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3.18 AVERAGE
3.18 AVERAGE
Sorry if this review is rambling and a bit disjointed... I don't want to give away spoilers.
I wanted to love this book, but it let me down. I thought the synopsis was so interesting: a family that was two halves of one whole with children that had never met. I was really looking forward to learning bout the journeys of Ray and Sasha and their family, but the book seemed to start with one personality/mood and end with another. When the older sisters were introduced, it was hard to keep track of them and they seemed similar. Then, as the story went along, the reader was expected to understand that so and so was always a certain way, but without any history to base that on- as if the author was really trying to make one-dimensional characters looks deep. It was told in third person, but the narrator was almost too omniscient, describing even secondary characters' innermost feelings in rapid fire to the next. The climax of the story seemed like something the author came up with halfway through writing, as though she didn't have a plan from the beginning. The book really didn't end, so you still don't know the answers to the questions you might have in the beginning of the book. It felt like I picked up one book and someone switched them while I was reading. Pretty disappointing.
I wanted to love this book, but it let me down. I thought the synopsis was so interesting: a family that was two halves of one whole with children that had never met. I was really looking forward to learning bout the journeys of Ray and Sasha and their family, but the book seemed to start with one personality/mood and end with another. When the older sisters were introduced, it was hard to keep track of them and they seemed similar. Then, as the story went along, the reader was expected to understand that so and so was always a certain way, but without any history to base that on- as if the author was really trying to make one-dimensional characters looks deep. It was told in third person, but the narrator was almost too omniscient, describing even secondary characters' innermost feelings in rapid fire to the next. The climax of the story seemed like something the author came up with halfway through writing, as though she didn't have a plan from the beginning. The book really didn't end, so you still don't know the answers to the questions you might have in the beginning of the book. It felt like I picked up one book and someone switched them while I was reading. Pretty disappointing.
This book was really not my cup of tea. I've liked other books by Ann Brashares in the past, so I was a bit disappointed with this one.
The story has a unique family dynamic. Sasha and Ray are not related, but share 3 half-sisters. The story tells the perspectives of Sasha, Ray, and the 3 sisters, and their experiences in their family.
My first big problem was the romance that started to blossom between Sasha and Ray. I know they're not blood related or anything, by they have closely related families and have been sharing a bedroom on alternating weeks since they were kids. It's just kind of gross. Exploring the family relationships and having them become friends would have been enough. They didn't have to have the hots for each other.
My second problem was my lack of interest in the characters. The story seemed like it had good potential, but even with 5 characters to choose from, I couldn't relate to anyone in the story. That also meant I didn't care too much about them. Characters I can connect to and care about are often the most vital part in a story for me, so this was kind of a big problem.
There might be some people that can relate to this book, but I feel like many will be in my boat. If you like books where you can relate to the characters, I wouldn't bet my time and money on this one. I'd rate this book 2 out of 5, and wouldn't personally recommend to anyone whose not dying to read it anyway.
The story has a unique family dynamic. Sasha and Ray are not related, but share 3 half-sisters. The story tells the perspectives of Sasha, Ray, and the 3 sisters, and their experiences in their family.
My first big problem was the romance that started to blossom between Sasha and Ray. I know they're not blood related or anything, by they have closely related families and have been sharing a bedroom on alternating weeks since they were kids. It's just kind of gross. Exploring the family relationships and having them become friends would have been enough. They didn't have to have the hots for each other.
My second problem was my lack of interest in the characters. The story seemed like it had good potential, but even with 5 characters to choose from, I couldn't relate to anyone in the story. That also meant I didn't care too much about them. Characters I can connect to and care about are often the most vital part in a story for me, so this was kind of a big problem.
There might be some people that can relate to this book, but I feel like many will be in my boat. If you like books where you can relate to the characters, I wouldn't bet my time and money on this one. I'd rate this book 2 out of 5, and wouldn't personally recommend to anyone whose not dying to read it anyway.
All over the place, and none of the characters feel like real people.
This will be a perfectly acceptable YA beach read for the summer. Ann Brasheres has a really enjoyable writing style, and this book is a quick, easy read. However, it felt just very expected , both in relation to other books by Brasheres and to other YA books. The story happens just as I would have predicted, and even some things that I think were intended to be shocking were seen from far away. Despite this, I still found it to be a decent read, with some good thoughts about family and relationships.
Advance e-galley provided by Netgalley and the publisher for an honest review.
