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imy0urknee's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
relaxing
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
hermodernbookclub's review against another edition
2.0
It was not really about the end of the world. The main focus was more on a family drama which actually didn’t need the apocalyptic element because it never focus on it. The story got weaker and weaker by the end and many sentences were repeatedly and just boring. I couldn’t even underline anything because there wasn’t even beautiful or impactful sentences (in my opinion). I’m not sure if I want to read another book by Emily Barr. It just didn't convince me
phyrre's review against another edition
2.0
You can find my full review on my blog, The Bookwyrm's Den, here.
Many thanks to Penguin and TheWriteReads for an eARC in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.
I’m a sucker for any sort of apocalyptic setting. Cheesy end-of-times movie? Bring it on. World ending in literature? Yes, please! That’s what immediately drew me to this book, for better or worse. The idea of potentially dark and dangerous secrets was an added bonus.
Things to Do Before the End of the World is a contemporary coming-of-age story about a shy, introverted girl who finds herself as the world is ending. It’ll leave readers with plenty of things to contemplate about how people approach the end differently.
I think this was a case of this book not being for me. I had thought the sci-fi, apocalyptic elements would play more of a role, and they didn’t. It was just kind of a convenient backdrop to set up the coming-of-age story. It’s also not much of a thriller. It’s really just a contemporary coming-of-age, and I think it holds a lot of promise for people who enjoy that genre. Unfortunately, that’s pretty much my least favorite genre, so it just didn’t work for me, which is more of a problem with me than the book.
My Thoughts:
- What would you do if the world were ending? Barr presents a series of interesting and varying approaches that will leave readers with plenty to think about. I love books that make you think, and this is no exception. Barr has such a lovely way of writing, especially deep, philosophical passages that get at the heart of the struggle. I mean, imagine finding out that you have nine months before everyone likely ceases to exist. The emotions! The turmoil! It’s absolutely delicious and delicate and precious. There were times I was frustrated with how people were handling the end times, but it’s so true to real life. Not everyone approaches it the same way, and there will always be those who refuse to admit it’s happening. Barr captures all the complex, raw, emotional aspects of facing the end of the world.
- This book is perfect for fans of coming-of-age stories. Libby really comes out of her introverted shell, and her journey is enjoyable to read. I don’t think it’s going out on a limb at all to assume that most of you reading this are introverts. At least a good portion of you? So it might be easy for you to relate to Libby and her reluctance to go to parties or travel or exist in crowds. That seems reasonable to me, at least. Throughout the book, Libby is forced to come out of her shell or go to her death carrying all sorts of regrets. Not a particularly nice choice, but also not a particularly difficult one. It was nice seeing her become more confident and growing not only into herself but into the idea that she may not have long to live.
- Despite having a depressing backdrop, this story manages to be wonderfully uplifting and ends on a perfect note. You know how I usually say I hate open endings? Well, the semi-open ending of this book is absolutely *chef’s kiss*. This is an example of it working absolutely perfect. This book is not all doom and gloom, which is pretty impressive. There are plenty of absolutely beautiful moments that really tug at your heartstrings. The world doesn’t exactly just give up and cease to function just because it’s likely going to cease to exist. People have very different philosophies, and it leads to some beautiful scenes as people struggle to make sense of it all. That’s not to say there aren’t dark moments, because there are, but the overall feeling is one of hope rather than resignation.
Sticking Points:
- The plot relies on an awful lot of conveniences, not all of which made sense to me. There were a lot of scenes where I thought, okay, but WHY did that character do that/believe that? I mean, obviously the plot required it, but I wanted more solid reasoning. This was mostly a problem in the last 25% or so of the book, where it felt like every time something new was set in motion, I didn’t understand how or why the characters had gotten there. I questioned a lot of character reactions, which made it hard for me to fully buy into all the things that happened. I wish there’d been a little more build-up around this part of the book, since this was the culminating part and it felt a bit rushed and not well justified or grounded. The plot twists were also pretty obvious from early on, which just made me wonder why it took the characters so long to reach the same realization that I had 100 pages ago.
