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4.09 AVERAGE
4.09 AVERAGE
LOVED this book: also a "Lyle trip purchase" at the Northshire Book Store, it absorbed me immediately. The characters are intriguing and the book is inventive and what I've heard people call "fully realized": I could picture each setting vividly. Lots to think about--I actually gobbled down the last 40 pages or so as it was getting late but I wanted to know what was going to happen! My one quibble is that I just wasn't so sure what the wolf theme was getting at. It's multi-layered for sure, but it seemed a little muddy, though that could be completely my fault due to my greedy reading.
Anyway: my two impulse buys were both hits. They'd make great reading for the holiday season, by the way!
Anyway: my two impulse buys were both hits. They'd make great reading for the holiday season, by the way!
I'm not a literary critic. If I enjoy a book, believe it and can't pick any holes in the plot or writing, it gets five stars. This gets five stars.
This story is incredibly moving - I think it'd be 5 stars for me if I liked the narrator, June, a bit more. She's 14, and who isn't sort of a jerk when you're 14... but I wanted to shake her sometimes and tell her to stop being so self involved and be nice(r). But the book was fantastic in one of those you-know-it's-sad-so-get-ready-to-cry ways. Toby's character killed me. He's just heartbreaking and I wanted to reach in to the book and hug him.
Denne bog er simpelthen så fin og tankevækkende. Ikke nok med at bogen er fuld af de skrøbeligste citater, så er det også sådan en bog, som forbliver i ens tanker selv efter endt læsning. Jeg holdt rigtig meget af June, og kunne på mange områder identificere mig med hende, og det var så interessant at se hendes måde at tackle sorgen på. Finn og Toby er derudover også fantastiske karakterer, og det er virkelig sådanne mennesker, man på den ene eller anden måde burde have i sit liv.
Jeg var derimod overhovedet ikke begejstret for Junes søster Greta. Hun er virkelig ikke populær hos mig, og det er endda på trods af, at vi egentlig får grundlag for, hvorfor hun er, som hun er. Jeg kunne simpelthen ikke døje hende, og jeg synes virkelig ikke at hun behandlede June særlig pænt eller modent. Deres mor er heller ikke noget at råbe hurra for, men hun bliver dog alligevel portrætteret lidt mere realistisk end Greta, synes jeg. Men jeg elskede måden Greta og June kommunikerer på ved hjælp af portrættet - det er alligevel ret rørende.
"Min mor sagde tit den slags ting om Finn. At han aldrig var blevet voksen. Hun fik det til at lyde som noget dårligt, men jeg syntes, det var noget af det bedste ved ham." - citat side 67.
Det er virkelig en god bog, og jeg er så glad for at jeg har læst den. Jeg har måtte læse den i små bidder, da den virkelig satte tanker i gang på den gode måde. Derudover er stemningen i bogen perfekt til efteråret, og det er helt underligt at sige farvel til Junes verden. Bogen kan i hvert fald varmt anbefales - og man skal ikke lade sig slå ud af, at den omhandler 'aids', hvilket jeg var skeptisk for i starten, men det berører emnet på en virkelig interessant måde.
Jeg var derimod overhovedet ikke begejstret for Junes søster Greta. Hun er virkelig ikke populær hos mig, og det er endda på trods af, at vi egentlig får grundlag for, hvorfor hun er, som hun er. Jeg kunne simpelthen ikke døje hende, og jeg synes virkelig ikke at hun behandlede June særlig pænt eller modent. Deres mor er heller ikke noget at råbe hurra for, men hun bliver dog alligevel portrætteret lidt mere realistisk end Greta, synes jeg. Men jeg elskede måden Greta og June kommunikerer på ved hjælp af portrættet - det er alligevel ret rørende.
"Min mor sagde tit den slags ting om Finn. At han aldrig var blevet voksen. Hun fik det til at lyde som noget dårligt, men jeg syntes, det var noget af det bedste ved ham." - citat side 67.
Det er virkelig en god bog, og jeg er så glad for at jeg har læst den. Jeg har måtte læse den i små bidder, da den virkelig satte tanker i gang på den gode måde. Derudover er stemningen i bogen perfekt til efteråret, og det er helt underligt at sige farvel til Junes verden. Bogen kan i hvert fald varmt anbefales - og man skal ikke lade sig slå ud af, at den omhandler 'aids', hvilket jeg var skeptisk for i starten, men det berører emnet på en virkelig interessant måde.
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Coming of age story that perfectly captures a white middle class New York adolescence (mine, it's my adolescence) of wanting to belong and be wanted, fearing being abandoned or supplanted, and being just shy of the kind of understanding that only comes with age. Captures sister and family dynamics beautifully. A little ham handed in some elements towards the end (the portrait’s defacement magically undone, the saving of the older sister in the pouring rain...). Expectedly devastating in its relation to the AIDS crisis. Sobbed at the end. Not revolutionary, but skillfully done.
emotional
sad
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
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
June Elbus loves her uncle, Finn Weiss, but much of his life is a mystery to her. She befriends a man who knew her uncle and the rest is a remarkable story.
