Scan barcode
lockmm's review against another edition
3.0
Meh. It's ok - not bad, not good, a little slow and predictable. But I do like the relationship between the two main characters and I think the required YA love triangle was handled well. In the end, a perfectly serviceable and enjoyable book with some parts that made me tear up.
mehsi's review against another edition
5.0
A beautiful, heartbreaking book. If not for that stuff near the end (with 2 boys) I would have rated this book a 5+ stars. Now however it is just going to live with 5 stars.
This book chronicles the progress of the sickness in Sam. She has NPC, a disease that means she will lose her memory, her body will fail her, she will lose everything, and according to doctors there is no hope or cure.
Sam is writing this book, we start not that long after she was diagnosed with the disease. She wants to make something so she can re-read it later (she has high hopes and keeps being positive) when she is in university of NY. She wants to hold on to those memories. In the beginning things seem to go pretty fine, but quite fast things go downhill for Sam. She is having trouble with talking, she gets lost or just forgets who she, and everyone around her is, she gets sick, she loses control, she forgets dates and other things. She is struggling to accept this, and boy, I can imagine. She worked so hard for her future. She has such big plans, and she finds out that she probably will never have any future. At times I was a bit frustrated with Sam. I get that she wants to do everything, that she still feels she can do everything, but the truth is... her body is betraying her. Her mind is abandoning her. I wished she would just see that. I get that it is hard. I get that it must hurt to see your painstakingly perfect future go down the drain, but she did a few things that I just didn't think were the right ones.
But she was really brave, and I loved her around the graduation time. How hard she still tried to do everything she wanted. How she did cheat (but I could forgive her for that, as I can imagine the fear, but I may just hope that the school would have been lenient about her not getting the tests done).
I also wished she was a bit more tactical about telling her friend/boyfriend about the illness. I did agree with Maddie that how Sam told her, and the fact she never did until that moment, was not nice. I get that it is hard, but Maddie is your friend. She cares about you. She won't dump you for this.
And she sends Stuart an email. Really, an email!
The book also clearly shows when things go downhill for Sam. Her posts make less sense, sometimes it was totally weird/nonsensical, when she has an episode. Like with the car and the party, I was just crying during these moments. You see her wonder what is going on, why is she forgetting such simple things, why is her body betraying her.
The illness really went fast, we meet her not that long before her graduation, and the book ends after the summer. That is just a few months. It broke my heart as it reminded me off a recent loss I experienced myself. Someone I really cared about had been sick for a while, but suddenly it went fast, and she died. :( Without warning, 2 weeks before her death I saw her, and she was doing pretty well, of course not the best because still very sick, and then 2 weeks later she was gone. :(
Back to Sam, I was just so sad for her, but also for everyone around her. We could all see it wasn't going well, but I think no one expected it to go down that fast. Everyone still clung to hope, everyone still was praying. I could understand that feeling so well. Sam had her clearer moments, maybe it will be OK...
I also wonder why her parents still let her drive the car alone? She cannot go anywhere without a first responder, and she may just lose it while driving, yet until quite into her sickness she was able to drive a car. It just stood out.
Sorry, but I have to reduce some points for the stuff with Cooper and Stuart. How the fuck are you so dumb that you have
That, and the fact that at times, especially in the beginning I wanted to shake Sam a bit due to her attitude, were the only things I didn't quite like.
Also there is a part about Yayoi Kusama, and it is mentioned it wasn't until later that she started hallucinating (dots etc.). However, that is not the truth. She has had that affliction since childhood. (source: Interviews, official sites)
And God that ending... I was just full on crying. The book was already getting more and more sad as the illness progressed, but I just kept on hoping. Hoping for something, for happiness. *continues crying* I loved that we saw the conversations between her and Cooper, even if she couldn't remember him at times, he was there for her and he tried to help her remember.
This was a beautiful book, be sure to bring tissues you will need those while reading, especially halfway to the end. You will need them. I would highly recommend this book to everyone I see. The writer did a really amazing job on writing this book.
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
This book chronicles the progress of the sickness in Sam. She has NPC, a disease that means she will lose her memory, her body will fail her, she will lose everything, and according to doctors there is no hope or cure.
