Scan barcode
jayceeangello's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
_nicolemariereads_'s review against another edition
4.0
I loved the characters in this story. Annika's character was beautifully crafted and her relationships were wonderful to read about. With that being said, I wish that there had been more time for the ending to be fleshed out. A sequel about Annika and Jonathan's relationship would be great to read!
dblanch's review against another edition
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
mdevlin923's review against another edition
4.0
Follows the story of Annika and Jonathan and their relationship. Alternating between their college days in the 90s and "present day" in 2001, we learn about the difficult situations and experiences they have faced alone and together.
Graves demonstrated the difficulties of what it is like to be on the autism spectrum disorder; as well as how someone can overcome those difficulties with determination, professional help, and loving and supportive friends and family. I really loved the way that Graves slowly gave us Annika's and Jonathan's histories. It was well-paced...and although there was not a lot that "happened" in the book, it was riveting.
Graves demonstrated the difficulties of what it is like to be on the autism spectrum disorder; as well as how someone can overcome those difficulties with determination, professional help, and loving and supportive friends and family. I really loved the way that Graves slowly gave us Annika's and Jonathan's histories. It was well-paced...and although there was not a lot that "happened" in the book, it was riveting.
elliebeattie's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
vhylace's review against another edition
3.0
it definitely took a lot of will power to get into the book at the first few pages, but as i got to know the characters more, i was genuinely intrigued by how their relationship would further and the people involved with their lives.
i’ve always loved stories that incorporate both past and present plots, and this book was no exception. in the past, we see annika as a senior in college and she has to play chess with jonathan, a senior transfer who recently joined the chess team. they grow their bond as the days go by during their final year in college, but hurt ends their relationship despite all the promises they’ve made. during the present, annika works as a librarian and jonathan tries to climb the corporate ladder. they stumble into each other in chicago and rekindle what they once had.
annika was definitely a complex character. she isn’t like any of the usually well-spoken and firecracker main female leads that i usually look forward to reading about, but despite being a solid opposite, she was very likeable because of her will to be a better version of herself plus being more independent.
on the other hand, jonathan was a guy who i didn’t really understand much throughout the story. he was nice and caring towards annika, but something about his whole character just threw the story off. annika had her valid reasons in loving jonathan, but i couldn’t really see jonathan loving annika fully because he thought she was, according to jonathan, child-like and she made him comfortable.
but yeah, jonathan was the person annika had to fight herself for. not because she felt that she needed to live up to him, but the fact that she needed to live up to her own expectations on how to function as a human everyone else. anyhow, he pushed annika to express herself along with fighting instead of fleeing in the hard times.
some people would’ve thought the events in this book were no short of boring, but in my opinion, it made me relaxed and showed me that it takes time to open up to people along with knowing what their intentions might be. with that comes two other statements that are clear as the story goes on.
1) everyone has different views on the world
2) you are your only obstacle in self-growth
what i liked about this story was that i got to explore how annika’s mind worked. how she didn’t know much about certain things people did, and later on i found out she had high-functioning autism along with anxiety. i’m very in the dark about autism, so i don’t know much about behaviors related to it, but i did find her way of viewing things interesting and it hooked me into the story.
i also enjoyed how much foreshadowing that went into some of the tiny plots within the story. like when janice took a phone call to the hall so annika couldn’t hear it and we later on find out that her mom was the one who wanted janice to take care of her and despite that set up, janice loved annika on her own terms. on the other hand, we see jonathan’s mom forgetting annika’s name when meeting her for the first time and sending annika and jonathan off. later on, jonathan says how his mom never forgets anything despite his mom forgetting where she put her keys. in the present, we learned that she’s been lost to dementia. i’m a sucker for foreshadowing. always have been. it’s those moments in my brain that just click that make me feel something
lastly, i want to touch up on the last thirty pages of the book. i know many people might say it’s unnecessary or didn’t match the theme of the whole book, but i believe that every book needs a good climax and this was a climax all right. the last quarter of the book fell of the script, though.
although annika did well during social gatherings in the present, she needed one last push. she needed to be in hot water to do something. so there she goes, trying to find jonathan after the events of 9/11, knowing he doesn’t have any family looking for him and fully aware that she isn’t the strongest driver.
through hardships on the road, we see her selfless character pick up a dad and little boy on the road and even pays for their hotel room. annika isn’t annika without her enormously large heart. it may seem extra to incorporate this part in the book, but i thought it was heavily needed to maintain that she can be strong despite having a large amount of kindness.
at the end, annika finds jonathan in a hospital in a crucial state after she searches for what seems like countless floors of a hotel with janice and numerous hospitals with her brother. after three months, jonathan gets discharged and one day annika finds a couple of hundreds in her mailbox from the man and the boy she helped.
