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4.07 AVERAGE
4.07 AVERAGE
My mind just collapsed. My heart is a void inside my chest.
What the hell was that?? Did I actually read that or did my last few hours were spend in an alternate universe??
OMFG, I'm so, so turned between clashing thoughts and theories that'll probably never be able to prove, that I've spent the last 15 minutes of my life trying to put into words my opinion regarding this book.
Not that it is a huge feat in terms of writing - its style is simple and clear, and there's nothing wrong with it -, but this entire story is brilliantly overwhelming. It navigates towards philosophical and physical concepts with an unexpected ease, mixing them with real life possibilities – tragic situations, but also memories, good and bad ones, and the uncertainty of the future – and the result is just thunderstruck in a beautifully ambiguous way.
What the hell was that?? Did I actually read that or did my last few hours were spend in an alternate universe??
OMFG, I'm so, so turned between clashing thoughts and theories that'll probably never be able to prove, that I've spent the last 15 minutes of my life trying to put into words my opinion regarding this book.
Not that it is a huge feat in terms of writing - its style is simple and clear, and there's nothing wrong with it -, but this entire story is brilliantly overwhelming. It navigates towards philosophical and physical concepts with an unexpected ease, mixing them with real life possibilities – tragic situations, but also memories, good and bad ones, and the uncertainty of the future – and the result is just thunderstruck in a beautifully ambiguous way.
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Pedophilia, Rape, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Comencé este libro por la simple razón de que adore "We are the ants" del mismo autor; y aunque no me ha desepcionado (termina la segunda mitad en una madrugada y bueno, 4 estrellas), es cierto que no me ha dejado el mismo sabor en la boca al terminarlo. Habiendo ya dormido un poco, puedo decir que este es un libro de como nos sentimos cuando nos terminan y como lo superamos. Esa necesidad de borrar a la persona de tu realidad, pero al mismo tiempo no dejar de buscarlo y obviamente, la necesidad de volver a conocerte a ti mismo, esta vez, como un individuo.
Y no solamente relaciones no toxicas, sino que cualquier tipo de relación. Me sorprendio bastante lo diverso y lo triste que podían llegar a ser las historias y los pasados de todos los personajes. Calvin acá se lleva la de oro, obviamente. Y acá rescato como el hecho de que él solo haya saltado al borde del universo, significo que fue él quien llamó a la policia en el otro universo. Eso es lucha personal, es profundo, es hermoso.
Lo del universo encogiendose me parecio siempre bien interesante y no lo pensé hasta leerlo que se llegaría a empequeñecer tanto. Aunque si me hubiera gustado una mejor respuesta a que fue todo eso.
Dire la verdad, si hubiera leído este libro hace 1 año y medio, le hubiera puesto cinco estrellas y hasta me hubiera servido de guía. Pero no ha sido así, y me da un poco de pena el final, en donde Calvin no fue nadie. Y aunque entiendo la razón, igual.
Pero bueno, en resumidas cuentas, este libro si me ha gustado y este autor, otra vez, tiene mis respetos.
Y no solamente relaciones no toxicas, sino que cualquier tipo de relación. Me sorprendio bastante lo diverso y lo triste que podían llegar a ser las historias y los pasados de todos los personajes. Calvin acá se lleva la de oro, obviamente. Y acá rescato como el hecho de que él solo haya saltado al borde del universo, significo que fue él quien llamó a la policia en el otro universo. Eso es lucha personal, es profundo, es hermoso.
Lo del universo encogiendose me parecio siempre bien interesante y no lo pensé hasta leerlo que se llegaría a empequeñecer tanto. Aunque si me hubiera gustado una mejor respuesta a que fue todo eso.
Dire la verdad, si hubiera leído este libro hace 1 año y medio, le hubiera puesto cinco estrellas y hasta me hubiera servido de guía. Pero no ha sido así, y me da un poco de pena el final, en donde Calvin no fue nadie. Y aunque entiendo la razón, igual.
