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3.5 AVERAGE
3.5 AVERAGE
Sara Zarr, guys, amirite? She's just so great - complex, flawed, but ultimately likable characters, books that tackle issues without feeling issue-driven; clear, consistent, relatable voice. I think this is my favorite Sara Zarr book of the three I've read; she handles faith and religion so deftly. Just really well-done.
this book started so good but the end. it ended all to fast and the ending as good as it should have been. i did still love the first half of this book.
~mild spoilers re: type of ending but not actual events~
This was one of those books where things don't really tie up neatly at the end - they almost do; there is enough of a conclusion to keep you satisfied, but there is still that uncertainty and uncomfortable feeling. Normally, I am not a fan of those kinds of endings, but for Zarr it worked. The whole feel of the book was Sam's uncomfortableness with herself and being 15, etc. so it worked for me that the ending felt like that too. A good exploration of feelings that I know I had around that age!!
This was one of those books where things don't really tie up neatly at the end - they almost do; there is enough of a conclusion to keep you satisfied, but there is still that uncertainty and uncomfortable feeling. Normally, I am not a fan of those kinds of endings, but for Zarr it worked. The whole feel of the book was Sam's uncomfortableness with herself and being 15, etc. so it worked for me that the ending felt like that too. A good exploration of feelings that I know I had around that age!!
It is hard enough to be a pastor's kid for Samara, but when her mom goes away to get help with her drinking it becomes even more difficult. Sam has never felt apart of the youth group or the kids at school. Her father doesn't seem to be willing to talk to her about what is going on and even if he did she wasn't sure she would be able to express what was going on when she doesn't even know herself. When one of the girls from Sam's youth group disappears without a trace life becomes even more difficult.
I liked this story. It is a fast read and it is easy to become engaged with the characters. I felt for Sam, because a Pastor's life isn't always his own. There are always outside demands for his time. I was angry at her dad for handling the situation the way he did, but avoidance is the way some people handle difficult times.
I liked this story. It is a fast read and it is easy to become engaged with the characters. I felt for Sam, because a Pastor's life isn't always his own. There are always outside demands for his time. I was angry at her dad for handling the situation the way he did, but avoidance is the way some people handle difficult times.
This book surprised me in how much I enjoyed it. I couldn't exactly put a finger on it. However, the point is that this was one of those books where you try to read slowly so as to be able to read it for as long as possible. I also really loved the relationships in the book; Sam and Nick, Erin and Pastor Charlie, Sam and Vanessa, Sam and Pastor Charlie, Jody and Nick, Sam and her mother, Pastor Charlie and his wife. The list goes on and on, and I think that each of the character relationships were handled with extreme care, and written quite well.
Spoiler
I really liked the way that the relationship between Pastor Charlie and Erin was handled. I thought that not having the big, dramatic confrontation that the reader was craving, was actually a really valuable interesting way to go about that. I really loved Nick and Sam's relationship, I thought that it was a little unrealistic but heartfelt and touching all the same. On a similar note, at the end where Jody just came out of the woods, I liked that ending to an extent, but it was unrealistic. However, I think that it showed Sam's desperation really well and I thought that it was a good ending all the same. 87% overall.
While Zarr may have missed the mark for me on the religious aspect of this book, she does well at portraying what it is like to have someone suffering from addiction in the family. It’s mostly in the little moments, where Sam is remembering things like helping her mother put on her lipstick before going out because her hands were shaking too much before her first drink of the day; or telling her mom that the dinner party is going fine and everything looks perfect and making sure no one finds the spiked punch hidden in the kitchen. Even the portrayal of her father’s denial, his refusal to announce the situation to the congregation and not ask for prayers he desperately needs, is very real. There is a certain level of denial in an addicted family, and not just on the part of the person who is using. There is an unwillingness to admit to the bigger problem: our family is suffering because my wife/mother/husband/father/child is self medicating a mental illness we refuse to admit exists. Addiction and mental illness are a family disease, not solitary ones.
You can read the rest of this review at Notes in the Margin
You can read the rest of this review at Notes in the Margin
The reaffirmation of Sam's faith didn't work for me at the end. She was questioning through the whole book, and then all of a sudden, for no apparent reason, she's just sure that God exists, and that's enough for her. Even though all her concerns were never addressed. But then, I'm an agnostic. I'd probably recommend it to Christian teens who also like true crime?
I loved this book. Very sweetly written and an honest approach to growing up in a church but still not having all the anwsers. Many "christian" novels are so full of tropes and cliches that they are painful to read, but Zarr writes very naturally and makes these kids feel like real teenagers and not Jesus robots.
I would have loved to have read this book when I was a teenager. Even though my life wasn't as dramatic as Sam's, I still could have related to her struggle with faith and the ways that your parents disappoint you.