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3.3 AVERAGE
3.3 AVERAGE
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
medium-paced
emotional
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
inspiring
reflective
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
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
3 stars.. The plot reminded me of The Celebrants, a book which I truly adored, and I have enjoyed other books of Emily’s so I was excited to pick it up. However, this fell flat, even the ending I went “really.”
The premise had potential, but by the end I found myself wanting more depth, more back story, more character development, and “more showing, less telling.” More importantly, I found quite a few things problematic, which made the story feel a bit surface and unintentionally disingenuous.
I didn’t agree with how depression, addiction, and mental health in general were depicted in the book; it read very undeveloped. The book seemed to minimize mental health conditions at times, yet other times it sensationalized/glorified it, and both were incredibly uncomfortable and leaned towards victim-blaming. Instead of centering around how Summer’s health issues (mental health IS health) and how her decision impacted her friends’ lives, the book focused on the friends’ naive notions of how to “rescue” each other, effectively flattening mental health into a one-dimensional problem that only needs a savior to resolve. It would have been much more authentic and compelling if depression and addiction etc were handled more delicately and truthfully.
I’m also very curious to hear what Black readers think of the character Tyson and whether his portrayal was an accurate/accepted depiction of the Black male experience or not, coming from a non-Black, non-male author.
I unfortunately would not recommend this book. I didn’t take kindly to the trivialization of mental health issues. It would be more understandable maybe if this was written in the ~90s or intentionally set in the ~90s, but it’s 2024. We know better now, so we must do better.
I didn’t agree with how depression, addiction, and mental health in general were depicted in the book; it read very undeveloped. The book seemed to minimize mental health conditions at times, yet other times it sensationalized/glorified it, and both were incredibly uncomfortable and leaned towards victim-blaming. Instead of centering around how Summer’s health issues (mental health IS health) and how her decision impacted her friends’ lives, the book focused on the friends’ naive notions of how to “rescue” each other, effectively flattening mental health into a one-dimensional problem that only needs a savior to resolve. It would have been much more authentic and compelling if depression and addiction etc were handled more delicately and truthfully.
I’m also very curious to hear what Black readers think of the character Tyson and whether his portrayal was an accurate/accepted depiction of the Black male experience or not, coming from a non-Black, non-male author.
I unfortunately would not recommend this book. I didn’t take kindly to the trivialization of mental health issues. It would be more understandable maybe if this was written in the ~90s or intentionally set in the ~90s, but it’s 2024. We know better now, so we must do better.
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
reflective
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:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes