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wanderlustlover's review against another edition
5.0
A harrowing tale, recommended by my school librarian, that is deeply compelling from the second page, just like it's reviewers have said. You will be so quickly drawn into Carrie's world, both the past and the present, so realistically scoped. The compartmentalization is a master craftsmanship, as are all the slow reveals that you figure out in the last half of the book about everyone. I definitely recommend it to others.
vuky_1903's review against another edition
3.0
Mở đầu cuốn sách khá thu hút và mình đã mong chờ khá nhiều ở đoạn sau.
Nhưng không hề như kì vọng, cuốn sách dường như không đủ chiều sâu và khai thác tốt hơn nữa nội tâm của Carey và quá khứ của cô.
Điểm nhấn ở nửa sau cuốn truyện về quá khứ tăm tối của Carey với việc cô đã phải trải qua 1 sự kiện đầy đau thương.... Nhưng đáng lẽ điều đó cần được tác giả làm rõ hơn, gay cấn hơn thì tốt biết mấy.
Còn nhiều khúc mắc vẫn chưa được giải quyết triệt để và vẫn chỉ ở bề nông nhất định
3.25/5 sao.
Bài học từ cuốn sách: trân quý gia đình mình nha....
Nhưng không hề như kì vọng, cuốn sách dường như không đủ chiều sâu và khai thác tốt hơn nữa nội tâm của Carey và quá khứ của cô.
Điểm nhấn ở nửa sau cuốn truyện về quá khứ tăm tối của Carey với việc cô đã phải trải qua 1 sự kiện đầy đau thương.... Nhưng đáng lẽ điều đó cần được tác giả làm rõ hơn, gay cấn hơn thì tốt biết mấy.
Còn nhiều khúc mắc vẫn chưa được giải quyết triệt để và vẫn chỉ ở bề nông nhất định
3.25/5 sao.
Bài học từ cuốn sách: trân quý gia đình mình nha....
lynseyisreading's review against another edition
4.0
Little girl lost.
Not normally a fan of general fiction and with an unwritten rule that I don't read books with protagonists under 16, I find myself wondering—other than the captivating cover art—what made me pick up IF YOU FIND ME in the first place. I suppose I was intrigued by the question it seemed to pose, which was if you remove a child from all civilization during their formative years, and then subsequently throw them back in, what kind of personality would that create and how would they cope? The answer I got surprised me, and made me glad I ignored my usual book choosing rules that day.
Carey, our narrator, who's been living in primitive squalor in a trailer deep inside a national forest since she was six years old, could have easily (and predictably) been written as totally feral and crazed, or bitter and angry. Or both. Instead, I found her to be a brave, caring and surprisingly well-balanced girl with impeccable manners and an absolutely refreshing view of the world. Her character "voice" was deeply compelling and her narrative so stark yet somehow inspirational. Carey made the book for me, and I'm so glad the author chose the less obvious route where she was concerned. It was far more interesting than a book full of temper tantrums could have ever been.
Although I ultimately found a lot of positives in this story and Carey's character, the tone of the book is, at times, very dark. In fact, some of it truly made my heart hurt. The meth-addicted, abusive or absent mother. The hardships survived. The near starvation and lack of everything except the bare minimum essentials . The years lost. Years that should be the happiest and easiest of a person's life. And something even more harrowing that's revealed along the way. All this only served to make me more proud of the young woman Carey has become, and how well she cared for her younger sister, Jenessa, because her mother couldn't or wouldn't.
Speaking of Jenessa, she was an amazingly strong presence throughout, especially for a little lady that doesn't speak. Also worthy of note was Carey's father and his new wife. Their patience and understanding was touching and admirable. Especially since the whole thing must have been equally as painful for them.
Sadly, although it started incredibly strongly and is still, overall, a great book, I found the last section wasn't quite as compelling as the first. The end seemed to lose its purpose and felt hurried and a bit wishy-washy. I'm not sure what I wanted to happen instead - a big showdown, perhaps? A bit more closure for Carey? I don't know, but I felt like it fizzled and was slightly unsatisfying because of that.
Still, I definitely recommend it. If you're looking for a book with a main character who will really speak to you, and have something worth saying, try this one for size.
