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megpancoast's review against another edition
lighthearted
relaxing
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? No
4.0
actuallyeeyore's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
kdubs18's review against another edition
5.0
A GREAT read! An awesome book to get into the hands of young readers to educate them! Easy read for struggling readers, as free verse allows for a quick and encouraging read. Would truly recommend this book to anyone
breakfastgrey's review against another edition
2.0
While the end begins to complicate the narrative somewhat, the vast majority of this book is terribly boring. A boy has a crush on a girl but won't tell her. For something like 300 pages. And that's about it. Characters fit pretty neatly into teen romcom tropes--the hobbledehoy lead, his quirky best friend, the perfect girl, the selfish jock she dates--and things go pretty much as smoothly as possible without so much as the smallest wave until the very end where a tsunami comes out of nowhere to destroy everything. I think that's the point, but it doesn't necessarily make for a compelling read.
abitbetterbooks's review against another edition
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I’m really not sure why but this book just didn’t quite work for me! I think the writing is objectively good and I liked that the audio was narrated by the author, but I just didn’t really find myself connecting to the story or the characters in a meaningful way.
It felt fast paced and punchy because of it being in verse, but I felt that it meant some of the more deep character work fell through because of it. Most of the time I didn’t really like how the main “point” of the story was centred around Noah and his obsession / unrequited love with his best friend Sam, and his best friend Walt (aka Swing) generally being focused on “getting girls”. I think I would have liked this more if Walt had been the main character and not Noah.
The ending completely blindsided me and I’m still not sure what to make of it. The conclusion felt way too abrupt and I was left with a sense of having no idea how the entire beginning of the story was even really relevant as it just felt so… inconsequential to the last 5%. Maybe that’s the point? That one day the most important thing is your crush on a girl and the next your life is irreparably broken?
I also feel like there were too many elements of the story that took me out of it— is it normal for parents to leave their 17 year old children at home ALONE for 3 weeks? Why does the grandma not want to connect with her grandson AT ALL over these 3 weeks when he’s reaching out? Why or how is a 19 year old girl even remotely interested in dating a 17 year old boy? Anyways! That’s all my thoughts for now but I’m still percolating on it.
It felt fast paced and punchy because of it being in verse, but I felt that it meant some of the more deep character work fell through because of it. Most of the time I didn’t really like how the main “point” of the story was centred around Noah and his obsession / unrequited love with his best friend Sam, and his best friend Walt (aka Swing) generally being focused on “getting girls”. I think I would have liked this more if Walt had been the main character and not Noah.
The ending completely blindsided me and I’m still not sure what to make of it. The conclusion felt way too abrupt and I was left with a sense of having no idea how the entire beginning of the story was even really relevant as it just felt so… inconsequential to the last 5%. Maybe that’s the point? That one day the most important thing is your crush on a girl and the next your life is irreparably broken?
I also feel like there were too many elements of the story that took me out of it— is it normal for parents to leave their 17 year old children at home ALONE for 3 weeks? Why does the grandma not want to connect with her grandson AT ALL over these 3 weeks when he’s reaching out? Why or how is a 19 year old girl even remotely interested in dating a 17 year old boy? Anyways! That’s all my thoughts for now but I’m still percolating on it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Police brutality, and Violence
Moderate: Murder
cruggington's review against another edition
5.0
*If you can get a hold of the audiobook, I highly recommend it. This story is best heard from Kwame Alexander himself. (And the jazz cuts between chapters are lovely.)
On the surface, Swing is another coming-of-age love story. Boy loves girl but girl has a boyfriend. Boy wants to tell girl how he feels but saying it to her face is out of the question. Cue boy’s best friend who has a brilliant plan. Let the journey begin. Foolproof plot.
However, Swing isn’t only about puppy love. Swing is about finding yourself, loving yourself, seeing the world around you, and recognizing the complexity of being different from your friends and being friends anyway.
I would have learned so much about myself as a teen had this book existed. The characters are friends I would have loved to have in high school.
Many reviewers found the ending of this story “out of place,” “unfitting,” “random.” They’re not wrong, per se, but there’s a reason the ending happens the way it does.
If the ending doesn’t make sense, the book wasn’t for you.
If the ending made you uncomfortable, it was supposed to.
And honestly, there’s only two reasons the ending could have come as a surprise to you: 1) you’re lucky, or 2) you didn’t pay attention.
Loved this book. LOVED it. If you like stories written in verse, I definitely recommend this one.
On the surface, Swing is another coming-of-age love story. Boy loves girl but girl has a boyfriend. Boy wants to tell girl how he feels but saying it to her face is out of the question. Cue boy’s best friend who has a brilliant plan. Let the journey begin. Foolproof plot.
However, Swing isn’t only about puppy love. Swing is about finding yourself, loving yourself, seeing the world around you, and recognizing the complexity of being different from your friends and being friends anyway.
I would have learned so much about myself as a teen had this book existed. The characters are friends I would have loved to have in high school.
Many reviewers found the ending of this story “out of place,” “unfitting,” “random.” They’re not wrong, per se, but there’s a reason the ending happens the way it does.
If the ending doesn’t make sense, the book wasn’t for you.
If the ending made you uncomfortable, it was supposed to.
And honestly, there’s only two reasons the ending could have come as a surprise to you: 1) you’re lucky, or 2) you didn’t pay attention.
Loved this book. LOVED it. If you like stories written in verse, I definitely recommend this one.
sarahbaileyreads's review against another edition
3.0
I really struggled with the organization of this story-- it beautifully, and tragically, came together at the end, but it was distracting until then. The storyline with Corinthians felt forced, I didn't particularly like Sam, and I struggled to connect with the main character. It seemed like it was trying to do too many things, as opposed to just focusing on one message. Also, was the homeless musician the same guy from Solo??
listen_learn's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
2.0
That was one of the worst endings I have ever read.
Stupid political agenda. The only reason I gave it two stars instead of one was because the poetry was top notch throughout.
Stupid political agenda. The only reason I gave it two stars instead of one was because the poetry was top notch throughout.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Police brutality, and Murder
Minor: Racism
anneliese_books's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
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? No
4.5
I am devastated. Obviously there was some undertones of the theme throughout, but the ending was still unexpected.