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kapeace13's review
4.0
I read this book back when I was in junior high and I was in love with it. The idea of telling a story with the main character writing in a journal was what pulled me in. Other than feeling like it ended too soon, it still holds up pretty well (even twenty years later, haha).
lizzydennyreadsabook's review
4.0
Very triggering topics covered in this book but all the same very important to discuss with young adults. Read this when I, myself, was a young adult and it had a great impact on me.
sierra_color's review
3.0
This was a relatively short read, I read it in two hours! I liked it and would read it again, but.. to me, it’s just okay, and the end was a bit underwhelming, especially with how the character handled the feelings with her mom.
This was more of an okay read I couldn’t put down. I do wish that I could’ve gotten more out of the main character! Like, more memories with her grandma, more of what her life is like in the end. It’s more of just.. like a short read that explores the teenage struggles plus some, but it just would’ve been more interesting (and fulfilling as a book) if the author hadn’t held back so much. But at the same time I get it.. but also.. it feels a bit lacking. Just saying. Otherwise, it was a good read. Nothing great or amazing, just good and okay! So this has more of a 3.3 stars rating in my book.
This was more of an okay read I couldn’t put down. I do wish that I could’ve gotten more out of the main character! Like, more memories with her grandma, more of what her life is like in the end. It’s more of just.. like a short read that explores the teenage struggles plus some, but it just would’ve been more interesting (and fulfilling as a book) if the author hadn’t held back so much. But at the same time I get it.. but also.. it feels a bit lacking. Just saying. Otherwise, it was a good read. Nothing great or amazing, just good and okay! So this has more of a 3.3 stars rating in my book.
mdpbernal's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
3.5
tifflovesbooks80's review against another edition
5.0
I teach high school resource reading and english and I have very reluctant, not yet readers. However, my students devoured this book. They constantly wanted more. It is told by a 16 year old girl, Tish, who is basically abandoned by her parents to take care of her younger brother. She tells no one, but has been journaling but not letting her teachers read the entries. She lives in constant fear of being discovered and trying to pay for things with only a part time job.
A great read that I will incorporate into my curriculum for next year.
A great read that I will incorporate into my curriculum for next year.
remykinz's review against another edition
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
alifromkc1907's review against another edition
2.0
Read more at http://rainbowreviews.wix.com/reading free or on Instagram @RainbowReviewsKC
When Tish and Matt's mom loses her self, she chases after her abusive and thoughtless husband. But when Tish and Matt are left alone with no money or food, Tish decides to tell Mrs. Dunphrey.
You may like this book if you like the following sub-genres:
Whiney characters
Domestic violence
Mental health
This book couldn't have ended sooner - and that's saying something since it was only 115 pages. Without the cover art and title relevance, I would've given this book a 1.85/5. And that's being pretty polite.
As soon as I started reading, I was having flashbacks of Freedom Writers. It was basically the same story - except here, we focus on one student, rather than a classroom of students. The plot is all the same however. An english teacher assigns students to write in a journal x-amount of times a week. A troubled student will learn from their experience in writing and grow fond of the experience.
Having a story line that's already been done before, I was hoping that maybe in 115 pages, I'd see a lot of growth in Tish and Matt - maybe even her mom and dad; hell, I would've settled for growth in Mrs. Dunphrey. But I mostly just got annoyed with the whining. Wah, my husband left me. Wah, my granma died. Wah, I'm 8 and helpless. Wah, my friends are rich. Wah, wah, wah. The entire boo
k is whining. Nothing about this book (with exception of the direct domestic violence) made me feel anything for these characters. I basically was reading some kids' journal and until someone became a punching bag, I mostly felt as if it didn't matter. It felt less like a memoir (which I think is what you're looking for when you write in diary formatting as an author) and more like a statement given to police.
It was believable, sure. But, is it that believable that a 15 year old is the only one bringing in money (since apparently, all the mom does is buy a few groceries for herself every two weeks and wash and fold laundry). Not really. Is it believable that an 8 year old wouldn't tell his teacher that he and his sister are living alone? Not really. Is it believable that the owner of a fast food joint wouldn't take a sexual harassment situation seriously? I'm not really sure. It just felt like these were the extreme ends of any of these situations, and that we are relying on every situation Tish and Matt experience to be an extreme view. Nothing is of a normal experience. It just feels so dramatic that it's hard to believe that someone's luck is just really that horrible.
The entertainment/excitement factors really killed me. I have never felt so robotic in my life. Read a page, turn a page. Read a page, turn a page. It was just dreadfully boring, and with a novel that only has 115 pages and being set in an intimate environment, such as a journal entry, I expected this to be jam packed. I was more excited about the last letter/entry than I was the rest of the book. I was bored for most of the book.
When Tish and Matt's mom loses her self, she chases after her abusive and thoughtless husband. But when Tish and Matt are left alone with no money or food, Tish decides to tell Mrs. Dunphrey.
You may like this book if you like the following sub-genres:
Whiney characters
Domestic violence
Mental health
This book couldn't have ended sooner - and that's saying something since it was only 115 pages. Without the cover art and title relevance, I would've given this book a 1.85/5. And that's being pretty polite.
As soon as I started reading, I was having flashbacks of Freedom Writers. It was basically the same story - except here, we focus on one student, rather than a classroom of students. The plot is all the same however. An english teacher assigns students to write in a journal x-amount of times a week. A troubled student will learn from their experience in writing and grow fond of the experience.
Having a story line that's already been done before, I was hoping that maybe in 115 pages, I'd see a lot of growth in Tish and Matt - maybe even her mom and dad; hell, I would've settled for growth in Mrs. Dunphrey. But I mostly just got annoyed with the whining. Wah, my husband left me. Wah, my granma died. Wah, I'm 8 and helpless. Wah, my friends are rich. Wah, wah, wah. The entire boo
k is whining. Nothing about this book (with exception of the direct domestic violence) made me feel anything for these characters. I basically was reading some kids' journal and until someone became a punching bag, I mostly felt as if it didn't matter. It felt less like a memoir (which I think is what you're looking for when you write in diary formatting as an author) and more like a statement given to police.
It was believable, sure. But, is it that believable that a 15 year old is the only one bringing in money (since apparently, all the mom does is buy a few groceries for herself every two weeks and wash and fold laundry). Not really. Is it believable that an 8 year old wouldn't tell his teacher that he and his sister are living alone? Not really. Is it believable that the owner of a fast food joint wouldn't take a sexual harassment situation seriously? I'm not really sure. It just felt like these were the extreme ends of any of these situations, and that we are relying on every situation Tish and Matt experience to be an extreme view. Nothing is of a normal experience. It just feels so dramatic that it's hard to believe that someone's luck is just really that horrible.
The entertainment/excitement factors really killed me. I have never felt so robotic in my life. Read a page, turn a page. Read a page, turn a page. It was just dreadfully boring, and with a novel that only has 115 pages and being set in an intimate environment, such as a journal entry, I expected this to be jam packed. I was more excited about the last letter/entry than I was the rest of the book. I was bored for most of the book.
callierbattle's review
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
lee_hillshire's review against another edition
It's a tiny book, but really weighty. The ending almost made me cry in the car with my family, and I hate doing that.
itclouie's review against another edition
4.0
As someone who grew up in a situation much like Tish's, I appreciate the representation. This story was heartbreaking and raw. Tish struggling between school and work and doing her best to take care of her younger brother while always seeming to fall short was portrayed perfectly. Even now, my heart hurts.