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momobsaywat's review
4.0
honestly loved this book. twas very natural but was confused at the lack of going over the whole "i love you" thing. not because im disappointed that they didn't get together, but because i feel like it either should've been talked about more (cuz thats a huge thing) or not mentioned at all
thebrofriends's review
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
imogenreads's review
3.0
I was enjoying this book... and then it took a pseudo-science turn and... nah.
calturner's review
4.0
Thank you to Netgalley who gave me an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
A beautiful story about the friendship that forms between two boys who will most likely never be able to meet in person. I loved this book from the very first page, right through to its bittersweet ending that made me cry. Just beautiful!
An enchanting 4 stars.
My full review will be available on my Blog one week before publication, as requested by the publisher.
A beautiful story about the friendship that forms between two boys who will most likely never be able to meet in person. I loved this book from the very first page, right through to its bittersweet ending that made me cry. Just beautiful!
An enchanting 4 stars.
My full review will be available on my Blog one week before publication, as requested by the publisher.
patchworkbunny's review
5.0
I was sceptical starting this book. Ollie opens with the fact he is allergic to electricity which just sounded a bit ridiculous to me. However that's really just how he chooses to describe his condition. As for Moritz, I have heard about blind people using a form of echolocation, however nowhere near advanced as his. I'd like to imagine that this pair are fledgling superheroes, before they find their feet. It's that kind of reality, and approaching this as a SFF read rather than contemporary YA, will help a lot in accepting the two boys.
Told in letters between Ollie and Moritz, the narrative voices are wonderfully distinctive. They really don’t need their differing fonts, but they both suit their personalities. Moritiz is more of a serious serif type and Ollie is a more carefree sans serif kinda guy. I liked the fact that Moritiz was annoyed at first by Ollie’s puppyish nature and overly personal introduction. And their friendship isn’t always smooth, even if they are only communicating through letters.
Imagine if supernatural abilities didn’t make you into a superhero but were actually just a pain in the ass? Think about some of the superheroes in comics that would be picked on in school or be shunned by society. Being different is not necessarily appreciated when you’re in high school.
We really take electricity for granted. Poor Ollie has to live out in the woods, without school which he envies of Moritz, and the only friend he makes is the niece of a neighbour. His mother is overprotective and his doctor is always trying to experiment with him. He just wants to be a normal boy and share his enthusiasm with other people. It also looks at how when your world view is limited, you attach to one person, for good or bad.
Moritz’s story deals with bullying and also the hardships of living with a face that scares people. He tries to hide his true nature, both his physical and mental, and his path starts to lead him astray. Moritz doesn’t care so much that he won’t meet Ollie, but something about the tenacious boy in the woods keeps him writing anyway.
So if you can get past the weirdness, it’s an amazing story about friendship and bravery. All my little niggles about Ollie’s condition were actually acknowledged in the story. Ollie doesn’t quite understand how the electricity inside his body is OK, but the generated kind isn’t. As more is revealed about the boys, it reminded me a little of one aspect of The Rook. I think perhaps it is packaged a little bit too much like a contemporary which means some people might just not get it. But it’s beautifully written, emotional, frank and warm.
Review copy provided by publisher.
Told in letters between Ollie and Moritz, the narrative voices are wonderfully distinctive. They really don’t need their differing fonts, but they both suit their personalities. Moritiz is more of a serious serif type and Ollie is a more carefree sans serif kinda guy. I liked the fact that Moritiz was annoyed at first by Ollie’s puppyish nature and overly personal introduction. And their friendship isn’t always smooth, even if they are only communicating through letters.
Imagine if supernatural abilities didn’t make you into a superhero but were actually just a pain in the ass? Think about some of the superheroes in comics that would be picked on in school or be shunned by society. Being different is not necessarily appreciated when you’re in high school.
We really take electricity for granted. Poor Ollie has to live out in the woods, without school which he envies of Moritz, and the only friend he makes is the niece of a neighbour. His mother is overprotective and his doctor is always trying to experiment with him. He just wants to be a normal boy and share his enthusiasm with other people. It also looks at how when your world view is limited, you attach to one person, for good or bad.
Moritz’s story deals with bullying and also the hardships of living with a face that scares people. He tries to hide his true nature, both his physical and mental, and his path starts to lead him astray. Moritz doesn’t care so much that he won’t meet Ollie, but something about the tenacious boy in the woods keeps him writing anyway.
So if you can get past the weirdness, it’s an amazing story about friendship and bravery. All my little niggles about Ollie’s condition were actually acknowledged in the story. Ollie doesn’t quite understand how the electricity inside his body is OK, but the generated kind isn’t. As more is revealed about the boys, it reminded me a little of one aspect of The Rook. I think perhaps it is packaged a little bit too much like a contemporary which means some people might just not get it. But it’s beautifully written, emotional, frank and warm.
