Scan barcode
jellokites's review against another edition
5.0
What a great read! I was really questioning in the beginning if I was going to get into the book. I thought that the catastrophe that Ann, Peter, Kate and Maddie were about to face was not going to keep my attention, but boy was I WRONG!
I liked how we did not find out till the end about their child William and how they lost him at a very young age.
I probably would have had this book read in 2 days, but life's craziness got in the way! LOL
I liked how we did not find out till the end about their child William and how they lost him at a very young age.
I probably would have had this book read in 2 days, but life's craziness got in the way! LOL
jrc2011's review against another edition
3.0
Super fast read - "light" and more of a YA novel than an in-depth sci-fi/dystopian fiction item. First, I want to say that I enjoyed the book on the whole, despite the shortcomings in continuity and character development. I don't think I would ever want to re-read it (as I do with some really enjoyable books). It was a good quick in-flight read on a recent plane trip.
The topic taps into a really basic and primal fear of GERMS! Reading this in an airport meant I was looking at everything as a disease vector and I was really wishing I had brought hand sanitizer. I was finding myself very sensitive to people coughing without covering their mouths - eeek!
The writing style was mostly realistic dialogue and not much science mumbo jumbo -- she kept the science pretty high level and focused mostly on the internal fears and insecurities of the primary protagonists.
There were some plot holes and inconsistencies -- some characters and scenes could have been left out entirely and it would have strengthened the book. The "prologue" where the author attempts to set up the scene about difficult marital relationship throws in a possible suicide for spice that doesn't do much to develop the characters.
What was enjoyable was establishing the mother as very protective of her kids to the point that she would not answer the door for her best friend who wanted to surrender her infant to her because she was so worried about exposing her own kids to the virus.
The author repeatedly goes back to the death of the couple's baby boy (which seems to be an accidental death caused by his toddler sister climbing in the crib with a pillow to sleep with him and smothering him). The couple is on opposite ends of emotional needs -- she wants to always talk about who the boy might be now and he wants to move on. I find it interesting that the information about the sister having caused the baby's death is buried late in the book and there's no demonstrated antipathy by either parent toward the daughter for her part in the baby's death, just a mention that the girl spent some time with social services and was returned home.
For the inconsistencies -- for example, it wasn't clear how long the power was out - months? What about the gas? Why were they cooking on the BBQ and fireplace? Don't most homes have gas stoves or appliances? Blizzard conditions make even the most well insulated house cold in a blizzard and a gas stove could be used to heat the house pretty easily!
Another one that bothered me was the visit to the "mom & pop" style grocery store -- where the owner tried to extort more and more money for the grocery items and then refused to sell anything. This made no sense at all to me -- I don't think that any shop owner would be so avaricious as to turn down any payment at all.
The vehicle hijacking by an infected teenager was a bit weird too - if people are so hostile, why would you even open your car window to talk to someone? That was inconsistent.
And ... if 40% of the population was decimated -- who would have time to loot and vandalize empty houses?
The topic taps into a really basic and primal fear of GERMS! Reading this in an airport meant I was looking at everything as a disease vector and I was really wishing I had brought hand sanitizer. I was finding myself very sensitive to people coughing without covering their mouths - eeek!
The writing style was mostly realistic dialogue and not much science mumbo jumbo -- she kept the science pretty high level and focused mostly on the internal fears and insecurities of the primary protagonists.
There were some plot holes and inconsistencies -- some characters and scenes could have been left out entirely and it would have strengthened the book. The "prologue" where the author attempts to set up the scene about difficult marital relationship throws in a possible suicide for spice that doesn't do much to develop the characters.
What was enjoyable was establishing the mother as very protective of her kids to the point that she would not answer the door for her best friend who wanted to surrender her infant to her because she was so worried about exposing her own kids to the virus.