3.5 Stars ★★★1/2
Not normally a fan of general fiction and with an unwritten rule that I don't read books with protagonists under 16, I find myself wondering—other than the captivating cover art—what made me pick up IF YOU FIND ME in the first place. I suppose I was intrigued by the question it seemed to pose, which was if you remove a child from all civilization during their formative years, and then subsequently throw them back in, what kind of personality would that create and how would they cope? The answer I got surprised me, and made me glad I ignored my usual book choosing rules that day.
Carey, our narrator, who's been living in primitive squalor in a trailer deep inside a national forest since she was six years old, could have easily (and predictably) been written as totally feral and crazed, or bitter and angry. Or both. Instead, I found her to be a brave, caring and surprisingly well-balanced girl with impeccable manners and an absolutely refreshing view of the world. Her character "voice" was deeply compelling and her narrative so stark yet somehow inspirational. Carey made the book for me, and I'm so glad the author chose the less obvious route where she was concerned. It was far more interesting than a book full of temper tantrums could have ever been.
Although I ultimately found a lot of positives in this story and Carey's character, the tone of the book is, at times, very dark. In fact, some of it truly made my heart hurt. The meth-addicted, abusive or absent mother. The hardships survived. The near starvation and lack of everything except the bare minimum essentials . The years lost. Years that should be the happiest and easiest of a person's life. And something even more harrowing that's revealed along the way. All this only served to make me more proud of the young woman Carey has become, and how well she cared for her younger sister, Jenessa, because her mother couldn't or wouldn't.
Speaking of Jenessa, she was an amazingly strong presence throughout, especially for a little lady that doesn't speak. Also worthy of note was Carey's father and his new wife. Their patience and understanding was touching and admirable. Especially since the whole thing must have been equally as painful for them.
Sadly, although it started incredibly strongly and is still, overall, a great book, I found the last section wasn't quite as compelling as the first. The end seemed to lose its purpose and felt hurried and a bit wishy-washy. I'm not sure what I wanted to happen instead - a big showdown, perhaps? A bit more closure for Carey? I don't know, but I felt like it fizzled and was slightly unsatisfying because of that.
Still, I definitely recommend it. If you're looking for a book with a main character who will really speak to you, and have something worth saying, try this one for size.
3.5 Stars ★★★1/2
amydieg's review against another edition
I won't give this book a star rating because I read so little of it.
I was really looking forward to this. Though I wasn't thrilled by the writing right away, I intended to read through anyway. However, within the first 20 or so pages of the book a social worker comes into play and she isn't the most positive character. Even though she knew she would be searching hours into the woods for abandoned children, she is wearing a tan suit and heels and has brought no law enforcement officer, only the estranged father. She also is completely surprised at how long it takes them to walk out of the forest even though she obviously walked INTO it. After all this I was still reading, but then they reached the road and the social worker's LEXUS. A LEXUS? REALLY? She was also surprised to have one of the kids throw up, and as the daughter of a social worker I can assure you this shouldn't have made her more than flinch.
Because the plot revolves around these girls being abandoned by their mother and retrieved by the authorities, it just seemed careless to me that the author put so little thought into an important element of that. I was also afraid the negative tone might continue, when these people are usually actually underpaid, overburdened, and very dedicated. All and all I felt the author had signalled to me early on that the book just wouldn't be worth my time.
I was really looking forward to this. Though I wasn't thrilled by the writing right away, I intended to read through anyway. However, within the first 20 or so pages of the book a social worker comes into play and she isn't the most positive character. Even though she knew she would be searching hours into the woods for abandoned children, she is wearing a tan suit and heels and has brought no law enforcement officer, only the estranged father. She also is completely surprised at how long it takes them to walk out of the forest even though she obviously walked INTO it. After all this I was still reading, but then they reached the road and the social worker's LEXUS. A LEXUS? REALLY? She was also surprised to have one of the kids throw up, and as the daughter of a social worker I can assure you this shouldn't have made her more than flinch.
Because the plot revolves around these girls being abandoned by their mother and retrieved by the authorities, it just seemed careless to me that the author put so little thought into an important element of that. I was also afraid the negative tone might continue, when these people are usually actually underpaid, overburdened, and very dedicated. All and all I felt the author had signalled to me early on that the book just wouldn't be worth my time.
emleemay's review against another edition
4.0
Believe the hype.
