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shemyshines98's review against another edition
4.0
Damn. Just...Damn. I didn't expect to feel this way when I picked this up at the library, but jeez. Everything about this book, is so chilling. I'm very impressed. From the the way it's written, how the gun plays devil's advocate, to further explaining how guns don't necessarily kill all people. People kill people. Period. Guns just make the job more easier, unfortunately. The gun being a antagonist in or having a mind of it's own was the kicker for me. It felt so thrilling. Some of the stanzas threw me for a loop because they mostly went over my head, still it got the point across. All in all, this book was great! Definielty in my lists of psychologic thrillers.
"See, The Absolute Truth
Is
people
do
kill
people.
A
gun
just
makes
it
easier.
Even a child can do it."
That part got me. The perfect way to close out a book. Wow. Mind-blown. RIP Grace.
"See, The Absolute Truth
Is
people
do
kill
people.
A
gun
just
makes
it
easier.
Even a child can do it."
That part got me. The perfect way to close out a book. Wow. Mind-blown. RIP Grace.
bibliobethica's review
4.0
Everything one expects from author Ellen Hopkins. Poetic, thought-provoking, and realistic.
taviamorgan's review against another edition
5.0
4.5
i just wrote a whole review and then deleted it so now i’m upset lol. anyways i think this story is a really important one and tells a story of the awful impacts that guns can have an entire communities of people. I think each character was fairly unlikable except for the one that died and Noelle, who i did enjoy. I think the main idea behind the story was to explain how people kill people and guns make it easier. And a coward with a gun is still a coward. A story about a group of people whose lives were forever changed by a three-year-old and a weapon that his parents kept i safely in their home. no one faced any consequences except the loss of someone they loved but also you can’t arrest a 3 year old and his parents didn’t pull the trigger so whos in trouble? My least favorite was obviously Silas because he was a white supremacist asshole. He made decisions that were incomprehensible to me and that made sense to him. I think Ashlyn was really just looking for a group of people and she found it in the wrong group. Daniel had so many mental problems but wasn’t helped or provided for in anyway and it led to him doing toxic things and subsequently dying for it. rand and cami provided a weapon for a child to shoot someone who didn’t know any better. they weren’t shot on purpose and yet they still died. Their relationship was toxic and they both had issues beyond themselves and while they do stay together and they do create the family it will never be the same. Grace was the one person who felt like guns were unnecessary and damaging and she’s the one that died by one which was very impactful. There were multiple quotes and instances in this book that can be major teaching moments for generations. also silas would say and do things for people that would make them think he was nice but it was just to further himself. i also think the responses from the point of view of the gun were really interesting and necessary to tell the story. it’s interesting cause when some people are confronted with gun violence they steer away from guns while characters like silas just wanted to be more prepared next time. this is a story about the travesties of gun violence and it’s heartbreaking to read about especially because this stuff happens. definitely worth the read.
i just wrote a whole review and then deleted it so now i’m upset lol. anyways i think this story is a really important one and tells a story of the awful impacts that guns can have an entire communities of people. I think each character was fairly unlikable except for the one that died and Noelle, who i did enjoy. I think the main idea behind the story was to explain how people kill people and guns make it easier. And a coward with a gun is still a coward. A story about a group of people whose lives were forever changed by a three-year-old and a weapon that his parents kept i safely in their home. no one faced any consequences except the loss of someone they loved but also you can’t arrest a 3 year old and his parents didn’t pull the trigger so whos in trouble? My least favorite was obviously Silas because he was a white supremacist asshole. He made decisions that were incomprehensible to me and that made sense to him. I think Ashlyn was really just looking for a group of people and she found it in the wrong group. Daniel had so many mental problems but wasn’t helped or provided for in anyway and it led to him doing toxic things and subsequently dying for it. rand and cami provided a weapon for a child to shoot someone who didn’t know any better. they weren’t shot on purpose and yet they still died. Their relationship was toxic and they both had issues beyond themselves and while they do stay together and they do create the family it will never be the same. Grace was the one person who felt like guns were unnecessary and damaging and she’s the one that died by one which was very impactful. There were multiple quotes and instances in this book that can be major teaching moments for generations. also silas would say and do things for people that would make them think he was nice but it was just to further himself. i also think the responses from the point of view of the gun were really interesting and necessary to tell the story. it’s interesting cause when some people are confronted with gun violence they steer away from guns while characters like silas just wanted to be more prepared next time. this is a story about the travesties of gun violence and it’s heartbreaking to read about especially because this stuff happens. definitely worth the read.
zellm's review against another edition
2.0
Plus one star for the twist at the end and the statement it makes. But besides that, I really didn't like this. The characters are caricatures, so one dimensional it is cringeworthy. I didn't like the use of second person perspective in a story with multiple narrative characters. And the "voiceover" narrator was eye-roll worthy.
jbolwerk8's review against another edition
3.0
Really a 2.5 for me, which is unfortunate. I love love love looooove Ellen Hopkins, she is probably my favorite author. I can understand and appreciate 100% what she was trying to do with this book, but it was just not quite what I was expecting. It has the tough topic that her books usually do, but I didn't really like the "violence" narrator...none of his sections, once the other characters were introduced, made sense to me. It also didn't have her typical back and forth prose that I adore; it was more just like a story with multiple narrators. Also, there was a ton of hype throughout the book as to "who is going to be the one to pull the trigger?" and once this part actually happened, it was very anticlimactic. I don't know if I just haven't read her in a while (granted, I haven't read a lot of her newer works), but I wasn't in love with it.
lbrauz's review against another edition
3.0
More like 3.5 stars. Crazy book. I’ll be thinking about this one for a long time.
brisotkovsky's review against another edition
4.0
These characters felt so real. I don’t cry at books but I got emotional for sure. This was hard to read but very believable and interesting.
makaylia12's review
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
ang0521's review against another edition
5.0
As always, I love this Ellen Hopkins book. I find her to be a fantastic writer who’s able to develop complex but relatable and real characters. Even with six characters she manages to construct the book in a way that their individual stories and plot lines are easy to follow. There was of course a twist I was not expecting. I had so many other thoughts of what would happen and I was wrong on all of them. Ellen Hopkins so eloquently and truthfully talks about guns in the United States; the risks and the rights. The book doesn’t try to sway your opinion on gun control but it’s very real. The characters and stories are ones we’ve become too familiar with in recent years. What I love about Ellen Hopkins books is that she so beautifully tackles difficult subjects in a real, raw, and honest way, and this book was no different.