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mcearl12's review against another edition
1.0
Should have DNF. Boring and bounced around. Confusing and boring, bad combo.
bookish_maddie's review against another edition
4.0
As an All girls high school (though not boarding school) graduate and an alum of a college which had its own sexual assault accusations made and poorly handled, this book could not have gotten closer to my liver experience. This book is chock full of nostalgia for my days at my own all girls high school. The stories of each girl who gets her turn at a point of view - Lauren, Macy, Louisa, Chloe, Celeste, Abby, Sloane, Emma, Bryce, Collier, Mia, Anjali, Kat, and Olivia - felt so true to what I went through growing up as a young woman at a private, all girls school.
Lauren Miro never makes an appearance, but what she went through is felt keenly throughout, just as the scandal that took place on my college campus was felt by the student body. When I was in college, a staff member was accused of helping to cover up an assault and mishandling dozens of others. Though I was not personally a victim of these I went through in college was echoed perfectly in this book, right down the the emails to the student body and parents, the investigation, and the faculty member eventually departing.
This book had five stars until the chapter where the culprit of the various “pranks” at Atwater is revealed. Something about it rang false for me. A nice bow is rarely put so neatly on these things, and to reveal the prankster to be Bryce felt wrong somehow. I think there might have been a better way to handle this particular event, If the author felt this was a plot point that needed wrapping up.
Lauren Miro never makes an appearance, but what she went through is felt keenly throughout, just as the scandal that took place on my college campus was felt by the student body. When I was in college, a staff member was accused of helping to cover up an assault and mishandling dozens of others. Though I was not personally a victim of these I went through in college was echoed perfectly in this book, right down the the emails to the student body and parents, the investigation, and the faculty member eventually departing.
This book had five stars until the chapter where the culprit of the various “pranks” at Atwater is revealed. Something about it rang false for me. A nice bow is rarely put so neatly on these things, and to reveal the prankster to be Bryce felt wrong somehow. I think there might have been a better way to handle this particular event, If the author felt this was a plot point that needed wrapping up.
alexiasambrano's review against another edition
challenging
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
while there were some points where i felt like there was some depth, the entire story fell short of the mark for me. as someone who is a violence prevention educator and has been heavily involved in developing programs that tackle the root issue of gender- and power-based harm (spoiler alert! its all of the above: misogyny, capitalism, and white supremacy) i was really disappointed that there was no substantive conversation had about the impact of sexual violence on youth, and in particular on young girls. were given front row seat to a lengthy list of Atwater students’ lives but never really ~see~ how they’re grappling with sexual abuse allegations against a member of their academic community. Their stories all feel distant from each other, never truly embracing the healing capacity of community care.
rmarcin's review against another edition
2.0
I really was excited to read this book based on advance praise, but I found it SO boring. Having attended an all-girls high school, albeit not a boarding school, I was hoping for a nice juicy tale about female friendships amidst a scandal. But, what I got was a lengthy, dry, novel, with characters I didn't like. The story was convuluted and took forever to make the point. It could have been so much better, in my opinion.
The novel begins with students coming to school for orientation. Along the way, signs warn of a scandal at the school, but the school hasn't dealt with the issue appropriately. The rest of the novel touches on this from time to time, but also on the lives of the female students and their relationships and goals. It missed the mark for me.
The novel begins with students coming to school for orientation. Along the way, signs warn of a scandal at the school, but the school hasn't dealt with the issue appropriately. The rest of the novel touches on this from time to time, but also on the lives of the female students and their relationships and goals. It missed the mark for me.
bferguson1's review
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
morgs17's review against another edition
3.0
This is such a well-written look at adolescent girls. Layden approaches sexual assault, sex ed, and rape culture with insight and nuance. The idea of having different girl's POVs is a good one but I found it a bit disorienting to have something like 10 chapters told from 10 different POVs with varying degrees of overlapping characters.
heidisreads's review against another edition
4.0
I finished this book a week ago and I still can’t figure out how to write about what it was about without saying too much so I guess I’ll just tell you what it isn’t about.
This isn’t a plot-based thriller. Yes, there’s a mystery, but it’s more about the characters figuring out themselves than it is about figuring out who/what keeps leaking the info the admin wants hidden.
This isn’t one of those books where you read the last page and everything “feels right” - you know like the end of Mean Girls where all the girls are sitting on the lawn laughing and having a picnic? Nope. Not here.
Lastly, this isn’t a book you’ll forget quickly. The way the author has written characters in this book will have you wondering if she was on your floor in your dorm, changed clothes next to you in the locker room after practice or sat a table away from you in the dining hall - always observing.
Two lines that keep coming to the forefront of my mind even a week after reading...
“You don’t always see the lines until you’ve crossed them.”
“This is what it is to love a place... You have to want it to be better.”
This isn’t a plot-based thriller. Yes, there’s a mystery, but it’s more about the characters figuring out themselves than it is about figuring out who/what keeps leaking the info the admin wants hidden.
This isn’t one of those books where you read the last page and everything “feels right” - you know like the end of Mean Girls where all the girls are sitting on the lawn laughing and having a picnic? Nope. Not here.
Lastly, this isn’t a book you’ll forget quickly. The way the author has written characters in this book will have you wondering if she was on your floor in your dorm, changed clothes next to you in the locker room after practice or sat a table away from you in the dining hall - always observing.
Two lines that keep coming to the forefront of my mind even a week after reading...