(Just a few spoilers...)
I had really, really high expectations for this book and most of them were not met. The story is still really interesting and compelling to me. I love the idea of a coming-of-age story for girls. Unfortunately, I don't think it did a very good job. Though the beginning was very strong, the story became very convoluted and set at a crawling pace. I don't mind slow-paced novels at all, but this one didn't really have a concrete enough flow to keep me interested.
I really wanted to like June but I had a hard time with her victim mentality. Constantly, the reader is reminded that no one in the world understands her at all and how she doesn't have anyone (except her uncle). I think I would have been much more sympathetic towards her and thought her much less grating had it not been written in first person. It would have been much easier to relate to her in a broader sense, as she's going through a fairly unique situation.
I really liked her family. They were fairly believable and realistic but came across as very flat and one dimensional through the narrative. June's mother and sister especially suffered. Both were obviously flawed and had different situations going on that I was interested in but June's view was too limited. I think the story would have benefited if June's family and their relationships had been more fleshed out.
My final bone to pick was the writing. There were a lot of really awkward run-on sentences (Ex. For a second I didn't understand, but then I did, and it felt strange and explosive to have her mention what we'd done to the portrait right at the kitchen table). The dialogue also came off as really awkward. I'm not sure if it's because there wasn't actually all that much dialogue between June and other characters or if it's just one of the author's weak points.
There were also some aspects of the plot that didn't make sense. Two large paragraphs were spent on June describing how she and Greta used to spend April Fools' Day tricking their parents before Greta started tricking June for the holiday instead. But then this sentence happened: Usually I had no idea it was April 1, but this year I remembered, so I was waiting for Greta to pounce. (Another awkward sentence to me...)
Overall, I liked the tone and the idea behind the novel. There were some positive aspects about it but I felt like the were limited compared to the pacing, dialogue, and really awkward run-ons. I'm certain that if the book hadn't been so well regarded and praised, I wouldn't have been as disappointed in it as I was. It was worth reading but I wouldn't recommend it over several other books that could do a better job in it's place.
I had really, really high expectations for this book and most of them were not met. The story is still really interesting and compelling to me. I love the idea of a coming-of-age story for girls. Unfortunately, I don't think it did a very good job. Though the beginning was very strong, the story became very convoluted and set at a crawling pace. I don't mind slow-paced novels at all, but this one didn't really have a concrete enough flow to keep me interested.
I really wanted to like June but I had a hard time with her victim mentality. Constantly, the reader is reminded that no one in the world understands her at all and how she doesn't have anyone (except her uncle). I think I would have been much more sympathetic towards her and thought her much less grating had it not been written in first person. It would have been much easier to relate to her in a broader sense, as she's going through a fairly unique situation.
I really liked her family. They were fairly believable and realistic but came across as very flat and one dimensional through the narrative. June's mother and sister especially suffered. Both were obviously flawed and had different situations going on that I was interested in but June's view was too limited. I think the story would have benefited if June's family and their relationships had been more fleshed out.
My final bone to pick was the writing. There were a lot of really awkward run-on sentences (Ex. For a second I didn't understand, but then I did, and it felt strange and explosive to have her mention what we'd done to the portrait right at the kitchen table). The dialogue also came off as really awkward. I'm not sure if it's because there wasn't actually all that much dialogue between June and other characters or if it's just one of the author's weak points.
There were also some aspects of the plot that didn't make sense. Two large paragraphs were spent on June describing how she and Greta used to spend April Fools' Day tricking their parents before Greta started tricking June for the holiday instead. But then this sentence happened: Usually I had no idea it was April 1, but this year I remembered, so I was waiting for Greta to pounce. (Another awkward sentence to me...)
Overall, I liked the tone and the idea behind the novel. There were some positive aspects about it but I felt like the were limited compared to the pacing, dialogue, and really awkward run-ons. I'm certain that if the book hadn't been so well regarded and praised, I wouldn't have been as disappointed in it as I was. It was worth reading but I wouldn't recommend it over several other books that could do a better job in it's place.
This book was beautifully written. I adored Toby's character, and Greta fascinated me, even when she was being mean.
The problem that I had with this book was the narrator. June made me cringe. A lot. I know that teenage girls can be naive and self-centered, but she really got on my nerves. And her obsession with her uncle was sick. Still, she was brave and had a very kind heart, and that redeemed her for me.
The problem that I had with this book was the narrator. June made me cringe. A lot. I know that teenage girls can be naive and self-centered, but she really got on my nerves. And her obsession with her uncle was sick. Still, she was brave and had a very kind heart, and that redeemed her for me.