- If the inability to have more kids is a sensitive issue for you, I would caution you about picking up this book. This may have triggers for you. Of course, it may not. It may have just been me. I still want to caution anyone to go in with a degree of caution if this might bother you. Libby really doubles down on the idea that she’s miserable about who she is, and she would definitely be a different, more capable person if only she’d grown up with a sibling. This is brought up multiple times and is a repeated mantra for Libby. Putting aside the idea that it’s just false in general (which was annoying enough for me to start with), it’s a perspective that really frustrated me and a potential trigger.
Many thanks to Penguin and TheWriteReads for an eARC in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.
I’m a sucker for any sort of apocalyptic setting. Cheesy end-of-times movie? Bring it on. World ending in literature? Yes, please! That’s what immediately drew me to this book, for better or worse. The idea of potentially dark and dangerous secrets was an added bonus.
Things to Do Before the End of the World is a contemporary coming-of-age story about a shy, introverted girl who finds herself as the world is ending. It’ll leave readers with plenty of things to contemplate about how people approach the end differently.
I think this was a case of this book not being for me. I had thought the sci-fi, apocalyptic elements would play more of a role, and they didn’t. It was just kind of a convenient backdrop to set up the coming-of-age story. It’s also not much of a thriller. It’s really just a contemporary coming-of-age, and I think it holds a lot of promise for people who enjoy that genre. Unfortunately, that’s pretty much my least favorite genre, so it just didn’t work for me, which is more of a problem with me than the book.
My Thoughts:
- What would you do if the world were ending? Barr presents a series of interesting and varying approaches that will leave readers with plenty to think about. I love books that make you think, and this is no exception. Barr has such a lovely way of writing, especially deep, philosophical passages that get at the heart of the struggle. I mean, imagine finding out that you have nine months before everyone likely ceases to exist. The emotions! The turmoil! It’s absolutely delicious and delicate and precious. There were times I was frustrated with how people were handling the end times, but it’s so true to real life. Not everyone approaches it the same way, and there will always be those who refuse to admit it’s happening. Barr captures all the complex, raw, emotional aspects of facing the end of the world.
- This book is perfect for fans of coming-of-age stories. Libby really comes out of her introverted shell, and her journey is enjoyable to read. I don’t think it’s going out on a limb at all to assume that most of you reading this are introverts. At least a good portion of you? So it might be easy for you to relate to Libby and her reluctance to go to parties or travel or exist in crowds. That seems reasonable to me, at least. Throughout the book, Libby is forced to come out of her shell or go to her death carrying all sorts of regrets. Not a particularly nice choice, but also not a particularly difficult one. It was nice seeing her become more confident and growing not only into herself but into the idea that she may not have long to live.
- Despite having a depressing backdrop, this story manages to be wonderfully uplifting and ends on a perfect note. You know how I usually say I hate open endings? Well, the semi-open ending of this book is absolutely *chef’s kiss*. This is an example of it working absolutely perfect. This book is not all doom and gloom, which is pretty impressive. There are plenty of absolutely beautiful moments that really tug at your heartstrings. The world doesn’t exactly just give up and cease to function just because it’s likely going to cease to exist. People have very different philosophies, and it leads to some beautiful scenes as people struggle to make sense of it all. That’s not to say there aren’t dark moments, because there are, but the overall feeling is one of hope rather than resignation.
Sticking Points:
- The plot relies on an awful lot of conveniences, not all of which made sense to me. There were a lot of scenes where I thought, okay, but WHY did that character do that/believe that? I mean, obviously the plot required it, but I wanted more solid reasoning. This was mostly a problem in the last 25% or so of the book, where it felt like every time something new was set in motion, I didn’t understand how or why the characters had gotten there. I questioned a lot of character reactions, which made it hard for me to fully buy into all the things that happened. I wish there’d been a little more build-up around this part of the book, since this was the culminating part and it felt a bit rushed and not well justified or grounded. The plot twists were also pretty obvious from early on, which just made me wonder why it took the characters so long to reach the same realization that I had 100 pages ago.
- If the inability to have more kids is a sensitive issue for you, I would caution you about picking up this book. This may have triggers for you. Of course, it may not. It may have just been me. I still want to caution anyone to go in with a degree of caution if this might bother you. Libby really doubles down on the idea that she’s miserable about who she is, and she would definitely be a different, more capable person if only she’d grown up with a sibling. This is brought up multiple times and is a repeated mantra for Libby. Putting aside the idea that it’s just false in general (which was annoying enough for me to start with), it’s a perspective that really frustrated me and a potential trigger.
booksare42's review against another edition
3.0
Thank you to The Write Reads for organizing and inviting me to participate in this blog tour. Thank you, Penguin Platform and Net Galley, for providing me with an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This coming-of-age story takes place during the lead up to the end of the world, and it was unlike anything I’ve read before. The premise of this book seemed promising, and I really wanted to love it, but unfortunately, I could not suspend my disbelief enough to fall in love with the story.
