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freadomlibrary's review
4.0
Actual rating 4.5 stars
I received an e-ARC of this book from Sourcebooks Fire via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!
This review was originally posted at https://freadomlibrary.wordpress.com/
Critically
Plot – 4 out of 5 stars
This book just feels like a warm hug to my heart. It was just so beautiful. It’s all about loss, friendship, family and abandonment. It’s a coming of age novel focused on what it means to accept change and learning to understand that life isn’t stagnant. I was entertaining through the whole thing specially since I was buddy reading with my best friend, Fadwa @ Word Wonders.
Writing Style – 4 out of 5 stars
The writing style in this book was really simple and easy to read. It was descriptive and detailed and emotional, there were a lot of powerful scenes within the novel. It was funny and entertaining. It was addicting with a steady paced and it made the story feel real and honest.
Characters – 4.5 out of 5 stars
The characters in this book are so amazing guys! They feel so genuine and honest and just like real people. It was so easy to get lost into their lives and to feel like I was living it through them while reading.
Anise kind of annoyed me haha. She is a very passionate and determined person. She was very kind and open. However, she’s very competitive and she kind of stubborned herself into mind sets that tended to hinder her more than help her. She’s really torn and also vulnerable in this book. My favorite part of her was the way she interacted with her family and the people she loved. She was so sweet and understanding that it made those relationships so heartwarming.
I lovedddd her love interest. I think he was incredibly charming and sweet and funny. He’s so smart and adventurous and I think he pulled out a part of Anise that she didn’t realize she had. He challenged in her healthy way. There were so many amazing side characters in this series but I don’t think the majority of them had enough page time. I would’ve loved to see more from Anise’s friends from home because they seemed like they had such great friendships but it wasn’t actually on page that much.
Emotionally
The plot was heartwarming. We follow Anise, who is excited to spend the entire summer with her friends in Santa Cruz, CA before some of them leave for college until her Dad tells her that they have to spend it in Nebraska helping her aunt who’s been in an accident. This is the epitome of a fish out of water story (hence the title! heehee). The main character was taken right out of her comfort zone and I liked how that began to shape her coming of age story. She had to expand her mind and her beliefs as well as her day to day life because she was so far away from everything she had known. Not only did she have to help take care of her younger cousins but she had a lot of loneliness and anger with being away from her and being confronted with her mother’s childhood home. While on the outside, specially with the cover, this book looks like a light and fluffly contemporary romance but it deals with much deeper topics. I specially liked the focus on family relationships. Anise’s relationship with her Dad is so beautiful. Honestly, it made me cry because there’s nothing I want more than to be able to interact the way she does with her Dad. They’re honest with each other and they speak frankly and without judgement. Her friendships and caring nature with her cousins was also amazing to see. They were adorable and you can really feel how much she cares for them. However, the most real part of this story is the abandonment that she still deals with. Her mother is flakey, she comes in and out of her life constantly and Anise is terrified of being like her. These fears cause attitudes and decisions from her that end up hurting her more than helping her and those lessons that she has to go through was such an amazing journey. I really enjoyed the romance aspect. It was natural and developed well but it didn’t take over the story which was nice. The ending was really nice though a bit open ended in a way that’s hopeful almost and I really want more from these characters.
I am going to be completely honest here and say that Anise annoyed me because she reminded me of me. Throughout my teen years, I adamantly refused to grow up or to be separated from my mom. I didn’t think there was any reason for me to have to leave my comfort zone and in the end, it’s ended up hurting me more than helped me. I’m now struggling with a lot of harsh truths in life so reading from Anise’s point of view was actually kind of painful for me and I covered that up with being annoyed with her attitude. I empathized a lot with her feelings but I also really loved her growth and her journey because it hit so close to home. She spent a little too much time agonizing about not being at home, when she could’ve taken advantage of the time she had with her family. But besides that, she was an amazing main character.
I really loved the side characters! Anise’s family was absolutely amazing and I felt so jealous of the wonderful people Anise had in her life. They felt so real and they were so loving toward each other. Her little cousins are so cute and beautiful! Lincoln was such an amazing male character as well as love interest. I got kind of jealous of Anise (again) just because he was such a great person. He’s so honest with her but at the same time, he challenges her and makes her think things through and to imagine beyond where she is now. He’s black and has an amputated arm but those things are just a part of who he is, like his soul is so much bigger. He officially made it onto my very small book boyfriend list because I want one of those dimples for myself! I needed more from Anise’s best friends. They felt like such an amazing group of characters but because she leaves for the summer, we only see them in the beginning of the book and at the end. I wanted to see more of their friendship dynamics and more from them as individuals. I almost want to beg the author for companion books with them as main characters because it’d be amazing!
