a horrible Victorian two-up-two-down in a run-down, multi-ethnic area. Then her mother finally snaps and is hospitalised, and Mel is on her own. She decides that the horribleness of the environment had something to do with her mother's illness, and sets about renovating the house as a surprise for when her mother can come home. This acts as a catalyst on the neighbours, as they help her out and begin to also talk to each other and work together to do something about the area in general.
In the course of her work on her house, Mel befriends Lou, the owner of a local junk/antiques shop, and gets a Saturday job working there. She also meets his grandson, Mitch, who's the guitarist in a local rock group that's just made it big. Mitch falls heavily for Mel, who, crushing on her art teacher, doesn't notice...and also fails to notice that she's falling for Mitch. Of course, it all ends happily.
Weirdly, the author actually manages to make this combination of romance novel and social justice story work. I love the descriptions of Mel's home renovations, and how nothing ever works right first time. I love how her neighbours finally start to talk to each other and band together to fight to get bathrooms and indoor toilets. I love how Mitch loves Mel but she's so very oblivious. I love the horde of minor characters. It is, really, just a lovely book.
Seventeen-year-old Mel lives with her widowed, deeply depressed and violent mother in a horrible Victorian two-up-two-down in a run-down, multi-ethnic area. Then her mother finally snaps and is hospitalised, and Mel is on her own. She decides that the horribleness of the environment had something to do with her mother's illness, and sets about renovating the house as a surprise for when her mother can come home. This acts as a catalyst on the neighbours, as they help her out and begin to also talk to each other and work together to do something about the area in general.
In the course of her work on her house, Mel befriends Lou, the owner of a local junk/antiques shop, and gets a Saturday job working there. She also meets his grandson, Mitch, who's the guitarist in a local rock group that's just made it big. Mitch falls heavily for Mel, who, crushing on her art teacher, doesn't notice...and also fails to notice that she's falling for Mitch. Of course, it all ends happily.
Weirdly, the author actually manages to make this combination of romance novel and social justice story work. I love the descriptions of Mel's home renovations, and how nothing ever works right first time. I love how her neighbours finally start to talk to each other and band together to fight to get bathrooms and indoor toilets. I love how Mitch loves Mel but she's so very oblivious. I love the horde of minor characters. It is, really, just a lovely book.
November 29, 2018
Mel, by Liz Berry, is not so much a romance as it is a bleak, painful, but ultimately hopeful coming-of-age story for the title character, a teenager struggling with her mother's mental illness and abuse. Mel has to deal with extreme poverty and no resources, leading her to consider suicide as the only way out. Additionally, her dodgy teacher, who she thinks she is in love with, is a blueprint male predator perfectly captured by the author.
It is truly heartbreaking, as well as eventually rewarding, to see Mel emerge from the staggering chaos of her hoarding mother's hovel, flirt tentatively with the seemingly unattainable dream of making something of herself, and start engaging with her neighbours until she becomes a bona fide community organizer.
Her friendships with her neighbours and her employer, a bark-worse-than-his-bite grampa who runs the local junk shop, are the heart of this story. There was never a more moving moment than when she realized that the people she thought didn't care a jot about her all gathered up to help in a real, meaningful way, whether with their elbow grease or their greasy kitchen, unlike the empty words and promises of local bureaucrats who let this poor girl sink.
The "hero" of this piece is the grandson of the junk shop owner, but he really plays second, or third, or fourth fiddle to Mel's many interests, and as such, he stays in the background most of the time. He is also the least plausible rock star I ever read about lol. Poor thing, even as he is fighting off groupies with a stick, the one girl he loves and hopes to marry ignores him in favor of her high school teacher. The romance aspect of this book could never be recovered for me after that.
