A little cheesy, too many coincidences but a feel-good congenial search for identity

Three teenagers at the same high school discover that they are actually siblings, after learning they all share a donor father - number 806. Each for their own reason, they want to find their biological father.

Musician Katie (who insists on KT), jock Jesse and allergy-prone magic-fan Gabe 'borrow' a car and head off across the country, tracking down their father. They have nothing in common besides their shared heritage. At least, they don't think so...

You need to suspend disbelief repeatedly for this - the coincidences that allow this to happen are pretty far-fetched (how they obtain the information, the ease with which they 'find' certain necessary persons). But if you do, it's a diverting story with three appealing central characters.

There are many road movies that run along similar lines to this, many teenage 'how I grew up and found myself' stories, though the context of this is not as common (saying that I have read a book by Robin Benway recently about adopted siblings finding each other).

The threesome at the heart of this kept me reading, I liked KT and her 'brothers' though I found the story unbelievable.

This will be enjoyed by teenagers aged 13+.

With thanks to Netgalley for the advance e-copy.

I'm struggling with rating this because:
a) it's a fun, lighthearted book, but
b) it shouldn't be.

The way this narrative treats the children of sperm donors completely glosses over the real-life implications of this method of assisted reproduction, using it as nothing more than a vehicle to deliver a predictable message about celebrating different kinds of families, with some interplay between family of choice vs family of blood. Nothing about it is remotely close to realistic, and the fact that three kids, same age, same school, simultaneously decide to post to an online message board and discover they are half-siblings is actually the least of the offenders. There is an attempt at conveying the emotional turmoil Katie and her half-brothers feel, but it always disappears within a page and then it's back to their jovial (occasional illegal) escapades. This novel does a disservice to real people who truly have no way of uncovering that part of their parentage, and have to deal with the fallout - emotionally; physically, as they may not have any medical history for half their DNA; and even legally, as child support battles have been waged over this issue.

I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop as a series of (purposefully, one must assume) fantastical circumstances lead the trio to their biological father, but that moment never came. Everything skates easily into a happily ever after that is in no way reminiscent of real life, and puts forth dangerously misguided notions about the effects of sperm donation on the donors, children and families involved. This is a fantasy masquerading as contemporary YA fiction.

806, by Cynthia Weil is a modern young adult novel focused on family and friendships.

Kate (or KT, as she prefers to be called), Jesse, and Gabe are three siblings only connected by their biological father, as well as their interest in meeting him. While on their pursuit to meet Donor 806, the three siblings deal with their new relationships, as well as various issues on their new family adventure.

806 is an enjoyable road trip adventure story, particularly geared towards teenagers (and those who enjoy YA books).


Note: I received this book from Bookish First (via NetGalley), which is a program designed for bloggers to write book reviews in exchange for books, yet the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

The ludicrous hilarity of Twilight with the teen amazingness of John Green.
It was the John Green-esque road trip that caught my eye in 806 by Cynthia Weil. Three teens are going on a road trip to discover their sperm donor father. I was expecting thoughtful characters and some teen soppiness, and overall a story that would make me think. Instead, I laughed, and I laughed. 806 is like a talented writer tried writing a bad story. Possibly as a group with a bottle of wine involved. The writing is excellent; the story is hilarious. Apologies to the neighbors I may have woken with laughter (darn, thin apartment walls.)

The story: Katie, currently calling herself KT, grew up with her single mom and a steady stream of her mom’s boyfriends. Her mom says she’s just trying to find KT a dad. But, KT says she has one. She’s had photos of her parents together since she was small. He just left them, but he exists. After the latest boyfriend break-up, KT’s mom tells her where to find her father. Surprise, he’s local. Another surprise, he’s not her father. His grandfather promised him an inheritance if he had a child, so they used a sperm donor. Smart grandpa ordered a DNA test. KT was born, and her “dad” left penniless.

