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3.93 AVERAGE
3.93 AVERAGE
“We’re all just getting by, right? And sometimes it’s easier to do that with someone who understands than to try to do it by ourselves.”
Plot Summary: After Morgan survives a school shooting she has debilitating anxiety, depression, guilt and grief. She hasn't driven her car or even left her house in months because she feels so overwhelmed. Morgan is trying to change, her therapist Brenda visits her house twice a week and she is slowly starting to open up. But, everything truly changes when she gets a knock on her door from a cute new next door neighbor Evan.
My Opinion 4.5 Stars!! Wow, this book was so good. It truly showed how surviving after a gun violence incident is different for everybody and how one person can change someone's life. I really liked how this author didn't make it a happy story. I love happy stories but, this book was happy in a different way. I was smiling as Morgan turned her life around and found happiness after a dark period. I feel like when an author is dealing with such a tragic event like a school shooting that they need to weigh the romance well. I felt that Marissa Reichardt did this perfectly, she gave a good amount of romance but, also dealt with Morgan surviving a school shooting well. She also showed such wonderful family elements with both Evan's family and Morgan's.
I feel that everybody needs to read a book about a school shooting to realize this is not easy, it changes those impacted lives drastically . Underwater does this so well and I recommend it.
Plot Summary: After Morgan survives a school shooting she has debilitating anxiety, depression, guilt and grief. She hasn't driven her car or even left her house in months because she feels so overwhelmed. Morgan is trying to change, her therapist Brenda visits her house twice a week and she is slowly starting to open up. But, everything truly changes when she gets a knock on her door from a cute new next door neighbor Evan.
My Opinion 4.5 Stars!! Wow, this book was so good. It truly showed how surviving after a gun violence incident is different for everybody and how one person can change someone's life. I really liked how this author didn't make it a happy story. I love happy stories but, this book was happy in a different way. I was smiling as Morgan turned her life around and found happiness after a dark period. I feel like when an author is dealing with such a tragic event like a school shooting that they need to weigh the romance well. I felt that Marissa Reichardt did this perfectly, she gave a good amount of romance but, also dealt with Morgan surviving a school shooting well. She also showed such wonderful family elements with both Evan's family and Morgan's.
I feel that everybody needs to read a book about a school shooting to realize this is not easy, it changes those impacted lives drastically . Underwater does this so well and I recommend it.
Me ha gustado el libro en general. Al principio me atrapó, creo que tiene una protagonista que te ayuda a entender lo que le ocurre y con la que vas de la mano desde el primer momento.
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This one started very slowly, but the pace picked up about halfway through the book. The first person POV really dragged it down for me, causing too many simple sentences of "I", and too much telling rather than showing. I did appreciate the main character's growth, and that Evan ended up actually being a good guy. He was a good balance for Morgan and seemed to be what she needed. I thought the ending came abruptly and fell flat - I would have liked a more well-rounded conclusion. I read this book as a traveling book in LiterALLy BOOKiSh Book Club, the best group on Facebook.
Seventeen-year-old Morgan Grant used to swim every day and love hanging out with her circle of great friends. Now, she hasn't been able to leave her family's small apartment in months. Simple routines, like always sitting at the same end of the coach and having the same lunch everyday, are about all that helps her cope with her need for predicability. This need, we learn early in the story, came about after a tragic incident at her high school six months ago. We also learn that Morgan feels some personal responsibility for playing a role in the tragedy which she can't forgive herself for or even share with anyone. What Morgan does have going for her is her desire to get better. She also has the arrival of an attractive new male neighbor, her love for her family, and the understanding of her psychologist to help her work through her issues. Underwater is a very moving story told in an authentic voice of a teenaged girl attempting to cope with real pain and loss. It also has a great cover!
First, let me say this book was an incredible read. It packed in quite a bit in only 279 pages. The only reason it took me so long to finish it was I was in the process of moving and it was just hard finding the time.
Now, back to the book; Underwater shared such a unique as important story. We’ve all seen far to many tragedies like school shootings in the news and most recently with the Parkland school shooting. Yet, with this most recent shooting, we saw so many brave survivors get active to help stop gun violence, despite being caught up in terror we couldn’t imagine, they are working hard to ensure this doesn’t happen to any other kids in America. It’s truly amazing how they are trying to make reform and change to help prevent other shootings from happening in this country.