My favourite thing about this book was the main character, Libby. Libby is shy. She’s the kind of shy that plans out conversations in her head before having them, and she often doesn’t have the courage to have the conversation she planned. I found her shyness to be relatable, and I enjoyed watching her grow and become more confident and comfortable with herself. However, I found her too naïve at times, and I wanted to throw some red flags at the book to help her out during some parts.
Unfortunately, I wasn’t a huge fan of the other main character, Natasha. I don’t want to say too much about Natasha, but a lot of her actions made me uncomfortable and anxious, which took away from my enjoyment of the book.
The other thing that I liked about this book was the travelling. I haven’t done very much travelling in my life, so I always like to see different places through the eyes of fictional characters. I enjoyed the descriptions of Spain and France, and I enjoyed exploring these places with Libby.
One thing that threw me off with this book is that the end of the world didn’t seem like it was that big of a deal. At the beginning of the book, a doomsday date is announced, and a large portion of mundane, everyday life continues to go on as usual. I don’t read a lot of books about the end of the world, especially right now with the current global health crisis, but it felt unusual to me.
Another thing that I enjoyed about this book was the family secret aspect of it. I enjoyed trying to piece together what happened with Libby’s Uncle and the truth about that portion of her family. I wasn’t a huge fan of what was going on with Libby’s mum during the second half of the book because the trope where an adult refuses to tell their almost-adult child the truth is one of my least favourite tropes; however, that’s a personal taste thing for me, and it probably doesn’t bother most people.
The main reason why I rated this book three stars is because there was an aspect of the story that I could not suspend my disbelief over because I’ve worked in a law firm for the past five years. It’s a very specific thing that probably won’t bother most readers, but it bugged me because of my personal experience. I don’t want to say anything specific about it because I don’t want to spoil anything, but if that portion of the story didn’t exist, I likely would have enjoyed this book more.
Overall, I enjoyed the twists and turns in this book. Some aspects were predictable, but other parts kept me on my toes. The story itself was interesting, and the characters were memorable, but unfortunately, I couldn’t look past some moments.
This coming-of-age story takes place during the lead up to the end of the world, and it was unlike anything I’ve read before. The premise of this book seemed promising, and I really wanted to love it, but unfortunately, I could not suspend my disbelief enough to fall in love with the story.
My favourite thing about this book was the main character, Libby. Libby is shy. She’s the kind of shy that plans out conversations in her head before having them, and she often doesn’t have the courage to have the conversation she planned. I found her shyness to be relatable, and I enjoyed watching her grow and become more confident and comfortable with herself. However, I found her too naïve at times, and I wanted to throw some red flags at the book to help her out during some parts.
Unfortunately, I wasn’t a huge fan of the other main character, Natasha. I don’t want to say too much about Natasha, but a lot of her actions made me uncomfortable and anxious, which took away from my enjoyment of the book.
The other thing that I liked about this book was the travelling. I haven’t done very much travelling in my life, so I always like to see different places through the eyes of fictional characters. I enjoyed the descriptions of Spain and France, and I enjoyed exploring these places with Libby.
One thing that threw me off with this book is that the end of the world didn’t seem like it was that big of a deal. At the beginning of the book, a doomsday date is announced, and a large portion of mundane, everyday life continues to go on as usual. I don’t read a lot of books about the end of the world, especially right now with the current global health crisis, but it felt unusual to me.
Another thing that I enjoyed about this book was the family secret aspect of it. I enjoyed trying to piece together what happened with Libby’s Uncle and the truth about that portion of her family. I wasn’t a huge fan of what was going on with Libby’s mum during the second half of the book because the trope where an adult refuses to tell their almost-adult child the truth is one of my least favourite tropes; however, that’s a personal taste thing for me, and it probably doesn’t bother most people.