Sam is writing this book, we start not that long after she was diagnosed with the disease. She wants to make something so she can re-read it later (she has high hopes and keeps being positive) when she is in university of NY. She wants to hold on to those memories. In the beginning things seem to go pretty fine, but quite fast things go downhill for Sam. She is having trouble with talking, she gets lost or just forgets who she, and everyone around her is, she gets sick, she loses control, she forgets dates and other things. She is struggling to accept this, and boy, I can imagine. She worked so hard for her future. She has such big plans, and she finds out that she probably will never have any future. At times I was a bit frustrated with Sam. I get that she wants to do everything, that she still feels she can do everything, but the truth is... her body is betraying her. Her mind is abandoning her. I wished she would just see that. I get that it is hard. I get that it must hurt to see your painstakingly perfect future go down the drain, but she did a few things that I just didn't think were the right ones.
But she was really brave, and I loved her around the graduation time. How hard she still tried to do everything she wanted. How she did cheat (but I could forgive her for that, as I can imagine the fear, but I may just hope that the school would have been lenient about her not getting the tests done).
I also wished she was a bit more tactical about telling her friend/boyfriend about the illness. I did agree with Maddie that how Sam told her, and the fact she never did until that moment, was not nice. I get that it is hard, but Maddie is your friend. She cares about you. She won't dump you for this.
And she sends Stuart an email. Really, an email!
The book also clearly shows when things go downhill for Sam. Her posts make less sense, sometimes it was totally weird/nonsensical, when she has an episode. Like with the car and the party, I was just crying during these moments. You see her wonder what is going on, why is she forgetting such simple things, why is her body betraying her.
The illness really went fast, we meet her not that long before her graduation, and the book ends after the summer. That is just a few months. It broke my heart as it reminded me off a recent loss I experienced myself. Someone I really cared about had been sick for a while, but suddenly it went fast, and she died. :( Without warning, 2 weeks before her death I saw her, and she was doing pretty well, of course not the best because still very sick, and then 2 weeks later she was gone. :(
Back to Sam, I was just so sad for her, but also for everyone around her. We could all see it wasn't going well, but I think no one expected it to go down that fast. Everyone still clung to hope, everyone still was praying. I could understand that feeling so well. Sam had her clearer moments, maybe it will be OK...
I also wonder why her parents still let her drive the car alone? She cannot go anywhere without a first responder, and she may just lose it while driving, yet until quite into her sickness she was able to drive a car. It just stood out.
Sorry, but I have to reduce some points for the stuff with Cooper and Stuart. How the fuck are you so dumb that you have
Spoiler
sex with Cooper. I know you are confused, you have the NPC, but you also still KNOW you are in a relationship with someone else, you know what you did was just wrong in many many levels. Seriously, I was disgusted with the girl at this moment. Plus also with Cooper. I know Cooper's feelings on Stuart, but I found this just a bit too much. And then the drama afterwards? Good lord. I came here for a story about a girl losing her memory, herself, not for some stupid ass love triangle dramarama. I already knew it was going downhill when she started to get interested in Cooper. And yes, I would rather have Cooper and Sam together, but not in this stupid way. I wanted her to break up with Stuart, and then realise or face her feelings. Not just get told Cooper's feelings, and hey let's have sex immediately. I found it really ungrateful of Sam. Stuart has cared for you so much, he loves you so much, he does everything for you. If you don't want him, be honest about it, and don't fuck someone else. Ok? Thanks. And don't act all sad and pathetic.That, and the fact that at times, especially in the beginning I wanted to shake Sam a bit due to her attitude, were the only things I didn't quite like.
Also there is a part about Yayoi Kusama, and it is mentioned it wasn't until later that she started hallucinating (dots etc.). However, that is not the truth. She has had that affliction since childhood. (source: Interviews, official sites)
And God that ending... I was just full on crying. The book was already getting more and more sad as the illness progressed, but I just kept on hoping. Hoping for something, for happiness. *continues crying* I loved that we saw the conversations between her and Cooper, even if she couldn't remember him at times, he was there for her and he tried to help her remember.
This was a beautiful book, be sure to bring tissues you will need those while reading, especially halfway to the end. You will need them. I would highly recommend this book to everyone I see. The writer did a really amazing job on writing this book.