Advance e-galley provided by Netgalley and the publisher for an honest review.
I mean meh. It had potential but sometimes I think books that are meh suffer when I have just finished reading books that are not meh.
Meh.
I liked the different characters and their interactions and how one especially matured. But there didn't seem to be a story line to any of the perspectives, except for Mattie. And even that one didn't take up a ton of space. It didn't really capture my imagination.
**I received a free ARC from YALLFest. This didn't impact my review at all.**
I liked the different characters and their interactions and how one especially matured. But there didn't seem to be a story line to any of the perspectives, except for Mattie. And even that one didn't take up a ton of space. It didn't really capture my imagination.
**I received a free ARC from YALLFest. This didn't impact my review at all.**
emotional
funny
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Dit is een bijzonder boek.
Ann Brashares ken ik van de 4 vriendinnen reeks, een serie die ik vroeger echt megageweldig vond en die ik compleet in mijn kast heb staan. Haar andere boek, [b:Gevonden!|24932963|Gevonden!|Ann Brashares|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1423920808s/24932963.jpg|7399114], vond ik een mooi principe hebben maar dat was het dan ook.
Ik was dus erg benieuwd wat ik van deze zou vinden, en ik heb hem uiteindelijk in Deventer op de boekenmarkt op de kop getikt. Toen een erg nieuw boek, nu pas gelezen...
Wat ik mooi vond aan dit boek: samengestelde gezinnen en wat dat betekent voor je identiteit speelt een hele grote rol in dit boek.
Ook vond ik het idee van Ray en Sasha die een kamer delen maar elkaar nooit ontmoet hebben heel erg mooi. Met hoe de familie in elkaar zit en met hoe het gegroeid is, snap je ook helemaal dat zoiets zich op die manier kan ontwikkelen. En ik vind het mooi hoe Brashares het bedacht heeft, met dat ze wel samen legobouwwerken maken en dezelfde boeken lezen en dat soort dingen.
Wat ik wat minder vond: alle tieners in dit boek denken wel heel diep en filosofisch na over vanalles. Een beetje John Green-achtig onrealistisch. En er waren heel veel personages, met ook veel POV's. Iets meer dan noodzakelijk was. En de cover is erg kwetsbaar met die uitsnede.
Wat ik zo mooi vond aan het boek: het is heel erg emotioneel heftig en het komt goed binnen. Misschien wel omdat iedereen zo veel bezig is in mijn hoofd met wat er allemaal aan de hand is enzo, maar het is gewoon heel mooi en warm en je gaat heel snel met veel van de personages meeleven.
Het boek kroop wel echt in mijn hoofd en hart en onder mijn huid. Ik heb het gevoel dat mijn review geen recht doet aan alle gevoelens die het boek opriep, maar ik weet ook niet hoe ik dat wel over kan brengen. Lees dit boek maar gewoon en kom er met me over praten ;)
Ik heb dit boek met veel leesplezier gelezen, maar door de minpunten wil ik geen 5* geven. Ik doe normaal niet aan halve, maar dit is meer 4,5* dan 4 ;)
Ann Brashares ken ik van de 4 vriendinnen reeks, een serie die ik vroeger echt megageweldig vond en die ik compleet in mijn kast heb staan. Haar andere boek, [b:Gevonden!|24932963|Gevonden!|Ann Brashares|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1423920808s/24932963.jpg|7399114], vond ik een mooi principe hebben maar dat was het dan ook.
Ik was dus erg benieuwd wat ik van deze zou vinden, en ik heb hem uiteindelijk in Deventer op de boekenmarkt op de kop getikt. Toen een erg nieuw boek, nu pas gelezen...
Wat ik mooi vond aan dit boek: samengestelde gezinnen en wat dat betekent voor je identiteit speelt een hele grote rol in dit boek.
Ook vond ik het idee van Ray en Sasha die een kamer delen maar elkaar nooit ontmoet hebben heel erg mooi. Met hoe de familie in elkaar zit en met hoe het gegroeid is, snap je ook helemaal dat zoiets zich op die manier kan ontwikkelen. En ik vind het mooi hoe Brashares het bedacht heeft, met dat ze wel samen legobouwwerken maken en dezelfde boeken lezen en dat soort dingen.
