verena895's review against another edition
3.0
Meh.
Het verhaal ging langzaam en het was veel van hetzelfde. Ik vind het (blijkbaar) toch leuker om te lezen over iemand die weet dat ie queer is en dat het geen probleem is.
Het einde is wel satisfying en ik ben blij dat alles toch nog goed komt.
Het verhaal ging langzaam en het was veel van hetzelfde. Ik vind het (blijkbaar) toch leuker om te lezen over iemand die weet dat ie queer is en dat het geen probleem is.
Het einde is wel satisfying en ik ben blij dat alles toch nog goed komt.
donttakemybooks's review against another edition
4.0
Hmmm. I don't think I connect very well with A.S. King's characters or writing, even though I like them. But this book gave me a lot to think about. I had a few nitpicks, of course, but this was incredibly readable and a story I had a hard time putting down. Glad I read it, but probably not a story I'll be thinking of a month from now.
abigailrosalynn's review against another edition
3.0
I read this book on a day that I incidentally had a lot of free time, normally I probably would have taken 2 days. I really enjoyed this book! I loved the sentiment and warmed up to the main character and ended up really liking her. There is a magical element to the book, but I didn't even realize it until I was reading reviews here, and had just assumed that these things were just stories/in the mind of the MC. I love how Astrid's philosophy class influenced her so much, because I have that happen to me every semester and really loved that part of the book. It really reflected my own high school experience and all the existential crises I've gone through as well as my strive to understand the world. I will say that I was slightly triggered by the behavior and attitude by some of the characters so I would content warn: Even though now I'm reflecting and realizing there were many parts I didn't like about this book, and though it was an emotional journey for me personally, I still really enjoyed reading it and it did leave me with a lighthearted feeling by the end!
Spoiler
I also really enjoyed in the acknowledgements that King addressed Socrates and some of the other elements as well, because I was really concerned/confused about the line between magic and possible hallucinations. While I thought the the end resolutions were nice, some of them were unbelievable. I really didn't like Dee and didn't get into their relationship AT ALL, but did like the acknowledgement that her behavior was unacceptable as too many times that sort of thing isn't talked about.Spoiler
emotional abuse, depression (that isn't addressed), unhealthy family dynamics, also breaches of consent and pushy sexual behaviorheresmika's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
i really like the idea of saying “i love you” to random people who you would never see again. from the passengers of planes who fly above her house, to cashiers at grocery stores. it was sweet to see all the love the main character carried! the connection between astrid and the passengers was fascinating, i like how their stories intertwined without them knowing about each other.
the tone of this book is a bit gross and uncomfortable. the story happens in a small southern town who is very anti gay people, women, poc, etc. and some of the sentences in the book made me feel a bit weird. it’s impressive that the author was able to invoke such feelings just through her book, but the characters in here are just bad people. even the ones we are supposed to love still do terrible things. either cheating on partners, outing friends, calling people slurs - the book was just tough to get through. i understand that the main character is supposed to symbolize better things for the town, and that some people can reject the norms that happen in such places, but even her actions were complicated. the voice actor for the book was incredible and managed to say things with such emotion that i couldn’t just ignore the sentences.
the philosophy talks were interesting and i found it really funny that she conjure a figure of a known philosopher whenever she is debating with herself about a topic.
i really didn’t like dee’s relationship at the beginning. she was so pushy and tried to force the main girl to do stuff she isn’t comfortable with. towards the end i started to support the two of them together, but it was horrible to see how she tried to force astrid to change.
there wasn’t too much plot and all of the characters were awful, but it was cool to see the character development of the main cast.
mellomellomello's review against another edition
5.0
Astrid Jones is a big city girl living in a small town world. She is stuck between her teen years and adulthood aka she's less than a year away from college and escaping her stoner dad, perfect sister, and emotionally distant mother. Not to mention the Holocaust deniers and homophobes in her high school. Astrid is also maybe, possibly, just a litle bit a lesbian or maybe she just has a temporary crush on a girl. She's not ready to be forced into checking a box and with the with small minds around her she's not sure if that's the best thing to do when trying to survive high school anyway. It doesn't help that as she's holding her own secrets she's also keeping other people's secret. It's been a tough year for Astrid Jones.
The only thing keeping her somewhat sane is her nightly routine of going outside to the picnic table in her backyard and sending love to the various passengers of the planes flying over her house. Astrid sends the love that she's not able to truly share with the people around her to the people on the planes to some interesting, to say the least, effect.
