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kayleyayley's review against another edition
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Yet another amazing book by Kathleen Glasgow. Real depictions of addiction and the effects on family and community, along with how addicts are treated and the stigma around mental illness. The reality of recovery and relapse. Realistic character flaws and development. I love Kathleen Glasgow.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Bullying, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Grief, Car accident, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Alcoholism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Alcohol
lindseyhall44's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
4.0
A thought provoking read on addiction and its affect on others, this novel is hard to forget.
“You’d be Home by Now,” follows Emory as her brother struggles with addiction and what it means to truly recover. It was an interesting choice to depict this struggle from the eyes of a loved one instead of the person dealing with addiction, but one I truly appreciated. From a different standpoint readers saw the impact of drugs on everyone around the user, shaping life as they know it.
The conversation surrounding this topic were handled well, and so were discussions on slut shaming and economic class.
There were some plot points which weren’t my favorite as well as social media and gen z comments which felt forced. It was hard for me to rate this unbiased, because How to Make Friends with the dark was such a staple in my own grieving process.
Overall, I would recommend (but please check trigger warnings before reading).
“You’d be Home by Now,” follows Emory as her brother struggles with addiction and what it means to truly recover. It was an interesting choice to depict this struggle from the eyes of a loved one instead of the person dealing with addiction, but one I truly appreciated. From a different standpoint readers saw the impact of drugs on everyone around the user, shaping life as they know it.
The conversation surrounding this topic were handled well, and so were discussions on slut shaming and economic class.
There were some plot points which weren’t my favorite as well as social media and gen z comments which felt forced. It was hard for me to rate this unbiased, because How to Make Friends with the dark was such a staple in my own grieving process.
Overall, I would recommend (but please check trigger warnings before reading).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, and Car accident
Moderate: Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Medical content, and Abandonment
Minor: Chronic illness
leesbookshelf's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
fast-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
4.75
where to even begin with this book? it has seriously helped me to change my perspective on addiction. i’d never previously given much thought to the impacts of addiction on families and just how deeply it can root itself into people. i would definitely recommend this book to anybody (alongside a warning to check content warnings first).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, and Injury/Injury detail
sbbailey's review against another edition
emotional
informative
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Drug use, and Misogyny
feedmefiction's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction
Moderate: Drug use and Toxic relationship
Minor: Alcoholism
maat_firven's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-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? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse and Drug use
literautres's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.75
i keep wanting love to be enough, but if it was, you'd be home now.
the amount of rawness in this book really left me in awe. the story tells about emory, the youngest in the family, who had to live in the shadow of her older sister's brilliance and had to take care of her older brother, joey, who is a drug addict. everything started to reach its peak in the worst possible way when one accident that involved both joey and emory killed a girl.
the struggle that both joey and emory went through really got to me personally and i'm guessing, to a lot of people as well. there are so many stigma and misconception about drug addicts in real life, putting them directly into the same category as criminal, when really a lot of us have addictions (not specifically drugs) or other unhealthy coping mechanism because it is the fastest solution, no matter how temporary and harmful it is. the way the story is written gracefully shows what drives addiction, how harmful it is both for the person and for the people around them, how hard it is to get out of it, how it is so possible to have so, so, many relapses and how important a strong support system is.
the phrase "i keep wanting love to be enough, but if it was, you'd be home now." is absolutely haunting and made me cry because it is true. it's not enough. you can tell a person a thousand i love yous, begging them to come home, and you would think it is enough and you can't figure out why it isn't. because it's not. it's not just love and it is not all has to come from you. it is also patience, so, so much patience, willingness to wait and hope, countless apologies and forgiveness, sacrifices, commitment, unrelenting amount of courage and God so many. there are so many. and i think kathleen glasgow has written it so beautifully, not at all romanticized, and also, fairly. the last thing is very important because it is so easy to fall into judgment and unconscious bias when one write this kind of story and i am so incredibly relieved that it's not the case with this one.
