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gwalt118's review against another edition
3.0
Claire Gibson writes a wonderful story in decent packaging. This book lands solidly in the middle for me. I didn't love it, but I didn't hate it.
I enjoyed this story because it follows three women - Dani, Hannah, and Avery - through and beyond college. The story begins when they are seniors in high school and ends when they are about 24/25. These are six formative years for any person, but particularly for individuals who choose to go to West Point and encounter the events of 9/11 during their sophomore year. I appreciated that Dani, Hannah, and Avery came from very different backgrounds but became friends in college; throughout the novel, we see some ups and downs in their relationship with each other. Gibson did a good job of displaying each character's internal conflicts as well as the struggles they had with each other. It's a pretty honest look at female friendship in one's late teens and early 20's.
Gibson's characters tackle some big topics. Dani has to manage being a strong, smart, woman of color in a male-dominated university and profession. Avery goes on a tumultuous journey to figure out her self-confidence issues. Hannah -- well, I can't really give that one away, but I assure you that her struggles are present in the novel. Hannah's faith is constantly referred to in the novel. While I acknowledge that some may struggle with the presence of faith in this novel, I appreciate the way that Gibson approached it. It did not strike me as a "holier-than-thou" perspective. People had faith, but there wasn't a strong push to convert or press that faith upon others. Gibson did a great job of integrating faith into her novel without making it oppressive - that's a difficult feat.
I do not like it when the stories of young women revolve so heavily around the presence of men and the existence of boyfriends. During this novel, we see unrequited love, an almost picture-perfect romance, and a young woman who tries to find herself in her boyfriends. I think Gibson just tried to do too much here. It becomes repetitive and, in some cases, annoying.
Other than my pet peeve about the persistent presence of men, most of the things I didn't like about this novel are connected to the writing. First, the Prologue is unnecessary and sets a strange tone for the beginning of the novel. I wish she would have just started with the story. Second, the number of flashbacks within the chapters become very confusing. You're reading in the present and then all of a sudden you're whisked back to months or years prior with the only signal being, "At West Point..." or "Last year..." and then a few paragraphs or pages later, you're back in the present. That happened multiple times within a chapter. Combined with alternating perspectives in each chapter, the flashbacks were just too much for me.
I have a lot of respect for Claire Gibson, because I have no doubt that this was probably a very difficult novel to write. The author's note at the end - which you should always read, by the way! - described the amount of work she put into this novel over the years and how much research she did to make sure it was an accurate representation of women at West Point. I am certain that writing a military-focused story centered around 9/11 is not easy. She tackled some very difficult topics in her first novel. It was good, but not great. Nevertheless, I hope she keeps writing because I think it would be fun to see her talent grow and change over time.
I enjoyed this story because it follows three women - Dani, Hannah, and Avery - through and beyond college. The story begins when they are seniors in high school and ends when they are about 24/25. These are six formative years for any person, but particularly for individuals who choose to go to West Point and encounter the events of 9/11 during their sophomore year. I appreciated that Dani, Hannah, and Avery came from very different backgrounds but became friends in college; throughout the novel, we see some ups and downs in their relationship with each other. Gibson did a good job of displaying each character's internal conflicts as well as the struggles they had with each other. It's a pretty honest look at female friendship in one's late teens and early 20's.
Gibson's characters tackle some big topics. Dani has to manage being a strong, smart, woman of color in a male-dominated university and profession. Avery goes on a tumultuous journey to figure out her self-confidence issues. Hannah -- well, I can't really give that one away, but I assure you that her struggles are present in the novel. Hannah's faith is constantly referred to in the novel. While I acknowledge that some may struggle with the presence of faith in this novel, I appreciate the way that Gibson approached it. It did not strike me as a "holier-than-thou" perspective. People had faith, but there wasn't a strong push to convert or press that faith upon others. Gibson did a great job of integrating faith into her novel without making it oppressive - that's a difficult feat.
I do not like it when the stories of young women revolve so heavily around the presence of men and the existence of boyfriends. During this novel, we see unrequited love, an almost picture-perfect romance, and a young woman who tries to find herself in her boyfriends. I think Gibson just tried to do too much here. It becomes repetitive and, in some cases, annoying.
Other than my pet peeve about the persistent presence of men, most of the things I didn't like about this novel are connected to the writing. First, the Prologue is unnecessary and sets a strange tone for the beginning of the novel. I wish she would have just started with the story. Second, the number of flashbacks within the chapters become very confusing. You're reading in the present and then all of a sudden you're whisked back to months or years prior with the only signal being, "At West Point..." or "Last year..." and then a few paragraphs or pages later, you're back in the present. That happened multiple times within a chapter. Combined with alternating perspectives in each chapter, the flashbacks were just too much for me.
I have a lot of respect for Claire Gibson, because I have no doubt that this was probably a very difficult novel to write. The author's note at the end - which you should always read, by the way! - described the amount of work she put into this novel over the years and how much research she did to make sure it was an accurate representation of women at West Point. I am certain that writing a military-focused story centered around 9/11 is not easy. She tackled some very difficult topics in her first novel. It was good, but not great. Nevertheless, I hope she keeps writing because I think it would be fun to see her talent grow and change over time.
meganeveritt's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.25
4.25⭐️ kindle via library. Enjoyed this story of friendship that felt very real and certainly didn’t gloss over the hard parts of friendships that last. I very much liked the peak into West Point (oh my goodness,) and the authors’s notes at the back of the book added a great deal to her story and how she came to write this particular story. Would have given it a full 5 stars but I did feel it could have been edited down a bit……but don’t let that deter you from picking it up. Girl power, faith adjacent but not preachy, very raw grief, and a reading experience that I’m glad for.
lezapal's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars actually. I enjoyed some aspects of the story a lot, but it just felt a little slow and dragged at points. The writing was beautiful however and I did stay interested in the friendship aspect of the novel.
whatshawnareads's review against another edition
4.0
Beyond the Point was an interesting story, following three members of the Westpoint Women’s Basketball team who were sophomores when 9/11 happened and had to face the reality that they and their friends would be sent to war after graduation. I really liked this, but I wasn’t expecting it to have so much religion. I think that’s why the ending fell flat for me even though I enjoyed seeing each of the characters face their insecurities about growing up and how their life paths divulged from each other against the larger backdrop of 9/11 and war. Also, big props for the complex female friendships in the book.
moniquemaggiore's review against another edition
4.0
At first, when I started this novel, I was not sure how I was going to like it. It started off slow but I found I needed to stay with the story as Gibson gets there. This was a powerfully novel about both love and grief. I love how this novel was focused on three females. A moving story of this female friendship that captures these women exhibiting strength, faith, forgiveness and perseverance. I liked how it was told in three point-of -views - each of the main characters. I loved all three characters in this novel and felt that I connected to all three.
julieveg's review against another edition
5.0
Not a life changing book, but a decently written, good story.
joclark16's review against another edition
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
4.0
megs_k's review against another edition
4.0
Maybe hope is the only lasting change one human can give to another. ~ Claire Gibson
hopecaldwell's review against another edition
5.0
Straight-forward storytelling with strong female characters. Loved the setting at West Point and ensuing years were interesting as well. A good take on the power of friendship, as well as faith in action.