There was good comeuppance for the vile, hypocritical teacher who let Mel (and probably dozens of girls like her) down but I wished the author had also buried the character of the vile mother under an avalanche combined with a category 5 typhoon. Although it seems at the beginning of the story that the mother is just another victim to mental illness, the reader realizes by the end of the story that this "mental illness"is really an immaturity and selfishness so vast that it is almost impossible to fathom. Mommy Dearest has nothing on this vile Black Widow Spider and I was glad that by the end of the story, Mel recognized her mother's toxic, manipulative personality and she was able to stand up to her and also move on from their dysfunctional relationship.
So 4 stars for the story and characterization but 1 for the romance making this an okay read for yours truly.
It is truly heartbreaking, as well as eventually rewarding, to see Mel emerge from the staggering chaos of her hoarding mother's hovel, flirt tentatively with the seemingly unattainable dream of making something of herself, and start engaging with her neighbours until she becomes a bona fide community organizer.
Her friendships with her neighbours and her employer, a bark-worse-than-his-bite grampa who runs the local junk shop, are the heart of this story. There was never a more moving moment than when she realized that the people she thought didn't care a jot about her all gathered up to help in a real, meaningful way, whether with their elbow grease or their greasy kitchen, unlike the empty words and promises of local bureaucrats who let this poor girl sink.
The "hero" of this piece is the grandson of the junk shop owner, but he really plays second, or third, or fourth fiddle to Mel's many interests, and as such, he stays in the background most of the time. He is also the least plausible rock star I ever read about lol. Poor thing, even as he is fighting off groupies with a stick, the one girl he loves and hopes to marry ignores him in favor of her high school teacher. The romance aspect of this book could never be recovered for me after that.
There was good comeuppance for the vile, hypocritical teacher who let Mel (and probably dozens of girls like her) down but I wished the author had also buried the character of the vile mother under an avalanche combined with a category 5 typhoon. Although it seems at the beginning of the story that the mother is just another victim to mental illness, the reader realizes by the end of the story that this "mental illness"is really an immaturity and selfishness so vast that it is almost impossible to fathom. Mommy Dearest has nothing on this vile Black Widow Spider and I was glad that by the end of the story, Mel recognized her mother's toxic, manipulative personality and she was able to stand up to her and also move on from their dysfunctional relationship.
So 4 stars for the story and characterization but 1 for the romance making this an okay read for yours truly.
July 2, 2008
At the time when I first read Mel (2001, when I was but a wee Mem) the romance between Mel and Mitch was the driving reason for my interest in this novel. She's a tough girl down on her luck, battered by life! He's a dashing rock star come to sweep her away! Boo, Keith, creepy-ass teacher prone to flirting with and banging underage girls.
As I reread Mel a few months ago, having at last tracked down the author's name and the publisher (a valiant struggle worthy of this one digression), I was surprised to find myself both exasperated by and bored with the frequent romantic digressions and asides. Keith is revealed as a scumbag and something of a sexual predator to the audience from the very beginning, though Mel remains ignorant of this for nearly the entire book, a fact I find deeply annoying. Her relationship with Mitch has no impact whatsoever on anything else in the book. Mitch himself has no significant role outside of being the exciting, yet safe love interest. Keith at least has a bearing on the plot near the climax of the novel; Mitch exists solely to provide Mel with an abrupt, happily-ever-after ending.
This is hugely unfortunate, as without the sizeable romantic subplot to distract from the rest of the novel, Mel is really a very good book. Mel's decision to renovate her decrepit two-room house eventually spurs the entire community into action. In an area of town neglected by the local government, the citizens live in run-down and overcrowded tenements; the most basic expectations of reliable plumbing and regular trash collection remain unmet. Most of the people who live in the neighborhood will never have the opportunity to leave.
Mel herself begins the novel so focused on her own escape that she forgets her neighbors are as trapped as she is; she scorns those who would help her and struggles instead to do things on her own. It's only when she allows old friends and neighbors to lend a hand that she is able to accomplish the things she sets out to do. Similarly, the community can only obtain what it most desperately needs - attention from the local government - when it operates as a whole. The friendships Mel forms with a few girls her own age are particularly uplifting.
