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3.67 AVERAGE
3.67 AVERAGE
This book really hit me hard emotionally and left me thinking hard about the truth. A school shooting happens. Among the survivors, what each one saw, heard, and felt were only bits of the whole picture. They had been shot and recovered at different paces. The first to recover herself misunderstood what she heard and felt. Her loud excited voice tells the story that becomes the accepted version of the truth. The other survivors are traumatized and suffering from guilt and don't try to correct the story. Except for one who is vilified and eventually run out of town by vicious conservative Christians who want to believe the story that one of the girls died for her faith. This novel explores the possibilities of what happens as the survivors try to move forward with their lives after finally telling each other their own stories of what happened to them on that day.
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
A middling to low 2/5 stars. I appreciated some aspects of it, not so much others.
It feels like this book only tackled one idea. The story it waited so long to tell the readers was, to be honest, very obvious, and that reveal was the entire point of the book.
On top of this, none of the characters were particularly deep. Much of their thoughts and decision-making was for plot purposes, and I didn't get emotionally attached to any of them.
I see what this book was trying to do, but it didn't really work for me. I do, however, appreciate the nature of the struggles the characters faced. You could understand people on either side of it; sometimes people need a story. This book ended realistically, without anything or anyone getting magically repaired.
It feels like this book only tackled one idea. The story it waited so long to tell the readers was, to be honest, very obvious, and that reveal was the entire point of the book.
On top of this, none of the characters were particularly deep. Much of their thoughts and decision-making was for plot purposes, and I didn't get emotionally attached to any of them.
I see what this book was trying to do, but it didn't really work for me. I do, however, appreciate the nature of the struggles the characters faced. You could understand people on either side of it; sometimes people need a story. This book ended realistically, without anything or anyone getting magically repaired.
challenging
emotional
reflective
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Religious bigotry
Moderate: Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Mass/school shootings
Moderate: Bullying, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood
Minor: Alcoholism, Bullying, Drug use, Violence
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
A nice look at how survivors of a school shooting work to get their voices heard. Recommend to readers who liked Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult.
I thought that this book was really good. It retells the shooting in 1999, and the real story of what happened that day.
I thought that the romance in the book was really good and also the ending.
I thought that the romance in the book was really good and also the ending.
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced