What do you think?
Rate this book
Broken Magic
It’s senior year of high school, and everyone but Neil seems to know what’s next. All Neil wants is to be to survive his last year, and keep hoping something better is waiting for him in college. Then a musician named Celeste comes into his life.
Celeste doesn't fit into Neil's reality. She’s a runaway, chasing an impossible world. She can't be like everyone else - and when he's around her, Neil's not himself, either.
Helping Celeste in her quest for magic – and the father who abandoned her to search for it – might cost Neil everything.
But when you don’t know your place in this world, and someone offers you another...is everything too high a price to pay?
Celeste doesn't fit into Neil's reality. She’s a runaway, chasing an impossible world. She can't be like everyone else - and when he's around her, Neil's not himself, either.
Helping Celeste in her quest for magic – and the father who abandoned her to search for it – might cost Neil everything.
But when you don’t know your place in this world, and someone offers you another...is everything too high a price to pay?
- GenresFiction
206 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 22, 2012
1 person is currently reading
18 people want to read
About the author
Eric Sipple
5 books10 followersEric Sipple is a web developer by day and a writer and filmmaker by night, living in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
May 6, 2013
Have you ever been a kind-of-awkward senior in high school? And you were in that like, weird in-between place when you knew you wanted to hang out at coffeeshops that were just a year or two too old for you, and you wanted to talk to that guy or girl who was just a step or two out of your league? And somehow you knew without the shadow of a doubt that there was magic that was real and living and breathing SOMEWHERE out there, and that you were totally going to find it and harness it and let it work its way inside you?
Then yeah. Yeah, you should probably get this book.
What's brilliant about this book is the accessibility of the characters. If you've ever been an artsy teenage girl with a slightly-unstable-in-a-charming-way side, you're going to relate to Celeste. If you've ever been a nerdy teenage boy just aching for that chance to figure it all out and maybe even make it out of the 'friend zone' with that girl you've been crushing on, you're going to relate to Neil.
But this book totally gets what it's like to be a high school senior: the balance of 'this is ending / something new is beginning'. The tug of 'everything is in front of me / I'm never going to get out of here.' The 'what if I never figure out what I'm doing' moments. It's all there. It gets it in the language of an actual teenager, not in the voice of an adult who 'sort of' remembers what those days were like.
As an adult, reading Broken Magic was like peeking in on the life of a high school student not so different from myself at that age. For teens, I think reading this could be a moment of, 'Okay, it's not just me after all.' There's something about the style and the flow of the book that reminds me of a book I read and re-read over a dozen times as a teenager, Rats Saw God. That book gave me my first realization of, 'Oh hey, nerds CAN make it through and out of high school,' and I feel like Broken Magic could do the same thing for its audience.
Oh, and a final note: I have to mention my appreciation for all the Pittsburgh references. As a native 'Burgh girl, I love seeing my city represented, and the journeys to all the coffeeshops I visited as a high school senior and college freshman make this book even more relevant and awesome.
And the ending? It's just my type. (In other words, that's not a spoiler unless you really know my style ;).
Then yeah. Yeah, you should probably get this book.
What's brilliant about this book is the accessibility of the characters. If you've ever been an artsy teenage girl with a slightly-unstable-in-a-charming-way side, you're going to relate to Celeste. If you've ever been a nerdy teenage boy just aching for that chance to figure it all out and maybe even make it out of the 'friend zone' with that girl you've been crushing on, you're going to relate to Neil.
But this book totally gets what it's like to be a high school senior: the balance of 'this is ending / something new is beginning'. The tug of 'everything is in front of me / I'm never going to get out of here.' The 'what if I never figure out what I'm doing' moments. It's all there. It gets it in the language of an actual teenager, not in the voice of an adult who 'sort of' remembers what those days were like.
As an adult, reading Broken Magic was like peeking in on the life of a high school student not so different from myself at that age. For teens, I think reading this could be a moment of, 'Okay, it's not just me after all.' There's something about the style and the flow of the book that reminds me of a book I read and re-read over a dozen times as a teenager, Rats Saw God. That book gave me my first realization of, 'Oh hey, nerds CAN make it through and out of high school,' and I feel like Broken Magic could do the same thing for its audience.