Mel's relationship with her mother is also striking. I admit that this might be for somewhat personal reasons: a number of the more evocative scenes describing her mother's depression and Mel's emotional response reminded me then (in 2001) and now of two awful years in 1999 and 2000 when my mother was first diagnosed with clinical depression. There's a certain overwhelming hopelessness that comes from seeing someone so well and truly loved sliding away from you, of recognizing the signs and finding there is nothing you can do to stop it anyway. Liz Berry very effectively captures this. (I will say my mother never beat me, for which I am quite grateful.)
Marian's reaction to the renovated house and Mel's reaction to her reaction toward the end remains my favorite scene in the book, for all that it reveals in both Mel and her mother and what it drives home with regards to their relationship.
As someone who has also seen the ways in which my mother has improved on antidepressants, I'm also profoundly grateful to Ms Berry for being one of the few writers I have encountered who has acknowledged and shown the assistance medication can provide to those who struggle with mental illness, and as someone who has not benefitted from medication as my mother has benefitted, I am grateful that she does not declare them a cure-all and that she shows how much additional work must be done.
There is one passage that made me cringe, when a shopkeeper (Mitch's grandfather and probably my favorite character in the entire novel, on account of how he's old and fiesty) soothes Mel's fears that she, too, will one day suffer a mental breakdown by telling her that depression isn't hereditary. Studies aside, it'd have to be some strange coincidence for me, my brother, my mother, my maternal grandmother and both my maternal aunts to all suffer from some degree of clinical depression.
Liz Berry's prose is strong, particularly when she settles into a groove near the third chapter, and her pacing is more than serviceable. Mel is a particularly quick read, propelled by Berry's rhythmic prose and a swift study of events as they occur.
Ultimately Mel is a strong novel about the ramifactions of loss, of the strength a community provides and the power of forgiveness, thought it is heavily weakened by the presence of a substantial B-plot which has little to no bearing on the A-plot. The ending is hugely dissatisfying and thought it does not detract from the hard-won victories that precede it, I will say that it is jarring and even frustrating for such an honest book to close in such a cheap, pat manner.
As I reread Mel a few months ago, having at last tracked down the author's name and the publisher (a valiant struggle worthy of this one digression), I was surprised to find myself both exasperated by and bored with the frequent romantic digressions and asides. Keith is revealed as a scumbag and something of a sexual predator to the audience from the very beginning, though Mel remains ignorant of this for nearly the entire book, a fact I find deeply annoying. Her relationship with Mitch has no impact whatsoever on anything else in the book. Mitch himself has no significant role outside of being the exciting, yet safe love interest. Keith at least has a bearing on the plot near the climax of the novel; Mitch exists solely to provide Mel with an abrupt, happily-ever-after ending.
This is hugely unfortunate, as without the sizeable romantic subplot to distract from the rest of the novel, Mel is really a very good book. Mel's decision to renovate her decrepit two-room house eventually spurs the entire community into action. In an area of town neglected by the local government, the citizens live in run-down and overcrowded tenements; the most basic expectations of reliable plumbing and regular trash collection remain unmet. Most of the people who live in the neighborhood will never have the opportunity to leave.
Mel herself begins the novel so focused on her own escape that she forgets her neighbors are as trapped as she is; she scorns those who would help her and struggles instead to do things on her own. It's only when she allows old friends and neighbors to lend a hand that she is able to accomplish the things she sets out to do. Similarly, the community can only obtain what it most desperately needs - attention from the local government - when it operates as a whole. The friendships Mel forms with a few girls her own age are particularly uplifting.