The main reason why I rated this book three stars is because there was an aspect of the story that I could not suspend my disbelief over because I’ve worked in a law firm for the past five years. It’s a very specific thing that probably won’t bother most readers, but it bugged me because of my personal experience. I don’t want to say anything specific about it because I don’t want to spoil anything, but if that portion of the story didn’t exist, I likely would have enjoyed this book more.
Overall, I enjoyed the twists and turns in this book. Some aspects were predictable, but other parts kept me on my toes. The story itself was interesting, and the characters were memorable, but unfortunately, I couldn’t look past some moments.
energyrae's review against another edition
4.0
Ultimately, this is a story about Libby finding herself and her wings. We spend so much time focused on Libby’s anxiety and her inability to speak up about her feelings that you almost forget the world is going to end in what they call "The Creep."
Libby is painfully naïve. Watching her make one mistake after the next is like watching a train wreck. My daughter is the same age, and I cannot imagine a situation in which she would leave the house without a wallet or phone. But Libby battles crippling anxiety, and not only do I relate to that, but I can imagine her lack of street smarts comes from not going out and living life.
Poor Libby, you want to reach into the book, take her by the hand, and promise her everything good in the world. Finding out she has a cousin is a saving grace for her. Natasha is everything Libby needs, and she helps push her out of her comfort zone. There’s a good balance between The Creep and watching Libby navigate the days she has left. While this is more a story about Libby finding herself, it doesn't detract from the overall enjoyment of reading this. This is a cute and engaging read that hooks you from the start.
Libby is painfully naïve. Watching her make one mistake after the next is like watching a train wreck. My daughter is the same age, and I cannot imagine a situation in which she would leave the house without a wallet or phone. But Libby battles crippling anxiety, and not only do I relate to that, but I can imagine her lack of street smarts comes from not going out and living life.
Poor Libby, you want to reach into the book, take her by the hand, and promise her everything good in the world. Finding out she has a cousin is a saving grace for her. Natasha is everything Libby needs, and she helps push her out of her comfort zone. There’s a good balance between The Creep and watching Libby navigate the days she has left. While this is more a story about Libby finding herself, it doesn't detract from the overall enjoyment of reading this. This is a cute and engaging read that hooks you from the start.
unwrappingwords's review against another edition
3.0
This book was reviewed as part of The Write Reads blog tour. Thank you to them and to Penguin, for providing a copy of this book.
Before we get into this more, I want to say I did enjoy this, but it took me a fair while to get into it. The first half is relatively slow, and it takes a while to pick up. But I’ll go into more details about that later.
Olivia s very much an introvert, able to only fully come out of her shell when she takes on the role of someone else. Playing Juliet in an all-girl production of Romeo & Juliet is a dream come true, especially as Romeo is played by Olivia’s crush, Zoe. But the world is ending, the air running out, and when the play ends, Olivia is left adrift. Until her long-lost cousin contacts her. Everyone around Olivia has different reactions to what is happening. Her mother and step-father decide to spend time in Spain, while her father and step-mother block it out, focusing instead on their two young children. With Natasha’s help, Olivia realises she needs to make the most of the time she has left.
The writing is good, and it’s easy to see why people enjoy Barr’s other works. I really liked Olivia’s family situation, and the way she interacts with her parents and step-parents. Her father, like Olivia, is a fairly quiet person, introverted, with scars Olivia can’t quite see. Her mother is lovely, encouraging without being pushy, and as with her father, we find out more about her own past late in the novel. Both made for compelling characters, and I found I wanted to spend more time with Olivia’s family.
Olivia’s crush on Zoe is sweet, especially when she starts writing e-mails but not sending them, revealing how she feels without actually stepping over the line. It doesn’t help that Zoe has a girlfriend, and I liked how when the girlfriend does come up, Olivia doesn’t really spend time comparing herself to her or getting jealous or nasty. However, when she is in contact with Natasha, her cousin pushes her to just ‘grab what she wants’, and Olivia doesn’t seem to have a problem with the suggestion of ‘taking’ another girl’s girlfriend?
I was fairly up and down on this book throughout, but I do think the second half is stronger than the first. Though towards the end, there is a scene where a character recaps everything we’ve just seen happen, and it felt jarring. The first half felt like it dragged, with not much happening. The closest person to a best friend Olivia has is Max, and throughout she felt really dismissive of him. Once we get to the second half, however, the mystery deepens and the book becomes more engaging.