the family conflict was also... gripping. i think one of the benefits from reading young adult stories when you are an adult in your midtwenties, is that you get the point from both povs, because teenage years is not a long time ago for you so you can still remember stuff, remember how it felt, even finally makes sense of several things you are confused about until now. and adult years is the one you're stepping into right now so you kind of can see the parents in a more 'tolerating' way (because you're now dealing with the shit they were dealing with as well), even though it's not that you agree. the mother was pretty hard to read, her course of actions made me want to hit my head out of frustration. but later in the book i learned why she behaved that way and she actually tried to unlearn the way she lived and acted before, same case with the father. i also really like the way this is written, it's very human.
oh and not only it is the story of about the addiction, it also highlights how heavy the responsibilities of a support system is. the story is told from emory's pov, who is a person that joey can trust, therefore it shows the burden emory has to bear as well. not only she has to be able to manage her own issues and problems, but she also needs to be the person joey can come home to. she needs to hide her messiness and mistakes because they can't afford a second joey. things like that drive you crazy. it makes you want to stab your head and rip yourself to pieces. emily's character was written quite well, because you can see her fragility but also how resilient she was. there are times, though, when you can get a bit impatient when you read her (especially when you are an adult like me) because she is a white privileged teenage girl therefore she has the traits that make you just want to shake her. but if you can just hold on through it gets significantly better. (also, she is a teenager. of course she is annoying and does not know better however also thinks she can handle stuff all alone. let them learn.)
however, the book is not perfect. it is told from a very privileged point of view, a white rich family, so if you come from a poor family (like me lol) there are several things that will make you roll your eyes. it also doesn't show the role of the drug companies and also dealers profiting from teenagers who barely know better, it doesn't provide a point of view that is compelling enough to give space for the poor people who are trapped in the devil cycle because of poverty and they have no other choices. it only barely scratches the surface about the awful rehabilitation system provided by the government. the pacing is pretty slow at first, and yet jumpy at several parts. also, from what i know addiction affects people differently, and each person has their own experience, so joey's experience might not be how the others gone through. if these are the things that you can't come to terms with when you read a book about drugs addiction i suggest to just pick another book that has more strength in those aspects.
despite all the lacks, this is a book that i very appreciate for how it came to existence. the book was pretty hard to go through (at least for me) but it was so worth it, so still, thank you. thank you for writing this book.
the amount of rawness in this book really left me in awe. the story tells about emory, the youngest in the family, who had to live in the shadow of her older sister's brilliance and had to take care of her older brother, joey, who is a drug addict. everything started to reach its peak in the worst possible way when one accident that involved both joey and emory killed a girl.
the struggle that both joey and emory went through really got to me personally and i'm guessing, to a lot of people as well. there are so many stigma and misconception about drug addicts in real life, putting them directly into the same category as criminal, when really a lot of us have addictions (not specifically drugs) or other unhealthy coping mechanism because it is the fastest solution, no matter how temporary and harmful it is. the way the story is written gracefully shows what drives addiction, how harmful it is both for the person and for the people around them, how hard it is to get out of it, how it is so possible to have so, so, many relapses and how important a strong support system is.
the phrase "i keep wanting love to be enough, but if it was, you'd be home now." is absolutely haunting and made me cry because it is true. it's not enough. you can tell a person a thousand i love yous, begging them to come home, and you would think it is enough and you can't figure out why it isn't. because it's not. it's not just love and it is not all has to come from you. it is also patience, so, so much patience, willingness to wait and hope, countless apologies and forgiveness, sacrifices, commitment, unrelenting amount of courage and God so many. there are so many. and i think kathleen glasgow has written it so beautifully, not at all romanticized, and also, fairly. the last thing is very important because it is so easy to fall into judgment and unconscious bias when one write this kind of story and i am so incredibly relieved that it's not the case with this one.