Oh, and a final note: I have to mention my appreciation for all the Pittsburgh references. As a native 'Burgh girl, I love seeing my city represented, and the journeys to all the coffeeshops I visited as a high school senior and college freshman make this book even more relevant and awesome.
And the ending? It's just my type. (In other words, that's not a spoiler unless you really know my style ;).
January 19, 2013
I may have to start putting books on shelves called "authors who are friends"! I bought the book and read it because the author is a friend but I continued to read it because I enjoyed it. Teenage angst is not something I usually read unless it's in a fantasy setting and even then, not so much. Also, I am not fond of first person narratives as I find a disconnect from the character. That being said, I did enjoy Neil's journey of self-discovery and learning to make some mature decisions.
September 25, 2012
As someone who burns sage and sleeps with valerian root under her pillow, when I see a book called Broken Magic, I immediately want to love it. I suspect my love of the ethereal might have even bolstered my appreciation if the author had written a goat of a story. But he hasn’t. He’s gone and wrote a wonderful one.
Wisely, the plot is simple. Relationships and their expectations, surprises and the general peril of negotiating them. This is not to say it is spartan or dull. The author keeps the story moving with actions, their consequences, and the promise of pending disaster or triumph, just kept on a modest scale. The actual text provides some interesting additions, with format changes like computer language and short chapters written as lines in a play. Don’t be concerned by a story of high-school love. There is not a single wail of teenage ennui to be found. My favorite thing about the relationships is the respect given them. Young or not, love is confusing and extraordinary and painful as hell. That’s all there as the protagonist Neil wades through these waters. It seems pejorative to call it a coming-of-age story or a love story, because it is more. It’s about people, aptly created and fully flushed, as they dig into themselves and others. More closely, it’s about what happens in these relationships when they hit bedrock and their shovels break as they dig. The brightest star of the story is Neil. The writer, Eric Sipple, has sculpted him in such a way that you root him. Like the best of a John Hughes or Cameron Crowe film character, you don’t pity Neil. He has the goods and you simply want a victory for him because his time has come.
As a narrator, Neil is charming. Honest. No hipster smugness. He honestly guides us through his life, insecurities and all. An especially effective choice of the writer is having Neil, on occasion, break the fourth wall, look directly at the reader, and ad lib right to us. It endears you to this young man and I smiled out loud each time it happened.
The world of the novel is well-created. High school situation and the students are realistic, and all ridiculous hyperbolic sterotypes are avoided. The writer’s descriptions of every day ring with realism which often being quite clever. You can smell the cappuccino, and see the friend perched on the ladder, bracing against the ceiling, fighting with the Christmas tree. He doesn’t simply describe a teenager nodding, he understands the political undertones of the nod, and treats it respectfully. As a reader, you’re pulled in to the space right away, because you’ve seen the nod, and honestly, given it yourself.
The magic of Broken Magic floats through, almost casually. There’s just a scent of it. Like a candle burning in the next room. I surely won’t spoil any magician’s tricks, but when we see the magic promised in the title (and I ‘m so glad the author chose to show us at least once– many others would not have had the courage to pull back the curtain), the writing shines.
Every piece has aspects that some will appreciate more than others. Maybe sometimes Neil sounded a little more on it and together than any kid that age deserves to be. We are following him to watch him overcome insecurities. It almost seemed a few time that when he spoke, it was more something clever he would have wanted to say, but in reality, he may have said something with a bit less wit. And for, me I saw his choice at the end before he made it. But honestly, that didn’t spoil anything and I wasn’t disappointed when he made it. I was reading to learn how he would handle it, especially coming so far from the quiet, yearning kid from the coffee shop when we first met him.
For me, it was a wonderful work and I’m so glad I spent time in the world of this story, where unfixed things are worth the trip to find and while maybe not salvage them, at least appreciate their broken magic.