Wat ik wat minder vond: alle tieners in dit boek denken wel heel diep en filosofisch na over vanalles. Een beetje John Green-achtig onrealistisch. En er waren heel veel personages, met ook veel POV's. Iets meer dan noodzakelijk was. En de cover is erg kwetsbaar met die uitsnede.
Wat ik zo mooi vond aan het boek: het is heel erg emotioneel heftig en het komt goed binnen. Misschien wel omdat iedereen zo veel bezig is in mijn hoofd met wat er allemaal aan de hand is enzo, maar het is gewoon heel mooi en warm en je gaat heel snel met veel van de personages meeleven.
Het boek kroop wel echt in mijn hoofd en hart en onder mijn huid. Ik heb het gevoel dat mijn review geen recht doet aan alle gevoelens die het boek opriep, maar ik weet ook niet hoe ik dat wel over kan brengen. Lees dit boek maar gewoon en kom er met me over praten ;)
Ik heb dit boek met veel leesplezier gelezen, maar door de minpunten wil ik geen 5* geven. Ik doe normaal niet aan halve, maar dit is meer 4,5* dan 4 ;)
Quick review for a somewhat quick read for me, though it felt like I had to push myself through this novel several times. "The Whole Thing Together" has many issues, but I would echo concerns that much of this novel suffers from rampant cliches, insensitive references in the measure of racial attribution (considering it uses a racial slur casually and struggles constantly to accurately and sensitively portray the multiracial character who struggles with her identity) and sexism (slut shaming and odd fixations on physical details of the characters). In addition to those issues, I think the biggest downfall of this novel really came in that I just couldn't find a space to connect with the characters. Not as much as I wanted to, because there were parts of the narrative that had the potential to go interesting places, but never quite reached that point and abruptly halted in places where the development could've provided more intimacy than the narration allowed.
At its heart, "The Whole Thing Together" is a family drama, showcasing teens as well as young adults in a separate sections of the same family struggling through multiple phases and revelations in their lives. Think "Parenthood" or "Brothers and Sisters" in terms of TV dramas, only I think the characters in this novel were far less fleshed out. As ambitious as this narrative sought to be, it tried to take on far too much in a narrow scope, to the point where nothing really worked well. The narrative voices blended far too much for me to truly connect to them (I don't mind third-person omniscient POV, I read it quite often in many genres). I would hesitate to call this YA, it feels more like it straddles the line between YA and New Adult (at least if you think about certain themes tackled in this book).
The surprise revelation towards the ending was emotional, but I honestly think that it could've had more impact if the character constructions were stronger. In the end, it's a narrative with strong intentions, but the execution leaves an unmemorable and sometimes offputting portrayal that doesn't showcase the best of what Brashares can do, and as someone who liked the Sisterhood series, this left me greatly disappointed.
Overall score: 1.5/5 stars.
Note: I received this as an ARC from NetGalley, from the publisher.
At its heart, "The Whole Thing Together" is a family drama, showcasing teens as well as young adults in a separate sections of the same family struggling through multiple phases and revelations in their lives. Think "Parenthood" or "Brothers and Sisters" in terms of TV dramas, only I think the characters in this novel were far less fleshed out. As ambitious as this narrative sought to be, it tried to take on far too much in a narrow scope, to the point where nothing really worked well. The narrative voices blended far too much for me to truly connect to them (I don't mind third-person omniscient POV, I read it quite often in many genres). I would hesitate to call this YA, it feels more like it straddles the line between YA and New Adult (at least if you think about certain themes tackled in this book).
The surprise revelation towards the ending was emotional, but I honestly think that it could've had more impact if the character constructions were stronger. In the end, it's a narrative with strong intentions, but the execution leaves an unmemorable and sometimes offputting portrayal that doesn't showcase the best of what Brashares can do, and as someone who liked the Sisterhood series, this left me greatly disappointed.
Overall score: 1.5/5 stars.
Note: I received this as an ARC from NetGalley, from the publisher.
I enjoyed reading this book, it was what I had hoped for: a fun, light contemporary featuring fun summer things. It was easy to read and I finished it pretty quick. However I did have a couple of issues with it which would stop me recommending this among about a million other books in this genre. The first issue was that there was way too many characters being introduced and featured considering it’s not even three hundred pages long. I literally had to put in conscious effort in almost every scene to remember who was who and what their relations were. A lot of them were also super unnecessary and didn’t affect the plot at all. I would have preferred more focus on Ray and Sasha, since I thought this was supposed to be a book about their romance? Which was actually hardly in it at all.