The author repeatedly goes back to the death of the couple's baby boy (which seems to be an accidental death caused by his toddler sister climbing in the crib with a pillow to sleep with him and smothering him). The couple is on opposite ends of emotional needs -- she wants to always talk about who the boy might be now and he wants to move on. I find it interesting that the information about the sister having caused the baby's death is buried late in the book and there's no demonstrated antipathy by either parent toward the daughter for her part in the baby's death, just a mention that the girl spent some time with social services and was returned home.
For the inconsistencies -- for example, it wasn't clear how long the power was out - months? What about the gas? Why were they cooking on the BBQ and fireplace? Don't most homes have gas stoves or appliances? Blizzard conditions make even the most well insulated house cold in a blizzard and a gas stove could be used to heat the house pretty easily!
Another one that bothered me was the visit to the "mom & pop" style grocery store -- where the owner tried to extort more and more money for the grocery items and then refused to sell anything. This made no sense at all to me -- I don't think that any shop owner would be so avaricious as to turn down any payment at all.
The vehicle hijacking by an infected teenager was a bit weird too - if people are so hostile, why would you even open your car window to talk to someone? That was inconsistent.
And ... if 40% of the population was decimated -- who would have time to loot and vandalize empty houses?
kimberly_b's review against another edition
4.0
This is a great pandemic read! Some of the things that happen in the book, like crazy hoarding at grocery stores, are things that are currently happening in real life, which made it much more real and plausible.
I really enjoyed Buckley's writing, and I'll definitely read more of her books.
I really enjoyed Buckley's writing, and I'll definitely read more of her books.
sjj169's review against another edition
5.0
This book was scare factor to the fullest for me. I work in healthcare and could so see this happening.
dilldaise's review against another edition
5.0
I loved it! I had never read a book with this topic and let me tell you it is hard to get out of your mind the question of "what would you do?"
impybelle's review against another edition
4.0
The Things That Keep Us Here is an exceptionally painful book at times. Not because it's awful but because awful things happen. There's just enough room left between the lines to imagine what would happen "if." If the pandemic we've been panicking about for the last year really did happen (although in this case it's H5N1) and if it was so much worse than we ever expected.
If you're looking for one of those epidemic books where you can't go three words without hitting a very long, very garbled scientific explanation, this is not the book for you. There's enough science to keep things rolling at the beginning of the book, but for the most part Things expects that you already know that a pandemic is the worst nightmare you've never given quite enough thought to before.
Instead, the book works because it focuses on how one family's world implodes during the aftermath of the avian flu. Simple things like grocery shopping or stopping to talk to a neighbor become far more dangerous than one would imagine and therein lies the hook. You're forced to stop and wonder what you would do in each circumstance. Would you continue to go to work at a job that would constantly expose you to the deadliest disease in decades? Would you pay nine dollars for a can of tuna or would you be the person who feels justified in price gouging to such an extreme? Would you let an infected friend in when they came begging for help or would you lock the door?
There are a couple of issues I have a bit of a hard time with in Things. When trying to explain this awesome (but horrible for my ability to sleep and then go to work at a job where people seem to delight in sneezing right in your face) book, I realized the shopping trip that made me so angry I was shaking (on behalf of the characters) happened... Day One. And I'm not really sure that people would degenerate quite that quickly on the first day of an announced pandemic. Day two, sure. But day one seems a bit premature, particularly when the general population hits the mall on days two and three. The scene is a good one but I fear it happens a little too early.
Also, when looking back on the book, there seems to be an overabundance of back story drama. On the one hand, it doesn't seem to be quite so much while actually reading the story. On the other, after it's all said and done, I can't help but think... that's an awful lot of crap thrown at them before the book even started. Was it just to push Ann and Peter's marriage to the breaking point? The way it comes across in the book, they seem to have just never really recovered from losing their son, William. Do they really need Alzheimer's, a probable suicide, and cancer all thrown in the mix as well? This isn't to say it's not realistic but looking back it does seem a bit like overkill.
Even with these small flaws that may apply only to me, I couldn't put the book down. I originally planned on reading maybe a chapter or two every morning after work but that first day I managed to read halfway through before I even realized what I was doing. The story haunts even as it races along.
