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A review by xangemtheelibrarian
Ariel Crashes a Train by Olivia A. Cole
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
It took me a couple tries to start this book. I just wasn't connecting with Ariel when I was physically reading it, but I desperately wanted to read this story. I gave it a final chance through audio, and I'm so glad I did.
Cole's narration of her own story brought Ariel to life for me. The way she reads the intrusive thoughts, the quiet, rapid-fire way they zip through Ariel's mind versus how she narrates what's happening outside of Ariel's head. The way Cole gives each character their own unique voice. I was completely engrossed from beginning to end. I think I ended up finishing the book in two days give or take?
I liked this book even more than Dear Medusa. Between her two books, I can see how she pays close attention to how race, societal gender roles, and identity play into mental health struggles. I felt for Ariel because I know women who slouch because they want to be small. Women who curl in on themselves so much their shoulders and upper back are rounded like a hump because they've been told they're too broad and masculine. I know women who developed eating disorders because they were told they were too fat or too skinny. I was one of the women who hated my own body and the number on a scale.
Ariel isn't just dealing with body issues and struggling to determine if she's a boy or a girl or somewhere in between, but she also struggles with her OCD. Her intrusive thoughts have her convinced she is fundamentally wrong somehow. She believes she's a serial killer thanks to all the bloody images her brain bombardes her with. And the things she imagines is rightfully terrifying. But I adore the way Ruby helps her: calling Ariel back, telling her to stay present instead of falling into her swampy mindscape, shouting out her own intrusive thoughts to help Ariel feel more normal... I love the genuine show of friendship and care for Ariel.
And as if it couldn't get more complicated, Ariel is having to cope on her own, without therapy, because her parents don't believe in therapy. There is something so ugly about the phrases "Well you just aren't believing hard enough," "You just didn't pray hard enough," or "Well I guess that means God told you no, didn't He?" And while my feelings toward religion are obviously biased, I appreciated the conclusion Ariel came to about religion.
There's just so much going on all at once in this point in Ariel's life. But that's just how life tends to happen anyways, isn't it? Everything crashes down all at once, and we either grow from it, like the seeds scattered by wildfires, or we collapse like a building set for demolition. And I think the biggest factor that contributed to Ariel's conclusion was the support she found when she allowed herself to open up to her sister and friends.
Cole's narration of her own story brought Ariel to life for me. The way she reads the intrusive thoughts, the quiet, rapid-fire way they zip through Ariel's mind versus how she narrates what's happening outside of Ariel's head. The way Cole gives each character their own unique voice. I was completely engrossed from beginning to end. I think I ended up finishing the book in two days give or take?
I liked this book even more than Dear Medusa. Between her two books, I can see how she pays close attention to how race, societal gender roles, and identity play into mental health struggles. I felt for Ariel because I know women who slouch because they want to be small. Women who curl in on themselves so much their shoulders and upper back are rounded like a hump because they've been told they're too broad and masculine. I know women who developed eating disorders because they were told they were too fat or too skinny. I was one of the women who hated my own body and the number on a scale.
Ariel isn't just dealing with body issues and struggling to determine if she's a boy or a girl or somewhere in between, but she also struggles with her OCD. Her intrusive thoughts have her convinced she is fundamentally wrong somehow. She believes she's a serial killer thanks to all the bloody images her brain bombardes her with. And the things she imagines is rightfully terrifying. But I adore the way Ruby helps her: calling Ariel back, telling her to stay present instead of falling into her swampy mindscape, shouting out her own intrusive thoughts to help Ariel feel more normal... I love the genuine show of friendship and care for Ariel.
And as if it couldn't get more complicated, Ariel is having to cope on her own, without therapy, because her parents don't believe in therapy. There is something so ugly about the phrases "Well you just aren't believing hard enough," "You just didn't pray hard enough," or "Well I guess that means God told you no, didn't He?" And while my feelings toward religion are obviously biased, I appreciated the conclusion Ariel came to about religion.
There's just so much going on all at once in this point in Ariel's life. But that's just how life tends to happen anyways, isn't it? Everything crashes down all at once, and we either grow from it, like the seeds scattered by wildfires, or we collapse like a building set for demolition. And I think the biggest factor that contributed to Ariel's conclusion was the support she found when she allowed herself to open up to her sister and friends.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness