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wellreadrebel's review against another edition
2.0
I thought this book was pretty good, but not for me. It had a sufficient writing style, and a good premise. However, there were some things that prevented me from completely enjoying the book.
-The characters didn't seem to have that much depth to me. They seemed to be just there for the plot's purpose.
-The writing itself was a bit confusing, and the parts where Ben was thinking when other things were going on seemed random. I didn't understand until I reread the section a few times.
-The ending was so abrupt and cheesy that I don't think anything was even wrapped up at all.
All in all, it just wasn't really my cup of tea.
-The characters didn't seem to have that much depth to me. They seemed to be just there for the plot's purpose.
-The writing itself was a bit confusing, and the parts where Ben was thinking when other things were going on seemed random. I didn't understand until I reread the section a few times.
-The ending was so abrupt and cheesy that I don't think anything was even wrapped up at all.
All in all, it just wasn't really my cup of tea.
blueanika's review
1.0
I originally picked up this book because it sounded like an interesting concept. A guy who seemed "perfect" went off to war only to return a completely different person? Sounds amazing. But, when it came to execution this book failed.
One of the biggest issues with this book is that it is way too short. This book it broken into three parts "Before," "During," and "After", which is a really bad idea for a book that's only 160 pages. On to of breaking that, this book is told from mostly two point of views: our protagonist, Ben, and his girlfriend Ariela. Normally this isn't a bad idea, but keep in mind this is supposed to be only 160 pages.
Since this book was so short, the pacing was way too fast. So many events were taking place at the same time and too quickly. The characters weren't very well-developed and it was very difficult to care for many of them since we didn't get to know much more about them past the surface. This made them seem very one-dimensional.
I thought the addition of an autistic brother was great, but we didn't get to learn more about him past the fact that he has autism. Also, some of the events of the book were strange and unexplained. Like when Ben went home, he was only able to recognize his brother. Why?
This book sounded great, but it would be much if the story and the characters were longer and more fleshed out.
One of the biggest issues with this book is that it is way too short. This book it broken into three parts "Before," "During," and "After", which is a really bad idea for a book that's only 160 pages. On to of breaking that, this book is told from mostly two point of views: our protagonist, Ben, and his girlfriend Ariela. Normally this isn't a bad idea, but keep in mind this is supposed to be only 160 pages.
Since this book was so short, the pacing was way too fast. So many events were taking place at the same time and too quickly. The characters weren't very well-developed and it was very difficult to care for many of them since we didn't get to know much more about them past the surface. This made them seem very one-dimensional.
I thought the addition of an autistic brother was great, but we didn't get to learn more about him past the fact that he has autism. Also, some of the events of the book were strange and unexplained.
This book sounded great, but it would be much if the story and the characters were longer and more fleshed out.
martha_schwalbe's review
3.0
This was a tough book to read, I tried several times before I committed to reading it. As I read it, I was reminded of Tomas Young's War. I think it's an eye-opening read for teens who have a romanticized view of war.
bekahlee10's review
5.0
Amazing book, very real and touching. Its short but powerful, like the boy in the striped pajamas
beecheralyson's review against another edition
4.0
I realized that I can finally write about this one. When I read it last year, it was one of those books that stayed with me long after I finished it. I loved Ben and Chris and how it was through the sibling relationship that Ben begins to remember. Glad to have been part of the committee that honored this with a Schneider Family Book Award.
colefree224's review
1.0
A quick read but it took me a while to get in to the book. Once I started to get in to the story it became rushed and then just...ended. Not a book I would recommend.
amandathebookishlibrarian's review
2.0
I thought this was going to be about a guy who lost his memory living life and trying to remember whine was. Instead it focused more on the people in his life and his time in the hospital. While I liked how it tatted I wasn't a fan as it went on. I also don't think the title was he best fit for this book.