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forestsprite's review against another edition
3.0
Craig is a messed up gay black high school kid who's still in love with his boyfriend who left after he went crazy in the 9/11 attacks. He is an insomniac who has begun hoarding animals and wakes up one day to find them all missing after a burglary at his house. He doesn't have any friends, save for his friend/crush Lio. Lio is also pretty messed up, newly in D.C. from New York City having survived the leukemia that killed his twin brother when he was eight. He has seven sisters and a mother that left and is also gay, and doesn't really have any friends either except for his friend/crush Craig. All this is set against the Beltway Sniper shootings that happened the year after 9/11.
...and that's the whole story. I liked it, for the most part, but there's no real conflict, no concrete goals or challenges that the MCs have. It's a lot of stream of conscious sort of thoughts, which always distracted me a bit when they got really candid because I wondered if the author really had the gay teen angst voice right. The story goes along and the sniper shootings are just kind of there, in the background, and the characters talk about death and dying and the value of a human life, but there's no real overarching message or conclusion.Craig and Lio sort of get together in the end, but not in a way that's really satisfying. And it's not much of an ending, really.
I do have to give props for having not only a POC protagonist but a gay one to boot, but there was something about it that felt a bit off that I really only put together after reading another review. You only find out Craig is black a couple of chapters in when Lio is describing him, and it's not really mentioned again. I'm not sure if maybe that would be more of an issue (would, not should) in "real life". I mean, as much as I wish it was a non-issue and people could be colour-blind I don't think we're quite there yet, and I would think Craig would be more conscious of belonging to two minorities, and it would factor more into his identity. I'm probably explaining this badly, but yeah, that.
...and that's the whole story. I liked it, for the most part, but there's no real conflict, no concrete goals or challenges that the MCs have. It's a lot of stream of conscious sort of thoughts, which always distracted me a bit when they got really candid because I wondered if the author really had the gay teen angst voice right. The story goes along and the sniper shootings are just kind of there, in the background, and the characters talk about death and dying and the value of a human life, but there's no real overarching message or conclusion.
I do have to give props for having not only a POC protagonist but a gay one to boot, but there was something about it that felt a bit off that I really only put together after reading another review. You only find out Craig is black a couple of chapters in when Lio is describing him, and it's not really mentioned again. I'm not sure if maybe that would be more of an issue (would, not should) in "real life". I mean, as much as I wish it was a non-issue and people could be colour-blind I don't think we're quite there yet, and I would think Craig would be more conscious of belonging to two minorities, and it would factor more into his identity. I'm probably explaining this badly, but yeah, that.
honeyhale's review against another edition
3.0
I really liked this book. The only issue I had was the writing style. Everything just seemed to quick and messy. All over the place. Of course, I'm going to read more of Hannah's books. I loved Craig and Lio. I suck at reviews.
fayfaybleugh's review against another edition
3.5
Craig and Lio are great characters. I love how the story unfolded. It felt slow-paced, but when I stopped to explain what was happening to a friend it felt like it was too complex to explain because I had already learned that much about the characters. The ending was bittersweet for me, but it felt realistic.
annefables's review against another edition
5.0
This is the cutest story I've read in a long time! I love Craig and Lio- and I love how much they both changed by the end. I'm happy about Lio finally starting to talk more, even though I still worry about him (im always gonna worry about him).
One of my favorite scenes was when Craig went to visit Cody at his school and had to call Lio, not knowing Lio would be drunk and angry. And then Lio and his friends (im so happy he actually has other friends) sneak into a club (how easy is it for young teens to sneak into a club wtf???) Seeing Lio so drunk and touchy after he'd basically been a mouse the entire book was the last thing I was expecting. I'm not surprised he's the type who complains about a boy the entire time he's drunk though.
And, of course, Craig dying Lio's hair back blonde. I can finally picture Lio with normal hair that he isn't insecure about (it was honestly painful reading how uncomfortable he was about his fucking rainbow hair. I was like??? Just dye it back???)
Lol I'm gonna reread this like right now.
One of my favorite scenes was when Craig went to visit Cody at his school and had to call Lio, not knowing Lio would be drunk and angry. And then Lio and his friends (im so happy he actually has other friends) sneak into a club (how easy is it for young teens to sneak into a club wtf???) Seeing Lio so drunk and touchy after he'd basically been a mouse the entire book was the last thing I was expecting. I'm not surprised he's the type who complains about a boy the entire time he's drunk though.
And, of course, Craig dying Lio's hair back blonde. I can finally picture Lio with normal hair that he isn't insecure about (it was honestly painful reading how uncomfortable he was about his fucking rainbow hair. I was like??? Just dye it back???)
Lol I'm gonna reread this like right now.
anyaworley's review against another edition
5.0
This book is utterly draining.but of course in a good way. On one hand there is the battered United States of A still recovering from the harrowing 9/11 when a a mysterious sniper starts terrorizing the D.C. area, while on the other a black gay boy Craig is trying to make sense of his life.
Gone, Gone, Gone is purely gut-wrenching.Smart, sweet and oozing with wit, it completely took me by surprise.
Gone, Gone, Gone is purely gut-wrenching.Smart, sweet and oozing with wit, it completely took me by surprise.
jkh107's review against another edition
3.0
Yet another YA set in my hometown. This one concerns a young man trying to navigate complex relationships while the Beltway Sniper is at large.
elio's review against another edition
2.0
*2.5
Vet inte riktigt om jag gillade boken eller ej, är mest bara glad att den var så pass lättläst och handlingsfri att jag faktiskt kunde läsa ut den utan större problem
Vet inte riktigt om jag gillade boken eller ej, är mest bara glad att den var så pass lättläst och handlingsfri att jag faktiskt kunde läsa ut den utan större problem
vtmichelle's review against another edition
3.0
*3.5
As always, Hannah's books are very addicting to read. However, not much really happened and sometimes it felt like one big stream of conscious (not that that is bad, but just nothing really happened xD).
As always, Hannah's books are very addicting to read. However, not much really happened and sometimes it felt like one big stream of conscious (not that that is bad, but just nothing really happened xD).