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4.01 AVERAGE
4.01 AVERAGE
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
slow-paced
I loved this story! I thought people were being a little dramatic when they said how anxious it made them. I mean it's a contemporary not a thriller. Boy, was I wrong. Ginny Moon makes some bad decisions that will keep your heart racing throughout the entire book. I usually own listen to my audiobooks when I'm driving or doing dishes but last night I had to just stay up listening because I needed to see how it all worked out.
I highly recommend this book. I love that the main character is a teenage girl with autism and I love that it deals with adoption but I mostly just love the story and the writing. I can't believe it took me this long to get to this DBC pick!
I highly recommend this book. I love that the main character is a teenage girl with autism and I love that it deals with adoption but I mostly just love the story and the writing. I can't believe it took me this long to get to this DBC pick!
I'd give this 5 stars except there were certain characters that I absolutely hated. I guess I *should* give it 5 because if I've disliked them strong enough to remove a star, that's good writing, right? This book is going to be a hit - I'm glad I can be bookish enough to read it months before its release date.
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Ginny Moon by Benjamin Ludwig-4.5/5. I thought the author did such an amazing job with Ginny's voice. You could tell how smart she is and how she thinks about everything and he never made her seem like she thought like a child. You could feel her disconnect with other people, but they way he wrote her, you could see why her way actually made more sense.
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Challenge category: A book by or about a person with a disability.
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Challenge category: A book by or about a person with a disability.
I found this to be a bit of a "tedious" read, a word used by the autistic teen who is telling the story. And I suppose that to help the reader 'see' into this girl's autistic brain, it had to be a bit tedious. All in all, I'm glad I read it, though I don't think I would recommend it for my book club.
I love a book with a unique narrator and this one certainly had a very unique narrator in Ginny Moon. This was a book that was so easy to start, thinking I would read a few chapters before going to bed, and then suddenly it was three am and I was turning the last page. Ginny Moon's unique voice made this a book that was impossible to put down and one that will be memorable.
The story unfolded in a way that gave the sense that the author has personal experience with autism. Ginny was written in a way that never made her feel less than or like there was something wrong with her. She simply was Ginny Moon. She loved Michael Jackson. She need to have nine grapes with her breakfast. I thought the author did a great job showing Ginny's frustration at not being able to make the adults understand her, as well as the adults' frustrations at their inability to make Ginny understand when she was doing something dangerous.
The book also showed the love of a family, that family doesn't have to be blood-related, and how a family can change with a new addition. The family dynamic was the second most intriguing aspect of the book(with Ginny Moon being the first) and was a huge part of the reason I kept reading until the very last page even when I should have gone to bed. This is a book I can easily see myself recommending to anyone looking for a great read.
*I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
The story unfolded in a way that gave the sense that the author has personal experience with autism. Ginny was written in a way that never made her feel less than or like there was something wrong with her. She simply was Ginny Moon. She loved Michael Jackson. She need to have nine grapes with her breakfast. I thought the author did a great job showing Ginny's frustration at not being able to make the adults understand her, as well as the adults' frustrations at their inability to make Ginny understand when she was doing something dangerous.
The book also showed the love of a family, that family doesn't have to be blood-related, and how a family can change with a new addition. The family dynamic was the second most intriguing aspect of the book(with Ginny Moon being the first) and was a huge part of the reason I kept reading until the very last page even when I should have gone to bed. This is a book I can easily see myself recommending to anyone looking for a great read.
*I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
I listened to this audio and loved it in this format, and feel like it would have been just as great on paper!
I loved this book. I was quickly a fan of Ginny and the way she told her story, and her parents (really all the adults in her life) were also endearing, despite their flaws at times. Highly recommend this book if you're looking to read about a character with autism or about adoption of an older child.
I loved this book. I was quickly a fan of Ginny and the way she told her story, and her parents (really all the adults in her life) were also endearing, despite their flaws at times. Highly recommend this book if you're looking to read about a character with autism or about adoption of an older child.