I loved Astrid and her feeling of being in limbo physically, emotionally, and mentally. She is a totally fully formed character and I enjoyed every moment of her story. I also really enjoyed Frank Socrates and the Socratic method that is discussed throughout the book.
The one phrase I would use to sum up this book would be "Nobody's perfect but everyone is unique." A.S. King has quickly become my favorite YA author. I must get to the rest of her novels very soon.
The only thing keeping her somewhat sane is her nightly routine of going outside to the picnic table in her backyard and sending love to the various passengers of the planes flying over her house. Astrid sends the love that she's not able to truly share with the people around her to the people on the planes to some interesting, to say the least, effect.
I loved Astrid and her feeling of being in limbo physically, emotionally, and mentally. She is a totally fully formed character and I enjoyed every moment of her story. I also really enjoyed Frank Socrates and the Socratic method that is discussed throughout the book.
The one phrase I would use to sum up this book would be "Nobody's perfect but everyone is unique." A.S. King has quickly become my favorite YA author. I must get to the rest of her novels very soon.
leepetterson0's review against another edition
4.0
Ask the Passengers is a beautifully written book that follows the life of Astrid Jones, a senior in high school struggling to feel at home in her small town of Unity Valley. There, she battles fitting in and coming to terms with her identity. Her unaccepting and emotionally abusive household sets up a strange dynamic for Astrid. She often feels unwelcome and as if love is taboo and forbidden. She sends her unneeded love up to passengers in airplanes flying overhead while lying down on a picnic table in her backyard. This is one of many places where Astrid finds her calm, along with her humanities class where she can truly be herself, or the closest thing she can in her small-minded, conservative town.
The book truly captures the feeling of constantly hiding and lying to the world. Astrid finds herself in a position of feeling like someone she isn’t. Being born in a city and replanting oneself in a small town is not easy, I can speak from experience. I can almost sympathize with Astrid with her constant feelings as if she is confined and reduced living in a small town.
One night, as a plane passes overhead, she asks a passenger….
“Is it okay to lie in order to be happy?”
Which sent me down a rabbit hole of thinking. My notes include; “we all say we’re fine and okay and give the appearance of happiness to others….but does one feel happy then? Does happiness come from honesty? Because honesty requires other people and happiness can only come from yourself”
I see myself in Astrid, although she is fictional, I hold her high up on my “characters I can actually relate to” list. Moving from a big city to a small town is never easy, regardless if you’re young or old, especially when it comes to coming to terms with yourself. Getting outed in a small town is not fun. What A.S. King captures almost perfectly is the dread and fear of going back to school after revealing to all your classmates what you’ve been hiding for years. Personally, I felt the humiliation and anxiety that Astrid felt, but maybe it’s because I was in that same boat my 8th grade and freshman year…. Although I was not outed because I was caught at a gay bar I can still empathize with her. I understand the bucket of feelings that getting outed comes with.
I did however, dock a star because of the stereotype that was seen in Dee. Dee is a sex-driven, lesbian. As if that isn’t a popular, standardized turn-on in society.
Along with that, Dee’s character. King never established to the reader if she was a villain or a hero. Good or evil. When it came to Astrid, Dee used actions of rape as a form of love and affection. Astric, clearly uncomfortable, made many attempts to stop Dee from getting too far. In the parking lot of Atlantis, Dee gets furious with Astrid for saying “No”. In the end, they end up together as if she somehow quit her vulgar behaviors just for Astrid, who she was madly in love with. And on that same note, how did Astrid remain in love (for the most part) even though Dee pushes the line of sexual harassment?
Regardless of that, I loved it. I loved, loved, LOVED the passengers' stories but I guess I’m a sucker for cliche stories. It puts the feeling of that sudden rush of love and exhilaration and feeling like you are the only one together. I loved King’s imagination and creativity when it comes to the passenger POV.
What I took from this book is the idea of having self love and self worth. Astrid sends love up to the passengers of overhead planes because she believes she does not need all the love that she has. She feels unloved and unheard in her family. Knowing your worth and that you deserve love is a difficult process and is not just a step by step plan. This book flawlessly exhibits that journey of discovering yourself and your worth.
The book truly captures the feeling of constantly hiding and lying to the world. Astrid finds herself in a position of feeling like someone she isn’t. Being born in a city and replanting oneself in a small town is not easy, I can speak from experience. I can almost sympathize with Astrid with her constant feelings as if she is confined and reduced living in a small town.
One night, as a plane passes overhead, she asks a passenger….
“Is it okay to lie in order to be happy?”
Which sent me down a rabbit hole of thinking. My notes include; “we all say we’re fine and okay and give the appearance of happiness to others….but does one feel happy then? Does happiness come from honesty? Because honesty requires other people and happiness can only come from yourself”
I see myself in Astrid, although she is fictional, I hold her high up on my “characters I can actually relate to” list. Moving from a big city to a small town is never easy, regardless if you’re young or old, especially when it comes to coming to terms with yourself. Getting outed in a small town is not fun. What A.S. King captures almost perfectly is the dread and fear of going back to school after revealing to all your classmates what you’ve been hiding for years. Personally, I felt the humiliation and anxiety that Astrid felt, but maybe it’s because I was in that same boat my 8th grade and freshman year…. Although I was not outed because I was caught at a gay bar I can still empathize with her. I understand the bucket of feelings that getting outed comes with.
I did however, dock a star because of the stereotype that was seen in Dee. Dee is a sex-driven, lesbian. As if that isn’t a popular, standardized turn-on in society.
Along with that, Dee’s character. King never established to the reader if she was a villain or a hero. Good or evil. When it came to Astrid, Dee used actions of rape as a form of love and affection. Astric, clearly uncomfortable, made many attempts to stop Dee from getting too far. In the parking lot of Atlantis, Dee gets furious with Astrid for saying “No”. In the end, they end up together as if she somehow quit her vulgar behaviors just for Astrid, who she was madly in love with. And on that same note, how did Astrid remain in love (for the most part) even though Dee pushes the line of sexual harassment?
Regardless of that, I loved it. I loved, loved, LOVED the passengers' stories but I guess I’m a sucker for cliche stories. It puts the feeling of that sudden rush of love and exhilaration and feeling like you are the only one together. I loved King’s imagination and creativity when it comes to the passenger POV.
What I took from this book is the idea of having self love and self worth. Astrid sends love up to the passengers of overhead planes because she believes she does not need all the love that she has. She feels unloved and unheard in her family. Knowing your worth and that you deserve love is a difficult process and is not just a step by step plan. This book flawlessly exhibits that journey of discovering yourself and your worth.
larissaleest's review against another edition
2.0
It was boring... like all the time. No peaks, just a monotone and average story. The writing isn't bad. The concept of "sending love to the plains" and their passengers is nice... but didn't really stand up to my expectation of it.
poachedeggs's review
3.0
I'm quite a fan of A.S. King, having enjoyed [b:Everybody Sees the Ants|9711714|Everybody Sees the Ants|A.S. King|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1337213907s/9711714.jpg|14600231] and [b:Please Ignore Vera Dietz|6665671|Please Ignore Vera Dietz|A.S. King|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1320541615s/6665671.jpg|6860540], but I need three hits before I can 'become a fan', and this book didn't make it.
This is an 'issues' book, which isn't too much of a problem in itself since the other two books also revolve around weighty 'issues'. But I can't get a read on Astrid's character beyond her confusion about her sexuality, and her self-professed geekiness. She doesn't actually seem like a good person (), nor does she seem a good friend (). The Issue becomes the thing by which she is defined, though ironically, she refuses to come 'out' because she struggles with being defined by just that.
This is an 'issues' book, which isn't too much of a problem in itself since the other two books also revolve around weighty 'issues'. But I can't get a read on Astrid's character beyond her confusion about her sexuality, and her self-professed geekiness. She doesn't actually seem like a good person (
Spoiler
there's this part where she essentially cheats on her girlfriend by kissing a college girl, but nothing is made of thisSpoiler
she doesn't communicate all that well with her supposed best friend, who is also gayglendaleereads's review against another edition
4.0
I'm new to A.S King but this is the second novel I have read by her and I really enjoyed it. I felt for Astrid throughout the whole novel, even though I really wanted her to grow a pair and WOW her mom is a total bitch and I still don't understand why and felt that King could have developed that story line more because it was very confusing and she def had the space to expand because the book didn't even make it to 300 pages, but despite that I really did love this book and I can't wait to read more of her writing.
darbysalge's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
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