Condensing the story, KT’s mom gave her the donor number, 806, and the search for her father began. She discovered her school’s champion swimmer and the champion dweeb are her half-brothers. They, in an unrealistically short time, follow some dead leads, sneak into the sperm bank to steal records, leave on the road trip, have their car stolen, find it at a bikini carwash, drive to Arizona on another false lead, and end up in California. Of course, there are more adventures along the way. It is a road trip, of course. A hot waitress flirts with the dweeb half-brother to hitch a ride, then takes off with their ill-gotten casino winnings. The psychic sperm donor predicted their arrival in Arizona, enlightened the swimmer, and sent them on their way. Oh, that sounds wrong. 806 is very PG. Much more PG than you’d imagine a sperm bank break-in could be.

When reading 806, you must remove reality from any expectations. Every single storyline gets tied in a sparkly ribbon bow. EVERY SINGLE ONE. The half-siblings learn to appreciate their home situations, broken romances are revived, and people become stronger for it. It’s more happily ever after than a Disney fairytale.

However, there’s one happily ever after I must spoil. Back to the Twilight similarities, it’s pulling on the dangerous part. Even the sitting outside the bedroom window while she sleeps part. Dylan is in KT’s band. He obviously has a crush on her, but it’s not bad at first. Then he stalks her window. THEN he follows their road trip, showing up everywhere KT is. Even the unplanned stops. He’s declaring his love for KT; she’s telling him to go home. I can kind of accept that because she does rebuff him, but in the final let’s-wrap-it-all-up moment they hook up. Katie (she’s she’s back to by then) falls for him, and it’s love. Except that’s not love, it’s Stockholm syndrome. Dylan being rewarded for stalking is the only bad part of 806.

Ignoring that part (and it’s not that big), you’ll laugh through 806. It’s the best-written trash I’ve read in a long time.

* I “borrowed” the book’s tagline for the post title. It’s a good tagline.

This story is mainly about three teenagers that go in an adventure to find their biological father. Our main character is KT or Katie, Gabe and Jesse are the siblings she has and together they set out to find donor 806 which turns out to be donor 908.
The writing in the book is really good, except there were some grammar issues that bothered me a little. Also, the title does not make sense if the number of the donor turns out to be a different one. Overall though the story is really cute, the relationship building is also well written and the flow makes total sense all throughout the story.
I think this is a cute and quick read, there were a few twist and turns that I found easy to guess, like meeting a new character and how the situation turns out. However the book is one I would read again.

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The teenagers KT, Swimmy and Abracadabra find themselves experiencing the weirdest adventures with lots of practical and inventive solutions to some very unforeseen problems when trying to find their biological father.
The main character being KT whose point of view can be deadpan and funny: 'I thought I was going be one of the youngest people ever to have a heart attack, but I didn't have time for that.'

She - unlike her two brothers - is the one with the biggest mouth, taking over since she is a bit obsessive and a controlfreak. She is also the one who learns that people aren't always what they look like or what you expect them to be.

A humorous story that often made me smile and therefore made it to my for-a-rainy-day shelf on Goodreads.

Thanks to BookishFirst, Netgalley and the publisher Tanglewood Publishing for a copy of the book.

This YA novel is quite simply hilarious! When Katie discovers her biological father is not the man her mother has claimed he is, Katie decides to track down sperm Donor #806 when her mom finally admits to the truth. Using a donor website, she also learns she has two biological brothers whom she knows from high school--one a certified nerd and the other the stereotypical dumb jock. Together the three set off in search of their father. The adventure is both touching and so incredibly funny as they steal a car, thwart a robbery, and eventually find the answers they seek. A great coming-of-age story that proves you need to be happy with who you are as none of us are perfect and if you get to know someone before judging, you can be content in your own skin.
Thanks to Bookish First and NetGalley for this ARC!