Overall, I really enjoyed this book and all of you should read it! This was an wonderful debut that tackles some in depth themes in a beautiful coming of age story. With amazing relationships between the characters and a natural and slow burning romance, I was just completely sucked in and enjoyed every minute of my buddy read.
I received an e-ARC of this book from Sourcebooks Fire via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!
This review was originally posted at https://freadomlibrary.wordpress.com/
Critically
Plot – 4 out of 5 stars
This book just feels like a warm hug to my heart. It was just so beautiful. It’s all about loss, friendship, family and abandonment. It’s a coming of age novel focused on what it means to accept change and learning to understand that life isn’t stagnant. I was entertaining through the whole thing specially since I was buddy reading with my best friend, Fadwa @ Word Wonders.
Writing Style – 4 out of 5 stars
The writing style in this book was really simple and easy to read. It was descriptive and detailed and emotional, there were a lot of powerful scenes within the novel. It was funny and entertaining. It was addicting with a steady paced and it made the story feel real and honest.
Characters – 4.5 out of 5 stars
The characters in this book are so amazing guys! They feel so genuine and honest and just like real people. It was so easy to get lost into their lives and to feel like I was living it through them while reading.
Anise kind of annoyed me haha. She is a very passionate and determined person. She was very kind and open. However, she’s very competitive and she kind of stubborned herself into mind sets that tended to hinder her more than help her. She’s really torn and also vulnerable in this book. My favorite part of her was the way she interacted with her family and the people she loved. She was so sweet and understanding that it made those relationships so heartwarming.
I lovedddd her love interest. I think he was incredibly charming and sweet and funny. He’s so smart and adventurous and I think he pulled out a part of Anise that she didn’t realize she had. He challenged in her healthy way. There were so many amazing side characters in this series but I don’t think the majority of them had enough page time. I would’ve loved to see more from Anise’s friends from home because they seemed like they had such great friendships but it wasn’t actually on page that much.
Emotionally
Spoiler
I was so excited to dive into this book and it was so awesome! I buddy read this book with my best friend who is also a fellow blogger since we were both fortunate enough to get an ARC from the author and I enjoyed it so much.The plot was heartwarming. We follow Anise, who is excited to spend the entire summer with her friends in Santa Cruz, CA before some of them leave for college until her Dad tells her that they have to spend it in Nebraska helping her aunt who’s been in an accident. This is the epitome of a fish out of water story (hence the title! heehee). The main character was taken right out of her comfort zone and I liked how that began to shape her coming of age story. She had to expand her mind and her beliefs as well as her day to day life because she was so far away from everything she had known. Not only did she have to help take care of her younger cousins but she had a lot of loneliness and anger with being away from her and being confronted with her mother’s childhood home. While on the outside, specially with the cover, this book looks like a light and fluffly contemporary romance but it deals with much deeper topics. I specially liked the focus on family relationships. Anise’s relationship with her Dad is so beautiful. Honestly, it made me cry because there’s nothing I want more than to be able to interact the way she does with her Dad. They’re honest with each other and they speak frankly and without judgement. Her friendships and caring nature with her cousins was also amazing to see. They were adorable and you can really feel how much she cares for them. However, the most real part of this story is the abandonment that she still deals with. Her mother is flakey, she comes in and out of her life constantly and Anise is terrified of being like her. These fears cause attitudes and decisions from her that end up hurting her more than helping her and those lessons that she has to go through was such an amazing journey. I really enjoyed the romance aspect. It was natural and developed well but it didn’t take over the story which was nice. The ending was really nice though a bit open ended in a way that’s hopeful almost and I really want more from these characters.
I am going to be completely honest here and say that Anise annoyed me because she reminded me of me. Throughout my teen years, I adamantly refused to grow up or to be separated from my mom. I didn’t think there was any reason for me to have to leave my comfort zone and in the end, it’s ended up hurting me more than helped me. I’m now struggling with a lot of harsh truths in life so reading from Anise’s point of view was actually kind of painful for me and I covered that up with being annoyed with her attitude. I empathized a lot with her feelings but I also really loved her growth and her journey because it hit so close to home. She spent a little too much time agonizing about not being at home, when she could’ve taken advantage of the time she had with her family. But besides that, she was an amazing main character.