the family conflict was also... gripping. i think one of the benefits from reading young adult stories when you are an adult in your midtwenties, is that you get the point from both povs, because teenage years is not a long time ago for you so you can still remember stuff, remember how it felt, even finally makes sense of several things you are confused about until now. and adult years is the one you're stepping into right now so you kind of can see the parents in a more 'tolerating' way (because you're now dealing with the shit they were dealing with as well), even though it's not that you agree. the mother was pretty hard to read, her course of actions made me want to hit my head out of frustration. but later in the book i learned why she behaved that way and she actually tried to unlearn the way she lived and acted before, same case with the father. i also really like the way this is written, it's very human.
oh and not only it is the story of about the addiction, it also highlights how heavy the responsibilities of a support system is. the story is told from emory's pov, who is a person that joey can trust, therefore it shows the burden emory has to bear as well. not only she has to be able to manage her own issues and problems, but she also needs to be the person joey can come home to. she needs to hide her messiness and mistakes because they can't afford a second joey. things like that drive you crazy. it makes you want to stab your head and rip yourself to pieces. emily's character was written quite well, because you can see her fragility but also how resilient she was. there are times, though, when you can get a bit impatient when you read her (especially when you are an adult like me) because she is a white privileged teenage girl therefore she has the traits that make you just want to shake her. but if you can just hold on through it gets significantly better. (also, she is a teenager. of course she is annoying and does not know better however also thinks she can handle stuff all alone. let them learn.)
however, the book is not perfect. it is told from a very privileged point of view, a white rich family, so if you come from a poor family (like me lol) there are several things that will make you roll your eyes. it also doesn't show the role of the drug companies and also dealers profiting from teenagers who barely know better, it doesn't provide a point of view that is compelling enough to give space for the poor people who are trapped in the devil cycle because of poverty and they have no other choices. it only barely scratches the surface about the awful rehabilitation system provided by the government. the pacing is pretty slow at first, and yet jumpy at several parts. also, from what i know addiction affects people differently, and each person has their own experience, so joey's experience might not be how the others gone through. if these are the things that you can't come to terms with when you read a book about drugs addiction i suggest to just pick another book that has more strength in those aspects.
despite all the lacks, this is a book that i very appreciate for how it came to existence. the book was pretty hard to go through (at least for me) but it was so worth it, so still, thank you. thank you for writing this book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse and Drug use
distribution of nudity photos without consentjil_m's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
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
4.75
A book about an invisible girl with a lot of vision.
Summary:
We follow Emory, a freshman who is traumatized by a car crash. Her brother, Joey is in rehab, to slowly get rid of his drug addiction. After the summer holiday she has to get back to school where she gets confronted by a girls death caused by her? Joey is not doing well, even in rehab he had more freedom. Their parents are making a cage for both of them. Joey has no life anymore and Emory has to deal with two awful lives. But they will escape, eventually.
Review:
She did it. Kathleen Glasgow did it once again. She made me cry, laugh, freak out, fell in love, think about life and many more emotions I can’t explain. This is a story that many others experience. “There are many other Emory’s and Joeys who should not be invisible.” And the writing made it even more real. Her way of describing situations, characters and feelings is absolutely incredible. Books are made to be thought about, and this novel really succeeded that mission.
:))
Summary:
We follow Emory, a freshman who is traumatized by a car crash. Her brother, Joey is in rehab, to slowly get rid of his drug addiction. After the summer holiday she has to get back to school where she gets confronted by a girls death caused by her? Joey is not doing well, even in rehab he had more freedom. Their parents are making a cage for both of them. Joey has no life anymore and Emory has to deal with two awful lives. But they will escape, eventually.
Review:
She did it. Kathleen Glasgow did it once again. She made me cry, laugh, freak out, fell in love, think about life and many more emotions I can’t explain. This is a story that many others experience. “There are many other Emory’s and Joeys who should not be invisible.” And the writing made it even more real. Her way of describing situations, characters and feelings is absolutely incredible. Books are made to be thought about, and this novel really succeeded that mission.
:))
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Medical content, and Car accident
aliinkaa's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
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
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Suicidal thoughts, and Car accident
wildflowercth's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Abandonment