"806" was a really surprising novel about KT (aka Katie) who has been exhausted by her mother's relationships, which frequently fail and cause all sorts of problems. She wants to find her father, who she hopes will provide the things her mother can't. KT is an aspiring rockstar with her friends in the No Name Band and rebels in every way she can- dying her hair blue, trying to get a tattoo... From her father, she wants to find someone more stable and to get a better picture of herself in the process. However, in her search, she learns that her father is a sperm donor- number 806 at the CryoSperm bank. Who is donor 806 and how can she find him?

She begins on a website, where she finds out she has two other half-siblings. Gabe, or as she calls him Abracadabra, is a stereotypical nerd. He's afraid he'll never find love and can't figure out how to talk to the opposite sex. He has untold numbers of allergies which lead him to wear breathe-right strips all the time. He is also studying magic. His parents sound really fabulous- super-supportive and loving. Her other half-brother is Jesse, or Swimmy as KT thinks of him. Jesse is the stereotypical jock- tall, blond, good-looking and a competitive swimmer. His mothers are getting divorced and he has to choose where to go- he's hoping to make a third option out of whoever his father is.

Their journey is not as straight-forward as it seems, and they really begin to feel like siblings along the way. Their relationships are really the stand-out part of the book. The first 2/3 of the book were amazing, and I absolutely loved it! The last 1/3 got a little strange, and we lost some of the human element. It became very surreal. I won't say more than that to avoid spoilers, but I would have given the first 2/3 5 stars and the last 1/3 2 stars, so I am weighting the average accordingly.

My biggest problem with the book is that KT has a stalker that is portrayed as "cute" for not taking no for an answer and following her everywhere. Unfortunately, this is all too real but should be handled more seriously in a book for teens. If someone says no, this should be an acceptable answer and repeated no's should not be an invitation for stalking. I wish there was some support for this instead of an eventual giving in. This is really not okay in my opinion.

Overall, it's a sweet journey of finding yourself and family you didn't know you had. I wish they could have removed the stalker, as it wasn't at all necessary to the overall plot and didn't aid the journey in any way.

Please note that I received an ARC from the publisher through bookish first/netgalley. All opinions are my own.

I thought this book would be great, a girl searching for her donor dad, trying to figure out the half of her life that's always eluded her. I didn't know my biological dad until I was 24 years old, so I know why it's important to her. However, I found the main character “It's KT mom. Not Katey.” so completely unbearable that I didn't even finish the book.

She's so rude. When she meets a couple of her siblings for the first time, she basically told them she was disappointed. One was a nerd, one was a jock. She was too good for them. Upon hearing that one of her siblings has 2 mom, she says “That is beyond cool! I've always considered lesbians the ultimate individualists.” And she decided that he wasn't as bad as she thought.

Plus she doesn't like people who eat meat. I get it, she's a vegetarian, but that was her choice to make, not to for her to force on the rest of the world and get mad when they don't comply. “Just looking at them made me feel really bad about the genes we shared.” She said that. Really. She's such an awful person.

So maybe with a different main character, this book would be great, but right now, it's just not.

Well this book was a ride in the best and worst ways. It was so dramatic and kind of predictable in a way. I found it weird how the siblings hated each other one day then bam they are best friends? also the whole dad thing he accepted it waaaaaaaay to easily. it was a good book with an amazing idea i just think it could have been written a bit differently

I quite enjoyed this fun book that's perfect for a road trip. This coming off age story deals with a serious topic in a light-hearted way while still keeping its depth. This is perfect for preteens and up as it is also pretty family-friendly, despite the basis of it being a fairly adult topic. There's no cursing (actually this is done in some pretty funny ways), no violence, and only mentions of some sexual activity but nothing at all graphic or inappropriate for the target audience. I personally like stories to be a bit messier and true to life while this one left everything wrapped up nearly in a bow. Even with my bias though, I enjoyed the book and found the sweet tale entertaining. This is one that may fly under the radar but it's definitely a good read for those times when a little light-hearted and somewhat romantic comedy is needed.