Pero bueno, en resumidas cuentas, este libro si me ha gustado y este autor, otra vez, tiene mis respetos.
no es que me disgustó pero fue un big meh, es de esos libros que los terminás de leer y decís ok lo leí al pedo jsjsj
CW for this book: suicidal ideation, self-harm, abuse
This is very imaginative and extraordinarily successful in wielding its unique ideas. Certain parts were reminiscent of More Than This by Patrick Ness (in part, but not only, because the main characters are gay high schoolers in love), but I personally found that Hutchinson's creation had a far more satisfactory ending. Also brings to mind a touch of Howl's Moving Castle (the book) by Dianna Wynne Jones, Life Is Strange, and Donnie Darko (which is actually mentioned in the book). But that isn't to say the plot lines or answers or worlds are the same at all! Hutchinson does a very, very good job of not explaining what is at the heart of the book's mysteries until right at the end.
Hutchinson works with two main pieces of information: the disappearance of Ozzie's boyfriend Tommy, and the universe shrinking, and these enigmas are joined, in time, by the mystery and emotional confusion of Calvin. This was an ingenious way of focusing and keeping my interest. The size of the universe (in diameter? It's weird trying to conceptualize the whole shape of these distances) is listed at the beginning of each chapter, which serves as an ongoing reminder of the scientific curiosity, and it becomes more and more pressing as the number continues to shrink. We are absolutely never allowed to forget Tommy because it seems as though every decision of Ozzie's life must take the memory + the absence of Tommy into account. And this is partially what makes Calvin interesting, as his presence is a major source of confusion of Ozzie; but Calvin's whole character is intensely intriguing, and the questions about him grow meaningful because he increasingly demands the reader's concern. All these things are going on in tandem, the suspense and mystery and want to know (because it's all so stressful and hectic and confusing), which does an incredible job of capturing and keeping the reader's attention.
There is not any point when the reader can feel confident in a theory about what's happening that includes everything that's happening. Ozzie helps by providing multiple quantum physics theories, and helps our confusion by quite often stating his own distress and confusion about a myriad of occurrences. Not all of his areas of stress are filled in equally, not all developed in the plot in equally meaningful ways. And for me, not all equally… worth it?
One main drawback I found in reading this book is that it takes place in high school and is aimed at high schoolers. It trusts in the intelligence or its readers, and is mature in a lot of ways, so this isn't a critique of that set up, but it does mean that everything is so damn awkward and angsty. Anger, lust, dependent love, awkwardness, pettiness, self-interest, depression and sarcasm are all strong forces in this book. It can be a bit much: because they're strong emotions, but also because they're sometimes written over the top. The unrealistic and imprecise quality of some emotional scenes had me cringing.
A large part of this over-the-top-ness is depicted in Lua's character. I struggled the entire book to find anything redeeming about her, but she seemed false and caricature to begin with. She has anger issues that no one seems particularly concerned about, she's selfish, stubborn, continually makes a point of telling Ozzie she doesn't believe him, and uses his belief in Tommy to shut down multiple valid arguments that Ozzie makes about her decisions and reactions. She says Ozzie won't talk to her while making a show of not wanting to hear him, as well as not being available for conversation, and being a pretty terrible listener to begin with. Despite this, Lua is depicted as likeable and a good friend, and I had trouble seeing why. Ozzie himself is annoying much of the time as well: stubborn himself, rude, nosy and pushy about topics clearly sensitive to Calvin, doesn't have a great awareness of relationships as two-sided, overconfident (whilst making bad decisions), black and white views and difficulty hearing other sides. I understood his pain and his goal, and was mostly sympathetic to it, but I wasn't sympathetic to the idea he had of being wounded and faced with such struggle.
But overall, these aggravations mostly resolve themselves. Ozzie matures significantly and learns a lot about people and his part in relationships, and most of the events that take place up until that point have inherent value to them. And I'm good with that. I'm especially, especially good with Calvin and Tommy's storylines. Hutchinson is both realistic and hopeful though out the novel, he's a good writer, and he finds resolutions that are almost exactly right.
This is very imaginative and extraordinarily successful in wielding its unique ideas. Certain parts were reminiscent of More Than This by Patrick Ness (in part, but not only, because the main characters are gay high schoolers in love), but I personally found that Hutchinson's creation had a far more satisfactory ending. Also brings to mind a touch of Howl's Moving Castle (the book) by Dianna Wynne Jones, Life Is Strange, and Donnie Darko (which is actually mentioned in the book). But that isn't to say the plot lines or answers or worlds are the same at all! Hutchinson does a very, very good job of not explaining what is at the heart of the book's mysteries until right at the end.
