jill_rey's review against another edition
2.0
I really wanted to like this book. It had all the ingredients to resonate with me.
1) Based in Chicago – my husband is from Chicago and I enjoy reading about his roots in a city we both love.
2) Italian family – again, my husband is the spitting image of his Italian heritage as his grandmother emigrated from Sicily. Pasta is ONE of few foods I can actually get him to eat (he is seriously picky) and the aromas described within this house reminded me of my own home.
3) Fire – this story revolves around a fire to a school and how it impacts Anthony, a survivor whom lost a sister to the blaze, and the detective next door that is convinced Anthony set the fire. For anyone that enters our house, my husband is quick to steer guests to our fire place. As we renovated our home we uncovered the bricks surrounding our fire place are originally from the historic Chicago Fire, left over from the abundance of brick remains. These bricks are a constant reminder to the dangers of fire, but also tie us back to his childhood in Chicago.
Despite this significant connections to my own life, this book was not satisfying. It was haphazardly thrown together with odd undeveloped tie-ins. For instance, Anthony is introduced to us as he tries to throw himself in front of a car. Why did he try to do this? Because he does not feel like his left leg should be attached to his body. Fast forward to the final third of the book, we learn that his sister (whom died in the blaze) had a limp left leg, BUT Anthony’s feelings for his leg developed prior to the arrival of his sister’s gimp leg. This is such an odd, un-relatable fact about Anthony and his leg, but weirdly enough much of the book revolves around Anthony’s feelings toward said leg.
Furthermore, I expected more of the book to revolve around the school fire and death of many within, but the reader was not introduced to much of Anthony’s experiences as it related to the fire and its aftereffects until nearly the last few pages of the book. While normally I enjoy a last second reveal, the author failed to elude to any of the shocking final twists or rather I was so unengaged I failed to pick up on them. Regardless, the plot was only minimally developed and seemed to take a back seat to Anthony’s own internal feelings about his leg, childhood friend Maryanne and absent father.
*Disclaimer: I received a review copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
1) Based in Chicago – my husband is from Chicago and I enjoy reading about his roots in a city we both love.
2) Italian family – again, my husband is the spitting image of his Italian heritage as his grandmother emigrated from Sicily. Pasta is ONE of few foods I can actually get him to eat (he is seriously picky) and the aromas described within this house reminded me of my own home.
3) Fire – this story revolves around a fire to a school and how it impacts Anthony, a survivor whom lost a sister to the blaze, and the detective next door that is convinced Anthony set the fire. For anyone that enters our house, my husband is quick to steer guests to our fire place. As we renovated our home we uncovered the bricks surrounding our fire place are originally from the historic Chicago Fire, left over from the abundance of brick remains. These bricks are a constant reminder to the dangers of fire, but also tie us back to his childhood in Chicago.
Despite this significant connections to my own life, this book was not satisfying. It was haphazardly thrown together with odd undeveloped tie-ins. For instance, Anthony is introduced to us as he tries to throw himself in front of a car. Why did he try to do this? Because he does not feel like his left leg should be attached to his body. Fast forward to the final third of the book, we learn that his sister (whom died in the blaze) had a limp left leg, BUT Anthony’s feelings for his leg developed prior to the arrival of his sister’s gimp leg. This is such an odd, un-relatable fact about Anthony and his leg, but weirdly enough much of the book revolves around Anthony’s feelings toward said leg.
Furthermore, I expected more of the book to revolve around the school fire and death of many within, but the reader was not introduced to much of Anthony’s experiences as it related to the fire and its aftereffects until nearly the last few pages of the book. While normally I enjoy a last second reveal, the author failed to elude to any of the shocking final twists or rather I was so unengaged I failed to pick up on them. Regardless, the plot was only minimally developed and seemed to take a back seat to Anthony’s own internal feelings about his leg, childhood friend Maryanne and absent father.
*Disclaimer: I received a review copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
tonstantweader's review
4.0
Where My Body Ends and the World Begins imagines what it might be like for one of the survivors of the tragic fire at Our Lady of the Angels School that killed ninety-two students and three nuns in 1958. Anthony Lazzaro was one of the survivors and carries that guilt with him along with the ghost of his sister Ellie. His neighbor Lipschultz, a retired cop, thinks his guilt is more immediate than that, insinuating that Anthony may have set the fire.
Anthony suffers from Body Integrity Identity Disorder, though no such diagnosis existed back then. His leg feels foreign to him and he deliberately breaks his leg at the beginning of the book. Lipschultz sees this as a manifestation of his guilt, his friends and family see it as survivor’s guilt. He does feel guilt, but so does his best friend Maryann who also survived the fire, escaping from the same classroom where Ellie died.
Adding to his guilt, his family broke apart after the fire. His father sank into a bottle and moved out. Then even his mother moved out. He stays with his Nonna and Ellie’s ghost and an increasingly menacing neighbor.
I loved Where My Body Ends and the World Begins. Romano has created a real sense of community where people take care of each other and know each other’s business. Anthony’s mental illness is central to the story and is satisfyingly complex, capturing the mystery of an unnamed disease. I also love that this book surprised me. Wow! I was completely overthrown by some of the revelations at the end, yet the biggest surprise did not come out of nowhere.
I can’t spoil it for you, but I must say I have never been so surprised by a twist that is completely fair. Usually, with a twist like this, it comes out of left field, but this one comes straight from the pitcher’s mound and yet, the story is so artfully told that most readers will be shocked.
I received an Advance Reading Copy of Where My Body Ends and the World Begins from the publisher through LibraryThing.
Where My Body Ends and the World Begins at Allium Press
Tony Romano author site
https://tonstantweaderreviews.wordpress.com/2018/01/28/9780996755870/
Anthony suffers from Body Integrity Identity Disorder, though no such diagnosis existed back then. His leg feels foreign to him and he deliberately breaks his leg at the beginning of the book. Lipschultz sees this as a manifestation of his guilt, his friends and family see it as survivor’s guilt. He does feel guilt, but so does his best friend Maryann who also survived the fire, escaping from the same classroom where Ellie died.
Adding to his guilt, his family broke apart after the fire. His father sank into a bottle and moved out. Then even his mother moved out. He stays with his Nonna and Ellie’s ghost and an increasingly menacing neighbor.
I loved Where My Body Ends and the World Begins. Romano has created a real sense of community where people take care of each other and know each other’s business. Anthony’s mental illness is central to the story and is satisfyingly complex, capturing the mystery of an unnamed disease. I also love that this book surprised me. Wow! I was completely overthrown by some of the revelations at the end, yet the biggest surprise did not come out of nowhere.
I can’t spoil it for you, but I must say I have never been so surprised by a twist that is completely fair. Usually, with a twist like this, it comes out of left field, but this one comes straight from the pitcher’s mound and yet, the story is so artfully told that most readers will be shocked.
I received an Advance Reading Copy of Where My Body Ends and the World Begins from the publisher through LibraryThing.
Where My Body Ends and the World Begins at Allium Press
Tony Romano author site
https://tonstantweaderreviews.wordpress.com/2018/01/28/9780996755870/
More...