However, this story shows the other side of how tragedies can make us scared to leave and how those fears can trap from living your life. it’s unimaginable what they went through and for Morgan in this story, she wasn’t able to cope and move on with her life after Aaron brought those guns into school and her guilt on giving him a ride that day, not knowing what he had planned.
For Morgan, her PTSD and panic attacks made her reclusive and she stopped swimming, cut ties with her friends, and went to online schooling to hide from the world that now terrified her. She survived but was unable to continue to live the live life she had before. This is the first book they I’ve read on school shootings that showed the after affects and it was so wonderful to see Morgan slowly confront her guilt and fears with the help of Evan (who was a dream of a boyfriend, might I add, he was just so sweet and patient with her) and Brenda (who was a charming character and also a perfect psychologist) and her supportive mother and adorable little brother Ben by her side reminding her she still has her entire life ahead of her and she has support if she needs it from them to break free of her chains,
Her father,although absent due to OTSD and alcoholism, also played a role in her recovery. Morgan was afraid her trauma would lead to her becoming her father and I feel this helped motivate her to forgive Aaron for changing her and also lead to her forgiving herself and moving forward back into the world.
This book is definitely worth a read and will take you on a great journey with Morgan on her path back to reclaiming her life!
Now, back to the book; Underwater shared such a unique as important story. We’ve all seen far to many tragedies like school shootings in the news and most recently with the Parkland school shooting. Yet, with this most recent shooting, we saw so many brave survivors get active to help stop gun violence, despite being caught up in terror we couldn’t imagine, they are working hard to ensure this doesn’t happen to any other kids in America. It’s truly amazing how they are trying to make reform and change to help prevent other shootings from happening in this country.
However, this story shows the other side of how tragedies can make us scared to leave and how those fears can trap from living your life. it’s unimaginable what they went through and for Morgan in this story, she wasn’t able to cope and move on with her life after Aaron brought those guns into school and her guilt on giving him a ride that day, not knowing what he had planned.
For Morgan, her PTSD and panic attacks made her reclusive and she stopped swimming, cut ties with her friends, and went to online schooling to hide from the world that now terrified her. She survived but was unable to continue to live the live life she had before. This is the first book they I’ve read on school shootings that showed the after affects and it was so wonderful to see Morgan slowly confront her guilt and fears with the help of Evan (who was a dream of a boyfriend, might I add, he was just so sweet and patient with her) and Brenda (who was a charming character and also a perfect psychologist) and her supportive mother and adorable little brother Ben by her side reminding her she still has her entire life ahead of her and she has support if she needs it from them to break free of her chains,
Her father,although absent due to OTSD and alcoholism, also played a role in her recovery. Morgan was afraid her trauma would lead to her becoming her father and I feel this helped motivate her to forgive Aaron for changing her and also lead to her forgiving herself and moving forward back into the world.
This book is definitely worth a read and will take you on a great journey with Morgan on her path back to reclaiming her life!
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Thank you to Pan Macmillan Australia for sending me a copy of this book!
I loved this book because I could relate so much to the main character, not the traumatic experience, but the anxiety and agoraphobia that she developed. So many things had me nodding my head in agreement. I loved the cute little romance that happened throughout and how supportive they both were and they were just so good for each other BUT he was only really supportive and good for her towards the end. It took him a while to actually understand what she was going through and how to react to certain things that she did. Sooooo I'm kind of 50/50 on the romance.
It doesn't explicitly say what Morgan went through in the synopsis, but you find out about a quarter of the way through that and there was something about that day that Morgan hasn't told anybody.
There was one part of the novel that really resonated with me and it's when Morgan is with her psychologist (who is awesome, by the way) and they managed to leave the house which was a huge feat in itself and Morgan says, 'I can't do it', and Brenda says something like, 'You're already doing it'. Your brain tries to trick you, and I recently had an experience where mine tried to trick me while I was on my prac for uni, and I'd get to school and say to myself that I couldn't do it, but I just needed to remind myself that I was there. I was already doing it. I could do this. I don't know if the author has a background in psychology, but I loved how the psychologist in the book actually knew what she was talking about.
I definitely recommend this one!