I would like to thank the publisher, author, and Netgalley for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

A fun slice of YA fiction, that centers around the somewhat serious topic of children resulting from sperm donation and their search for their real father and their identity. With the starting point of a centralised research system where the offspring can look for their donor Dads and whether they still wish to remain anonymous, as well as contacting any other progeny from the same donor.
This site brings together three teens - KT, Jesse and Gabe. Three teens who couldn't be more different from each other - an emo girl, a socially awkward magician, and the swim team dreamboat. Initially devastated to learn that they are all related, there are some interesting nature vs nurture traits that start to come out in them all as they spend more time together. Despite their differences, they decide to go on a roadtrip together to try and find their father., and what ensues is a lightweight romp across the country as their sleuthing and fate in equal measures bring them together with their donor Dad.
The path is beset with fake candidates for their father - a clerical error has them embarking on several wild goose chases, but eventually (and frankly fairly ridiculously) they manage to discover the truth behind their roots.
My biggest issue with this story is the somewhat implausible pathway to enlightenment, which relies too heavily on some extreme suspensions of disbelief! It's a fun enough journey, it was just too far removed from credibility for my liking.

This novel was light, fast paced and gave a lighter edge to an otherwise controversial and heavy subject. The three thrown together protagonists are fun, individual and real, they are what brings the story together.
On a slightly lower note, this novel may be more suited to the younger end of the YA spectrum, as I found it a little young and predictable in parts. That being said, I can see it being quite popular.

Donor 806 by Cynthia Weil
Blog post March 2018??
K.T. is a teenage singer songwriter who doesn’t know her real dad. Her mom is a train wreck with men, with one relationship after another ending or beginning.
But when K.T. insists that her mom let her meet her biological father, K.T. discovers she was conceived with the help of a sperm donor.
Insistent that she find out who her real dad is, K.T. goes online to a Website for people looking to meet their donor fathers.
What she finds is there are two other teens also looking for Donor 806 -- and they’re two boys she doesn’t much like from her suburban St. Louis high school, the jocky jerk Jesse Worthington and the nerdy magician Gabe Btcherelli.
How could she be related to THEM?
But they’re all in the same boat -- or jeep, as it turns out, as they wind up on a cross-country road trip in hopes of meeting their biological father.
There are plenty of disappointments and revelations along the way, but the characters are all likable in their own way and we wind up rooting for all of them.
Author Cynthia Weil’s plotting gets campy at times, and there are occasions where it’s tough to suspend your disbelief.
Notably, early in the book the kids find themselves out of gas at the Cadillac Ranch near Amarillo, Texas.
Readers who haven’t been there won’t notice anything, but those who have might know that civilization -- including a shopping mall and gas stations -- is within walking distance.
There are a few minor flaws, but overall this is an enjoyable read that many teens will enjoy.
And it’s no surprise that the book’s protagonist and narrator is a singer songwriter given the author’s history.
Whether you know it or not, you know Cynthia Weil’s work. Before writing YA fiction, Weil wrote song lyrics on some classic songs, including “You’ve Lost that Loving Feeling” and “Somewhere Out There,” which won her an academy award. She’s in the songwriter’s Hall of Fame and Rock & Roll hall of fame.
Donor 806 by Cynthia Weil

This novel follows three teens with three different stereotypical personalities as they go on an adventure to meet the sperm donor that fathered them. KT is the main character and she is struggling after learning that the man she thought fathered her actually did not. This book has a lot of elements that go into a good teen novel, such as a strong female lead that needs to let down her walls, a mystery that needs to be solved, teenage angst to which teenagers can relate and personal growth of the characters. However, there are many problems with this novel. For one it has more cliché’s than substance. My biggest issue is with how easily the plot is moved along with lazy story telling. **Spoiler** For example, when KT decides to reach out to her sperm donor father she immediately gets a response from her siblings and they just happen to be two boys she goes to school with. Similarly, the same day the man who believes he is their donor just happened to check the message boards so that they might reunite. Later when the three teens decide to drive to find their father both boys’ parents have trips to go on, so that they will be out of town. This type of plot device is used over and over again and it is simply not believable. I did not enjoy this book because I could not believe it.