crystal_reading's review
This is a book that has layers on top of layers. Gilbert definitely made me want to keep reading to find the answers to my questions. There is an intensity throughout that made this a page turner.
I appreciated that the book delved into religion since there aren't that many young adult books doing that outside of the Christian publishing houses. The characters showed a variety of beliefs even within Braden's own church.
Some of the beliefs and statements expressed by a few characters were hateful towards people who were perceived as different, for example, Latinos or homosexuals. That was hard to read, but unfortunately seemed all too realistic. It was balanced a little, but still left me with a slightly icky taste in my mouth.
It's hard to give this a rating. I liked the book in that it kept my attention and made me think. I also found the family dynamics to be very interesting, but some of the characters and situations were very frustrating to read. It was an uncomfortable book. I'm going to leave off the stars at least for now.
As a side note, I was a bit confused by the main character being a pitcher familiar with the pressure of being on the mound when he was in first grade and only six years old. I don't know of little leagues or teams that allow or encourage that so young, but they may exist. Perhaps this was a sign of how much his father was pushing him, but as the mother of a former little league player, it popped me out of the story as I wondered how that was possible.
I appreciated that the book delved into religion since there aren't that many young adult books doing that outside of the Christian publishing houses. The characters showed a variety of beliefs even within Braden's own church.
Some of the beliefs and statements expressed by a few characters were hateful towards people who were perceived as different, for example, Latinos or homosexuals. That was hard to read, but unfortunately seemed all too realistic. It was balanced a little, but still left me with a slightly icky taste in my mouth.
It's hard to give this a rating. I liked the book in that it kept my attention and made me think. I also found the family dynamics to be very interesting, but some of the characters and situations were very frustrating to read. It was an uncomfortable book. I'm going to leave off the stars at least for now.
As a side note, I was a bit confused by the main character being a pitcher familiar with the pressure of being on the mound when he was in first grade and only six years old. I don't know of little leagues or teams that allow or encourage that so young, but they may exist. Perhaps this was a sign of how much his father was pushing him, but as the mother of a former little league player, it popped me out of the story as I wondered how that was possible.
blakehalsey's review
5.0
Oh my god oh my god this book, y'all this book. So beautiful. So...jeez. Honest. Heartbreakingly honest.
jang's review against another edition
5.0
At first I was having a hard time relating to Conviction because it's very baseball-heavy (the terms, the plot, the characters) but I learned to love the story as it went on because it's emotional and raw.
It's hard not to love the book's main character because he's a legit good boy and he's loyal. Even through his battle with his personal demons, his past, and the abuse he suffered through, he still showed composure and kindness.
YA books that have a very religious or spiritual theme used to irked me because I found them polarizing but not with this one. Here I kind of understood Braden's relationship with God and the way he questioned everything. I understood the environment where he was raised in, even if some of the things came off as offensive (it was intentional) and really brutal.
I couldn't imagine a better ending for this book tbh. Braden came to forgive himself and his past, he started to embrace an unknown future with his brother, and he learned to accept his brother's sexuality.
Conviction is amazingly written and conveys a sense of societal truth that's lacking these days.
It's hard not to love the book's main character because he's a legit good boy and he's loyal. Even through his battle with his personal demons, his past, and the abuse he suffered through, he still showed composure and kindness.
YA books that have a very religious or spiritual theme used to irked me because I found them polarizing but not with this one. Here I kind of understood Braden's relationship with God and the way he questioned everything. I understood the environment where he was raised in, even if some of the things came off as offensive (it was intentional) and really brutal.
I couldn't imagine a better ending for this book tbh. Braden came to forgive himself and his past, he started to embrace an unknown future with his brother, and he learned to accept his brother's sexuality.
Conviction is amazingly written and conveys a sense of societal truth that's lacking these days.
kmcg828's review against another edition
3.0
The dad was a well written portrayal of an abusive parent and the manipulative tactics of abusers but the main character has no development after leaning about his father’s pattern of behavior. He just keeps trucking along as if he didn’t find out that his dad is a literal psycho. I don’t know anything about baseball and basically skimmed through those parts so I didn’t get all the metaphors Gilbert tried to use. The romance subplot also felt extremely unnecessary.
socbas9247's review against another edition
5.0
I am not sure how to express my love and admiration of this novel. It is so timely and deep and profound. Sad, heartbreaking, wrenching. It is one of my favorite books now. I won't forget it anytime soon. So read it, and bask in its honesty.
michelle_pink_polka_dot's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 Stars
It was good-- writing was A+. It's the type of book I LIVE for, but for whatever reason I didn't quite love it. Maybe it was the religious aspects??
It was good-- writing was A+. It's the type of book I LIVE for, but for whatever reason I didn't quite love it. Maybe it was the religious aspects??
marybinzley's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
norroway's review against another edition
This was such a painful read, as I went in not expecting such a close experience with an abusive parent, which is rather triggering for me. Well written, but I saw the abuse coming before the reader was expected to because of the "I pushed him too far" language, the blaming himself, etc. This dad is a terrible person. I don't know how to rate this because while I could see that it's well written, my emotional reaction to the book is much more complex.