Wisely, the plot is simple. Relationships and their expectations, surprises and the general peril of negotiating them. This is not to say it is spartan or dull. The author keeps the story moving with actions, their consequences, and the promise of pending disaster or triumph, just kept on a modest scale. The actual text provides some interesting additions, with format changes like computer language and short chapters written as lines in a play. Don’t be concerned by a story of high-school love. There is not a single wail of teenage ennui to be found. My favorite thing about the relationships is the respect given them. Young or not, love is confusing and extraordinary and painful as hell. That’s all there as the protagonist Neil wades through these waters. It seems pejorative to call it a coming-of-age story or a love story, because it is more. It’s about people, aptly created and fully flushed, as they dig into themselves and others. More closely, it’s about what happens in these relationships when they hit bedrock and their shovels break as they dig. The brightest star of the story is Neil. The writer, Eric Sipple, has sculpted him in such a way that you root him. Like the best of a John Hughes or Cameron Crowe film character, you don’t pity Neil. He has the goods and you simply want a victory for him because his time has come.
As a narrator, Neil is charming. Honest. No hipster smugness. He honestly guides us through his life, insecurities and all. An especially effective choice of the writer is having Neil, on occasion, break the fourth wall, look directly at the reader, and ad lib right to us. It endears you to this young man and I smiled out loud each time it happened.
The world of the novel is well-created. High school situation and the students are realistic, and all ridiculous hyperbolic sterotypes are avoided. The writer’s descriptions of every day ring with realism which often being quite clever. You can smell the cappuccino, and see the friend perched on the ladder, bracing against the ceiling, fighting with the Christmas tree. He doesn’t simply describe a teenager nodding, he understands the political undertones of the nod, and treats it respectfully. As a reader, you’re pulled in to the space right away, because you’ve seen the nod, and honestly, given it yourself.
The magic of Broken Magic floats through, almost casually. There’s just a scent of it. Like a candle burning in the next room. I surely won’t spoil any magician’s tricks, but when we see the magic promised in the title (and I ‘m so glad the author chose to show us at least once– many others would not have had the courage to pull back the curtain), the writing shines.
Every piece has aspects that some will appreciate more than others. Maybe sometimes Neil sounded a little more on it and together than any kid that age deserves to be. We are following him to watch him overcome insecurities. It almost seemed a few time that when he spoke, it was more something clever he would have wanted to say, but in reality, he may have said something with a bit less wit. And for, me I saw his choice at the end before he made it. But honestly, that didn’t spoil anything and I wasn’t disappointed when he made it. I was reading to learn how he would handle it, especially coming so far from the quiet, yearning kid from the coffee shop when we first met him.
For me, it was a wonderful work and I’m so glad I spent time in the world of this story, where unfixed things are worth the trip to find and while maybe not salvage them, at least appreciate their broken magic.
September 25, 2012
Reading Broken Magic is an exhilarating, engrossing experience. Many times, I forgot I was reading fiction, and felt that I was reading a snippet of the author's biography. It feels deeply personal, even woven throughout, as it is, with elements of the mystical. It's the story of 18 year old Neil Leone, a high school senior whose life, though it is barely just beginning, feels as though it's stuck in park. Until the fateful night when he meets Celeste, a teenager like himself, singing in a coffee shop. He's immediately entranced with her, all thoughts of impressing the cute drama club girl he came with driven almost instantly out of his mind. It could be seen as love at first sight, or maybe just that kind of heady, all in infatuation that happens in high school. Neil agrees to go see her play a second time, at a coffee shop in Pittsburgh, and it's there, during their conversation, that the story takes a turn for the magical.
