Maja is your normal, everyday 17-year old. She dreams of becoming a an actress, and her role model is Marilyn Monroe. So when things take an interesting turn at a celebration party for her boyfriend, Maja doesn't quite know how to handle it. One minute she is an average teen, and then the next minute she is at a test modeling photo shoot because some guy thinks she could have 'The X-Factor'.
But things don't go the way they should have.
Maja becomes exhausted from the countless photo shoots, diets, and a always being in the public eye. So what does Maja do? Well she turns to some "friends" that get her into a lot of trouble. When it all explodes in her face, Maja is left with a drug addiction, no self-esteem,and no true friends. She now is left with one question: How far will she got to reach her dream and land among the stars?
I really thought this book was well written and enjoyed it immensely. I enjoyed how this book touched on subject matter that others would have been afraid to write. That is why I gave this book a 4 and 1/2 star rating. The characters were well developed and I felt almost everything that Maja felt. The lack of self-esteem that Maja had felt like it would have been experienced by teens today. He book really gives you an inside view of what the modeling industry really is, the it isn't all the glamour and beauty it's made up to be. So all in all, this book was a great experience and I would definitely recommend it to my friends and family.
6 comments:
Hi Sarah,
thank you for reading The X Factor! I am very happy you understood the message I try to send with the novel - the importance of always listening to your inner voice and not to give in to peer preasure.
If you were Maja - what would you have done different?
Greetings from Slovenia,
Ivan
Hi Mr. Sivec,
If I was Maja I would have stuck to my guns and not let my boyfriend talk me into going to that practice photo shoot in the beginning. I believe that is she would have stuck to her guns and not allow the glamour distract her from the underlying darkness, it would have completely changed the dynamic of the book.
I think that Maja in a way knew the dangers of modeling, but at the same time wanted to believe that the glamorous cover out weighed the bad. Just because something is wrapped up all beautiful and elegant does not mean the truth inside is as beautiful and elegant.
Sarah,
you are completely right! Sometimes in life we follow advice from people we feel we can trust. Maja's inner voice had been telling her throughout the story that Klemen might be driven by some other motives, rather than just the love for her. Nevertheless, she decided to ignore her intuition. After all, who can we trust, if not the people we love?
I think the disastrous force Maja could not withstand was her naivety in combination with youthful fearlesness. I remember when I was a teenager I thought I know it all. Well, we all learn from our mistakes. Some have to pay a higher price, though. And Maja was one of them.
Unfortunately, the teenage model Maja's character is partially based on had to undergo a similar tragical story. I am happy my novel can be a warning about the glamurous, but sometimes deceiving world of fashion modeling.
Mr. Sivec,
Do you believe that young teens believe the more glamorous side of modeling, rather than the dark story behind the camera because they simply want to escape their lives and the harshness of reality?
In some case I believe that we want to believe that the people we love are telling us the full truth, but that isn't always the case. You desperately love that person and want them to be someone that is always looking out for you, but in reality no matter how much you love that person they sometimes become something you are forced to hate.
Have you ever experienced that in your life?
Hi Sarah,
To your first question: I think books, movies etc. offer us a great parallel world to escape to - whether it's the world of travelling, other societies or fashion. It feels good to get lost in this world. It's exciting, new and can keep our mind focused on something else rather than the problems we are facing in our everyday life.
Now, I don't think there's anything wrong with that as long as we understand this world is completely and utterly made up. This world was created to make us feel in a certain way - happy, excited, scared or enraptured. The space, time and characters are merely fictional and there to entertain us. It is not the real world! Our lives in the real world are constituted by ups and downs and that's the way it should be! That's the real life and that's the beauty of it!
Your thought of desperately wanting to trust and completely give ourselves up to someone is absolutely true. In my life I trusted the wrong people many times - and got burnt many times doing that. Whether it was trusting a friend who betrayed me, a co-worked that stabbed me in the back or even a family member dissapointing me. For many years I struggled with the thought that I needed someone in my life to be strong for me, lead me through life and offer me a safe heaven. I was hit with one dissapointment after another. It took me years to understand why this was happening to me. I dug deep inside me and finally came to the conclusion that we firmly need to believe there is someone out there for us, making us feel good about ourselves, because we are afraid of being alone.
I was very unhappy in life until the point when I realized that it is only ME who can be that person. I have to believe in myself first, nobody else can play this role in my life. And I am grateful for every mistake I made on the way to this realization. Today, I am happy with who I am. I have a strong supportive system from my wife, children, grandchildren and friends. But my best friend is still me, myself and I.
Do you think it is dangerous to completely open up to a person, risking to get hurt?
Mr. Sivec,
I believe that although it is a wonderful feeling to completely open up to one person, it is also very dangerous. Once you open up completely, you leave yourself vulnerable and unprepared for the chance that this person may one day stab you in the back. This leaves you feeling totally worthless and almost as if you were thrown away like trash.
However, I do believe that there is also a beauty in this danger.
You see yes it is dangerous to open oneself completely to another, but it also makes you feel complete. It means you have finally freed yourself from the walls that confine you, and now you are able to share your hopes, dreams, and pain. That in itself is something beautiful.
Do you think that this beautiful danger will one day be the end of mankind?
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