Reviews

Who wouldn't be envious if her older sister was blond, pretty, and popular? Molly, enthusiastic, smiling, always knowing the right thing to say, confident of her plans for the future, loved by everyone. Meg, unsure yet determined, sometimes angry, sometimes miserable, trying to sort out how she is going to make a difference in the world when she grows up. When a move to a small house in the country (so their dad can work on his book) means the girls will be sharing a room, their differences are emphasized, culminating in Molly drawing a white line down the middle of the room so Meg will keep her slobbiness on her own side of the room.
And then Molly got sick. A trip to the hospital, and when she finally returned home again, she was grumpy and expected everyone to cater to her desires. Resentment grew in Meg as she tried to adjust to the changes in her sister & her parents. And then she realized, as Molly was rushed to the hospital again to spend more weeks away from home, that her sister wasn't going to be returning to their room. Her sister was going to die.
Meg's emotions and reactions are poignantly shown. This book made me cry a lot, which is a rare thing when I read!

lauravernon's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

spersephone's review against another edition

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3.0

Certainly an interesting book to read, but Molly's illness was not really all that relevant to the plot in my opinion. It was much more about Meg's own self-analysis, with the help of Will and her neighbours. Even though Molly's diagnosis isn't revealed until quite late in the book, her death is handled swiftly. While this is clearly meant to be a real turning point for the story, it feels as though it was put there so that there was something else in the book other than Meg's own tale.

I found the connection between Meg and her "hippy" neighbours quite interesting, but the concept of her coming to photograph their birth was handled quite differently to how I think it might be today. A lovely way to show their bond, but really, it seemed very inappropriate given Meg's age.

I would think that having some interwoven chapters from Molly's point of view may have made this even stronger, and perhaps having one or two from their parents too, would have really turned this into an even more rounded story.

arwatson01's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

V sweet and tender and cozy

azur_rot's review against another edition

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5.0

I have no words for this book but so much love.

bc7ate9's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad fast-paced

3.0

⭐️⭐️⭐️ I expected - and wanted - this to be sadder. One day a pretty girl gets a nosebleed, months go by where it’s casually mentioned that she’s sick with some un-named thing, she dies, life goes on. At least in this one, the main character goes from feeling ugly all the time to less ugly by the end. 🤷🏼‍♀️

noches04's review against another edition

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4.0

3.5
Este librito se me hizo super lindo y me gustó los temas y como los trataba. Habla de amistad auque no sea con los de tu edad, la identidad de alguien, la vida y la muerte, el arte en la naturaleza... Uy hasta me puse un poco emocional con lo de Molly.
El único pero es que los personajes no se me hacen realistas jajaj osea me gusta la amistad de Meg con la pareja y Will pero... pedir que fotografíe una niña de 13 años tu parto? Fotografían a un viejo que apenas conoces? llamar a tu hijo Feliz? jajajajaj bueno es que son otro rollo. Pero sta lindo.

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