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
abbey_s02's review against another edition
5.0
I absolutely loved this! The story and characters are so beautiful, and I cried for a long while at the end of the book!
amyhungerford's review against another edition
4.0
Oh this book has broken my poor, black heart. ITS NOT USED TO THESE FEELINGS!
I honestly don't know how to review this book. I am just shattered.
Note: I do not recommend reading this book in public. You will cry and you will embarrass yourself.
This is the story about Sammie. Sammie is an excellent debater, valedictorian, and NYU bound. But Sammie also has Niemann-Pick Type C. An incurable hereditary disease that was causes dementia. This story is told via letters from present Sammie to future Sammie so she doesn't forget parts of her past.
b>Things I Liked
1. Sammie is absolutely dorky but also relate-able. She struggles with social cues and she'd rather read than go to a party. (Or read at parties. Middle Earth popped up quite a few times.
2. I loved the writing. I was giggling out loud a lot of this book. (HUGE BONUS for an "illness book") But also there are times when the reality of Sammie's situation smacks you in the face and its jarring but amazing.
3. Cooper
4. How accurately dementia is portrayed.
5. Sammie's family
6. Sammie is smart, but not pretentious (unlike another lovable narrator in another "illness book")
7. Cooper :) (I can't end on 6, that's absurd.)
Things I Didn't Like
1. The love-triangle. I am tired of the love-triangle troupe in general.
2. How Maddie threw a fit when she found out Sammie hadn't confided her disease with her right away and basically shut her out for the last month or so of school. Petty much?
3.
Seriously, everyone should read this book and talk to me about it because its beautiful and sad and heartbreaking.
I honestly don't know how to review this book. I am just shattered.
Note: I do not recommend reading this book in public. You will cry and you will embarrass yourself.
This is the story about Sammie. Sammie is an excellent debater, valedictorian, and NYU bound. But Sammie also has Niemann-Pick Type C. An incurable hereditary disease that was causes dementia. This story is told via letters from present Sammie to future Sammie so she doesn't forget parts of her past.
b>Things I Liked
1. Sammie is absolutely dorky but also relate-able. She struggles with social cues and she'd rather read than go to a party. (Or read at parties. Middle Earth popped up quite a few times.
2. I loved the writing. I was giggling out loud a lot of this book. (HUGE BONUS for an "illness book") But also there are times when the reality of Sammie's situation smacks you in the face and its jarring but amazing.
3. Cooper
4. How accurately dementia is portrayed.
5. Sammie's family
6. Sammie is smart, but not pretentious (unlike another lovable narrator in another "illness book")
7. Cooper :) (I can't end on 6, that's absurd.)
Things I Didn't Like
1. The love-triangle. I am tired of the love-triangle troupe in general.
Spoiler
I hated that Sammie cheats on Stuart. I get that she was beginning to have feelings for Cooper while she was with Stuart, but she absolutely should have broken up with him. Cheating is still cheating even if you're in love with person you are cheating with. That said, I do love Cooper and Sammie and I'm glad they ended up together, but I dislike how it happened.2. How Maddie threw a fit when she found out Sammie hadn't confided her disease with her right away and basically shut her out for the last month or so of school. Petty much?
3.
Spoiler
How little Maddie is featured in the story after the incident on graduation night. Where is the female friendship?Seriously, everyone should read this book and talk to me about it because its beautiful and sad and heartbreaking.
macimoomoo's review against another edition
4.0
It was an inspiring book in my opinion, because of this book I now write a journal the good and the bad. The way the book ended made me a sobbing mess, but let me be honest the whole book made me cry I felt like sammie deserved a better (longer) life than what she was given. The entries that her family wrote at the end broke my heart but it also made me smile at the same time because sammie at least got to read what her family wrote before she passed.
irissuurmond's review against another edition
lighthearted
sad
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
3.25
reaganeliza6's review against another edition
5.0
This book left me crying in the end. i loved it so much i got through it in two sittings
brooklynnludlow's review against another edition
3.0
I really liked this book and Sammie’s journey through NPC. It was sweet watching her cope and put importance into her relationships. I especially loved Coop and how he stood by her through the whole ending. Cute book and cutest ending with all of the other people’s stories about Sammie. And of course, Coop’s last dedication. So sweet. :)