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jerrysaywhaaa's review
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
“We checked off every stereotype” (Chapter 11) is a quote that pretty much summarizes almost every character in this book.
This book felt like it was written by one of the following people (or a combination of all of them):
1. Someone who either wanted to be or wanted to be with a punk bad boy in high school, but in a very “I can fix him” way.
2. A school counselor (think Mr. Frond from Bob’s Burgers) who really wanted to connect with the youths and show the importance of therapy.
3. A writer on Glee who was mad this script was rejected for an episode.
Although I think a lot of topics covered in this book are important to discuss, I don’t think it was done well and the bad parts of the book heavily outweigh the good parts. The author added a lot of weird and extra details to the story; had a pretty shaky and at times inconsistent timeline for the story; and sometimes felt like they had no sense of reality and actual consequences for character’s actions.
The story has too perfect an ending to wrap everything up too quickly (which is surprising with how slow and boring the first half of the book is).
And one *minor* spoiler that I need to rant about:
Wes definitely started the fight, despite what he kept saying.
This book felt like it was written by one of the following people (or a combination of all of them):
1. Someone who either wanted to be or wanted to be with a punk bad boy in high school, but in a very “I can fix him” way.
2. A school counselor (think Mr. Frond from Bob’s Burgers) who really wanted to connect with the youths and show the importance of therapy.
3. A writer on Glee who was mad this script was rejected for an episode.
Although I think a lot of topics covered in this book are important to discuss, I don’t think it was done well and the bad parts of the book heavily outweigh the good parts. The author added a lot of weird and extra details to the story; had a pretty shaky and at times inconsistent timeline for the story; and sometimes felt like they had no sense of reality and actual consequences for character’s actions.
The story has too perfect an ending to wrap everything up too quickly (which is surprising with how slow and boring the first half of the book is).
And one *minor* spoiler that I need to rant about:
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, and Car accident
Minor: Transphobia
bettielovesbooks's review
5.0
This book broke my heart in so many ways, yeah Big Mac/Wes wasn’t the best behaved high schooler, but sometimes when no one believes in you, you stop believing in yourself, how sad it is that because someone put the bad boy level he carried that for so long, and sadly his mom didn’t help much, and then how he tried to fit this image buy when someone showed him it was ok not to be someone different, maybe even better, he finally did, even if reluctantly at the beginning.
I really have a hard time reading books now, I normally prefer audiobooks this book is the first time in a long while that I stayed late to finish it I was so into it. I highly recommend it.
I really have a hard time reading books now, I normally prefer audiobooks this book is the first time in a long while that I stayed late to finish it I was so into it. I highly recommend it.
luvey_reads's review
challenging
emotional
funny
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? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Bullying, Cursing, and Alcohol
Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Racism
claire_melanie's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
run_like_a_river's review
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
5.0
blakeleyreads's review
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
finished this in one sitting!!
ladyheroj's review
emotional
inspiring
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
4.25
vagaybond's review
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Violence, Car accident, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Drug use, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Racism and Classism
The protagonist's abusive father (who was/is a cop) chased the protagonist and his mother in a car, bumping the fender multiple times and driving the two of them off a cliff. The protagonist was 7 and was disabled by it, both with a leg issue and with PTSD triggered once in the book, by driving at night.serina19's review
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? It's complicated
5.0