Mel's relationship with her mother is also striking. I admit that this might be for somewhat personal reasons: a number of the more evocative scenes describing her mother's depression and Mel's emotional response reminded me then (in 2001) and now of two awful years in 1999 and 2000 when my mother was first diagnosed with clinical depression. There's a certain overwhelming hopelessness that comes from seeing someone so well and truly loved sliding away from you, of recognizing the signs and finding there is nothing you can do to stop it anyway. Liz Berry very effectively captures this. (I will say my mother never beat me, for which I am quite grateful.)
Marian's reaction to the renovated house and Mel's reaction to her reaction toward the end remains my favorite scene in the book, for all that it reveals in both Mel and her mother and what it drives home with regards to their relationship.
As someone who has also seen the ways in which my mother has improved on antidepressants, I'm also profoundly grateful to Ms Berry for being one of the few writers I have encountered who has acknowledged and shown the assistance medication can provide to those who struggle with mental illness, and as someone who has not benefitted from medication as my mother has benefitted, I am grateful that she does not declare them a cure-all and that she shows how much additional work must be done.
There is one passage that made me cringe, when a shopkeeper (Mitch's grandfather and probably my favorite character in the entire novel, on account of how he's old and fiesty) soothes Mel's fears that she, too, will one day suffer a mental breakdown by telling her that depression isn't hereditary. Studies aside, it'd have to be some strange coincidence for me, my brother, my mother, my maternal grandmother and both my maternal aunts to all suffer from some degree of clinical depression.
Liz Berry's prose is strong, particularly when she settles into a groove near the third chapter, and her pacing is more than serviceable. Mel is a particularly quick read, propelled by Berry's rhythmic prose and a swift study of events as they occur.
Ultimately Mel is a strong novel about the ramifactions of loss, of the strength a community provides and the power of forgiveness, thought it is heavily weakened by the presence of a substantial B-plot which has little to no bearing on the A-plot. The ending is hugely dissatisfying and thought it does not detract from the hard-won victories that precede it, I will say that it is jarring and even frustrating for such an honest book to close in such a cheap, pat manner.
April 5, 2020
Þetta var ein af uppáhalds unglingabókunum mínum. Ég ákvað að lesa hana aftur til að sjá hvernig hún eldist og mér fannst hún ennþá góð. Hún er skrifuð 1988 í Bretlandi svo það er sumt sem maður tengir lítið við í dag. Eins finnst mér aðalpersónan vera full ung til að lenda í mörgu af því sem gerist. Þetta er Öakubuskusaga en aðalpersónan bjargar sér samt sjálf og þroskast mikið. Ég á örugglega eftir að lesa hana aftur.
June 6, 2012
Per la serie "ritorno all'adolescenza" ho preso in biblioteca qualche libro meno di fantascienza e più giovanile.
Mel vive in un quartiere degradato di Londra e ha una madre con problemi di depressione, ha anche la forza di volontà di riprendere in mano la sua vita e rendere anche il quartiere un posto migliore.
E' un libro positivo e va bene visto che è rivolto ad adolescenti, alcuni passaggi sono un po' bruschi come i mutamenti di atteggiamento dei vicini di casa e il finale e storia d'amore ricordano tanto gli shojo più banali che ci sono (ecco, sul finale si poteva fare certamente di più).
Leggendolo però non ho potuto fare a meno di pensare a tutti i programmi di "Ristrutturo casa" ambientati in Inghilterra, sarà culturale?
Mel vive in un quartiere degradato di Londra e ha una madre con problemi di depressione, ha anche la forza di volontà di riprendere in mano la sua vita e rendere anche il quartiere un posto migliore.
E' un libro positivo e va bene visto che è rivolto ad adolescenti, alcuni passaggi sono un po' bruschi come i mutamenti di atteggiamento dei vicini di casa e il finale e storia d'amore ricordano tanto gli shojo più banali che ci sono (ecco, sul finale si poteva fare certamente di più).
Leggendolo però non ho potuto fare a meno di pensare a tutti i programmi di "Ristrutturo casa" ambientati in Inghilterra, sarà culturale?
