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moniquemaggiore's review
3.0
This book was really slow for me. Every time I put it down, I struggled with picking it back up to read. This book was a story about family bonds, especially when the main character's brother has just come back from the war, and is recovering from PTSD. This book definitely grew on me but was really hard. I felt that this story ended up being more of a love story and than a story about PTSD and family hardships. I was expecting more from it. I did not like the character development of the characters.
lsalgado's review
5.0
As far as YA goes, this was awesome! Great perspective on PTSD, not only for vets but also their families. Mixes in some romance and coming of age. This book has it all!
megatsunami's review
4.0
This book was a lovely exploration of healing from trauma through cultural/ collective/ ecological methods, something we almost never see depicted in fiction (usually it's the one heroic therapist). In this case the healing is viewed through the eyes of the traumatized veteran's younger brother, who is also working through his own struggles to improve his academics in order to be college-bound.
I mostly felt this was a very realistic portrayal of someone struggling to heal from PTSD, except for the scene where someone decides to go to therapy and they just drive up to the therapist's office and the person meets with the therapist. I was like, ok, first of all, they would have to call their insurance and get a list of approved providers and call like 10 of them and wait for several days and get only one or two responses and those people don't have any spots open and then they would have to call their insurance again for a new list... OR, they would show up at a nonprofit which would have a four-week waiting list just to get a first appointment.
I mean, I appreciated the author's optimism, and that's totally how it should be. I'm just sayin'.
The main character was really sweet and the text messages between him and his love interest were adorable.
I would have given this book five stars except that it way overused the trope of people secretly making major life decisions for others because they feel they know what the other person REALLY needs/ wants to be doing. This is a trope I can't stand and it happened four or five times in the book.
I mostly felt this was a very realistic portrayal of someone struggling to heal from PTSD, except for the scene where someone decides to go to therapy and they just drive up to the therapist's office and the person meets with the therapist. I was like, ok, first of all, they would have to call their insurance and get a list of approved providers and call like 10 of them and wait for several days and get only one or two responses and those people don't have any spots open and then they would have to call their insurance again for a new list... OR, they would show up at a nonprofit which would have a four-week waiting list just to get a first appointment.
I mean, I appreciated the author's optimism, and that's totally how it should be. I'm just sayin'.
The main character was really sweet and the text messages between him and his love interest were adorable.
I would have given this book five stars except that it way overused the trope of people secretly making major life decisions for others because they feel they know what the other person REALLY needs/ wants to be doing. This is a trope I can't stand and it happened four or five times in the book.
bjkatcher's review
4.0
Very engaging read, and surprisingly non-political. Though I did wince when I read the part where Obama was elected and the characters had such hope. They have no idea how low we'll sink, eight years later.
jessicavk91's review
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
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
tishreads's review
5.0
This story combines first love, academic challenges, war and PTSD, unemployment and family struggles, and friendship into a compelling, emotional, and heartwarming novel. Their is so much growth in all three of the Avila siblings as they go on a road trip that will change all of their lives as well as the reader's.
mandyist's review
3.0
This book has been on my TBR-list for the longest time, and it is only that which made me plough through it to the end.
I thought I'd love a story about a road trip but I hated the way the road trip was executed by T's sister. That and her lies and complete lack of respect for T's future enraged me. (I say this as someone who lives in a family bound together by trauma. PTS, and living with those with PTS, means a greater need for honesty, respect and boundaries, not less).
I also disliked how selfish Wendy was and how she somehow managed to make another family's crisis about her.
And then the end. The characters act in an incredibly problematic and manipulative manner throughout the novel and the author shows character development by having the protagonist act in the same way, and somehow that's explained as love?
The story is sweet, hence three stars, but I haven't disliked characters this much in a while. I've mentioned before that I'm on a journey of accepting flawed characters and actions but we have to hold YA novels to a greater standard.
Essentially, the message here to the YA audience is that it's okay to lie, manipulate, and hijack family members (literally and figuratively) to achieve your own agenda and that (to misquote Whitney) is not right nor is it okay.
I thought I'd love a story about a road trip but I hated the way the road trip was executed by T's sister. That and her lies and complete lack of respect for T's future enraged me. (I say this as someone who lives in a family bound together by trauma. PTS, and living with those with PTS, means a greater need for honesty, respect and boundaries, not less).
I also disliked how selfish Wendy was and how she somehow managed to make another family's crisis about her.
And then the end. The characters act in an incredibly problematic and manipulative manner throughout the novel and the author shows character development by having the protagonist act in the same way, and somehow that's explained as love?
The story is sweet, hence three stars, but I haven't disliked characters this much in a while. I've mentioned before that I'm on a journey of accepting flawed characters and actions but we have to hold YA novels to a greater standard.
Essentially, the message here to the YA audience is that it's okay to lie, manipulate, and hijack family members (literally and figuratively) to achieve your own agenda and that (to misquote Whitney) is not right nor is it okay.
misterintensity's review
5.0
Teodora and Xochitl Avila are excited that their brother Manny is finally coming home from Afghanistan. However when they learn Manny has PTSD, Xochitl decides to take her brothers on a road trip in order to help Manny deal with it. This book is one big emotional journey for the Avila siblings. Teodora is conflicted between helping his brother and improving himself in order to get the grades needed to get into college. Flores-Scott captures the love as well as the conflicts between the siblings. Loyalty among family comes off very strong. There is even a little romance between Teodora and a girl named Wendy Martinez that is very cute. Readers see the seriousness of PTSD through Manny's struggles and the toil it takes on Teodora and Xochitl. Must read for readers of realistic fiction.
biblioemily's review
4.0
Things I loved: Mexican-American representation, green chile cheeseburgers!!, supportive family, T's determination to change his life. The realities of PTSD and how this can affect family members, too.
Things I didn't love: The dialogue is pretty unnatural. Wendy & T's conversation doesn't sound the way teens talk. (it reminded me of The Inexplicable Logic of My Life in this regard) I also hated that Xoch and T felt responsible for "fixing" Manny, and that T's parents are portrayed as kind of helpless and not responsible enough. It's also upsetting that Xochitl doesn't tell her parents about the suicide note.
SLJ recommends this for 7th & up. I'm more inclined to recommend it to 8th & up because of the attempted suicide and scenes where Manny is dealing with flashbacks. This book is gorgeous and also tragic.
Things I didn't love: The dialogue is pretty unnatural. Wendy & T's conversation doesn't sound the way teens talk. (it reminded me of The Inexplicable Logic of My Life in this regard) I also hated that Xoch and T felt responsible for "fixing" Manny, and that T's parents are portrayed as kind of helpless and not responsible enough. It's also upsetting that Xochitl doesn't tell her parents about the suicide note.
SLJ recommends this for 7th & up. I'm more inclined to recommend it to 8th & up because of the attempted suicide and scenes where Manny is dealing with flashbacks. This book is gorgeous and also tragic.