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izzy01's review against another edition
5.0
I loved the story of Boo a lot when I read it.
In honesty, I was compelled to because I stumbled upon the bright green cover, opened the book, and read: "do you ever wonder, mother and father, what kind of toothpaste angels use in heaven?"
And like, yes - not your mother - but of course I do! That's the kind of thing I would google at night, like - how tall was Jesus? And do penguins have knees? DO THEY?
Anyway, I cannot say much more without spoiling it. It's slow in the beginning, but it's all worth it once he returns to his old school and - well. Yeah. The reveal is super sad, FUCKED. ME. UP.
Honestly.
This book fucked me up.
It was very original, too. This afterlife (written by an atheist) is one I can get behind. No dead things, only people your age (k that's terrifying ngl) and bikes, brick walls and science kits? Halloween parties! In the afterlife! YES?!
Interesting premise with a story full of twists and turns that delivers. Would you please release another book soon, Neil?
Thanks.
In honesty, I was compelled to because I stumbled upon the bright green cover, opened the book, and read: "do you ever wonder, mother and father, what kind of toothpaste angels use in heaven?"
And like, yes - not your mother - but of course I do! That's the kind of thing I would google at night, like - how tall was Jesus? And do penguins have knees? DO THEY?
Anyway, I cannot say much more without spoiling it. It's slow in the beginning, but it's all worth it once he returns to his old school and - well. Yeah. The reveal is super sad, FUCKED. ME. UP.
Honestly.
This book fucked me up.
It was very original, too. This afterlife (written by an atheist) is one I can get behind. No dead things, only people your age (k that's terrifying ngl) and bikes, brick walls and science kits? Halloween parties! In the afterlife! YES?!
Interesting premise with a story full of twists and turns that delivers. Would you please release another book soon, Neil?
Thanks.
l11yra's review against another edition
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
nina_andreyevna's review against another edition
3.0
My kingdom for a 3.5! This was a touching read, and I'll be thinking about the final revelations for a while. That said, there were a few distracting loose ends, and I didn't totally love the way race and mental illness were woven into the narrative. (PS: why use the elements as chapter headers if you aren't going to use all of them? Oliver's fixation on memorizing all 106, and later all 109, seems like something to abide by there; the end of the book seems to suggest that they're a way of indicating how much time has passed, but that wasn't clear.)
yasmine04's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
starklinqs's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
This book may honestly be my favorite book that I’ve read in a long time - it’s not perfect, but the emotions that this book brought up for me make it so that even the things that I wish were different don’t detract my rating for this book.
Things that I wish were different - the main character doesn’t sound 13 years old whatsoever. I definitely got used to it, and the book acknowledges that he’s different from other 13 year olds, but I do wonder why he wasn’t aged up even slightly. The book also feels very very long. I think it’s all worth it, but there definitely were moments where I’d check to see how much longer I had left.
World building was also done but left me with many questions - and I feel like these things were all mentioned in other reviews and I can see why it would push a rating down.
That being said - I absolutely loved it. I feel like this book had a theme of forgiveness as Gunboy evolves. (This is spoilered and if you haven’t read don’t click it!) The concept of forgiving a stranger, then a best friend, and finally yourself was just wonderfully done and I adored it. The relationship with Boo and Johnny was also a beautifully done relationship - a wonderful platonic relationship with depths of love. I would honestly read a sequel from Johnny’s POV post-Town . Overall I just loved it dearly - I feel like with Boo it’s difficult for me to cry with books, but the last half had me tearing up and I was fully invested in the story.
Things that I wish were different - the main character doesn’t sound 13 years old whatsoever. I definitely got used to it, and the book acknowledges that he’s different from other 13 year olds, but I do wonder why he wasn’t aged up even slightly. The book also feels very very long. I think it’s all worth it, but there definitely were moments where I’d check to see how much longer I had left.
World building was also done but left me with many questions - and I feel like these things were all mentioned in other reviews and I can see why it would push a rating down.
That being said - I absolutely loved it. I feel like this book had a theme of forgiveness as Gunboy evolves. (This is spoilered and if you haven’t read don’t click it!) The concept of forgiving
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Gun violence, and Suicide
Minor: Ableism and Racism
xb_bi's review against another edition
4.0
Overall, this was a really worthwhile read. The narrator and main character, Oliver (or Boo), is somewhat difficult to get used to at first, but his voice became slightly less annoying as the book went on. The book contained many twists and turns, but I found the final of these pretty unbelievable and out of character.
praptii's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
sad
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
4.0
This story is almost like if Lord of the Flies took place in heaven, just with a lot less chaos and weirdness. This was such an interesting take on death and the afterlife and it can really make you think about God (or Zig lol) and how large or small a role he plays in our lives. It’s also just so amazing to see the growth of Oliver and the relationships he forms throughout. The more I read of Boo, the more I enjoyed. I don’t think everyone will love the ending, but I think it was fitting and a nice way to wrap everything up.
thebibliotucker's review against another edition
5.0
I absolutely adored this book. I got it just after Christmas, and it was only now that I had the chance to sit down and read it. Safe to say, I was so enthralled that I read it in one sitting, and have immediately passed it on to my family to read.