[b:If You Find Me|15793231|If You Find Me|Emily Murdoch|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1364401872s/15793231.jpg|18670766] is one of those rare books that so expertly, sadly, wonderfully, horrifically captures the protagonist's pain. But not just pain. Their resilience, determination, fear and hope too. Fans of heartbreakingly powerful stories by authors such as [a:Sara Zarr|19093|Sara Zarr|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1302718823p2/19093.jpg] and [a:Courtney Summers|1487748|Courtney Summers|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1355950434p2/1487748.jpg] will surely fall in love with this story. A story which dragged my heart mercilessly along the ground without once feeling melodramatic or cliche or overdone. [a:Emily Murdoch|5445024|Emily Murdoch|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1349821585p2/5445024.jpg]'s debut is truly fantastic and I hope this is the start of a long and beautiful love affair between myself and her novels.
The story opens out in the woods where fifteen year old Carey and her younger sister, Nessa, live in a run-down old camper van. This time, their mother has been away longer than ever and Carey has to struggle to make sure they both don't starve. But one day, two strangers arrive with a letter from their mother, confessing that she can no longer take care of her two daughters. The girls are taken away from the woods to live with their father and his new family but, of course, things aren't as simple as happily ever after. Carey has to adjust to a life where there are no trees to hide secrets behind... and the more time that goes by, the more her dark past threatens to come back to haunt her.
One thing I absolutely adore in young adult books is a strong bond between siblings. I loved it in [b:Angelfall|11500217|Angelfall (Penryn & the End of Days, #1)|Susan Ee|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1319887835s/11500217.jpg|16435765] and I loved it in [b:The 5th Wave|16101128|The 5th Wave (The Fifth Wave, #1)|Rick Yancey|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1359853842s/16101128.jpg|19187812] - it's just one of those things that seems to always plant me firmly on the protagonist's side. Perhaps it's because I'm the oldest of three children and feel very protective toward my younger brother and sister - I don't know - but I find myself immediately liking protagonist's that put their younger sibling first and dedicate themselves to making sure they're kept alive/happy. And I think the relationship between Carey and Nessa is told so well. These girls have spent so much time alone with only each other for company and, even when they are removed from the woods and go to live with others, they seem to exist a little separately from the rest at first. Eventually, they start to adjust to their new lives and the change felt gradual and realistic.
There's only a couple of reasons why this didn't get the full five stars and I think they were big enough reasons for me to justify the lowered rating. Basically, I often thought that Carey's "voice" was somewhat more adult and mature than it should have been for a fifteen year old. Now, I'm happy to make some allowance for the unusual circumstances that Carey has grown up in and the parental role she has been forced to take on. However, while this may be a good enough reason for her altered outlook on life, I still feel that it isn't enough to explain some of the language used. The other reason for the lowered rating was the handling of the situation with Delaney (their father's stepdaughter) which I think was resolved too quickly to be satisfactory. I sympathised with both girls' situations but thought that it could have been explored better and developed more subtly than it was.
Overall, though, this was an excellent debut. The story was compelling, albeit dark, and the characters were well-rounded and interesting. I'm very excited to see where Murdoch goes next.
jmarchek's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this YA novel, read it it one day. It's the story of two sisters, 14 & 5. They've been living in an old camper in the middle of the woods with their mother, a meth addict for years. The book starts as they are found by a social worker and their father. They then have to learn to adjust to the real world of school and a family and deal with their past. I don't think my description does it justice - some others here on GR are much better.
I really thought the heroine, Carey was well written, interesting and tough. I think that it's definitely more for high schoolers, would be too much for middle schoolers. The girls life in the woods was hard and there was some sexual abuse that would be too much for younger readers.
I really thought the heroine, Carey was well written, interesting and tough. I think that it's definitely more for high schoolers, would be too much for middle schoolers. The girls life in the woods was hard and there was some sexual abuse that would be too much for younger readers.
tianamaelyn's review against another edition
5.0
not at all what i expected, but it was 10x better! fell in love with the characters and their traits. the story overall was extremely creative and kept me wanting to read more.
mouwuol's review against another edition
4.0
3.75 stars.
Would've been a solid 4.5 stars if it didnt have the unrealistic and unnecessary instalove
Would've been a solid 4.5 stars if it didnt have the unrealistic and unnecessary instalove
trashley_123's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
tarajean334's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This book is very deep and definitely makes you feel all the feels. I loved Carrie's protectiveness of her sister. I also loved that it ended the way it did.