I Know It’s Over by C.K. Kelly Martin

Summary: After a mild flirtation with a girl named Dani mostly so he fits in with his crowd of friends, Nick finds himself attracted to Sasha, a friend of a friend. Sasha is the kind of girl who has dreams for the future and refuses to put up with sexist crap that Nick’s friends dish out, so developing a relationship with her takes time as Nick has to prove he is different from the others. Their physical relationship moves slowly at first and bumpily, with everyone advising protection and caution, but accidents happen and Sasha ends up pregnant. Suddenly there are decisions to be made and Nick is struggling to deal with the fallout of being a bystander in one of the most important choices of his life.

Number of Pages: 244

Age Range: 15-17

Review: Reading C.K. Kelly Martin’s books is a pleasure of mine. They’re full of teenage angst, driven by hormones, and generally about teens faced with the consequences of poor decisions. Martin writes a great teenage voice, and there is the element of not being able to look away from the drama that unfolds in her stories.

It’s easy to read this book and say, “Oh, if only they had taken the Plan B pill!” Nick and Sasha were both pretty responsible teens, but this was their ultimate downfall. I was very surprised when Sasha did not see that through, although it was necessary for Martin’s story. It was a terrible lesson for them to have to learn, and I was sorry it contributed to their break up.

Despite being about an unplanned teen pregnancy, I consider it to be a recreational read. Martin’s use of a male protagonist allowed her to tackle this topic from a fresh perspective and I enjoyed reading about Nick’s reaction to a decision that was largely out of his control but greatly affected his life. I also liked that it wasn’t just about Nick and Sasha, it was also about their parents and their friends. Nathan was my favourite character with his struggle to love and be loved as a gay teen in a small town.

When it came to Sasha’s parents though, I was a bit confused. They seemed to have such a tight leash on her, trying to prevent her from even being in any situations that would get her into trouble. This suggests to me they realise teens often make bad decisions, but when Sasha’s father finds out she’s been having sex and she’s pregnant, he’s shocked. What were they protecting her from, if not that? Also, there was no discussion of adoption at all, which I thought was a bit of an oversight.

But that’s the thing about pleasure reads, you don’t like them because they are going to change your life, you like them because you just can’t put them down.

Memorable Quotes:

“Sometimes I can sit there and listen sympathetically to Mom’s complaints. I understand that it sucks and that it helps to have someone else say it out loud for you, but then again, how many times can I say it? The drill gets a bit much, especially when nothing ever changes and whatever I say doesn’t make the slightest bit of difference.” – Nick from I Know It’s Over by C.K. Kelly Martin

“He sounded scared. I would be too. This was no small thing he was confessing.

‘It’s as weird as you let it be.’ I wasn’t used to being on this side of the conversation with Nathan, and I didn’t want to let him down. ‘He doesn’t know anything for sure, right? You didn’t say anything to him?’

‘No, but he’s right. I’m attracted to him.’

‘It doesn’t matter,’ I insisted. ‘He doesn’t know for sure.’

‘But it’s not just him. It’s everyone. It’s…can I ever like anybody and show it or…’ Nathan’s voice hollowed into nothing, then began again, so soft that I had to strain to hear. ‘ Do I have to be this neutral, sexless thing all my life?’

Silence stretched out uncomfortably between us. I hadn’t thought about it like that, the way other people’s restrictions could limit you.” – Conversation between Nick and Nathan from I Know It’s Over by C.K. Kelly Martin

“For sure. There probably wouldn’t be time for CSI over the phone, but there’d definitely be time for her. I didn’t think I could go a week without spending time alone with Sasha. You spend months barely acknowledging someone’s existence and then BOOM, you’re emotionally addicted to her. Science would probably blame it on chemicals, genetics, or something equally logical, but it didn’t feel like anything logical.” – Nick from I Know It’s Over by C.K. Kelly Martin

“So it looks like I’m in. Parental visits to the Jasinski house. Babysitting maybe. It’s the only think to do. And Sasha might not have the baby anyway. I crouch in front of the monitor and read her e-mail a second time. Her mom thinks it’d be better if she didn’t have it. I’d feel the same way if I were her mother. She wants Sasha to have the perfect future and this isn’t it. I’m the wrong guy and this is the wrong time. This isn’t anything like her life is supposed to turn out. She’s supposed to go to university, do Europe, and then start this incredible career. Abortion is so obviously the right thing to do that I feel like crying. This kid never had a chance from the start. They suction it out or something, right? I know it’s not a real baby, but it’s something and it’s not its fault. But that’s not the worst part about this. I don’t want that to happen to Sasha. Nobody should ever have to do that, but I can’t stand to think about it happening to her.” – Nick from I Know It’s Over by C.K. Kelly Martin

“‘You take care. Call me anytime.’ I’m not ready for the conversation to be over. I haven’t asked if she’s going to be awake or even if she’s scared, but I hang up. It’s the story of us, I guess. I was never ready for anything.” – Nick from I Know It’s Over by C.K. Kelly Martin

I Know It’s Over by C.K. Kelly Martin is published by Random House Children’s Books, (2008).