It’s been many, many years since I read an entire book in one sitting. That is precisely what I did with Ginny Moon.
The book revolves around the eponymous Ginny Moon, a fourteen-year-old autistic girl who is adjusting to life with her adoptive parents in the Blue House. While her parents prepare for the birth of their biological daughter, Ginny’s mind lingers obsessively on her Baby Doll that she left behind in her abusive birth mother’s apartment. Ginny makes numerous attempts to contact her birth mother in an effort to recover her Baby Doll—ultimately upending her life and the lives of those in the Blue House.
I’m always trepidatious when it comes to reading novels about autistic folks, largely because I myself am autistic and I find that neurotypical people simply cannot portray a mind that they don’t comprehend. I know that Benjamin Ludwig is the adoptive father of an autistic teenager, but parents—biological or otherwise—are often the least understanding, as he adeptly illustrates in the novel. I have to wonder what other experience he possesses, because this is as close to an accurate portrayal as I’ve seen by a neurotypical person. What elevates his portrayal from “great” to “exceptional” is the sheer love and respect imbued in it.
This all being said, Ginny Moon is, in my view, less a book about an autistic girl and more about a severely traumatized girl. This is a fascinating examination of the intersection between autism and trauma, their alchemy and how trauma uniquely manifests in autistic people.
The emotional pulse of the book is Ginny’s attachment to her Baby Doll and her fierce determination to get her back. From the outside, the reader may understand this to be a mental anchor for Ginny, who has been shuffled around from home to home, never truly taking root anywhere. I did find it surprising that it took so long for the adults in Ginny’s life to figure out the truth behind Baby Doll, but it’s also incredibly believable: traumatized youth, especially those who are autistic, are often dismissed. Adults graft their perceptions of reality and rationality onto these children. Thus, these children are left to sift through the rubble of their realities alone.
“I cover my face with my hands. Crystal with a C knows I don’t like expressions. She doesn’t lie. She’s the one who tells the truth. If the truth is that my Baby Doll is six then I’m too late to stop all the things that happened to me from happening to it. Because Gloria is completelyunreliable and Crystal with a C does her thinking for her.”
Ginny’s fixation with specific phrases and ideas and her alexithymia deeply resonated with me and I imagine other autistic folks would find these aspects of her character relatable as well. Predictably, though, they’re a source of great vexation to the neurotypical people in her life. Ginny Moon does a wonderful job of illustrating the impasse that neurotypical parents and professionals can find themselves in when it comes to autistic, traumatized youth. There’s a great deal of stress involved with raising a child whose actions endanger themselves and others. As much as I found it difficult to sympathize with the adults in Ginny’s life, I imagine that neurotypical readers might be able to better put themselves in their shoes.
My sole qualm with the book is the manner in which the ending is framed as happy. I cannot be happy for Ginny. Maura’s disdain and resentment are not things that can easily resolve with some TLC. This is evident up to the very last page. I appreciate Ludwig’s devotion to nuance, for there is no black and white in real life; there are no fairy tale endings in the real world. However, the dynamics in the Blue House are deeply troubling. One can only hope that Ginny one day finds a home where she truly belongs—where she is truly understood—and where she is unconditionally loved.
“That was three questions all at once and I don’t know which to answer so instead I self-advocate. I push off the edge of Step One so that I’m kneeling on Step Three.
“You were outside too long! The baby started to cry! I picked her up and gave her the bunny and she stopped! Then I heard a noise so I went to look but the bunny fell and I had to pick it up! So you stop yelling at me, Maura! Stop yelling at me right now! I did a good thing!”
This is a beautiful, compelling, necessary story. I was brought to tears several times over the course of the book and I’m misty-eyed writing this review. I encourage autistic (or otherwise neurodivergent) and neurotypical people alike to read this. It’s an achingly humanizing story that provides a perspective that is sorely lacking in mainstream published fiction. Ginny Moon is surely a name that will echo throughout my years.
