Reviews with content warning for Death - We Are All So Good at Smiling

Reviews tagging 'Death'

We Are All So Good at Smiling by Amber McBride

53 reviews

purplepenning's review

emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

Oof. I'm going to need a beat to process this one. My initial response is: 👏👏👏 I'm so glad this book exists and I can see how it might work especially well for teenagers. But it's doing just a few too many things at once for my tastes.

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tangleroot_eli's review

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adventurous emotional hopeful sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

A magical realism adventure that's also an allegory for depression. A few notes don't resonate with me, but overall, what a symphony.

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christinesmith205's review

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challenging dark emotional hopeful sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

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valerira123's review against another edition

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dark reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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malinski42's review

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emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This is a beautiful book that gives incredibly specific and accurate insight into clinical depression. As someone who has struggled with depression nearly my whole life, I really connected to this book. I really appreciate Amber McBride and her bravery to share this story. It is creative, insightful, and incredibly personal. I truly loved this book.

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smcaput2's review

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dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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joyreadsbuku's review

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dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

4 stars - TLDR: A book written in verse about 2 teens dealing with mental health (clinical depression) and the layers it has. Characters were likeable, pace and plot were okay, but the ending was too fast. Make sure to be (emotionally) ready for this one.

Long(er) review: I liked the main characters (Whimsy & Faerry) and that they start talking to each other again. They go through the same trauma and help each other through it. I did not like how one parent basically told the mc to forget what happened, making the parent no help at all. But this is a reality for a lot of people, so it's important to raise this issue.

Speaking of, another character in the book said "Black boys don't get to feel things", which is also a crucial point to speak on. I liked the Fantasy and Magical Realism, but sometimes the magical aspect felt like a lot, which leads to feeling so out of touch with reality. As a result, it's actually well done because that is how depression can feel for some.

The middle was a bit long because it kept hovering over what happened in the past without explicitly saying what happened (it dragged on a little bit). If it didn't, it would leave space for the ending to be more explained.

Overall a good book, but please be prepared before reading this book and pay attention to the trigger warnings (which are mentioned in the beginning of this book, and are in this case; depression, self-harm, trauma, death, panick attacks, grief).

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