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3.63 AVERAGE
3.63 AVERAGE
I’m trying to get back in the habit of reading so encouraged myself to read through the whole of this one even though I wasn’t too into it by the end. It does a better job at representing mental illness without stigma than other books I’ve read have but still carries some of that sour taste of judgement. Ultimately this book tries to take a narrative path that while interesting didn’t feel like it fit with the rest of the book. Not a terrible book by any stretch but it didn’t really inspire any feelings in me past apathy.
I enjoyed this book, but it is a tough one to review.
For most of the book, 16 year old Alison is in a mental institution because she claims to have killed he friend. She also sees and hears things that aren't really there and her family is concerned and scared about it. I found the mental institution interesting and authentic sounding, feeling like the author really researched this part of the story. I also really felt for Alison and what she's going through, curious about what really happened.
I also liked the other characters in the hospital and how things weren't glossed over with her family - that it was hard for them to have her there, that they didn't know how to relate to her, that her best friend changed how she felt.
Then, about three quarters of the way through the book, there is a twist. I won't say much, but it is a twist that changes the whole book. In one way, it was fun, but in another, it left me feeling betrayed.
Overall, I enjoyed Anderson's writing and she really pulled me in. I loved the exploration of Alison's condition and the acknowledgement that we all see things differently, some more than others. I am still torn about the ending.
For most of the book, 16 year old Alison is in a mental institution because she claims to have killed he friend. She also sees and hears things that aren't really there and her family is concerned and scared about it. I found the mental institution interesting and authentic sounding, feeling like the author really researched this part of the story. I also really felt for Alison and what she's going through, curious about what really happened.
I also liked the other characters in the hospital and how things weren't glossed over with her family - that it was hard for them to have her there, that they didn't know how to relate to her, that her best friend changed how she felt.
Then, about three quarters of the way through the book, there is a twist. I won't say much, but it is a twist that changes the whole book. In one way, it was fun, but in another, it left me feeling betrayed.
Overall, I enjoyed Anderson's writing and she really pulled me in. I loved the exploration of Alison's condition and the acknowledgement that we all see things differently, some more than others. I am still torn about the ending.
i'm going to go through this really fast with bullet points instead of actual descriptions
Alison has synthesia a condition which makes her be able to see sounds and taste words- her five senses are mixed up with each other and send her confusing information
she accidentally exploded the most popular girl in school
she's sent to a psychiatric hospital as a result
"bad mom"
the way alison describes names is both beautiful and hilarious, i love how she described "kirk"
she eventually meets graduate student who's doing a study named Faraday
she wants to escape but can't due to several reasons:
1) her mother's word against her
2) she has fits when the synthsia overtakes her
3) the murder suspect
pros
beautiful descriptions
i actually really liked tori, even though she's a "bad girl"
plot isn't as formulaic like most other ya's
cons
Faraday seemed a liiiiiiitttttttttle creepy and although it explains why i am still not sure how i felt about their romance developing
the entire Faraday's world became slightly wthell just happened
frustration at a lot of alison's weakness
3.5!
Alison has synthesia a condition which makes her be able to see sounds and taste words- her five senses are mixed up with each other and send her confusing information
she accidentally exploded the most popular girl in school
she's sent to a psychiatric hospital as a result
"bad mom"
the way alison describes names is both beautiful and hilarious, i love how she described "kirk"
she eventually meets graduate student who's doing a study named Faraday
she wants to escape but can't due to several reasons:
1) her mother's word against her
2) she has fits when the synthsia overtakes her
3) the murder suspect
pros
beautiful descriptions
i actually really liked tori, even though she's a "bad girl"
plot isn't as formulaic like most other ya's
cons
Faraday seemed a liiiiiiitttttttttle creepy and although it explains why i am still not sure how i felt about their romance developing
the entire Faraday's world became slightly wthell just happened
frustration at a lot of alison's weakness
3.5!
This book was doing really great until the whole alien thing. Up until that point, it was four stars for me.
Alison awakes in a strange room; she doesn't know where she is or why she is there. She has lost almost two weeks of her life. She discovers that she has been involuntarily committed to a mental institution and is a suspect in the disappearance of a classmate. Slowly she begins to remember that she is the last person to see Tori, but her memories can't be right...because if they are Tori dissolved right in front of her! Thus begins Alison's journey of discovering who and what she really is. She has always hidden her ability to see the world around her in a different way, but at Pine Hills she finds out that it is a condition called synesthesia. It is the ability to see words as colors and Alison has it in spades. But that still doesn't explain how Tori disappeared or Alison's mental breakdown.
This was such an interesting book. You never knew who to trust throughout the entire thing and at the end I am still not sure what to believe. Was Alison a reliable narrator? She had a mental breakdown. Can we trust her version of events? I think Anderson does a marvelous job of leaving that up to interpretation. You can decide for yourself what you believe at the end. I am not going to spoil it, but I think it is up for interpretation. Is is all part of Alison's mental issues or did it really happen as described? I think that is the most interesting part of this book. We just don't know for sure. That and the fact that it is beautifully written. I love the descriptions of the the synesthesia. It sounds like a horrible condition to have but Alison describes it beautifully. She can literally taste and see each word and letter and they all have their own personalities.
Very interesting book that you can draw your own conclusions about.
This was such an interesting book. You never knew who to trust throughout the entire thing and at the end I am still not sure what to believe. Was Alison a reliable narrator? She had a mental breakdown. Can we trust her version of events? I think Anderson does a marvelous job of leaving that up to interpretation. You can decide for yourself what you believe at the end. I am not going to spoil it, but I think it is up for interpretation. Is is all part of Alison's mental issues or did it really happen as described? I think that is the most interesting part of this book. We just don't know for sure. That and the fact that it is beautifully written. I love the descriptions of the the synesthesia. It sounds like a horrible condition to have but Alison describes it beautifully. She can literally taste and see each word and letter and they all have their own personalities.
Very interesting book that you can draw your own conclusions about.
I put this book on my list when I first joined Goodreads a few years ago. So naturally, by now I had totally forgotten what it was about, but I kind of like being surprised and not knowing what the book is about until I read it.
It was really good. I'm putting the second one on hold as I type this.
So go read it.
It was really good. I'm putting the second one on hold as I type this.
So go read it.
Audible. It was an interesting story, but just not enough meat to it. Would have been a better short story, I think.