What an unexpected pleasure this book was, especially being free on kindle (which produces a very mixed bag, at best). The subject matter is so difficult to even comprehend, but somehow Sandlin makes it believable, almost heroic and definitely funny. I love Sam's sense of humor and his ideas about honor all in the face of a very unorthodox upbringing. He and his mother are basically maturing together, and the son doing it at a faster pace. Loved it. I will now go buy the other two books in this series because I love Sam and his smart-arse and I am now required to see what happens in the rest of his life.

Laugh out loud funny and spot on descriptions and dialogue. But, the two main characters would have been more believable if they were 15 and 16. It is difficult to imagine a 13 yr olds with such insight.

This book = The Wonder Years' age group and bildungsroman + Tobacco Road's depravity and rural/social isolation + Judy Bloom's honesty about adolescence.

This book is not for the faint of heart, those who blush easily, or who take the high road more often than not.

This book is an acquired taste.

This book is entertaining.

I've already started reading book two; this author is too different to ignore.

Ultimate disfunctional family material. A laugh a minute.

I knew going in that, based on the reviews, this was a "love it or hate it" novel. Fortunately, I came in firmly on the side of love.

And that's kind of what this book is about - love. At least, love from the point of view of a 13-year old boy being raised by a woman who can't take care of herself. First, though, the title: Skipped Parts refers to... well, it's best explained by this quote:

"In books people often kissed before things were either skipped or talked about so metaphorically no one knew what was going on. It seemed to be a one, two, three ritual—kiss, skip the weird stuff, fall in love."

And the education of Sam's life happens while seeking out the answer to what happens in the parts they skipped over.

Sam's mother is Lydia, and while she'll never be Mother of the Year, she does love him, and he accepts her as she is. Lydia and Sam get sent to GroVont because of another of Lydia's misadventures, of which we never quite find out the details. Lydia's father, Casper Callahan, holds the purse strings and so they do as he says.

It's rough for them there at first, but then life happens, in more way than one. The story is told from Sam's POV, and the reader quickly discovers that Sam is cynical (and frighteningly astute) about the things he's had experience with, and extremely innocent and naive about the things no one has yet told him about. It makes for a charming and slightly scary combination.

The story is sometimes heartwarming, often heartbreaking. I like Sam, and Lydia, and Maurey, Dot, Hank and all the other characters in this book, and I plan to seek out the second book in the series ASAP.

I downloaded this on my Nook through Barnes & Noble's "Free Friday" program, and surprisingly I actually kind of mostly liked the book. I just read in another review that this is classified as "YA" (Young Adult) - no way would I allow a teenager to read this. There is a lot of teen sex, written from the teen's point of view, but seemingly after he's gained some adult perpective. I also read that this is the first in a trilogy. Hm, maybe I'll check out the other two.

This is a very human novel, warts and all. I think most of us would not want to be associated with many of the characters in the book in real life, but within the confines of the printed page Tim Sandlin has created real people that we root for, laugh at, and who make us shake our heads in disgust. In short, the characters are real.
The title "Skipped Parts" can be taken so many ways, but while most readers think the title refers to the teenage sex in the novel, and the way that sex is treated in society, I think it also refers to the skipped parts of society at large. By that I mean the places and people that lots of Americans would rather pretend were not there. I also think it refers to the book's setting; GroVont WY, a place that many coastal Americans just skip over when they take into account American values and mores. If it is not California or New York it does not count, etc.
The realistic portrayal of the characters is jarring especially considering how morally deficient some of them are, and I think that is the point. We are all struggling in this life. Some succeed better than others, and many just get by, in a spiritual and physical sense. I am not especially fond of the protagonist's mom, Lydia, or his best friend/ sex partner (Maurey) but I understand and know them. That is the mark of good writing.
This is the third Sandlin novel I have read, and one of his continuous strengths is the voice of his protagonist, and "Skipped Parts" does not disappoint. The novel's narrator, Sam Callahan, may be only 13, but his voice and humor is one of the text's many high points.
This novel was the first in a trilogy, with a fourth soon to be published, and I will be continuing the journey through GroVont. You should too!

People call this book funny, but I found it disturbing. Family relationships where the child parents the parent are unfortunate, not really a thing of humor. And casual discussion of middle school kids having sex is not comedic. And the happily ever after ending was ridiculous. I've also never heard the expression "king-hell" before and found it's constant use annoying. I kept reading bc I wanted to see where this story went to and if ir somehow redeemed itself. For me, it didn't.

First off I bought it on Kindle not knowing what to expect. I found it extremely funny, even though we are reading about a thirteen year old having sex. I think this is a book to be read by young adult, adults. I'd be nervous giving it to a thirteen year old--because they might think it is pretty cool.
I hate the cover, as I do all of his covers, but guess if you are artsy in your writing, it needs this type of cover.
Who would I recommend it to? Only the free thinking person, with a sence of humor.

I really enjoyed the story as was told by 13 year old Sam. I got this free book from Sony store last year. It's definitely worth the read but be advised of language and sexual content. I had no idea what this book was about when I started it but was surprised by the content but enjoyed the story. I want to read the other books in this series after having read this first one. This book was also humorous as I found myself LOL as I read!

Someone recommended this, I rarely read young adult fiction, but I found myself hooked. It started with "is this really young adult?" and eventually hooked me with the awkward charm of the voice of this teenager. LA Times said it best, it is a good story with a blend of "Catcher in the Rye" and "Even Cowgirls Get the Blues." This was the best of the series. For the record, I would NOT let my young adult read this...

I've apparently been living under a rock, because I'd never heard of this series. I thought I'd made some great discovery when I nabbed the e-book edition on Amazon for free. Since I didn't have any preconceived notions from reviews, I was flabbergasted by Sandlin's honest writing and awesomely flawed characters. I loved this book, can't wait to read the rest of the trilogy.