Review copy provided by publisher.
katiemichellereads's review
1.0
This review might be a mess.
After finishing this book, I had to step back and think about it for awhile. I've often done this with books that portray disabilities-I'll have the sense that something felt wrong, felt off, but I don't know where to begin putting that into words.
First, I think it's worth mentioning that there were so many things to like about this book. I flew through it, constantly needing to know what was happening. I was super attached to the characters. This entire book was written in letters and the boys' voices were both so clear and real. The plot was also intriguing and kept me guessing the whole way through, although I admit I was underwhelmed by the ending. It felt unrealistic, and I really disliked the way things played out with Ollie, especially. (Trying to stay spoiler-free!)
If there weren't real-life disabilities involved in this plot, I would have probably given it four or five stars. But epilepsy and blindness are real things that affect real people, and in the end I couldn't get past the fact that they were used as a plot device. I can't get over the fact that Moritz could "see" everything clearly (like, he mentions individual eyelashes and dust mites as examples) through his advanced use of echolocation. From the start, this struck me as not only unrealistic, but as a way to avoid writing actual blindness. There was no reason to give a disability to a character and then find something to counteract that so that they weren't actually disabled at all-except for the fact that it becomes part a major plot point later on.
I don't feel as though I can explain what upset me about Ollie without spoilers, but I do hate the ending he got. And the idea that some of the characters (especially Liz, the love interest) had about "curing" Ollie's seizures disgusted me. She acted as though he could power through it, like if he could be strong enough, brave enough, have enough willpower, he could defeat his epilepsy. I honestly expected this train of thought to be fought against-I expected Liz to become a sort of villain here, because surely it was obvious she was being terrible. Instead, I feel like her theories were supported in the context of the book.
I wanted so much to love this one, and in a lot of ways I did-which is why this review took so much time for me to write. I had to wait it out, I had to scribble thoughts down multiple times, and finally I came up with something that I hope makes sense. For all the parts I adored about this book, I really can't get over the portrayal of the disabilities. I do think, with the direction the plot went, that perhaps something fake would have worked in the place of these real-world disabilities--but as it is, some aspects really bothered me.
After finishing this book, I had to step back and think about it for awhile. I've often done this with books that portray disabilities-I'll have the sense that something felt wrong, felt off, but I don't know where to begin putting that into words.
First, I think it's worth mentioning that there were so many things to like about this book. I flew through it, constantly needing to know what was happening. I was super attached to the characters. This entire book was written in letters and the boys' voices were both so clear and real. The plot was also intriguing and kept me guessing the whole way through, although I admit I was underwhelmed by the ending. It felt unrealistic, and I really disliked the way things played out with Ollie, especially. (Trying to stay spoiler-free!)
If there weren't real-life disabilities involved in this plot, I would have probably given it four or five stars. But epilepsy and blindness are real things that affect real people, and in the end I couldn't get past the fact that they were used as a plot device. I can't get over the fact that Moritz could "see" everything clearly (like, he mentions individual eyelashes and dust mites as examples) through his advanced use of echolocation. From the start, this struck me as not only unrealistic, but as a way to avoid writing actual blindness. There was no reason to give a disability to a character and then find something to counteract that so that they weren't actually disabled at all-except for the fact that it becomes part a major plot point later on.
I don't feel as though I can explain what upset me about Ollie without spoilers, but I do hate the ending he got. And the idea that some of the characters (especially Liz, the love interest) had about "curing" Ollie's seizures disgusted me. She acted as though he could power through it, like if he could be strong enough, brave enough, have enough willpower, he could defeat his epilepsy. I honestly expected this train of thought to be fought against-I expected Liz to become a sort of villain here, because surely it was obvious she was being terrible. Instead, I feel like her theories were supported in the context of the book.
I wanted so much to love this one, and in a lot of ways I did-which is why this review took so much time for me to write. I had to wait it out, I had to scribble thoughts down multiple times, and finally I came up with something that I hope makes sense. For all the parts I adored about this book, I really can't get over the portrayal of the disabilities. I do think, with the direction the plot went, that perhaps something fake would have worked in the place of these real-world disabilities--but as it is, some aspects really bothered me.
apochemu's review against another edition
2.0
I didn't hate it, but I certainly didn't like it. The premise was interesting, but it just wasn't very captivating. It's not that it wasn't well written, because it was, it just didn't draw me in really. And it totally switches genres at the end which made it feel disconnected and gimmicky. The characters were ok, very different voices and had decent character development. It was just blah. She was trying to make a heartwarming x-men story, but it just didn't work.