I really loved the side characters! Anise’s family was absolutely amazing and I felt so jealous of the wonderful people Anise had in her life. They felt so real and they were so loving toward each other. Her little cousins are so cute and beautiful! Lincoln was such an amazing male character as well as love interest. I got kind of jealous of Anise (again) just because he was such a great person. He’s so honest with her but at the same time, he challenges her and makes her think things through and to imagine beyond where she is now. He’s black and has an amputated arm but those things are just a part of who he is, like his soul is so much bigger. He officially made it onto my very small book boyfriend list because I want one of those dimples for myself! I needed more from Anise’s best friends. They felt like such an amazing group of characters but because she leaves for the summer, we only see them in the beginning of the book and at the end. I wanted to see more of their friendship dynamics and more from them as individuals. I almost want to beg the author for companion books with them as main characters because it’d be amazing!
Overall, I really enjoyed this book and all of you should read it! This was an wonderful debut that tackles some in depth themes in a beautiful coming of age story. With amazing relationships between the characters and a natural and slow burning romance, I was just completely sucked in and enjoyed every minute of my buddy read.
asiyahrana's review against another edition
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? No
3.5
kara44212's review against another edition
3.0
I’m not sure what to say about this. I guess it was...fine? It wasn’t great but it was entertaining enough I suppose. I just really didn’t like Anise. It was just the same thing over and over again with her; my friends probably hate me, I’m turning into my mom, surfing surfing surfing. I guess that’s the point of the story but it started to get irritating about halfway through.
teklagyorgy's review against another edition
4.0
Azt éreztem a könyv olvasása közben, hogy itt ez a fiatal lány, akitől elvették a kedvenc időtöltését, a barátait, ugyanakkor a kedvenc hobbija nélkül ledobják egy vadidegen helyen, nulla ismerőssel, ráadásul három gyereket is bébiszittelnie kell, és ebből kell a legjobbat kihoznia. Persze nem annyira szörnyű a helyzet, de számomra így is furcsa, úgy, hogy egyébként pártolom azt, hogy szép lassan mindenki megismerkedjen a fent említett felelősségvállalással.
Ezektől a nem is igazán negatívumoktól, hanem az én szememben furcsaságoktól eltekintve tetszett a sztori, ami mondhatni tipikus: Anise találkozik egy fiúval, egymásba szeretnek, a többit pedig a fantáziátokra bízom. Nyilván itt a körülmények fontosabb tényezők, és nem is a cél, hanem az utazás a fontos, viszont a fent ecsetelt dolgok miatt gondolom azt, hogy több ez a regény, mint a tényleg tipikus elcsépelt tini love storyk. Letaglózóan mély gondolatokat azért ne várjatok, viszont kellemes kikapcsolódást nyújt jó néhány órára.
Bővebben: http://www.teklakonyvei.hu/2019/10/laura-silverman-girl-out-of-water-lany-a-vizbol.html
Ezektől a nem is igazán negatívumoktól, hanem az én szememben furcsaságoktól eltekintve tetszett a sztori, ami mondhatni tipikus: Anise találkozik egy fiúval, egymásba szeretnek, a többit pedig a fantáziátokra bízom. Nyilván itt a körülmények fontosabb tényezők, és nem is a cél, hanem az utazás a fontos, viszont a fent ecsetelt dolgok miatt gondolom azt, hogy több ez a regény, mint a tényleg tipikus elcsépelt tini love storyk. Letaglózóan mély gondolatokat azért ne várjatok, viszont kellemes kikapcsolódást nyújt jó néhány órára.
Bővebben: http://www.teklakonyvei.hu/2019/10/laura-silverman-girl-out-of-water-lany-a-vizbol.html
michalice's review against another edition
3.0
When I first began reading Girl Out of Water it took me a while to get into it. It started off too slow for me and I was in two minds over whether to continue reading or not. Thankfully things picked up a bit and I made the decision to keep going.
Anise is a surfer, she loves the ocean and the waves and the beach, she lives and breaths for it. The upcoming Surf Break event is something Anise and her friends are excited to go to and is a good way of seeing out the summer and saying goodbye to friends. But thier plans are foiled when Anise has to go to Nebraska with her Dad to help look after her cousins whilst thier Mum recovers from an accident
You can imagine how unhappy Anise is about this decision, she wants to stay at home with her friends and not be a babysitter. But things start to look up when they take a trip to the local park and Anise is challenged to a skate off, by Lincoln, which should be easy for her since she thinks surfing is harder than skateboarding.
One thing that really stood out for me about Girl Out of Water was how the focus wasn't just on skateboarding, there was a lot of friendship and family too. Seeing the family pulling together to make things work, and meeting new friends who challenge you to try new things but also offer up support and encouragement. It wasn't easy for Anise to move away from everything she knows, and she does struggle with trying to keep both versions of her life. But she is also stubborn, and determined, and I like how she tries her hardest at everything she puts her mind to.
