shannonmmay's review against another edition
1.0
2.5 stars
The main conflict feels so fake and it’s very distracting.
The main conflict feels so fake and it’s very distracting.
shelfimprovement's review against another edition
3.0
When I was really tiny – before school started and the concept of friends was clear – my mother used to babysit a neighbor my age, the son of a family friend. His name was Jason and because I was three, I thought that a “Jason” was a type of relation that everyone had. Kind of like a cousin, but more into Ninja Turtles.
That’s what I thought of while starting this book: Ida and Jackson were bonding before they had teeth, with no concept that their relationship could be defined as something as unextraordinary as friendship. They grew up – Ida the daughter of a single father, Jackson (and James) the sons of a single mother – so constantly in each other’s presence that it seemed inevitable that their connection had to evolve into something “more than” friends. This special relationship is best quantified by the fact that Jackson has always referred to Ida simply as “I” – a self-identifying pronoun attached to another person.
Of course, the course of true love never did run smooth. Jackson is a somnambulist – he not only walks in his sleep, but creates works of art and sometimes even behaves violently. This causes problems, first with his relationship with James and eventually with Ida.
At first, I was put off because I didn’t quite understand the rationale behind Ida and Jackson’s behavior; I felt like the characters weren’t quite developed enough for me to understand why Ida pushes Jackson into something he doesn’t want and he subsequently rejects their relationship. I let the book simmer a bit in my thoughts, trying to sort out how to write a coherent review, and it eventually dawned on me: sometimes we are misled into believing our relationships are more secure, more meaningful, even more two-way than they really are. Whether it’s a romantic relationship, a familial one, or a close friendship, the other person often means more to us than we mean to them. It’s not necessarily a malicious thing; it’s just the way life goes sometimes. A failure to recognize it, though, can be devastating. Ida felt as though her lifelong history with Jackson meant their relationship transcended onto a new plane – they were more connected because of their constant presence in each other’s lives. In pushing Jackson beyond his comfort zone, Ida demonstrates that the connection may be something she wants more than something that is.
In the end, this was a thought-provoking book. I just kind of wish that the writing had been strong enough to get me there sooner. Alcott has a way with prose, but her construction is often a series of scenes strung together (a style I’ve never care for, though I know some people prefer that ultra-postmodernism in their writing), and I never really got a sense of the characters. Jackson, in particular, never truly came to life. I hope to keep an eye on Alcott in the future, even though this book ultimately fell a little short.
That’s what I thought of while starting this book: Ida and Jackson were bonding before they had teeth, with no concept that their relationship could be defined as something as unextraordinary as friendship. They grew up – Ida the daughter of a single father, Jackson (and James) the sons of a single mother – so constantly in each other’s presence that it seemed inevitable that their connection had to evolve into something “more than” friends. This special relationship is best quantified by the fact that Jackson has always referred to Ida simply as “I” – a self-identifying pronoun attached to another person.
Of course, the course of true love never did run smooth. Jackson is a somnambulist – he not only walks in his sleep, but creates works of art and sometimes even behaves violently. This causes problems, first with his relationship with James and eventually with Ida.
At first, I was put off because I didn’t quite understand the rationale behind Ida and Jackson’s behavior; I felt like the characters weren’t quite developed enough for me to understand why Ida pushes Jackson into something he doesn’t want and he subsequently rejects their relationship. I let the book simmer a bit in my thoughts, trying to sort out how to write a coherent review, and it eventually dawned on me: sometimes we are misled into believing our relationships are more secure, more meaningful, even more two-way than they really are. Whether it’s a romantic relationship, a familial one, or a close friendship, the other person often means more to us than we mean to them. It’s not necessarily a malicious thing; it’s just the way life goes sometimes. A failure to recognize it, though, can be devastating. Ida felt as though her lifelong history with Jackson meant their relationship transcended onto a new plane – they were more connected because of their constant presence in each other’s lives. In pushing Jackson beyond his comfort zone, Ida demonstrates that the connection may be something she wants more than something that is.
In the end, this was a thought-provoking book. I just kind of wish that the writing had been strong enough to get me there sooner. Alcott has a way with prose, but her construction is often a series of scenes strung together (a style I’ve never care for, though I know some people prefer that ultra-postmodernism in their writing), and I never really got a sense of the characters. Jackson, in particular, never truly came to life. I hope to keep an eye on Alcott in the future, even though this book ultimately fell a little short.
stefaniacg's review against another edition
4.0
"(...) she would look at her body and watch the light coming through, then behind her at strange shadows she cast."
eu não sei como, mas eu juro que essa mulher desenha com palavras.
eu não sei como, mas eu juro que essa mulher desenha com palavras.
sophie137's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
pallas4's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
thrifty_librarian's review against another edition
2.0
I won this book through a Goodreads giveaway - thank you!
Some of the writing is beautiful, but much of it felt forced, with awkwardly placed vocab words and metaphors. It was all sadness and really very little story. The author can obviously write and drew some potentially interesting characters, but overall just tried too hard. The story was jumpy and didn't stay long enough in any one place for me to feel anything, most regrettably the different sorts of love that really could've driven the story.
Some of the writing is beautiful, but much of it felt forced, with awkwardly placed vocab words and metaphors. It was all sadness and really very little story. The author can obviously write and drew some potentially interesting characters, but overall just tried too hard. The story was jumpy and didn't stay long enough in any one place for me to feel anything, most regrettably the different sorts of love that really could've driven the story.
kathykekmrs's review against another edition
3.0
This book is a novel of friendship and love. The three main characters all meet as babies on the same street. As Ida's mom dies when the children are young. Jackson's and James' mom, Julia almost becomes a mother to Ida. Ida's father explains to his young daughter that the boys are not her brothers, but rather friends and so as they enter their teenage years Jackson and Ida become an item. Then the book goes into the twists and turns of a relationship that starts when a person is too young to understand the world to the death of Ida's father and the subsequent tying of the three characters together.
acinthedc's review against another edition
3.0
Ida, Jackson and James grew up together and have been a part of each others lives for as long as any of them can remember. Ida is raised by her father after her mother dies when she is still an infant. Jackson and James are raised by their mother after their father disappears from their lives. Through these two separate but intertwined families, Alcott explores love and what makes a family.
Unfortunately, Ida is not the most likable protagonist and as she is the narrator this is hard to get around. Alcott has some lovely writing here, I just wish I liked the characters more.
Unfortunately, Ida is not the most likable protagonist and as she is the narrator this is hard to get around. Alcott has some lovely writing here, I just wish I liked the characters more.
booktoilandtrouble's review against another edition
2.0
Too vauge to be engaging or admired as the writerly piece it is. Themes were lost to adjectives, metaphors and for the sake of it scenarios.
I got through it, but it's exactly that. I struggled, hoping for character arcs etc. but nothing seemed to change. There was the illusion of change in characters, but they still felt blah at the end of it. It seems the author is in constant battle to make each sentence as technically beautiful as the last, which means they all blur together rather than there being a few stand out lines which stuck. I'm so disappointed, as the premise was so promising.
I got through it, but it's exactly that. I struggled, hoping for character arcs etc. but nothing seemed to change. There was the illusion of change in characters, but they still felt blah at the end of it. It seems the author is in constant battle to make each sentence as technically beautiful as the last, which means they all blur together rather than there being a few stand out lines which stuck. I'm so disappointed, as the premise was so promising.