“You don’t always see the lines until you’ve crossed them.”
“This is what it is to love a place... You have to want it to be better.”
_mercury_'s review against another edition
2.0
I don't want to diss feminist literature, but this book was a really low point for me this week. It's one of those books that have really interesting descriptions, but the actual story is boring and annoying.
The plot was messed up. This is what was written in the description:
"A keenly perceptive coming-of-age novel, All Girls captures one year at a prestigious New England prep school, as nine young women navigate their ambitions, friendships, and fears against the backdrop of a scandal the administration wants silenced.
But as the months unfold, and the school's efforts to control the ensuing crisis fall short, these extraordinary girls are forced to discover their voices, and their power. A tender and unflinching portrait of modern adolescence told through the shifting perspectives of an unforgettable cast of female students, All Girls explores what it means to grow up in a place that promises you the world––when the world still isn't yours for the taking."
And this is what I read:
"A dully perceptive coming of age novel, All Girls captures one year at a not so prestigious New England prep school, as nine young women navigate their romantic adventures, empty friendships, and plenty of other boring additions against the backdrop of a scandal the administration wants silenced.
Buuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuut, as the months unfold, and as the school's efforts to control the ensuing crisis are barely seen at all besides some crappy, tacky emails and useless restrictions, these bright but shallow girls are forced to discover their voices, and their power that's hardly seen at all. A boring and dry portrait of modern adolescence told through the multiple perspectives of an annoying cast of female students, All Girls explores what it means to live in a boarding school that promises you the world--but really tries to make sure the world isn't yours for the taking"
This was not interesting. This was not feminist. This was a terrible attempt at feminist literature. How can you say that this book is about young girls finding their voices when one of them practically gets r**ed by a boy she likes but never reports it? And the mysterious teacher who's the reason behind the scandal that's the backdrop of this book? All that I'm mostly sure about is that he resigned, but we never learned ANYTHING about his identity. The whole thing was just a mess. I could have gone the rest of my life without reading this.
The plot was messed up. This is what was written in the description:
"A keenly perceptive coming-of-age novel, All Girls captures one year at a prestigious New England prep school, as nine young women navigate their ambitions, friendships, and fears against the backdrop of a scandal the administration wants silenced.
But as the months unfold, and the school's efforts to control the ensuing crisis fall short, these extraordinary girls are forced to discover their voices, and their power. A tender and unflinching portrait of modern adolescence told through the shifting perspectives of an unforgettable cast of female students, All Girls explores what it means to grow up in a place that promises you the world––when the world still isn't yours for the taking."
And this is what I read:
"A dully perceptive coming of age novel, All Girls captures one year at a not so prestigious New England prep school, as nine young women navigate their romantic adventures, empty friendships, and plenty of other boring additions against the backdrop of a scandal the administration wants silenced.
Buuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuut, as the months unfold, and as the school's efforts to control the ensuing crisis are barely seen at all besides some crappy, tacky emails and useless restrictions, these bright but shallow girls are forced to discover their voices, and their power that's hardly seen at all. A boring and dry portrait of modern adolescence told through the multiple perspectives of an annoying cast of female students, All Girls explores what it means to live in a boarding school that promises you the world--but really tries to make sure the world isn't yours for the taking"
This was not interesting. This was not feminist. This was a terrible attempt at feminist literature. How can you say that this book is about young girls finding their voices when one of them practically gets r**ed by a boy she likes but never reports it? And the mysterious teacher who's the reason behind the scandal that's the backdrop of this book? All that I'm mostly sure about is that he resigned, but we never learned ANYTHING about his identity. The whole thing was just a mess. I could have gone the rest of my life without reading this.
paragraphsandpages's review against another edition
4.0
I was a bit wary going into this due to the current GR rating, but I ended up really enjoying this! While I understand how some aspects of this book could put some others off, I really enjoyed those aspects in the end.
This story is almost written as an anthology, switching between smaller stories of individual characters as the larger story slowly unravels. I feel like this style worked perfectly for what this book was trying to accomplish, and I found myself quickly invested in each new girl's story every time. While it was sometimes sad to slip back out of the girl's inner world right when things started getting interesting, it was something I got used to quickly. I liked how each story ended up building upon the other, and getting to see the different perspectives on both the boarding school experience and on the rape case that the school is going through gave a much more rounded picture of it all. We were given so many angles from many different backgrounds, and it was interesting how the same thing could be perceived so differently depending on the girl.
Overall, I felt this was a really strong debut, and it surprised me in so many ways. Anthology style books like this don't always work for me, and I haven't necessarily loved a lot of boarding school books, but the way this was done worked really well in my opinion.
This story is almost written as an anthology, switching between smaller stories of individual characters as the larger story slowly unravels. I feel like this style worked perfectly for what this book was trying to accomplish, and I found myself quickly invested in each new girl's story every time. While it was sometimes sad to slip back out of the girl's inner world right when things started getting interesting, it was something I got used to quickly. I liked how each story ended up building upon the other, and getting to see the different perspectives on both the boarding school experience and on the rape case that the school is going through gave a much more rounded picture of it all. We were given so many angles from many different backgrounds, and it was interesting how the same thing could be perceived so differently depending on the girl.
Overall, I felt this was a really strong debut, and it surprised me in so many ways. Anthology style books like this don't always work for me, and I haven't necessarily loved a lot of boarding school books, but the way this was done worked really well in my opinion.