We see more, Olivia does more, and you kind of get swept along. The end of the world is much less important than the title suggests, but it does provide a good element of tension to the backdrop. The ending felt a touch rushed, almost like there was too much to be resolved in too short a space of time, and because of that some parts felt squeezed in. The book hits its stride when there’s just a little more happening, when there are things Olivia notices and takes note of, rather than when she’s just reacting to things. The characters – especially Olivia’s immediate family – do have lovely interactions, and the very end of the book was written well.
I enjoyed reading Things to Do Before the End of the World, but I didn’t love it, and felt consistently middle-ground throughout, but it’s easy to see this book will find its fan easily and a lot of people are really going to enjoy this one. Definitely check out the over reviews on this tour, as I suspect there are going to be a lot of people who love this and have raved about it.
Before we get into this more, I want to say I did enjoy this, but it took me a fair while to get into it. The first half is relatively slow, and it takes a while to pick up. But I’ll go into more details about that later.
Olivia s very much an introvert, able to only fully come out of her shell when she takes on the role of someone else. Playing Juliet in an all-girl production of Romeo & Juliet is a dream come true, especially as Romeo is played by Olivia’s crush, Zoe. But the world is ending, the air running out, and when the play ends, Olivia is left adrift. Until her long-lost cousin contacts her. Everyone around Olivia has different reactions to what is happening. Her mother and step-father decide to spend time in Spain, while her father and step-mother block it out, focusing instead on their two young children. With Natasha’s help, Olivia realises she needs to make the most of the time she has left.
The writing is good, and it’s easy to see why people enjoy Barr’s other works. I really liked Olivia’s family situation, and the way she interacts with her parents and step-parents. Her father, like Olivia, is a fairly quiet person, introverted, with scars Olivia can’t quite see. Her mother is lovely, encouraging without being pushy, and as with her father, we find out more about her own past late in the novel. Both made for compelling characters, and I found I wanted to spend more time with Olivia’s family.
Olivia’s crush on Zoe is sweet, especially when she starts writing e-mails but not sending them, revealing how she feels without actually stepping over the line. It doesn’t help that Zoe has a girlfriend, and I liked how when the girlfriend does come up, Olivia doesn’t really spend time comparing herself to her or getting jealous or nasty. However, when she is in contact with Natasha, her cousin pushes her to just ‘grab what she wants’, and Olivia doesn’t seem to have a problem with the suggestion of ‘taking’ another girl’s girlfriend?
I was fairly up and down on this book throughout, but I do think the second half is stronger than the first. Though towards the end, there is a scene where a character recaps everything we’ve just seen happen, and it felt jarring. The first half felt like it dragged, with not much happening. The closest person to a best friend Olivia has is Max, and throughout she felt really dismissive of him. Once we get to the second half, however, the mystery deepens and the book becomes more engaging.
We see more, Olivia does more, and you kind of get swept along. The end of the world is much less important than the title suggests, but it does provide a good element of tension to the backdrop. The ending felt a touch rushed, almost like there was too much to be resolved in too short a space of time, and because of that some parts felt squeezed in. The book hits its stride when there’s just a little more happening, when there are things Olivia notices and takes note of, rather than when she’s just reacting to things. The characters – especially Olivia’s immediate family – do have lovely interactions, and the very end of the book was written well.
I enjoyed reading Things to Do Before the End of the World, but I didn’t love it, and felt consistently middle-ground throughout, but it’s easy to see this book will find its fan easily and a lot of people are really going to enjoy this one. Definitely check out the over reviews on this tour, as I suspect there are going to be a lot of people who love this and have raved about it.
thewoollygeek's review against another edition
2.0
This wasn’t really what I was expecting from this book, I thought it being post apocalyptic would be central to the story, but it didn’t seem as if the end of the world was a major event to be concerned about !! . When the book opens, a doomsday date is announced, but then the story seems to just focus on everyday life and because of the lack of focus on the more critical aspects of this, I don’t feel it was really needed, it could have been any other contemporary novel.
Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion
Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion
louvree's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
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
5.0
It was a really good young adult dystopia story and I loved it! The plot twist came unexpected.
itxoma's review against another edition
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
I find the main character so freaking dumb bro but it's whatever i guess