I enjoyed the progression of this story, the friendships felt real and natural. I liked the skateboarding aspect, especially as the most I was ever able to do was push it along whilst kneeling on a board. I enjoyed the different personalities of the characters and how well they worked together within the pages.
Final Verdict
Although Girl Out of Water didn't blow me away, I did find myself eventually enjoying the book, and by the time I had reached the final pages I didn't want it to end.
Anise is a surfer, she loves the ocean and the waves and the beach, she lives and breaths for it. The upcoming Surf Break event is something Anise and her friends are excited to go to and is a good way of seeing out the summer and saying goodbye to friends. But thier plans are foiled when Anise has to go to Nebraska with her Dad to help look after her cousins whilst thier Mum recovers from an accident
You can imagine how unhappy Anise is about this decision, she wants to stay at home with her friends and not be a babysitter. But things start to look up when they take a trip to the local park and Anise is challenged to a skate off, by Lincoln, which should be easy for her since she thinks surfing is harder than skateboarding.
One thing that really stood out for me about Girl Out of Water was how the focus wasn't just on skateboarding, there was a lot of friendship and family too. Seeing the family pulling together to make things work, and meeting new friends who challenge you to try new things but also offer up support and encouragement. It wasn't easy for Anise to move away from everything she knows, and she does struggle with trying to keep both versions of her life. But she is also stubborn, and determined, and I like how she tries her hardest at everything she puts her mind to.
I enjoyed the progression of this story, the friendships felt real and natural. I liked the skateboarding aspect, especially as the most I was ever able to do was push it along whilst kneeling on a board. I enjoyed the different personalities of the characters and how well they worked together within the pages.
Final Verdict
Although Girl Out of Water didn't blow me away, I did find myself eventually enjoying the book, and by the time I had reached the final pages I didn't want it to end.
rachel013's review against another edition
lighthearted
relaxing
- 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
Good chill book. This would be a fun summer read. It was relaxing and easy but almost too easy.
littleyarngoblin's review against another edition
5.0
I can't wait to read this book when it releases. Laura is an amazing, caring, imaginative person who shouldn't be bombarded by anti-Semitism and hate on what should be a happy thing for her. So yes, i'm definitely buying GIRL OUT OF WATER when it comes out, to support Laura AND to read the amazing story she's crafted.
UPDATED REVIEW:
I finally read Girl Out of Water and it DEFINITELY deserves all five stars. If you only read one book this summer, Girl Out of Water should be it. The book felt like a good reflection of what it's like to be a teen and a good reflection of how the world actually is. I can't speak as to the accuracy of the diverse rep, aside from the cute gay couple, but the book is amazing.
UPDATED REVIEW:
I finally read Girl Out of Water and it DEFINITELY deserves all five stars. If you only read one book this summer, Girl Out of Water should be it. The book felt like a good reflection of what it's like to be a teen and a good reflection of how the world actually is. I can't speak as to the accuracy of the diverse rep, aside from the cute gay couple, but the book is amazing.
haleylutz1's review against another edition
5.0
I truthfully read this book every year because of the summer and warm vibes it gives me.
It poses the idea of change and how as teens we can grow and adapt to it. How to make the best out of a situation we hate. The character growth in this book was very interesting and I could not put it down.
If you are a fan of beach reads and summer romances, this one is for you.
It poses the idea of change and how as teens we can grow and adapt to it. How to make the best out of a situation we hate. The character growth in this book was very interesting and I could not put it down.
If you are a fan of beach reads and summer romances, this one is for you.
haleyelisereads's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 rating, rounded up to 4 for goodreads.
Just finished this! Enjoyable summer read, but got lower rating simply for it having some parts that felt really rushed, and for it also feeling like somethings were really missing in the story. (which I won't go into due to spoilers)
Overall a good summer read though and I LOVED the authors writing, looking forward to her future works. Full review to come soon.
Just finished this! Enjoyable summer read, but got lower rating simply for it having some parts that felt really rushed, and for it also feeling like somethings were really missing in the story. (which I won't go into due to spoilers)
Overall a good summer read though and I LOVED the authors writing, looking forward to her future works. Full review to come soon.
heidisreads's review against another edition
3.0
This touches on so many different issues young adults face in those challenging years, but it didn't really "pick one" and delve into it and that's what I kind of wanted. But, on the other hand, maybe that's REAL teenage life... so much stuff coming at you that you can't "figure" it all out.