To say more about the plot would be spoiling it, and I want everybody who reads this book (and you definitely should read this book) to go in completely clean. It's an amazingly heartfelt, touching, incredibly emotional read. It feels like it is over far, far too soon. That's not to say that the story feels incomplete in any way, far from it, actually. I just mean that as soon as it was over I wanted more of the story. I wanted to spend more time with Neil, and with Celeste, and with Jill, Neil's cynical riot of a best friend, and Asada-san, Neil's mentor and the director of the winter play at Neil's high school, who sees the heart and specialness inside of Neil and works to help him pull it out. I wanted to learn more about The Wanderer's City, and about the circle of stones (Oops, spoilers!). But what we got was incredibly special, and wonderful. Young Adult novels at this point are a dime a dozen. But very few of them are as special, or as well written, or as just plain good as this one.
To say more about the plot would be spoiling it, and I want everybody who reads this book (and you definitely should read this book) to go in completely clean. It's an amazingly heartfelt, touching, incredibly emotional read. It feels like it is over far, far too soon. That's not to say that the story feels incomplete in any way, far from it, actually. I just mean that as soon as it was over I wanted more of the story. I wanted to spend more time with Neil, and with Celeste, and with Jill, Neil's cynical riot of a best friend, and Asada-san, Neil's mentor and the director of the winter play at Neil's high school, who sees the heart and specialness inside of Neil and works to help him pull it out. I wanted to learn more about The Wanderer's City, and about the circle of stones (Oops, spoilers!). But what we got was incredibly special, and wonderful. Young Adult novels at this point are a dime a dozen. But very few of them are as special, or as well written, or as just plain good as this one.
August 8, 2014
I don't know if it was the choice of narrative voice or all the things that a strong editor could have assisted with getting corrected that caused me the most irritation with this book.
It was very conversational at times and that was a big downfall. You can have a narrator telling a story that happened to them, but constant asides and things like...take this journey with me....listen to what I'm saying...
I am. I'm reading it. Get to the point. Tell me the thing.
It removes the reader from the experience. It breaks the spell the author weaves in telling the story.
It has potential, and the author is a nice guy, but it definitely needs some polish.
I have the Kindle edition that I bought off of Amazon and I don't know if the errors translate to the physical edition or not, but it seemed like it was written on an iPhone in parts. There would be words that just...did not fit the sentence. Like auto correct had attacked and changed words like it always does.
It also could have probably been edited down. This either would allow for more story or a shorter book (it's already pretty short, but it reads like it's much longer...or maybe that was just me.)
The positives mentioned on other reviews are also true. There are good points and he's a good writer, but a good editor wouldn't have hurt things. (Or a second editor if there was one. :P)
It was very conversational at times and that was a big downfall. You can have a narrator telling a story that happened to them, but constant asides and things like...take this journey with me....listen to what I'm saying...
I am. I'm reading it. Get to the point. Tell me the thing.
It removes the reader from the experience. It breaks the spell the author weaves in telling the story.
It has potential, and the author is a nice guy, but it definitely needs some polish.
I have the Kindle edition that I bought off of Amazon and I don't know if the errors translate to the physical edition or not, but it seemed like it was written on an iPhone in parts. There would be words that just...did not fit the sentence. Like auto correct had attacked and changed words like it always does.
It also could have probably been edited down. This either would allow for more story or a shorter book (it's already pretty short, but it reads like it's much longer...or maybe that was just me.)
The positives mentioned on other reviews are also true. There are good points and he's a good writer, but a good editor wouldn't have hurt things. (Or a second editor if there was one. :P)
October 3, 2012
Neil is a likeable guy. He doesn't know what he wants to do with his life and doesn't seem to realize that this is normal for a kid in his last year of high school. He is always falling for unattainable girls and his few romances don't seem to last long. The new object of his affections, Celeste, seems like all the others except that she is just a little more fragile and a little more "out there" than the other girls. She believes in Magic.
We have already seen that Neil will embrace whatever his latest crush likes. That is how he got involved in theatre at the school - he had been pining after the lead actress for months.
So when Celeste shows him magic, does he believe in magic or just in her?
This is an interesting story with a very good plot. I liked the characters and wanted to know what would happen.
Neil did have too good an ability to understand exactly what to say and when in delicate situations. That came off as very unlikely.
