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A review by torishams
When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
medium-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? It's complicated
5.0
This was a reread from elementary school (!!) and I enjoyed picking up on so much more as a (semi-)adult reading it for the second time. Stead manages to bring in some important social topics even in a children’s book, like racism and classism. Ultimately, I loved how the idea of the veil persisted throughout the book and foreshadowed the ending. There were some especially beautiful moments of writing too!
•Sometimes you never feel meaner than the moment you stop being mean. It’s like how turning on a light makes you realize how dark the room had gotten. And the way you usually act, the things you would have normally done, are like these ghosts that everyone can see but pretends not to. (68%)
•She doesn’t mean that it’s a real veil. And it isn’t about magic, or some idea that maybe God is looking right at you, or an angel is sitting next to you, or anything like that. It’s just her way of saying that most of the time, people get distracted by little stuff and ignore the big stuff… I’ve thought a lot about those veils. I wonder if, every once in a while, someone is born without one. Someone who sees the big stuff all the time. (39%)
•Sometimes you never feel meaner than the moment you stop being mean. It’s like how turning on a light makes you realize how dark the room had gotten. And the way you usually act, the things you would have normally done, are like these ghosts that everyone can see but pretends not to. (68%)
•She doesn’t mean that it’s a real veil. And it isn’t about magic, or some idea that maybe God is looking right at you, or an angel is sitting next to you, or anything like that. It’s just her way of saying that most of the time, people get distracted by little stuff and ignore the big stuff… I’ve thought a lot about those veils. I wonder if, every once in a while, someone is born without one. Someone who sees the big stuff all the time. (39%)