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nadiaa24601 's review for:
Towers Falling
by Jewell Parker Rhodes
Book: Towers Falling
Author: Jewell Parker Rhodes
Genre: Historical Fiction, Realistic Fiction
Age: Middle Grade
Started Reading: February 28, 2021
Finished Reading: March 7, 2021
Rating: 2 Stars (Plot: 3, Characters: 3, Writing: 2, Pacing: 2, Enjoyment: 2)
REVIEW
Plot:
There is an immense sea of voices of people who were affected by 9/11, and what really drew me to this book is how it tells just one of them, making me realize that there's probably so many other kids out there who have similar stories. There was also such obvious passion and care for the various beautiful themes presented, ranging from identity to healing to patriotism. However, I must say that the execution was off. Despite how amazing the story could've been, it definitely felt slightly flat and underwhelming.
Characters:
Deja was a great main character. Even though her development was slightly messy, she was still such a complex, well-developed character, while still being a believable 5th grader at the same time. Her resilience and hope were incredibly inspiring, and her characterization was an A+. Unfortunately, with the exception of Pop, the other characters weren't nearly as well written as she was. They were all pretty lackluster, including Ben and Sabeen. The two of them had such great potential to offer different perspective, but overall they really just felt like basic caricatures instead of the Deja's best friends. As for the relationships, the chemistry between the main trio was off, but they were still cute. On the other hand, the family relationships, especially Pop and Deja, were so complex and interesting.
Writing:
Though the writing was consistent and fit the story well, it was honestly not the best at all. A big problem I had was that there was a lot of telling and not showing when it came to the relationships and characters. I also feel like the author was trying to have a very natural and raw writing style, but it instead felt choppy and disconnected. The dialogue was also cheesy and felt quite unnatural. There weren't any writing moments that really resonated with me or stood out to me, so the writing was definitely below average.
Pacing:
I appreciated the pacing of the novel because it only rarely felt too fast or too slow. However, it was definitely jagged and messy at small moments. Also, there wasn't any atmospheric feeling built in the book, which is something I always look forward to while reading, so its lack of atmosphere made me sad.
Enjoyment:
As for my personal feelings toward the story, I honestly feel slightly indifferent, but I do learn more towards dislike than like. Though I appreciate and cared about the story, I don't feel many emotions or much connection while thinking about it. It had nice themes, but I didn't have that much of an impact on me and is overall pretty forgettable. That being said, I completely understand that I'm not that target audience. I definitely think anyone in the target audience would really enjoy this, so I highly recommend this too anyone in that age range.
Author: Jewell Parker Rhodes
Genre: Historical Fiction, Realistic Fiction
Age: Middle Grade
Started Reading: February 28, 2021
Finished Reading: March 7, 2021
Rating: 2 Stars (Plot: 3, Characters: 3, Writing: 2, Pacing: 2, Enjoyment: 2)
REVIEW
Plot:
There is an immense sea of voices of people who were affected by 9/11, and what really drew me to this book is how it tells just one of them, making me realize that there's probably so many other kids out there who have similar stories. There was also such obvious passion and care for the various beautiful themes presented, ranging from identity to healing to patriotism. However, I must say that the execution was off. Despite how amazing the story could've been, it definitely felt slightly flat and underwhelming.
Characters:
Deja was a great main character. Even though her development was slightly messy, she was still such a complex, well-developed character, while still being a believable 5th grader at the same time. Her resilience and hope were incredibly inspiring, and her characterization was an A+. Unfortunately, with the exception of Pop, the other characters weren't nearly as well written as she was. They were all pretty lackluster, including Ben and Sabeen. The two of them had such great potential to offer different perspective, but overall they really just felt like basic caricatures instead of the Deja's best friends. As for the relationships, the chemistry between the main trio was off, but they were still cute. On the other hand, the family relationships, especially Pop and Deja, were so complex and interesting.
Writing:
Though the writing was consistent and fit the story well, it was honestly not the best at all. A big problem I had was that there was a lot of telling and not showing when it came to the relationships and characters. I also feel like the author was trying to have a very natural and raw writing style, but it instead felt choppy and disconnected. The dialogue was also cheesy and felt quite unnatural. There weren't any writing moments that really resonated with me or stood out to me, so the writing was definitely below average.
Pacing:
I appreciated the pacing of the novel because it only rarely felt too fast or too slow. However, it was definitely jagged and messy at small moments. Also, there wasn't any atmospheric feeling built in the book, which is something I always look forward to while reading, so its lack of atmosphere made me sad.
Enjoyment:
As for my personal feelings toward the story, I honestly feel slightly indifferent, but I do learn more towards dislike than like. Though I appreciate and cared about the story, I don't feel many emotions or much connection while thinking about it. It had nice themes, but I didn't have that much of an impact on me and is overall pretty forgettable. That being said, I completely understand that I'm not that target audience. I definitely think anyone in the target audience would really enjoy this, so I highly recommend this too anyone in that age range.