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gggina13's review against another edition
5.0
I have never felt more seen in my relationship than I did in this book, which is a little odd considering it's about the world ending.
I love that this book starts you off in the middle of Aisha's life - not only is she 2 years into a relationship, she's also a few months into the apocalypse... she and her boyfriend, Walter, were at the beach one day when an announcement came through to everyone that a meteor is projected to blow up the earth... MONTHS from now, with nothing to do to prevent it. God, it's such a terrifying concept. But we are actually far enough into it in the book that the general panic has subsided and they've sort of started to come to terms with it.
Aisha lives with her mom, and her sister used to live with them too, before she ran away. The girls' dad died when Aisha was about 10, and things just never got easier again between Aisha's sister, June, and their mom. The immediate driving story behind this book is that Aisha and her mom have decided to go out and look for June, to make up before the world ends. Walter and his parents come along, too, because why spend precious time apart when there's no time to make it up?
Aisha has so much anger in her. It sucks that her dad died, it sucks that her mom was too depressed to parent them, it sucks that her sister left her behind, it sucks that she is never going to grow old... as a teen, your whole WORLD revolves around what you're going to do when you grow up, and how you'll change, and having to be alive knowing she isn't going to get that is so CRUSHING to think about. She imagined herself growing old with Walter and having a whole life with him. They're both super bright, and they had good futures ahead of them.
The very worst part, though, is that her anger at the situation is causing her to lash out and be prickly, namely towards Walter, which is spoiling the time they do still have together. The whole concept is like, you're not going to be vulnerable with just anyone, so you let your emotions out around the person you feel safest with, and sometimes that ends up with you being upset WITH that person, and not TO them. I have dealt with this a lot in my own relationship, especially before I understood it, and it's really hard to watch Aisha go through it, even if it speaks to me a lot. She obviously doesn't WANT to be a shithead, but when she does, it makes her even angrier, feeding into the cycle. And Walter, bless his heart, he's so much like my fiance, he's an angel but he's also not going to take her acting that way, so he has to stand up to her and remind her she's not actually angry at him and it's okay to be angry but important to remember he didn't do any of it. He also has his moments of vulnerability where he peels back his happy-go-lucky veneer. It's just so, so valuable to me personally to see this dynamic and these feelings represented.
The family relationships are pretty layered and deep, considering I ALSO think that about the romantic relationship and the book clocks in at under 200 pages. I think Nadia Mikail is MAJORLY a writer to watch since I feel this connected to a story so short. Like, I feel the anguish and stress of knowing the world is ending but I also feel the resilience of not giving in and making sure you spend time doing what you want to do with those you love while you can. I have death anxiety, I've talked about it in many a review here, and this book slightly triggered it, but not as much as it could have just because it's SO realistic to like how you'd actually act if it was happening. Like, it would suck ass and you'd be mourning while you lived, but you'd just still have to keep living. The narrator does acknowledge that there are plenty of people who decided to "not make it to the end" which I think is also a pretty accurate thing. Like some people would totally just not want to be alive anymore and not want to wait around to die.
The sister/mother relationship is very important to the story and I feel like I'm downplaying that. There's a lot of hashing out old pain which I think is very useful and important, especially in a situation where it would be just as easy to pretend the drama never happened and just love each other until the end. But the star of the book to me is the dynamic between Walter and Aisha, and I'm really going to treasure this story because of it.
I love that this book starts you off in the middle of Aisha's life - not only is she 2 years into a relationship, she's also a few months into the apocalypse... she and her boyfriend, Walter, were at the beach one day when an announcement came through to everyone that a meteor is projected to blow up the earth... MONTHS from now, with nothing to do to prevent it. God, it's such a terrifying concept. But we are actually far enough into it in the book that the general panic has subsided and they've sort of started to come to terms with it.
Aisha lives with her mom, and her sister used to live with them too, before she ran away. The girls' dad died when Aisha was about 10, and things just never got easier again between Aisha's sister, June, and their mom. The immediate driving story behind this book is that Aisha and her mom have decided to go out and look for June, to make up before the world ends. Walter and his parents come along, too, because why spend precious time apart when there's no time to make it up?
Aisha has so much anger in her. It sucks that her dad died, it sucks that her mom was too depressed to parent them, it sucks that her sister left her behind, it sucks that she is never going to grow old... as a teen, your whole WORLD revolves around what you're going to do when you grow up, and how you'll change, and having to be alive knowing she isn't going to get that is so CRUSHING to think about. She imagined herself growing old with Walter and having a whole life with him. They're both super bright, and they had good futures ahead of them.
