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maycho 's review for:
See You in the Cosmos
by Jack Cheng
Took about 2 weeks to finish this, which was quite interesting. I can normally churn out a middle-grade book in 2 days or less, 3 days max. I think it was because of the recording structure of the book.
Things I Liked:
1. RE. PRE. SEN. TA. TION.
Of a lot of things, but especially of dysfunctional families and abuse and mental illness, as these topics aren't often discussed in MG Books. That said, I'm not too sure whether this book is actually intended for an MG audience.
2. The Characters.
So many great characters in this book. I felt that our narrator, Alex, was one of the most endearing narrators I've ever read in MG. His perspective, his attitude, his almost blithe optimism, his empathy -- everything. I enjoyed his character thoroughly. Side characters felt real, too, and I loved that there was a balance between more laid back characters and more angsty ones.
Things I was meh about:
1. The Plot
This is actually quite hard to pin-point. I think the plot served the Alex's arc sufficiently and that it -- well, it wasn't bad. But it wasn't amazing either. I'm not sure what it was. Maybe I went into the book with a set-up that just left the rest of the book after the first 50 pages.
2. The Structure
This is also a hit or a miss kind of point. See You In The Cosmos is written in the form of a series of audio recordings made by an adventurous 11 year-old boy. You can already see what the style of the book is like -- but that wasn't what irked (?) me. I think it was the fact that the book felt almost discardable, like I could finish a chapter of a book (an audio recording) and not go back to it -- and it'll still be fine. I think this is why it took me a long time to finish this one too.
***
Overall, not a bad book. Liked the overall theme sufficiently and enjoyed the characters. Would recommend for fans of [b:The Rosie Project|16181775|The Rosie Project (Don Tillman, #1)|Graeme Simsion|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1371651741s/16181775.jpg|22084678][b:The Rosie Project|16181775|The Rosie Project (Don Tillman, #1)|Graeme Simsion|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1371651741s/16181775.jpg|22084678] and [b:Rain Reign|20575434|Rain Reign|Ann M. Martin|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1396393170s/20575434.jpg|39843440].
Things I Liked:
1. RE. PRE. SEN. TA. TION.
Of a lot of things, but especially of dysfunctional families and abuse and mental illness, as these topics aren't often discussed in MG Books. That said, I'm not too sure whether this book is actually intended for an MG audience.
2. The Characters.
So many great characters in this book. I felt that our narrator, Alex, was one of the most endearing narrators I've ever read in MG. His perspective, his attitude, his almost blithe optimism, his empathy -- everything. I enjoyed his character thoroughly. Side characters felt real, too, and I loved that there was a balance between more laid back characters and more angsty ones.
Things I was meh about:
1. The Plot
This is actually quite hard to pin-point. I think the plot served the Alex's arc sufficiently and that it -- well, it wasn't bad. But it wasn't amazing either. I'm not sure what it was. Maybe I went into the book with a set-up that just left the rest of the book after the first 50 pages.
2. The Structure
This is also a hit or a miss kind of point. See You In The Cosmos is written in the form of a series of audio recordings made by an adventurous 11 year-old boy. You can already see what the style of the book is like -- but that wasn't what irked (?) me. I think it was the fact that the book felt almost discardable, like I could finish a chapter of a book (an audio recording) and not go back to it -- and it'll still be fine. I think this is why it took me a long time to finish this one too.
***
Overall, not a bad book. Liked the overall theme sufficiently and enjoyed the characters. Would recommend for fans of [b:The Rosie Project|16181775|The Rosie Project (Don Tillman, #1)|Graeme Simsion|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1371651741s/16181775.jpg|22084678][b:The Rosie Project|16181775|The Rosie Project (Don Tillman, #1)|Graeme Simsion|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1371651741s/16181775.jpg|22084678] and [b:Rain Reign|20575434|Rain Reign|Ann M. Martin|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1396393170s/20575434.jpg|39843440].