chrisanegron's review
5.0
I absolutely fell in love with this. Was a bit of a slow start but then I got hooked. This story is so beautiful: struggling with where you came from, where you’re going and what home really means. Brilliant writing here. Polly and Deming in my heart 5ever.
katreadsalot's review against another edition
4.0
This was a beautiful, if heartbreaking story, excellently narrated by Emily Woo Zeller. This is a story about Deming, whose mother goes to work one day, and then doesn't come home. As the consequences of that play out throughout the book, I really appreciated seeing how Deming as a flawed and complicated individual, dealt with what happened and gained a measure of peace. It was slow in some parts, but by the end, I couldn't put it down.
tishreads's review
4.0
I really enjoyed this book. I liked the ambiguity of the characters - everyone had their flaws and there was no "easy" decisions. The author wrote in a way that easily evoked emotions and allowed me to envision the surroundings. I would have liked more from the ending. Not more closure, just I feel there were better places to stop the story.
xisamu's review
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
krubin's review
5.0
Wow, I loved it.
It was the right book for the right time.
So much about families and different perspectives.
It was the right book for the right time.
So much about families and different perspectives.
maryeverettb's review
emotional
hopeful
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
tnanz's review
5.0
I was completely emotionally devastated by this book. It has some of that Holden Catcher in the Rye flavor to it, where you just want to shake some sense into the narrator. But it’s also so desperately filled with fight which Holden has none of so that’s an inept analogy. I couldn’t stop thinking about this book when I put it down even though I was continuously crushed by it. It’s incredibly well written, very well structured, and just restrained enough that you can keep reading through the sadness. Oof.