A review by drey72
I'm Not Her by Janet Gurtler
4.0
drey’s thoughts:
Janet Gurtler’s I’m Not Her is a moving story about a fifteen-year-old dealing with her older sister’s cancer. And if dealing with a life-changing (and potentially life-threatening) illness isn’t enough, Tess also has to deal with her parents acting like completely delusional dorks about it. (I totally understand that they were having a hard time with the diagnosis; however in my eyes it doesn’t excuse their leaving everything in the hands of a fifteen-year-old because they “couldn’t handle it”–they’re the adults.)
And then there’s school. School, where every one of Kristina’s friends keep asking Tess where Kristina is and why she isn’t in school (delusional parents didn’t want anyone to know). School, where Tess has to skip class to accompany her mother to the hospital for Kristina’s treatments (again, without being able to tell why). School, where Tess is now noticed (see above); and the other kids are making up stories about her and Kristina because they aren’t getting any information. Not easy for a freshman to deal with, that’s for sure.
I liked Janet’s portrayal of Tess. She’s resentful of all the negatives affecting her, and feels guilty for that resentment. She wants her life to stay the way it was, but she knows it’s most likely temporary, whereas her sister’s life is irrevocably changed. There’s nowhere for her to go with this, without feeling like she’s selfish. This is YA drama and angst as it should be.
drey’s rating: Excellent!
Janet Gurtler’s I’m Not Her is a moving story about a fifteen-year-old dealing with her older sister’s cancer. And if dealing with a life-changing (and potentially life-threatening) illness isn’t enough, Tess also has to deal with her parents acting like completely delusional dorks about it. (I totally understand that they were having a hard time with the diagnosis; however in my eyes it doesn’t excuse their leaving everything in the hands of a fifteen-year-old because they “couldn’t handle it”–they’re the adults.)
And then there’s school. School, where every one of Kristina’s friends keep asking Tess where Kristina is and why she isn’t in school (delusional parents didn’t want anyone to know). School, where Tess has to skip class to accompany her mother to the hospital for Kristina’s treatments (again, without being able to tell why). School, where Tess is now noticed (see above); and the other kids are making up stories about her and Kristina because they aren’t getting any information. Not easy for a freshman to deal with, that’s for sure.
I liked Janet’s portrayal of Tess. She’s resentful of all the negatives affecting her, and feels guilty for that resentment. She wants her life to stay the way it was, but she knows it’s most likely temporary, whereas her sister’s life is irrevocably changed. There’s nowhere for her to go with this, without feeling like she’s selfish. This is YA drama and angst as it should be.
drey’s rating: Excellent!