Boo is an incredible main character, and Neil Smith has managed to create his voice beautifully. The twists and turns of the plot took me completely by surprise, something that I have struggled to find in books recently. I don't want to give away any of the plot, but the final few chapters had me in tears - a truly beautiful book that I would thoroughly recommend to anyone.
Boo is an incredible main character, and Neil Smith has managed to create his voice beautifully. The twists and turns of the plot took me completely by surprise, something that I have struggled to find in books recently. I don't want to give away any of the plot, but the final few chapters had me in tears - a truly beautiful book that I would thoroughly recommend to anyone.
oneofthefoxes's review against another edition
4.0
Der Roman ist einfach mal etwas ganz anderes. Die Herangehensweise an Themen wie Mobbing, Identität und auch Mord und Suizid, ist total speziell und gefiel mir vielleicht gerade deshalb so gut.
Durch Boos Blickwinkel und erfährt man aber vor allem zwischen den Zeilen, wie das eigentlich bei ihm ankam, als er noch gelebt hat.
Vor allem auch die Freundschaft zwischen Boo und Johnny, die ein Zentraler Punkt der Handlung ist, gefiel mir sehr. Gerade im Hinblick darauf, wie die beiden zueinander standen, als sie noch gelebt haben. Aber auch wie sie sich eigentlich anfreunden und was dahinter steckt.
Das wirft immer wieder interessante Fragen auf und regt immer wieder zum nachdenken an.
Diese Welt der Toten ist abseits und eine ganz eigene, dadurch hat der Autor aber die Möglichkeit bestimmte sehr skurrile Ereignisse zu legitimieren, ohne ständig erklären zu müssen, wie sowas möglich sein kann. Nach einer Weile hat man sich auch daran gewöhnt und kann sich auf anderes Fokussieren. Und auch wenn mir recht schnell klar war, worauf die Geschichte am Ende zusteuern würde, hat es mir einfach sehr gefallen. Für mich definitiv eine Empfehlung wert!
Durch Boos Blickwinkel und erfährt man aber vor allem zwischen den Zeilen, wie das eigentlich bei ihm ankam, als er noch gelebt hat.
Vor allem auch die Freundschaft zwischen Boo und Johnny, die ein Zentraler Punkt der Handlung ist, gefiel mir sehr. Gerade im Hinblick darauf, wie die beiden zueinander standen, als sie noch gelebt haben. Aber auch wie sie sich eigentlich anfreunden und was dahinter steckt.
Das wirft immer wieder interessante Fragen auf und regt immer wieder zum nachdenken an.
Diese Welt der Toten ist abseits und eine ganz eigene, dadurch hat der Autor aber die Möglichkeit bestimmte sehr skurrile Ereignisse zu legitimieren, ohne ständig erklären zu müssen, wie sowas möglich sein kann. Nach einer Weile hat man sich auch daran gewöhnt und kann sich auf anderes Fokussieren. Und auch wenn mir recht schnell klar war, worauf die Geschichte am Ende zusteuern würde, hat es mir einfach sehr gefallen. Für mich definitiv eine Empfehlung wert!
rebeccaboer's review against another edition
3.0
This was a really tough book to read. I didn't realize it would be, at first. I wanted to give it four stars, but in the end came down to three, mainly for two reasons:
1 - The language felt very stilted. I realize that the narrator, Boo, was a nerdy little kid and the way he spoke was part of the characterization, but again, it felt a little too stiff, formal, and stilted to me. I think that probably contributed to the 1 star reviews saying the book was boring.
2 - The beginning of the book was interesting. But from around the time that Boo, Johnny, Thelma, and Esther set off to look for Gunboy, it kind of lagged. That journey wasn't boring, necessarily, but those weren't the book's strongest scenes, especially compared to the last hundred-ish pages.
However, there were some really great things going on in this book.
I loved that the buildings and streets in Town were named after literary characters, although I had to look up more of them than I'm comfortable admitting!
The "bricking" was abhorrent. I don't understand the real workings of Town (I guess no one does) and why "Zig" would've allowed that to (almost) happen, but it was incredibly disturbing.
I absolutely loved the last section of the book, particularly Boo's haunting and discovery of what really happened. It was awful and tragic and terrible. I know this book will stay with me for a long time.
1 - The language felt very stilted. I realize that the narrator, Boo, was a nerdy little kid and the way he spoke was part of the characterization, but again, it felt a little too stiff, formal, and stilted to me. I think that probably contributed to the 1 star reviews saying the book was boring.
2 - The beginning of the book was interesting. But from around the time that Boo, Johnny, Thelma, and Esther set off to look for Gunboy, it kind of lagged. That journey wasn't boring, necessarily, but those weren't the book's strongest scenes, especially compared to the last hundred-ish pages.
However, there were some really great things going on in this book.
I loved that the buildings and streets in Town were named after literary characters, although I had to look up more of them than I'm comfortable admitting!
The "bricking" was abhorrent. I don't understand the real workings of Town (I guess no one does) and why "Zig" would've allowed that to (almost) happen, but it was incredibly disturbing.
I absolutely loved the last section of the book, particularly Boo's haunting and discovery of what really happened. It was awful and tragic and terrible. I know this book will stay with me for a long time.