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waytoomanybooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
The story is told from a young boy’s perspective, which makes the plot even more depressing. The lack of punctuation is a bit tough to follow at first, but then you get used to it. Because this is a sad and strange tale experienced by a child in novel form, I think the sadness will stick with you more than it would after reading adult Hamlet's story in play form. This is definitely not a book to read if you’re feeling down because it really has almost every sad trope you can think of.
It gets points for some truly beautiful moments of prose and for nailing the way a child thinks, feels, and talks, which is consistently strong throughout.
I took points off for the total lack of punctuation and lack of resolution at the end, which runs counter to the original story. Even a depressing resolution, as in the original, is still a resolution. I think Phillip and his mom deserved that much.
Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
greeneerie's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Bullying, Grief, and Death of parent
Moderate: Medical content and Murder
Minor: Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, and Suicide attempt
tiffyb's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This book is incredibly difficult to describe and was more of an experience than a book. I was 100% invested and can’t feel that this book deserves less than four stars, despite its flaws. There was a great plot, some intense moments, and we are left with food for thought at the end. In many ways, the author managed to capture several aspects of how it FEELS to be a child in distress. About 3/4 of the way through, it got heavy, like I felt physically heavy and had to put the book down. And at the end, there was a lot left unanswered, which to be fair, is not something I always like in a book (but I didn’t mind it too much here because I did feel that I had the general answers to what had actually happened.)
The prose felt experimental: I HATED the format- an eleven year old boy’s journal. It was intentionally overflowing with run-on sentences and bad punctuation and random CAPS LOCK and incorrect punctuation and spelling. But it still didn’t feel anything like what a real 11-year-old would write, especially as the boy sometimes seemed older than his age and at other times much younger. I originally found this voice to be annoying and quite exhausting to read, but as the book went on, I began to see it as a sort of poetry. I’m not sure if there was actually a poetic rhythm to the prose, but it flowed so well that I found myself reading as though I was riding the waves of Haig’s writing. Eventually, the writing style faded into the background, and I realized that it was more of a creative and poetic choice than an honest effort at an adult sounding like a child.
Graphic: Death, Sexual content, Suicide, Death of parent, and Murder
sweetlikesadia's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
📈 Lost Interest a couple of times
📈Couldn't get use to writing layout
Graphic: Bullying, Death, and Death of parent
Moderate: Murder
beccaattiffanys's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Moderate: Death, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury
laurataylor's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Graphic: Bullying, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail