hmonkeyreads's review against another edition
4.0
Matthew Dicks never disappoints.
I found this book both sweet and almost unbearably stressful. It transports you right into the brain of an anxious and possibly (probably?) depressed fourteen year old boy carrying secrets that push him nearly to the breaking point over two days of his life.
I follow the author on social media and have heard him tell many live stories via The Moth and I feel like a lot of familiar things about him come through in this story too. It felt very him.
I found this book both sweet and almost unbearably stressful. It transports you right into the brain of an anxious and possibly (probably?) depressed fourteen year old boy carrying secrets that push him nearly to the breaking point over two days of his life.
I follow the author on social media and have heard him tell many live stories via The Moth and I feel like a lot of familiar things about him come through in this story too. It felt very him.
debi_g's review against another edition
“Telling a secret is like changing the world forever.”
What an original, heartwarming, and heartbreaking story!
scorttarius's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
alibi313's review against another edition
2.0
Maybe interesting for YA readers, but it was much too repetitive (could easily have been a novella or short story), and had an insufferable protagonist. Plus the “big secret” was obvious from the beginning. And because it was an audiobook, I couldn’t stop hearing this:
https://youtu.be/WH_SK0Jvq8M
Just not for me.
https://youtu.be/WH_SK0Jvq8M
Just not for me.
tiffanychan's review against another edition
3.5
Pros: an easy read. Cons: comes off as juvenile (to me). Which is not the book's fault, since it is children's literature. But it just didn't have enough substance to keep me engaged.
reemio's review against another edition
4.0
This was surprisingly heartfelt and endearing. I say surprisingly because I'm of the bad habit where I judge books by their cover and title. It is definitely not what I was expecting, but it ended up being very bittersweet and I actually teared up a little at the end. It's been such a long time since I read a book from the point of view of a middle schooler, so it really brought back a lot of memories from that time. Crazy how time flies.
Anyways, it was good. I'm not entirely sure how to rate it. It wasn't exactly a page turner, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.
Anyways, it was good. I'm not entirely sure how to rate it. It wasn't exactly a page turner, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.
k4tno3lle's review against another edition
4.0
coraline and the beldam are shaking with this title.
3.5 ish but rating up
it was cool, but i definitely enjoyed twenty one truths about love more, but still good. i liked the psychological element too (capgras) & how we look into the mind of someone who has some troubles/problems.
the characters were ok. michael was kind of annoying ofc but i can’t blame him. i really don’t have much else to say about it but i hope i had enjoyed it more than i did, but i guess it’s because i had convinced myself it would be a humorous fiction rather than psychological. but it was still funny at times. the story itself strayed away from the other mother problem a lot, like there were a lot of other side stories, which was fine i guess.
i think it would make a good tv show, maybe breaking the fourth wall like fleabag or deadpool. i think walker scobell would be a good michael. idk many other teenage boy actors. maybe jacob tremblay? oh and that girl from once upon a time in hollywood can play julia. the mom on the other edition of the book looks like zoe kazan so maybe she can play the mom. she’s very motherly & she played a struggling mom in the kindness of strangers
also in the end he’s just accepting that it’s not his mother? i guess his mind is telling him it’s his mother but it’s weird that he still doesn’t believe it. i guess eventually he’ll get through it especially now that his mom knows what issue he has and so now they can go about fixing it.
also this is my 20th book of the year!!
3.5 ish but rating up
it was cool, but i definitely enjoyed twenty one truths about love more, but still good. i liked the psychological element too (capgras) & how we look into the mind of someone who has some troubles/problems.
the characters were ok. michael was kind of annoying ofc but i can’t blame him. i really don’t have much else to say about it but i hope i had enjoyed it more than i did, but i guess it’s because i had convinced myself it would be a humorous fiction rather than psychological. but it was still funny at times. the story itself strayed away from the other mother problem a lot, like there were a lot of other side stories, which was fine i guess.
i think it would make a good tv show, maybe breaking the fourth wall like fleabag or deadpool. i think walker scobell would be a good michael. idk many other teenage boy actors. maybe jacob tremblay? oh and that girl from once upon a time in hollywood can play julia. the mom on the other edition of the book looks like zoe kazan so maybe she can play the mom. she’s very motherly & she played a struggling mom in the kindness of strangers
also in the end he’s just accepting that it’s not his mother? i guess his mind is telling him it’s his mother but it’s weird that he still doesn’t believe it. i guess eventually he’ll get through it especially now that his mom knows what issue he has and so now they can go about fixing it.
also this is my 20th book of the year!!
ellydania's review against another edition
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
kimjunmyeon's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75