Reviews

I actually read the young reader's edition so I'm not sure what all I may have missed from the original. Like other Hyde books, this is Hallmark Heavy. What I mean by that is, it is certainly meant to inspire and there is nothing subtle in its delivery, but it does provoke some deeper thought from the reader. The concept is simple, but it still drives a solid plot and the main characters are flawed and believable (supporting characters are more apt to be archetypal/caricatures). The ending was deliberately meant to be ambiguous, but my personal feeling on endings like this are that the author wasn't really sure HOW to end the story and maintain the spell they've woven, which, ironically, does just as much to break the spell. Based on this and the forced feel of the emotions I have to knock off a star but still a lovely story with a genuinely good message.

cornmaven's review against another edition

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2.0

This is a scaled down version of the original adult novel, which I never read. Apparently Hyde altered the ending a little bit. After reading it, I decided it felt "dated", not because it is set in the early 1990s, but because the writing itself felt dated. A little too schmaltzy for today. I liked the mother's character, as well as Reuben, but Trevor seemed just too perfect, even for the 90s. Chris Chandler, well, his characterization just did not fit an investigate reporter at all. And, I really hated the term "Movement."

I have seen better visions of the connectedness of everyone and everything. The Pay It Forward concept has definitely taken hold, so I don't dismiss it as a success. Just felt the writing could have been improved for this new edition.