A review by snarkyshibes
Don't Even Think About It by Sarah Mlynowski
3.0
Don't Even Think About It opens in an intriguing manner: what if a group of high school students could suddenly hear the thoughts of everyone around them? Would this be a blessing...or a curse? The premise reminded me of Patrick Ness' Chaos Walking trilogy -- while he takes the idea into a dystopian direction, Mlynowski mines it for humour.
In Sarah Mlynowski's novel, students gain the ability to hear everyone's thoughts after they are injected with tainted flu vaccines. As these "freaks" discover others in their school with the same super power, they band together to help each other get through the initial shock, and ultimately decide to keep it a secret. There are some funny moments, and some cringe-worthy moments, too. The humour gets stronger as the story progresses and by the end, I was cheering for my favourite characters.
This is a light, easy read, although it took me a few chapters before I could discern all the characters. The reader is introduced to quite a few right from the start, but as you get to know them better, it's easier to tell them apart. The author does a good job of recreating the claustrophobic social atmosphere of high school.
The writing is clunky at times, especially when the (collective) narrators interject with thoughts on how they wouldn't have known various details at that moment since no one was there to hear the thoughts (but obviously they learned about it afterwards, since they can read each other's thoughts).
If you're looking for something quick and "fluffy" to read, this would be a fun choice.
Sensitive readers, take note: there is some swearing in the novel.
In Sarah Mlynowski's novel, students gain the ability to hear everyone's thoughts after they are injected with tainted flu vaccines. As these "freaks" discover others in their school with the same super power, they band together to help each other get through the initial shock, and ultimately decide to keep it a secret. There are some funny moments, and some cringe-worthy moments, too. The humour gets stronger as the story progresses and by the end, I was cheering for my favourite characters.
This is a light, easy read, although it took me a few chapters before I could discern all the characters. The reader is introduced to quite a few right from the start, but as you get to know them better, it's easier to tell them apart. The author does a good job of recreating the claustrophobic social atmosphere of high school.
The writing is clunky at times, especially when the (collective) narrators interject with thoughts on how they wouldn't have known various details at that moment since no one was there to hear the thoughts (but obviously they learned about it afterwards, since they can read each other's thoughts).
If you're looking for something quick and "fluffy" to read, this would be a fun choice.
Sensitive readers, take note: there is some swearing in the novel.