September 29, 2017
I have the original Gollancz hardcover signed by the author, which I bought (along with the Janey books & the two Easy books) for my 30th birthday. That's how much I love Liz Berry.
Rereading, I am struck by how very believably vulnerable yet tough & self-sufficient her female characters are. It's a classically 80s feminist construct which really appeals. (Much stronger of course in Cathy, who gets every female dilemma in the book.)
The boys are as mythical as ever but that's OK.
Rereading, I am struck by how very believably vulnerable yet tough & self-sufficient her female characters are. It's a classically 80s feminist construct which really appeals. (Much stronger of course in Cathy, who gets every female dilemma in the book.)
The boys are as mythical as ever but that's OK.
March 26, 2009
Really it's a 3.5-4 star book, but something about it has led me to re-read it over a dozen times. I just love it. It's a British YA chicklit to some degree, but nevertheless deals with abuse in a very personal and intimate way. And on a whole other level, I've always loved the descriptions of Mel's diy renovation of her little cottage.
December 6, 2008
I loved this book when I was a teenager. On the surface it is a teen romance, but it goes beyond that, dealing with issues such as growing up with an unstable parent, learning to be independant, and dealing with emotional problems and self-harm.
A great novel for teenagers, with a good message.
A great novel for teenagers, with a good message.
April 18, 2021
Quite good but was a bit jumbled up and had a lot going on
November 21, 2025
This book has a special place in my heart 'cause I've read it multiple times (mostly when I was a pre-teen and teen but a couple of times as an adult). Mel is a teenager growing up in difficult circumstances. She decides to take matters into her own hands to better her home and her community, gaining the support of her neighbours along the way. At the same time she gains the attention of Mitch, a man in his 20's who she doesn't really like because he's grumpy and annoying. Her teacher is showing her interest and playing with her emotions, and when Mitch finds out he gets really pissed at her even if she had never showed him interest. Mel and Mitch do end up together, which as a teenager I found really sweet. As an adult in 2025 I'm more like "Mitch, my guy, just leave the 17 year old alone" but I still love this book and admire Mel and her friends growth and determination.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 24, 2023
I re-read this book because of that tweet about the bond between a girl and the mediocre book she read when she was thirteen and, well, this book was not mediocre. It’s awful. AWFUL. Casual date rape, teacher kissing his very vulnerable student, absurd commentary on lifting yourself out of poverty. OMFG.
April 11, 2019
An uplifting read
I loved this book in highschool and recently it crossed my mind so I decided to read it again. I love it still. A sweet romance and a story about finding your strength.
I loved this book in highschool and recently it crossed my mind so I decided to read it again. I love it still. A sweet romance and a story about finding your strength.
July 17, 2024
This was a book I enjoyed when I was at school and randomly thought about. I love mitch and his devotion to Mel and how they depict mental illness and the failings social services. I wish we could see the life they build together though as they hold a special place in my heart
September 21, 2019
Read this for book club. Nice, easy to read coming-of-age book.
September 7, 2021
Another re-read from my youth. This one held up a lot better than her other books. Or maybe that's the nostalgia talking.
October 16, 2022
Las þessa í tengslum við bókaklúbbinn minn - las hana þegar ég var unglingur og hún eldist bara þokkalega.
November 16, 2012
I read this when I was about 13 years old. at the time, it seemed very grown-up as boys were just beginning to interest me. I re-read it while home for the holidays and now some of the plot details just are really unrealistic. Even though teacher-student sexual relationships are much more common nowadays, its still not a topic I would choose to introduce to a hormonal pre-teen, even if the MC does eventually "wisen" up.
having said that, it is nostalgia that makes me keep it. its a fast read, not a terrible overall YA adult book (unlike whiny, melodramatic Twilight or Shiver characters) that's worth keeping (even if not award-winning material)
having said that, it is nostalgia that makes me keep it. its a fast read, not a terrible overall YA adult book (unlike whiny, melodramatic Twilight or Shiver characters) that's worth keeping (even if not award-winning material)
July 14, 2013
Uno dei miei libri preferiti di bambini. Quelli che dovevano essere obbligatoriamente letti almeno una volta l'anno.