I also found offputting all the times he addresses the reader directly. It is something new writers often do and it is hard to do properly.
I look forward to Sipple's next book - as long as it is written in third person!
We have already seen that Neil will embrace whatever his latest crush likes. That is how he got involved in theatre at the school - he had been pining after the lead actress for months.
So when Celeste shows him magic, does he believe in magic or just in her?
This is an interesting story with a very good plot. I liked the characters and wanted to know what would happen.
Neil did have too good an ability to understand exactly what to say and when in delicate situations. That came off as very unlikely.
I also found offputting all the times he addresses the reader directly. It is something new writers often do and it is hard to do properly.
I look forward to Sipple's next book - as long as it is written in third person!
October 3, 2012
Teenagers are the worst people. Ok, that's not true. But teenagers are difficult--some of the worst things of childhood and adulthood clash in our teenage years, with a crazy hormone bath to boot. I was concerned about reading a book about teenagers, but after reading Eric Sipple's affecting story in Hot Mess: speculative fiction about climate change, I wanted to give this a try.
Here Sipple spins another touching tale, with, yes, teenagers. He captures the awkwardness and confusion of this age without dumbing his characters down; they show flashes of insight and perspective as the larger world seeps in through the cracks of their relatively sheltered lives.
This is a lovely read--a smart, funny, and poignant tale of people, just trying to be navigate life.
Here Sipple spins another touching tale, with, yes, teenagers. He captures the awkwardness and confusion of this age without dumbing his characters down; they show flashes of insight and perspective as the larger world seeps in through the cracks of their relatively sheltered lives.
This is a lovely read--a smart, funny, and poignant tale of people, just trying to be navigate life.
August 4, 2014
So, first person high school senior guy stream of consciousness...
... almost got me to nope out of reading at the very beginning, because that's not my cup of tea (no, Catcher in the Rye is not my favorite book and it can never be). But I stayed, because there was high-school-theater dynamics that seemed about right.
And I'm so, so happy that I stayed and kept on reading.
Because, sure, the narrator is clueless, but very few teenagers aren't. He wins major, major points for knowing when he's being an idiot, even when he can't quite help himself. And he won my heart over by thinking. Sure, people are stupid, and we miss stuff, and we fail to get what's happening. But he doesn't stop trying to figure it out. Figure himself out. Figure the world out. Figure the girls and the few guys out. He doesn't shy away from responsibility, and he takes risks, even when he's terrified.
In the end, it's a beautiful mix of real and magical, of love and loss and friendship and more love and getting back to missed opportunities and hope. Oh, and high school theater.
I loved it.
... almost got me to nope out of reading at the very beginning, because that's not my cup of tea (no, Catcher in the Rye is not my favorite book and it can never be). But I stayed, because there was high-school-theater dynamics that seemed about right.
And I'm so, so happy that I stayed and kept on reading.
Because, sure, the narrator is clueless, but very few teenagers aren't. He wins major, major points for knowing when he's being an idiot, even when he can't quite help himself. And he won my heart over by thinking. Sure, people are stupid, and we miss stuff, and we fail to get what's happening. But he doesn't stop trying to figure it out. Figure himself out. Figure the world out. Figure the girls and the few guys out. He doesn't shy away from responsibility, and he takes risks, even when he's terrified.
In the end, it's a beautiful mix of real and magical, of love and loss and friendship and more love and getting back to missed opportunities and hope. Oh, and high school theater.
I loved it.
April 5, 2014
I appreciated it's conversational style where the protagonist Neil sometimes spoke directly to the reading audience.
July 4, 2014
Easy to read. Easy to enjoy...especially if you're the romantic, scatter-brained, all synapses firing - all the time geek like I am. A marvelous accomplishment.
July 29, 2014
I loved this book - the story, the characters - all of it. I found it especially nice to read a YA book that wasn't THE NEXT HUNGER GAMES or THE NEXT DIVERGENT or whatever the next thing is :)
July 9, 2014
It's (dare I say it) on the same level as a John Green novel. I couldn't get enough!
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews