A review by coffeecass
His Favorites by Kate Walbert
fast-paced
5.0
Content warning: Graphic depictions of death and sexual assault. As well as pedophilia.
To say this book was hard to read at times is an understatement. I was sick to my stomach at one particular chapter and had to stop reading for a moment to gather my bearings. Jo is the type of character who you start out within a horrible situation of being the cause of a personal community tragedy (a refreshing perspective) and then it gets worse. Walbert does such an amazing job at writing from Jo's perspective, the lens of a survivor, as well as a guilt-ridden kid. The worst part of it all is that this story is very similar to a lot of girls all over the world who are put into a bear trap without them knowing it due to lazy, cowardly, and ignorant educators like Jo's headmaster. All that happened to Jo and Charlotte P was preventable if someone had believed. Master was an evil, manipulative predator but, those people allowed him to create a hunting ground. This book made me angry but, it also made me want to be an educator even more than before so that I can offer my students an open and safe learning environment, free of educators like Master. An important read for sure.
To say this book was hard to read at times is an understatement. I was sick to my stomach at one particular chapter and had to stop reading for a moment to gather my bearings. Jo is the type of character who you start out within a horrible situation of being the cause of a personal community tragedy (a refreshing perspective) and then it gets worse. Walbert does such an amazing job at writing from Jo's perspective, the lens of a survivor, as well as a guilt-ridden kid. The worst part of it all is that this story is very similar to a lot of girls all over the world who are put into a bear trap without them knowing it due to lazy, cowardly, and ignorant educators like Jo's headmaster. All that happened to Jo and Charlotte P was preventable if someone had believed. Master was an evil, manipulative predator but, those people allowed him to create a hunting ground. This book made me angry but, it also made me want to be an educator even more than before so that I can offer my students an open and safe learning environment, free of educators like Master. An important read for sure.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault and Adult/minor relationship