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A review by claudiaswisher
I Will Save You by Matt de la Peña
5.0
Every book de la Pena writes is stronger and more original and more amazing. Ryan, one of my students who's read every one of his books brought it back (finally) and wouldn't tell me the twist, just that there is a huge twist. He was so impressed.
So, I did what I do...I read the ending. It absolutely did NOT ruin the book for me. If anything, it allowed me to read for the clues, and they're there. De la Pena has a master's control over every facet of this story. It's told in flashback (we know from the very beginning that Kidd pushes his friend off a sea-side cliff), in the form of a journal Kidd writes in second person, and in real time, with Kidd in what he calls 'solitary'. The reader has to watch and read carefully to bring these threads together, but they braid perfectly.
Kidd is a child of trauma and violence. He's escaped the group home he's lived in and is spending an idyllic summer at the beach, working for a washed-up surfer, adopting a mangy, ugly dog, and falling in love. But one day, a fellow inmate from his group home finds him and begins to draw him back into questioning himself, doubting himself.
I surprised 5th hour by crying at the end...even when I knew the ending beforehand.
I'm such a teacher-nerd that I read acknowledgements, and this one also made me cry. I know de la Pena's story of how he discovered literature and writing...I do believe he may have discovered the 'next' Matt de la Pena.
Eager to share this one!
So, I did what I do...I read the ending. It absolutely did NOT ruin the book for me. If anything, it allowed me to read for the clues, and they're there. De la Pena has a master's control over every facet of this story. It's told in flashback (we know from the very beginning that Kidd pushes his friend off a sea-side cliff), in the form of a journal Kidd writes in second person, and in real time, with Kidd in what he calls 'solitary'. The reader has to watch and read carefully to bring these threads together, but they braid perfectly.
Kidd is a child of trauma and violence. He's escaped the group home he's lived in and is spending an idyllic summer at the beach, working for a washed-up surfer, adopting a mangy, ugly dog, and falling in love. But one day, a fellow inmate from his group home finds him and begins to draw him back into questioning himself, doubting himself.
I surprised 5th hour by crying at the end...even when I knew the ending beforehand.
I'm such a teacher-nerd that I read acknowledgements, and this one also made me cry. I know de la Pena's story of how he discovered literature and writing...I do believe he may have discovered the 'next' Matt de la Pena.
Eager to share this one!