this book had its moments and it was a relaxing yet intriguing read throughout. on the other hand, i wished there was an epilogue that would produce a final end rather than countless possibilities of how their relationship would end up once jonathan recovered.
i’ve always loved stories that incorporate both past and present plots, and this book was no exception. in the past, we see annika as a senior in college and she has to play chess with jonathan, a senior transfer who recently joined the chess team. they grow their bond as the days go by during their final year in college, but hurt ends their relationship despite all the promises they’ve made. during the present, annika works as a librarian and jonathan tries to climb the corporate ladder. they stumble into each other in chicago and rekindle what they once had.
annika was definitely a complex character. she isn’t like any of the usually well-spoken and firecracker main female leads that i usually look forward to reading about, but despite being a solid opposite, she was very likeable because of her will to be a better version of herself plus being more independent.
on the other hand, jonathan was a guy who i didn’t really understand much throughout the story. he was nice and caring towards annika, but something about his whole character just threw the story off. annika had her valid reasons in loving jonathan, but i couldn’t really see jonathan loving annika fully because he thought she was, according to jonathan, child-like and she made him comfortable.
but yeah, jonathan was the person annika had to fight herself for. not because she felt that she needed to live up to him, but the fact that she needed to live up to her own expectations on how to function as a human everyone else. anyhow, he pushed annika to express herself along with fighting instead of fleeing in the hard times.
some people would’ve thought the events in this book were no short of boring, but in my opinion, it made me relaxed and showed me that it takes time to open up to people along with knowing what their intentions might be. with that comes two other statements that are clear as the story goes on.
1) everyone has different views on the world
2) you are your only obstacle in self-growth
what i liked about this story was that i got to explore how annika’s mind worked. how she didn’t know much about certain things people did, and later on i found out she had high-functioning autism along with anxiety. i’m very in the dark about autism, so i don’t know much about behaviors related to it, but i did find her way of viewing things interesting and it hooked me into the story.
i also enjoyed how much foreshadowing that went into some of the tiny plots within the story. like when janice took a phone call to the hall so annika couldn’t hear it and we later on find out that her mom was the one who wanted janice to take care of her and despite that set up, janice loved annika on her own terms. on the other hand, we see jonathan’s mom forgetting annika’s name when meeting her for the first time and sending annika and jonathan off. later on, jonathan says how his mom never forgets anything despite his mom forgetting where she put her keys. in the present, we learned that she’s been lost to dementia. i’m a sucker for foreshadowing. always have been. it’s those moments in my brain that just click that make me feel something
lastly, i want to touch up on the last thirty pages of the book. i know many people might say it’s unnecessary or didn’t match the theme of the whole book, but i believe that every book needs a good climax and this was a climax all right. the last quarter of the book fell of the script, though.
although annika did well during social gatherings in the present, she needed one last push. she needed to be in hot water to do something. so there she goes, trying to find jonathan after the events of 9/11, knowing he doesn’t have any family looking for him and fully aware that she isn’t the strongest driver.
through hardships on the road, we see her selfless character pick up a dad and little boy on the road and even pays for their hotel room. annika isn’t annika without her enormously large heart. it may seem extra to incorporate this part in the book, but i thought it was heavily needed to maintain that she can be strong despite having a large amount of kindness.
at the end, annika finds jonathan in a hospital in a crucial state after she searches for what seems like countless floors of a hotel with janice and numerous hospitals with her brother. after three months, jonathan gets discharged and one day annika finds a couple of hundreds in her mailbox from the man and the boy she helped.
this book had its moments and it was a relaxing yet intriguing read throughout. on the other hand, i wished there was an epilogue that would produce a final end rather than countless possibilities of how their relationship would end up once jonathan recovered.
mayaxreads's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
angrzy's review against another edition
3.0
Honestly, it was kind of a middle-of-the-road read. I slowly became more appreciative of the portrayal of Annika’s struggles as the book went on, the relatability of her inability to accept change and clever flashbacks became the only reason I gave the book 3 stars.
Honestly, Jonathan seemed like a flat character. It would’ve been amazing if the author dove deeper into what it meant to date someone who was on the spectrum, instead of pushing away all the potential problems with Jonathan’s impenetrable “charisma” and borderline infantilization of Annika. The plot twist at the end seemed out of place, and so did the ending— the climax, a life-altering event, occurred 40 pages before the book ended.
Honestly, Jonathan seemed like a flat character. It would’ve been amazing if the author dove deeper into what it meant to date someone who was on the spectrum, instead of pushing away all the potential problems with Jonathan’s impenetrable “charisma” and borderline infantilization of Annika. The plot twist at the end seemed out of place, and so did the ending— the climax, a life-altering event, occurred 40 pages before the book ended.