Letto dopo i 20, però perde un po' della magia che aveva quando l'ho divorato a quattordici anni. Anche se Mitch rimane uno dei miei personaggi maschili preferiti di ogni tempo.
Cosa scriveva Soobie a 12 anni:
Letto dopo i 20, però perde un po' della magia che aveva quando l'ho divorato a quattordici anni. Anche se Mitch rimane uno dei miei personaggi maschili preferiti di ogni tempo.
Cosa scriveva Soobie a 12 anni:
Bellissimo libro. Mel vive nei sobborghi di Londra. Sua madre impazzisce e viene portato via. Allora Mel inizia a mettere la casa in ordine: la dipinge e mette in ordine. Poi conosce Mitch, un ragazzo che l'aiuta.
January 2, 2015
This book is riddled with heavy material--or maybe how the author handled the subject made the book heavy. It's not filled with fluff or romantic, panty-melting lines, but the romance is there--just not the over-the-top lines we read from today's books.
Mel (the book, not the character) made me realize two things: 1) trusting people is hard, but living without trust is HARDER! 2) If you want to change something, don't wait for someone else to change it for you.
I adore this book, but I'm not crazy over it. But it sticks a knife into the heart.
Mel (the book, not the character) made me realize two things: 1) trusting people is hard, but living without trust is HARDER! 2) If you want to change something, don't wait for someone else to change it for you.
I adore this book, but I'm not crazy over it. But it sticks a knife into the heart.
August 27, 2011
this is legit one of my favorite books of all time. I like to combination of love story, psych story and... lets face it, a teenager's dream world.
Every girl dreams of a fabulously wealthy, yet hard working, down to earth, and sweet guy who, lets admit, is hot a famous. Mel gets that at a very trying time in her life and she, like many of us, doesn't think she deserves it...
anyway, it's fabulous. Trust me.
Every girl dreams of a fabulously wealthy, yet hard working, down to earth, and sweet guy who, lets admit, is hot a famous. Mel gets that at a very trying time in her life and she, like many of us, doesn't think she deserves it...
anyway, it's fabulous. Trust me.
June 13, 2007
This book is just really good. It's technically a "teen" novel, but the themes are very adult. There are a few sappy bits, but the book is really about remaking yourself as your remake your environment. Highly recommended!
June 18, 2012
I read this book years ago. It was a lot of fun- not particularly amazing but a good, decently written book about a girl coming to terms with her mother and her life, then deciding where her future is going.
May 4, 2013
An old favourite that stood up to the test of time. It's not perfect but still very readable and Mel remains a great heroine, with a wonderful journey to both self-determination and learning to rely on others.
June 20, 2013
It's been a very long time since I was in high school and read this. It was fun, and appealed perfectly to my angsty romantic teenage self. I liked the ominous factor of the China Garden more, but this one offers the context of a teenage girl's life that is more relatable.
December 19, 2009
This is one of my favorite books. Another strong female character that takes control of her life. Also I love the view of daily life in London.
February 28, 2012
Letto tre o quattro volte, era uno dei miei libri preferiti da pre-adolescente.
Tipica storia di una povera ragazza che trova il suo principe azzurro, rivisitata in chiave più moderna.
Tipica storia di una povera ragazza che trova il suo principe azzurro, rivisitata in chiave più moderna.
June 29, 2012
Uno dei libri che ha lasciato il segno - ... al punto da consumare il volume a furia di leggerlo e rileggerlo
August 24, 2012
Mel is a heartwarming story of getting mature way too young. Mel is a book that teaches how to love without expecting something in turn, determination that never fades and hope that springs eternal.
November 17, 2012
i thought it was pretty good, well written details.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews