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4.06 AVERAGE
4.06 AVERAGE
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Ik hou van dit boek! Het einde is zo tragisch en breekt je hart.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Racism
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
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:
No
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Racism
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Het boek 'blijf zachtjes bij mij' gaat over een mixed couple: zij wit, hij zwart. Het verhaal focust op de struikelblokken binnen hun relatie en het oordeel van de buitenwereld waarmee ze moeten leren leven. Van racisme tot familiezaken, het boek bespreekt het allemaal.
De schrijfstijl is heel simpel en vlak. Dit toont ook in de uitwerking van het verhaal. De plot is vlak en er is geen enkele diepgang. Eveneens de personages zijn vlak, holle geraamtes die totaal geen invulling verkregen. Alles is 'leeg'. Er is een boodschap die de auteur over wilde brengen, maar alles wat daartoe moet leiden; lijkt compleet genegeerd.
Het is een instant-love verhaal waarbij er totaal geen aanleiding wordt gegeven voor de band tussen beide. De relatie op zich wordt ook niet toegelicht en als lezer moet je alles maar voor waar aannemen. Elk greintje dat te maken heeft met hun band, moet je zelf invullen. Alsof de auteur zegt: ze hebben een relatie, de rest kies je maar lekker zelf.
De boodschap is overigens wel mooi en het onderwerp kan aanslaan. De kern van het boek heeft zeker waarde en zou, mits betere uitwerking en vooral een geloofwaardiger gegeven, een topverhaal kunnen zijn. Er zat heel veel in, maar het kwam gewoon niet naar voren.
Ik heb dit boek meerdere malen vastgehad in de boekhandel en ik ben blij dat ik het niet gekocht heb. Uiteindelijk luisterde ik het boek via Storytel en ik vond het zo slapjes... Er zit zoveel in de kern, in de boodschap, maar de potentie werd niet benut.
De schrijfstijl is heel simpel en vlak. Dit toont ook in de uitwerking van het verhaal. De plot is vlak en er is geen enkele diepgang. Eveneens de personages zijn vlak, holle geraamtes die totaal geen invulling verkregen. Alles is 'leeg'. Er is een boodschap die de auteur over wilde brengen, maar alles wat daartoe moet leiden; lijkt compleet genegeerd.
Het is een instant-love verhaal waarbij er totaal geen aanleiding wordt gegeven voor de band tussen beide. De relatie op zich wordt ook niet toegelicht en als lezer moet je alles maar voor waar aannemen. Elk greintje dat te maken heeft met hun band, moet je zelf invullen. Alsof de auteur zegt: ze hebben een relatie, de rest kies je maar lekker zelf.
De boodschap is overigens wel mooi en het onderwerp kan aanslaan. De kern van het boek heeft zeker waarde en zou, mits betere uitwerking en vooral een geloofwaardiger gegeven, een topverhaal kunnen zijn. Er zat heel veel in, maar het kwam gewoon niet naar voren.
Ik heb dit boek meerdere malen vastgehad in de boekhandel en ik ben blij dat ik het niet gekocht heb. Uiteindelijk luisterde ik het boek via Storytel en ik vond het zo slapjes... Er zit zoveel in de kern, in de boodschap, maar de potentie werd niet benut.
To be honest, the themes of young love and love at first sight really didn't do much for me in this book. I'm fairly cynical and I think I needed a longer book or more development to really feel a sense of "buy-in" regarding that. But the themes of race, dating someone outside of one's "group," and of course, the horribly tragic ending, felt still very relevant and rich for discussion.
Here's a book like Bridge to Terabithia that's almost impossible to discuss without spoilers, especially given the content warning that many prospective readers might appreciate. It's a love story between two fifteen-year-olds, one a black boy and one a white Jewish girl, and it culminates with him being shot to death by officers who mistake him for a suspect they're pursuing. We don't spend a whole lot of time in the aftermath of that act, which creates a lack of closure that's realistic for sudden violence but perhaps less satisfying in a work of fiction. It's a short novel overall, and there are plenty of truncated plot threads that could have benefitted from having more space to wind down and resolve.
So I have mixed feelings about the project, but I do have to commend author Jacqueline Woodson for boldly tackling racism and police shootings in a title for young people first published in 1998. (It's also possible that some of my concerns are addressed in her 2004 sequel.) I may have rolled my eyes when the teens fall for one another at first sight, but each is well-drawn as a character, and their writer is adept at presenting the microaggressions experienced by interracial couples and the tensions that can still exist in families who espouse openmindedness.
I just can't shake the feeling that I would like all this better if it weren't a tragedy, and I question whether giving the narrative that shape serves to perpetuate an ideology that relationships like mine are fated for unhappy endings.
--Subscribe at https://patreon.com/lesserjoke to support these reviews and weigh in on what I read next!--
Find me on Patreon | Goodreads | Blog | Twitter
So I have mixed feelings about the project, but I do have to commend author Jacqueline Woodson for boldly tackling racism and police shootings in a title for young people first published in 1998. (It's also possible that some of my concerns are addressed in her 2004 sequel.) I may have rolled my eyes when the teens fall for one another at first sight, but each is well-drawn as a character, and their writer is adept at presenting the microaggressions experienced by interracial couples and the tensions that can still exist in families who espouse openmindedness.
I just can't shake the feeling that I would like all this better if it weren't a tragedy, and I question whether giving the narrative that shape serves to perpetuate an ideology that relationships like mine are fated for unhappy endings.
--Subscribe at https://patreon.com/lesserjoke to support these reviews and weigh in on what I read next!--
Find me on Patreon | Goodreads | Blog | Twitter
Whoa. This is a beautifully tragic story, and except for the absence of cell phones and social media, you would never guess it was written 20 years ago.
I'll be honest, I've known about this book for years, but I had no intention of reading it. The title didn't exactly draw me in, and I'm kind of turned off by older YA because there's some pretty bad stuff out there. But I was so wrong about this book and I'm so glad I had to read this for a conference!
The romance between Ellie and Miah is so sweet and gentle and even though there's not a lot of action in the book, I was just drawn into their story. And that ending is so heartbreaking. And sadly, still very timely.
On the audiobook: I listened to a bit of the anniversary edition and it was very well done. There are two different narrators--one for Ellie and one for Miah--and they were perfect.
I'll be honest, I've known about this book for years, but I had no intention of reading it. The title didn't exactly draw me in, and I'm kind of turned off by older YA because there's some pretty bad stuff out there. But I was so wrong about this book and I'm so glad I had to read this for a conference!
The romance between Ellie and Miah is so sweet and gentle and even though there's not a lot of action in the book, I was just drawn into their story. And that ending is so heartbreaking. And sadly, still very timely.
On the audiobook: I listened to a bit of the anniversary edition and it was very well done. There are two different narrators--one for Ellie and one for Miah--and they were perfect.
Not just sobbing but completely heaving, crying harder than I have in a long time. I’m just not a cryer in general. This story shook me to the core—because it’s not just a story. It is the reality for some over and over again. We see it and are crushed, wondering when or if things will ever change. Will we ever be safe—everyone in our country, not just some.
I didn’t even see this coming in the book despite the nightly news, I didn’t think it would happen here. But I imagine so many people have thought the same thing only it is not fiction for them. It is their cold reality and should not be.
What a beautiful and timeless story, heartbreaking yet elegant and fine with that amazing rhythm of Jacqueline Woodson’s writing.
We are not safe until ALL of us are safe.
The narration on the audio version is perfect.
I didn’t even see this coming in the book despite the nightly news, I didn’t think it would happen here. But I imagine so many people have thought the same thing only it is not fiction for them. It is their cold reality and should not be.
What a beautiful and timeless story, heartbreaking yet elegant and fine with that amazing rhythm of Jacqueline Woodson’s writing.
We are not safe until ALL of us are safe.
The narration on the audio version is perfect.
This was the most beautiful romance I have ever read. Though I have never been in love, I still felt like I could relate to so many things the author touched on. Wow. I—
I’m speechless
I’m speechless