burstnwithbooks's review against another edition
2.0
WHAT THE CRAP. I don’t understand what just happened. I’ll have more fully formed thoughts on this when it’s not 2 am... but for now suffice to say it was kind of Perks of Being a Wallflower ripoff-y But not as good? In a creepy way? I thought this book was going to be fantastic when I started it but it was TOO over the top and just... no thanks?
kitty_kat21's review against another edition
3.0
This book is very mid-range for me.
It is a story told largely through the eyes of Greg, a troubled teen who battles with mental illness. Greg's wealthy family are largely emotionally absent, and Greg is the complete opposite of popular in his school. Told through Greg's journal entries, the reader gets an intimate portrayal of his sad and depressing life. The only ray of positivity is his crush on a girl from school -Alice. In between Greg's journal entries, the reader is treated to a police interview transcript about Greg referring to a tragic incident.
The actual event was pretty anti-climatic for me and so this book didn't really have the 'wow' factor. It is pretty easy read, and the story is interesting but it wasn't a book that amazed me.
It is a story told largely through the eyes of Greg, a troubled teen who battles with mental illness. Greg's wealthy family are largely emotionally absent, and Greg is the complete opposite of popular in his school. Told through Greg's journal entries, the reader gets an intimate portrayal of his sad and depressing life. The only ray of positivity is his crush on a girl from school -Alice. In between Greg's journal entries, the reader is treated to a police interview transcript about Greg referring to a tragic incident.
The actual event was pretty anti-climatic for me and so this book didn't really have the 'wow' factor. It is pretty easy read, and the story is interesting but it wasn't a book that amazed me.
badbye's review against another edition
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
snoakes7001's review against another edition
5.0
This is the story of a dysfunctional family burying its head in the sand about mental illness, and the terrible consequences of such appalling self-deception. Greg (our somewhat unreliable narrator) has a serious mental illness which manifests itself as a severe phobia - the book mostly comprises extracts of Greg's diary. His voice is extremely authentic - a troubled teenager with no friends, labelled "psycho" by his classmates, obsessed by a particular girl. He has been diagnosed, medicated and ignored and failed by everyone around him - by his social-climbing family, his teachers, his doctors.
It's an absorbing and compelling read (and rather sad). A fantastic and accomplished debut.
It's an absorbing and compelling read (and rather sad). A fantastic and accomplished debut.
jacss's review against another edition
4.0
Surprisingly, I liked this book a lot. Now I'm left with all kinds of questions though...
alienor's review against another edition
2.0
Actual rating : 2.5 stars
"Then she turned to me and said, "Just promise me, if she sees us, just promise me you'll try and be normal."
I didn't reply to that because I didn't know how to reply. I didn't know how I could promise something I had failed to do my whole life."
Once again, I find myself wondering why so many books lose their rhythm around 50%. I swear, book, could you not be crappy from the beginning? To let me dnf the fuck out of you and call it a day? No. You have to be really good at first. To excite my expectations. To give me hope. And then BIM. BORING.
I’m not thanking you, book.
Let me say something first: when I met him I loved Greg’s voice, which I found so refreshing and funny in its matter-of-fact way. Indeed Greg shows us the world with a completely different insight, sometimes harsh, sometimes a little heartbreaking. I must admit that every time he related a moment he was bullied my heart broke a little more, especially because no matter how detached he seemed to be, the emotions, the humiliation stayed painfully clear.
Do not think that Greg’s perfect, though. Indeed he is a little creeper and judgmental at times, there’s no hiding around it. I won’t say much, but … Let’s say that questions about who he is arise pretty fast. Is he reliable? No.
Little by little, we peek through the veil and realize that we have to pay attention to the contradictions and distance between the events he relates and his interpretation of them. You'll have to weigh everything Greg tells you. Take nothing for granted. Because everything can change in a heartbeat.