Hutchinson works with two main pieces of information: the disappearance of Ozzie's boyfriend Tommy, and the universe shrinking, and these enigmas are joined, in time, by the mystery and emotional confusion of Calvin. This was an ingenious way of focusing and keeping my interest. The size of the universe (in diameter? It's weird trying to conceptualize the whole shape of these distances) is listed at the beginning of each chapter, which serves as an ongoing reminder of the scientific curiosity, and it becomes more and more pressing as the number continues to shrink. We are absolutely never allowed to forget Tommy because it seems as though every decision of Ozzie's life must take the memory + the absence of Tommy into account. And this is partially what makes Calvin interesting, as his presence is a major source of confusion of Ozzie; but Calvin's whole character is intensely intriguing, and the questions about him grow meaningful because he increasingly demands the reader's concern. All these things are going on in tandem, the suspense and mystery and want to know (because it's all so stressful and hectic and confusing), which does an incredible job of capturing and keeping the reader's attention.
There is not any point when the reader can feel confident in a theory about what's happening that includes everything that's happening. Ozzie helps by providing multiple quantum physics theories, and helps our confusion by quite often stating his own distress and confusion about a myriad of occurrences. Not all of his areas of stress are filled in equally, not all developed in the plot in equally meaningful ways. And for me, not all equally… worth it?
One main drawback I found in reading this book is that it takes place in high school and is aimed at high schoolers. It trusts in the intelligence or its readers, and is mature in a lot of ways, so this isn't a critique of that set up, but it does mean that everything is so damn awkward and angsty. Anger, lust, dependent love, awkwardness, pettiness, self-interest, depression and sarcasm are all strong forces in this book. It can be a bit much: because they're strong emotions, but also because they're sometimes written over the top. The unrealistic and imprecise quality of some emotional scenes had me cringing.
A large part of this over-the-top-ness is depicted in Lua's character. I struggled the entire book to find anything redeeming about her, but she seemed false and caricature to begin with. She has anger issues that no one seems particularly concerned about, she's selfish, stubborn, continually makes a point of telling Ozzie she doesn't believe him, and uses his belief in Tommy to shut down multiple valid arguments that Ozzie makes about her decisions and reactions. She says Ozzie won't talk to her while making a show of not wanting to hear him, as well as not being available for conversation, and being a pretty terrible listener to begin with. Despite this, Lua is depicted as likeable and a good friend, and I had trouble seeing why. Ozzie himself is annoying much of the time as well: stubborn himself, rude, nosy and pushy about topics clearly sensitive to Calvin, doesn't have a great awareness of relationships as two-sided, overconfident (whilst making bad decisions), black and white views and difficulty hearing other sides. I understood his pain and his goal, and was mostly sympathetic to it, but I wasn't sympathetic to the idea he had of being wounded and faced with such struggle.
But overall, these aggravations mostly resolve themselves. Ozzie matures significantly and learns a lot about people and his part in relationships, and most of the events that take place up until that point have inherent value to them. And I'm good with that. I'm especially, especially good with Calvin and Tommy's storylines. Hutchinson is both realistic and hopeful though out the novel, he's a good writer, and he finds resolutions that are almost exactly right.
“It’s impossible to let go of the people we love. Pieces of them remain embedded inside of us like shrapnel. Every breath causes those fragments to burrow through our muscles, nearer to our hearts. And we think the pain will kill us, but it won’t. Eventually, scar tissue forms around those twisted splinters like cocoons. They remain part of us, but slowly hurt less. At least, I hoped they would.”
I really enjoyed this book. It kept me on the edge of my seat, and showed heart at the same time. I gave it 4 stars because I was slightly disappointed by the ending. I wish I got more of a concrete ending, but I expect nothing less for Ozzie’s life tbh.
I really enjoyed this book. It kept me on the edge of my seat, and showed heart at the same time. I gave it 4 stars because I was slightly disappointed by the ending. I wish I got more of a concrete ending, but I expect nothing less for Ozzie’s life tbh.
I really don't even know what to say. This book affected me so much more than I anticipated. I think We Are the Ants is, objectively, probably the better book, but this one affected me on such a deep and personal level that I had to give it 5 stars (even though, objectively, it's probably more like a 3.75-4). I don't even know how to articulate everything I'm feeling right now. This book made me want to put more into life and be better. And it made me feel like I'm not alone. I think Shaun David Hutchinson just cemented himself as one of my favorite authors of all time.