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gregpreads's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
unusualspring's review against another edition
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
lucian_childs's review against another edition
5.0
This is so beautiful—sparely written, loosely structured, deeply affecting. Hopeful, despite its dire circumstances, its prickly characters. Especially Justin, who I’m a little bit in love with.
yevalovesdanmei's review against another edition
5.0
There are some books that are very dramatic and the sadness hits you like a truck. This book, however, is more quiet and the sadness creeps into you slowly making you feel dread. But also hope?
Justin is the character I related to the most. He experienced a form of grooming, sexual assault, psychological abuse, and domestic assault. All of this was experienced whilst he was still in highschool. The aftermath, without giving too many spoilers, ruined his entire life.
His mother attempted to be concerned when he first returned from the forest (again, don’t want to spoil) but then it became too taxing on her and she gave up. Once she gave up she basically didn’t want anything to do with him or his trauma. I hated her but she was also human. No fairytale sugarcoating.
Justin’s sister is a little more complex but she also irked me a little. She had a close bond with her brother but only when it didn’t impose on her life.
All of that leaves Justin alone and unwanted. He does meet someone who takes more time to understand him and attempts to start a new life, however, it’s not a happy ending. Rather, it’s a lukewarm ending where the couple is trying to make it despite all of Justin’s psychological trauma and his sister is still in a place of confusion over whether she wants to help or not. It’s a melancholy open ended end to a quiet tale.
What made this a five star from me is the fact that he is honestly in the same position as me. I am currently struggling with a lot of mental health problems and my entire family and friends are exasperated by me. That’s what makes this story special to me.
All in all, even if you enter the forest with someone you aren’t guaranteed to leave together. In this case, one sibling made it out and one is stuck in the dark by himself.
Justin is the character I related to the most. He experienced a form of grooming, sexual assault, psychological abuse, and domestic assault. All of this was experienced whilst he was still in highschool. The aftermath, without giving too many spoilers, ruined his entire life.
His mother attempted to be concerned when he first returned from the forest (again, don’t want to spoil) but then it became too taxing on her and she gave up. Once she gave up she basically didn’t want anything to do with him or his trauma. I hated her but she was also human. No fairytale sugarcoating.
Justin’s sister is a little more complex but she also irked me a little. She had a close bond with her brother but only when it didn’t impose on her life.
All of that leaves Justin alone and unwanted. He does meet someone who takes more time to understand him and attempts to start a new life, however, it’s not a happy ending. Rather, it’s a lukewarm ending where the couple is trying to make it despite all of Justin’s psychological trauma and his sister is still in a place of confusion over whether she wants to help or not. It’s a melancholy open ended end to a quiet tale.
What made this a five star from me is the fact that he is honestly in the same position as me. I am currently struggling with a lot of mental health problems and my entire family and friends are exasperated by me. That’s what makes this story special to me.
All in all, even if you enter the forest with someone you aren’t guaranteed to leave together. In this case, one sibling made it out and one is stuck in the dark by himself.
interruptinggirljoke's review
emotional
reflective
sad
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? It's complicated
5.0
ridgewaygirl's review against another edition
5.0
It was outrageous, to be criticized by him, after she'd stood by him all these years, after she had held his blood in her hands, trying to press it back into his body. "It's all about what happened to you. You never asked me what it was like for me."
The old anger returned. He should know how much anger she'd kept inside her, afraid to send it in his direction, worried he couldn't handle it. Always worried about his feelings.
A long time ago, Willa and Justin were good friends. Willa looked up to her older brother and depended on him in a broken household, with a dead father and a mother trying to keep them going, with no room for nurturing. But in high school, they splintered apart. Through the years they've drifted apart, Justin into addiction and dealing with the aftermath of a brain injury, Willa working to create a quiet, secure life for herself, but when Justin knocks on her door asking for a place to stay, she cautiously lets him in. What follows is a novel about how hard it is to rebuild a broken relationship and how family has the power to both nurture and destroy. Both Willa and Justin were deeply marked by their childhood, Justin in obvious ways, but Willa just as deeply.
This is a novel about ordinary people, which is the kind of novel it turns out I really like. Mirabella takes a deep and careful look at two damaged people and asks if they will be ok and if they can be a part of each other's lives. He is willing to sit in uncomfortable places with his characters and he avoids all easy answers. I loved how he explores how even when you want the best for a family member and go to great lengths to help them, that your efforts might still be inadequate, and that even someone who has messed up again and again is deserving of care and love. Mirabella writes so well about difficult family relationships and I'm very eager to see what he writes next.
The old anger returned. He should know how much anger she'd kept inside her, afraid to send it in his direction, worried he couldn't handle it. Always worried about his feelings.
A long time ago, Willa and Justin were good friends. Willa looked up to her older brother and depended on him in a broken household, with a dead father and a mother trying to keep them going, with no room for nurturing. But in high school, they splintered apart. Through the years they've drifted apart, Justin into addiction and dealing with the aftermath of a brain injury, Willa working to create a quiet, secure life for herself, but when Justin knocks on her door asking for a place to stay, she cautiously lets him in. What follows is a novel about how hard it is to rebuild a broken relationship and how family has the power to both nurture and destroy. Both Willa and Justin were deeply marked by their childhood, Justin in obvious ways, but Willa just as deeply.
This is a novel about ordinary people, which is the kind of novel it turns out I really like. Mirabella takes a deep and careful look at two damaged people and asks if they will be ok and if they can be a part of each other's lives. He is willing to sit in uncomfortable places with his characters and he avoids all easy answers. I loved how he explores how even when you want the best for a family member and go to great lengths to help them, that your efforts might still be inadequate, and that even someone who has messed up again and again is deserving of care and love. Mirabella writes so well about difficult family relationships and I'm very eager to see what he writes next.
eeisenbe's review
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-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 was such a beautiful, complicated book about what it means to have a sibling, what it looks like to recover from trauma and traumatic brain injury, and how to decide whether to go closer to your family of origin or cut them off-set boundaries. The sentences were simple and gorgeous. The structure was innovative
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual violence and Violence
anneosse88's review against another edition
2.0
2.5. Okay. Hard to follow. Definitely lots of trauma and it’s a decent depiction of the effects of that and how it is experienced differently for each family member. The book felt a little disorganized kind of like Justin’s mental illness…bipolar? schizoaffective? Trauma response?
egnrussell's review against another edition
3.0
Reminiscent of A Little Life… which could be its downfall. Nothing can compare.