I loved this book because I could relate so much to the main character, not the traumatic experience, but the anxiety and agoraphobia that she developed. So many things had me nodding my head in agreement. I loved the cute little romance that happened throughout and how supportive they both were and they were just so good for each other BUT he was only really supportive and good for her towards the end. It took him a while to actually understand what she was going through and how to react to certain things that she did. Sooooo I'm kind of 50/50 on the romance.
It doesn't explicitly say what Morgan went through in the synopsis, but you find out about a quarter of the way through that
Spoiler
there was a school shootingThere was one part of the novel that really resonated with me and it's when Morgan is with her psychologist (who is awesome, by the way) and they managed to leave the house which was a huge feat in itself and Morgan says, 'I can't do it', and Brenda says something like, 'You're already doing it'. Your brain tries to trick you, and I recently had an experience where mine tried to trick me while I was on my prac for uni, and I'd get to school and say to myself that I couldn't do it, but I just needed to remind myself that I was there. I was already doing it. I could do this. I don't know if the author has a background in psychology, but I loved how the psychologist in the book actually knew what she was talking about.
I definitely recommend this one!
3.5 stars. I really enjoyed this
This is the first book I've read about the aftershock of a school shooting and the author did a very effective job of showing the affects through Morgan. Morgan has been scared to go outside for months, cut herself off from her all of her friends, and spends her days schooling online and making grilled cheese sandwiches for lunch. I loved her therapist and believe the scenes with Brenda were some of the strongest in the book. I also loved how Morgan's condition caused her to understand her PTSD war vet dad in a way she hadn't before. Morgan's little brother was a bright light in this book, and I adored new friend Evan's honesty and understanding. I would have liked to see more interactions with Mom, and I wasn't as emotionally attached as I thought I would be. Nonetheless, looking forward go this author's next book!
This is the first book I've read about the aftershock of a school shooting and the author did a very effective job of showing the affects through Morgan. Morgan has been scared to go outside for months, cut herself off from her all of her friends, and spends her days schooling online and making grilled cheese sandwiches for lunch. I loved her therapist and believe the scenes with Brenda were some of the strongest in the book. I also loved how Morgan's condition caused her to understand her PTSD war vet dad in a way she hadn't before. Morgan's little brother was a bright light in this book, and I adored new friend Evan's honesty and understanding. I would have liked to see more interactions with Mom, and I wasn't as emotionally attached as I thought I would be. Nonetheless, looking forward go this author's next book!
loved this. I loved the realness of this book and that this is very likely to happen to so many people because of the world we live in
I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to the author and publisher for this opportunity.
After a terrible tragedy, Morgan is too afraid to leave her apartment. She casts aside friends and hobbies for life as a shut-in. However, her brother just got cast in a play and a new boy, Evan, has just moved in next door. Now, more than ever, she longs to take the first step back outside...
This is the book that I chose over TV for two nights in a row. I'm usually a read-in-the-morning, TV-in-the-evening sort of girl, but this book was so captivating that I wanted to read it instead. So there's that.
The overall feel of this book reminded me of everything I loved about Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants and any Sharon Creech book. I loved how smart and funny Morgan is, but she's also so panicked and broken.
I also loved the supporting cast: Evan, Morgan's mom, and her therapist Brenda. All fabulous and well-developed.
And as for her little brother (Ben), he stole the show in the school play as well as this book. He was just so dang perfect. I have never read about a five-year-old character as fleshed out and important as Ben is, and it was such a pleasure.
I like happy endings, you know?, and I really just want to read this book again and again.
After a terrible tragedy, Morgan is too afraid to leave her apartment. She casts aside friends and hobbies for life as a shut-in. However, her brother just got cast in a play and a new boy, Evan, has just moved in next door. Now, more than ever, she longs to take the first step back outside...
This is the book that I chose over TV for two nights in a row. I'm usually a read-in-the-morning, TV-in-the-evening sort of girl, but this book was so captivating that I wanted to read it instead. So there's that.
The overall feel of this book reminded me of everything I loved about Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants and any Sharon Creech book. I loved how smart and funny Morgan is, but she's also so panicked and broken.
I also loved the supporting cast: Evan, Morgan's mom, and her therapist Brenda. All fabulous and well-developed.
And as for her little brother (Ben), he stole the show in the school play as well as this book. He was just so dang perfect. I have never read about a five-year-old character as fleshed out and important as Ben is, and it was such a pleasure.
I like happy endings, you know?, and I really just want to read this book again and again.