Paranoid Park

It’s called Paranoid Park for a reason. It’s an outlaw skatepark where Streeters rule and Preps enter at their own risk. But when one Prep braves the scene alone, he gets mixed up in a fight that leaves someone dead. In the sleepless nights that follow, he decides to call the police. Then doesn’t. He decides to tell his dad. But can’t. Desperate and scared, he puts off making any decision. Maybe no one will ever find out. But when a cop appears at his school wanting to question the skaters, the pressure begins to build. Directed by Gus van Sant (Paris Je T’aime, Good Will Hunting, Psycho).

Customer Reviews:

A dark and intense psychological thriller

By Teen Reads - January 5, 2007

PARANOID PARK is a dark and intense psychological thriller of a novel that puts a normal teen in a very difficult situation.

Written as a confessional letter, it starts after a fateful night at a Portland, Oregon skatepark known as "Paranoid Park." Paranoid is "an underground 'street' park, which means there are no rules, nobody owns it, and you don't have to play to skate." But Paranoid is also "kind of a street-kid hangout. There's all these stories, like how a skinhead got stabbed there once. That's why it's called Paranoid Park. It has a dangerous, sketchy vibe to it."

After going to Paranoid Park with his older friend Jared, the narrator (who remains unnamed throughout the book) is enthralled by the experience. Skating at Paranoid meant you were in the "big leagues." The boys planned to return to the skatepark together that weekend, but plans changed when a college girl invited Jared to a party. Still lured by the thrillride of Paranoid, the narrator returns... read more

Crime and Punishment

By Trish Carlson - November 24, 2006

The plot of this book is very simple. An innocent skater kid gets in a scuffle with a psycho security guard and accidentally kills him. That's when the tension starts. What should he do? He thinks his family is too screwed up anyway, to risk putting them through a possible murder charge. Plus no one was there, no one who could tell on him anyway. But what about his conscience? And what about the girl he loves? And how is he ever going to look people in the eye with the innocence he started his life with. This book asks some big questions and gives no easy answers. It is also a page turner that will keep you up long into the night. Nelson has an ear for dialogue that is so clear you will think he used a tape recorder. Great book to make you think.

Courtesy of Teens Read Too

By TeensReadToo "Eat. Drink. Read. Be Merrier." - January 30, 2007

If you dare visit Paranoid Park in Portland, Oregon, you will find the Streeters and the Preps. In Blake Nelson's new novel, PARANOID PARK, the reader enters the dark side of the skate park world along with the main character, who happens to be one of the Preps.

Paranoid Park is the nickname for an old skate park being used by the less desirable Streeters. While visiting the park, the main character is dared to jump a train car with one of the Streeters. When they are discovered by a security guard, an unfortunate "accident" causes the horrific death of the guard. The Streeter takes off, leaving the Prep with the guard's remains and the decision of what to do next.

What should he do? Tell the police, tell his parents, tell a friend? He decides to keep the truth to himself, but mixed in with his parents' impending divorce, his girlfriend issues, plus school and grades, he may have more than he can deal with.

Nelson's PARANOID PARK is described as... read more