If you're looking for one of those epidemic books where you can't go three words without hitting a very long, very garbled scientific explanation, this is not the book for you. There's enough science to keep things rolling at the beginning of the book, but for the most part Things expects that you already know that a pandemic is the worst nightmare you've never given quite enough thought to before.
Instead, the book works because it focuses on how one family's world implodes during the aftermath of the avian flu. Simple things like grocery shopping or stopping to talk to a neighbor become far more dangerous than one would imagine and therein lies the hook. You're forced to stop and wonder what you would do in each circumstance. Would you continue to go to work at a job that would constantly expose you to the deadliest disease in decades? Would you pay nine dollars for a can of tuna or would you be the person who feels justified in price gouging to such an extreme? Would you let an infected friend in when they came begging for help or would you lock the door?
There are a couple of issues I have a bit of a hard time with in Things. When trying to explain this awesome (but horrible for my ability to sleep and then go to work at a job where people seem to delight in sneezing right in your face) book, I realized the shopping trip that made me so angry I was shaking (on behalf of the characters) happened... Day One. And I'm not really sure that people would degenerate quite that quickly on the first day of an announced pandemic. Day two, sure. But day one seems a bit premature, particularly when the general population hits the mall on days two and three. The scene is a good one but I fear it happens a little too early.
Also, when looking back on the book, there seems to be an overabundance of back story drama. On the one hand, it doesn't seem to be quite so much while actually reading the story. On the other, after it's all said and done, I can't help but think... that's an awful lot of crap thrown at them before the book even started. Was it just to push Ann and Peter's marriage to the breaking point? The way it comes across in the book, they seem to have just never really recovered from losing their son, William. Do they really need Alzheimer's, a probable suicide, and cancer all thrown in the mix as well? This isn't to say it's not realistic but looking back it does seem a bit like overkill.
Even with these small flaws that may apply only to me, I couldn't put the book down. I originally planned on reading maybe a chapter or two every morning after work but that first day I managed to read halfway through before I even realized what I was doing. The story haunts even as it races along.
tabatha_shipley's review against another edition
3.0
What I Did Like:
-Ending. I’m glad I stuck with it. I appreciated the way it came out.
-Realism on the horrors that could occur in this worst-case scenario pandemic.
-Kate. She’s not the main character, but I felt like she was the most honest and raw. I liked her arc and I liked her spunk.
Who Should Read This One:
-If you like dystopian but don’t want the YA spin or the one true hero trope, give this one a try.
-If the idea of a story where the world stops after a major disease, I’ll recommend this one.
My Rating: 3 Stars. The main plot would’ve been a 4, the side plots bring it down.
For Full Review (including what I didn’t like): https://youtu.be/JhyVFi3TnN8
-Ending. I’m glad I stuck with it. I appreciated the way it came out.
-Realism on the horrors that could occur in this worst-case scenario pandemic.
-Kate. She’s not the main character, but I felt like she was the most honest and raw. I liked her arc and I liked her spunk.
Who Should Read This One:
-If you like dystopian but don’t want the YA spin or the one true hero trope, give this one a try.
-If the idea of a story where the world stops after a major disease, I’ll recommend this one.
My Rating: 3 Stars. The main plot would’ve been a 4, the side plots bring it down.
For Full Review (including what I didn’t like): https://youtu.be/JhyVFi3TnN8
anomie's review against another edition
dark
tense
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? Yes
4.5
ljjohnson8's review against another edition
4.0
H5N1 is devastating the planet and the reader sees it all through the experiences of one little family in Ohio. Buckley does a great job with immediacy; her reader can really feel the claustrophobia and isolation of quarantine, the backbreaking labor of living without modern conveniences, and the emotional exhaustion of constant vigilance. The breakdown of civilized society is slow and realistic, unlike many novels of the apocalyptic genre. She wrote a particulary effective epilogue, which added more to the story than a this-is-what-happened-to-everyone exposition. One last comment: this is further proof that my bird phobia isn't as unfounded as it appears. Highly recommended.