How well do we know people around us? On the bus? At work? We often forget that every single person we talk to has thoughts, too. All the time. We forget because it's all very overwhelming, but trust me, Greg is going to make you think twice and reevaluate your perception of people around you.
During the first 35%, Greg fascinated me, letting me wide eyed. He goes out of every boxes, can't be limited, the boundaries between good and evil are blurred, and we only… follow him in his delusions.
A little word about the way schizophrenia is pictured, though. Is it accurate? I have no idea. There, I said it. Should I stay clear from everything mental illness related because my knowledge of them is closed to none? I don't think so. I won't accept romanticization of it if it’s painfully obvious, but is it accurate? Fuck if I know. I'm sure you'll find a review more interesting in that regard and I thank in advance all the reviewers who’ll share their knowledge.
Unfortunately every character except Greg was too stereotypical for my taste - perhaps it is due to Greg’s narration, but I admit that I had a hard time suspending my disbelief many times. Not to mention that every female teenager is called a vulture – which is a little unsettling, don’t you think? As for Alice, well, let’s be clear one second: I have no idea who she is. But the way I see it, that's the point. Despite his obsession, Greg never really gets to know Alice contrary to what he thinks.
As I said earlier, some reactions were a little hard to buy.
- Trust me, I don't want to believe that parents who decide to bury their heads in the sand are believable, but okay, let's say they are. Now, how can Greg be medicated without a proper diagnostic? How can a doctor prescribe him medications for YEARS without never making another test or checked-up? In case it was done, how can his parents leave him like this? With his half-mad grandma? I mean, this is pretty TERRIBLE. You realize that your son suffers from a mental illness therefore you just... send him away. Okay.
- About the teacher, am I the only one to find it weird that she decides on her own to counsel Greg despite the fact that - oh, she is not a psychologist. She never studied psychology except in high school. Look, I studied a curse in children psychology in College, yet by no means do I consider myself able to counsel a teenager suffering from a mental illness, especially if I am the only one doing it.
At first I thought that it was an interesting and thought-provoking little book – but that was before everything turned out… almost generic in its originality and failed to keep me engrossed. Suffering from its uneven pacing, my interest wavered.
Indeed it became pretty predictable in the second half. I mean, from the cops interviews we know something bad is coming and somehow guessing the truth isn't that hard. That's why the ending felt anticlimactic to me... and the way everything was wrapped up a little too convenient.
Can we talk about the boredom? Yeah? Let me state this first: I was hooked from page one until... around 35%. It was refreshing, intriguing, and I really thought that this book would be a winner. No such luck. Greg started to ramble way too much and the action just never kicked in - it seems that I waited forever to get somewhere and I lost sight of what I loved in the beginning, sadly.
My last complaint lies in the fact that Greg failed to move me once the second half was started - and that's a shame really because given his condition I SHOULD have felt something. Anger. Sadness. Despair. I don't fucking know. But something. I did at first - how couldn't I, while he is so lonely? But my heart dried out, unfortunately.
Before I let you go, I wanted to talk about a scene that I'm not sure I read correctly - because it's difficult to know with Greg's POV sometimes - but if it is what I think, it was poorly handled. There is a girl - Angela - in a bed with 2 guys who are pouring beer on her while she is almost unconscious and full of vomit and from what Greg says, they might be (sexually) abusing her. I didn't like the fact that I'm not sure. I didn't like the fact that I had to rely on Greg's POV on this because if she was abused I WOULD WANT FOR THE AUTHOR TO DEAL WITH IT, not only mention it in passing. Perhaps I'm imagining things, but the truth is, I have no way of knowing. It was useless in my opinion to include such a scene.
Sigh. Perhaps I'm being unfair, but really, I just want to forget it. Clear enough, right?