The book revolves around the eponymous Ginny Moon, a fourteen-year-old autistic girl who is adjusting to life with her adoptive parents in the Blue House. While her parents prepare for the birth of their biological daughter, Ginny’s mind lingers obsessively on her Baby Doll that she left behind in her abusive birth mother’s apartment. Ginny makes numerous attempts to contact her birth mother in an effort to recover her Baby Doll—ultimately upending her life and the lives of those in the Blue House.
I’m always trepidatious when it comes to reading novels about autistic folks, largely because I myself am autistic and I find that neurotypical people simply cannot portray a mind that they don’t comprehend. I know that Benjamin Ludwig is the adoptive father of an autistic teenager, but parents—biological or otherwise—are often the least understanding, as he adeptly illustrates in the novel. I have to wonder what other experience he possesses, because this is as close to an accurate portrayal as I’ve seen by a neurotypical person. What elevates his portrayal from “great” to “exceptional” is the sheer love and respect imbued in it.
This all being said, Ginny Moon is, in my view, less a book about an autistic girl and more about a severely traumatized girl. This is a fascinating examination of the intersection between autism and trauma, their alchemy and how trauma uniquely manifests in autistic people.
The emotional pulse of the book is Ginny’s attachment to her Baby Doll and her fierce determination to get her back. From the outside, the reader may understand this to be a mental anchor for Ginny, who has been shuffled around from home to home, never truly taking root anywhere. I did find it surprising that it took so long for the adults in Ginny’s life to figure out the truth behind Baby Doll, but it’s also incredibly believable: traumatized youth, especially those who are autistic, are often dismissed. Adults graft their perceptions of reality and rationality onto these children. Thus, these children are left to sift through the rubble of their realities alone.
“I cover my face with my hands. Crystal with a C knows I don’t like expressions. She doesn’t lie. She’s the one who tells the truth. If the truth is that my Baby Doll is six then I’m too late to stop all the things that happened to me from happening to it. Because Gloria is completelyunreliable and Crystal with a C does her thinking for her.”
Ginny’s fixation with specific phrases and ideas and her alexithymia deeply resonated with me and I imagine other autistic folks would find these aspects of her character relatable as well. Predictably, though, they’re a source of great vexation to the neurotypical people in her life. Ginny Moon does a wonderful job of illustrating the impasse that neurotypical parents and professionals can find themselves in when it comes to autistic, traumatized youth. There’s a great deal of stress involved with raising a child whose actions endanger themselves and others. As much as I found it difficult to sympathize with the adults in Ginny’s life, I imagine that neurotypical readers might be able to better put themselves in their shoes.
My sole qualm with the book is the manner in which the ending is framed as happy. I cannot be happy for Ginny. Maura’s disdain and resentment are not things that can easily resolve with some TLC. This is evident up to the very last page. I appreciate Ludwig’s devotion to nuance, for there is no black and white in real life; there are no fairy tale endings in the real world. However, the dynamics in the Blue House are deeply troubling. One can only hope that Ginny one day finds a home where she truly belongs—where she is truly understood—and where she is unconditionally loved.
“That was three questions all at once and I don’t know which to answer so instead I self-advocate. I push off the edge of Step One so that I’m kneeling on Step Three.
“You were outside too long! The baby started to cry! I picked her up and gave her the bunny and she stopped! Then I heard a noise so I went to look but the bunny fell and I had to pick it up! So you stop yelling at me, Maura! Stop yelling at me right now! I did a good thing!”
This is a beautiful, compelling, necessary story. I was brought to tears several times over the course of the book and I’m misty-eyed writing this review. I encourage autistic (or otherwise neurodivergent) and neurotypical people alike to read this. It’s an achingly humanizing story that provides a perspective that is sorely lacking in mainstream published fiction. Ginny Moon is surely a name that will echo throughout my years.