Reviews

When Life Gives You Mangos by Kereen Getten

katievh's review against another edition

emotional hopeful mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes

3.5

zoeebone's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

iceangel32's review against another edition

3.0

I agree with some of the reviews the book was slow to start. I feel that unless you read the blub or other reviews it is just a story of a girl with nothing really special going on for almost the first half of the book. The beginning of the book all makes sense by about 80% into the book. I like how it was a twist that you don’t expect and it does make everything make sense once you get there. Not a bad read, not at all.

marieintheraw's review against another edition

4.0

Although this middle grade is short, it packs quite a punch. With quite a twist and everything. Overall, it can be a bit predictable, but the atmospheric writing is absolutely wonderful.

I received an ecopy of this book via Netgalley; however, my opinions are my own.

librarydosebykristy's review against another edition

4.0

This was a very different book than I expected. At first, it reads like a day in the life of a girl living in small town Jamaica, fighting with her best friend, trying to keep busy during a long, hot summer, etc. Then you learn that she has a curious memory problem that has caused her to forget everything that happened the previous summer… and well, hints that something big happened keep building and building…
I’m curious whether kids in the older middle grade range (4-6th grade) will get what happened and why the story was told the way it was. It’s very understated, and you can’t say too much without giving it away.
I look forward to discussing this unique story with my#mcba bookclub tomorrow! Will they give it a

isabelll1336's review against another edition

4.0

The fact that the girl died like DAMN I RLLY DID NOT SEE THAT COMING
Also kalvin and her shld hv ended up together

lieselie's review against another edition

4.0

Wauw!! Wat een mooi, ontroerend verhaal

lilworm's review against another edition

emotional hopeful sad slow-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

4.0

caenerys's review against another edition

3.0

Thank you to netgalley for providing a digital arc in exchange for an honest review.

This book was definitely enjoyable and I can see it become lots of readers' new favourite. For me it wasn't the best middle grade I've ever read. I enjoyed the story and the premise, and I thought the intrigue was good, but I didn't love the writing style. I felt that the chapters moved quite slowly and I didn't really like that. I was always hoping for the plot to pick up but ultimately it didn't feel like there was much of a plot.
I know the author said that this book was about friendship, and I can see that she really tried with this book, but for me I couldn't really connect with any of the friendships. In fact I couldn't really connect with any of the characters besides the main character.
I also found the ending a little abrupt.
But overall and enjoyable read and I would definitely recommend this to younger readers, even if I personally had a couple of issues with it.

debitoni's review against another edition

emotional mysterious 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? No

4.0