CREDIT LEAVES (in my picture on the top): http://roys-art.deviantart.com/art/Scattered-Leaves-and-Petals-PNG-Stock-01-454846528
*arc kindly provided by Quercus (US) through Netgalley. It did not, in any case, influence my opinion*
mazza57's review against another edition
2.0
This is another Young Adult book that really failed to impress as i thought it would. Told as a first person narrative through Diary entries and a second time line using police interviews it is obvious from the outset that "psycho boy" is heading towards self- destruction at a rate of knots.To be honest if the Wikipaedia definition of a young Adult being between 12 and 18 years old it is not what i would want them to read. There are pages full of vomiting, drinking, sexual innuendo and the rest. Don't think i will be bothering with any more from this author
totallytales's review against another edition
3.0
I did enjoy this novel for the most part. It's intriguingly told through diary extracts and police interviews, giving you a sense of foreboding that something disturbing is about to unfold. However, I can't help but feel the ending was rushed almost too sudden in comparison to the build-up of the hauntingly disturbing ending. The ending itself isn't really explained, leaving me feeling a bit bereft. But maybe that is the whole point and I just don't appreciate it?
hayley_mariep's review against another edition
5.0
Originally posted here: http://thereadingwonderland.blogspot.co.uk/2015/04/review-alice-and-fly-by-james-rice.html
This book was surreal. It takes a long time to grasp whats happening, or it did for me, and it takes a long time for Greg's illness to be revealed. To be perfectly honest I originally thought he had autism, this is not the case, all is revealed.
Everything in this book kept me guessing, it was never predictable, and nothing could have prepared me for the ending, it was not what I expected at all.
Greg's character is a magnificent narrator, he doesn't reveal a lot, but it's clear that what he's revealing is the truth, and I love a reliable narrator. I also loved that he wasn't immediately introduced to us, it's a few pages in before we even learn his name. I found that interesting because it shows the reader how awkward Greg is, but still doesn't give any clue to his illness, or if he even has one.
My one complaint regarding this is that I felt a lot of things were left unanswered. For example, I was wondering if his sister is intended to have an eating disorder, she rarely eats and spends all her time practicing for her dance recital, living off coffee, coffee beans, and an energy shake. But this is never addressed, possibly because our narrator doesn't realise it's happening, but I'd have liked it to be addressed by another character just to tie the ends up for me.
Overall I loved this book, I feel like it really got into the head of a patient with Greg's illness without making them appear "mental." I've read a lot of mental health fiction lately and I'm pleased that each book dealt with the subject sensitively.
I rated this book 5 stars on Goodreads.
This book was given to me for review. All opinions are my own and are in no way affected by the author or publisher.
This book was surreal. It takes a long time to grasp whats happening, or it did for me, and it takes a long time for Greg's illness to be revealed. To be perfectly honest I originally thought he had autism, this is not the case, all is revealed.
Everything in this book kept me guessing, it was never predictable, and nothing could have prepared me for the ending, it was not what I expected at all.
Greg's character is a magnificent narrator, he doesn't reveal a lot, but it's clear that what he's revealing is the truth, and I love a reliable narrator. I also loved that he wasn't immediately introduced to us, it's a few pages in before we even learn his name. I found that interesting because it shows the reader how awkward Greg is, but still doesn't give any clue to his illness, or if he even has one.
My one complaint regarding this is that I felt a lot of things were left unanswered. For example, I was wondering if his sister is intended to have an eating disorder, she rarely eats and spends all her time practicing for her dance recital, living off coffee, coffee beans, and an energy shake. But this is never addressed, possibly because our narrator doesn't realise it's happening, but I'd have liked it to be addressed by another character just to tie the ends up for me.
Overall I loved this book, I feel like it really got into the head of a patient with Greg's illness without making them appear "mental." I've read a lot of mental health fiction lately and I'm pleased that each book dealt with the subject sensitively.
I rated this book 5 stars on Goodreads.
This book was given to me for review. All opinions are my own and are in no way affected by the author or publisher.
samantha_winkel13's review against another edition
5.0
This book brings out so many emotions and it's dark and even though some people may already see what is going to happen, I was surprised.