The very worst part, though, is that her anger at the situation is causing her to lash out and be prickly, namely towards Walter, which is spoiling the time they do still have together. The whole concept is like, you're not going to be vulnerable with just anyone, so you let your emotions out around the person you feel safest with, and sometimes that ends up with you being upset WITH that person, and not TO them. I have dealt with this a lot in my own relationship, especially before I understood it, and it's really hard to watch Aisha go through it, even if it speaks to me a lot. She obviously doesn't WANT to be a shithead, but when she does, it makes her even angrier, feeding into the cycle. And Walter, bless his heart, he's so much like my fiance, he's an angel but he's also not going to take her acting that way, so he has to stand up to her and remind her she's not actually angry at him and it's okay to be angry but important to remember he didn't do any of it. He also has his moments of vulnerability where he peels back his happy-go-lucky veneer. It's just so, so valuable to me personally to see this dynamic and these feelings represented.
The family relationships are pretty layered and deep, considering I ALSO think that about the romantic relationship and the book clocks in at under 200 pages. I think Nadia Mikail is MAJORLY a writer to watch since I feel this connected to a story so short. Like, I feel the anguish and stress of knowing the world is ending but I also feel the resilience of not giving in and making sure you spend time doing what you want to do with those you love while you can. I have death anxiety, I've talked about it in many a review here, and this book slightly triggered it, but not as much as it could have just because it's SO realistic to like how you'd actually act if it was happening. Like, it would suck ass and you'd be mourning while you lived, but you'd just still have to keep living. The narrator does acknowledge that there are plenty of people who decided to "not make it to the end" which I think is also a pretty accurate thing. Like some people would totally just not want to be alive anymore and not want to wait around to die.
The sister/mother relationship is very important to the story and I feel like I'm downplaying that. There's a lot of hashing out old pain which I think is very useful and important, especially in a situation where it would be just as easy to pretend the drama never happened and just love each other until the end. But the star of the book to me is the dynamic between Walter and Aisha, and I'm really going to treasure this story because of it.
laurenlee2158's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
iambookmad's review
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
fast-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
2.5
Read this book in one sitting. It’s definitely not what the title or blurb suggested - and there were not enough cats.
I did however like the conversations on grief even if I felt like the main character was just always looking for a fight.
I did however like the conversations on grief even if I felt like the main character was just always looking for a fight.
undervmountain's review
sad
fast-paced
1.0
I would love to read the book that was pitched to the title creator and cover artist, because it sure as hell can't have been this one. The road trip was a few pages. There was one cat. This story is so, so overwhelmingly depressing.
Even putting aside the lack of true road trip and the almost complete lack of cats, this story was so difficult to like because it was just Aisha talking about her dead family members and how she's depressed because the world is ending and they're all going to die over and over.
I did like Fleabag, and the drawings of him on the chapter titles, although Aisha just constantly talked about how much she didn't like him that much, which just put me off further. Overall, I am depressed. One star for the cat.
Even putting aside the lack of true road trip and the almost complete lack of cats, this story was so difficult to like because it was just Aisha talking about her dead family members and how she's depressed because the world is ending and they're all going to die over and over.
I did like Fleabag, and the drawings of him on the chapter titles, although Aisha just constantly talked about how much she didn't like him that much, which just put me off further. Overall, I am depressed. One star for the cat.
marsfeverdreams's review
2.0
2.5 stars.
“Then June had gone and her voice with her, and it had been so hard to remember the tales she had told so it was easier to stop trying. June had always been the one who properly remembered them, remembered them so vividly. Without her, many memories became just stories Aisha had been told, and without her she had no one to corroborate any memories.”
“Then June had gone and her voice with her, and it had been so hard to remember the tales she had told so it was easier to stop trying. June had always been the one who properly remembered them, remembered them so vividly. Without her, many memories became just stories Aisha had been told, and without her she had no one to corroborate any memories.”
abbyistrying's review
emotional
hopeful
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
4.75
jasminenicholson2001's review
3.0
I loved the way this book explored anger and grief, especially within families who have experienced a lot of loss. Also one of the only apocalyptic books I’ve read where you see human anger at the end of the world, which I really liked.
pariseleanne's review
3.0
The world is due to end in few months as a meteor is due to hit earth. The whole human race will be wiped out and there is nothing anybody can do to stop it. Digging underground bunkers will prove to be pointless! This novel is about reuniting family together during hard times, having difficult conversations and reflecting on past experiences. It is a very emotional book, with a VERY promising plot, that in my opinion it just didn’t live up to. Also ‘the cats we meet along the way’.. come on where was all the cats? Because I’m pretty sure they only met one cat. Absolutely beautiful cover and some cute illustrations through out the book.
This book was a good easy read with it only having 250 pages I flew through it in one day. However it is getting a 3 star rating from me as I feel like the ending let it down. I am constantly going to wonder what happened to them poor characters
This book was a good easy read with it only having 250 pages I flew through it in one day. However it is getting a 3 star rating from me as I feel like the ending let it down. I am constantly going to wonder what happened to them poor characters