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steelfern's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
had the absolutely wild experience of picking this book up, and then seeing the ya label- only to discover someone in the genre department lost their fucking mind. this could not be LESS of a ya book if it tried. this book is a painful exploration of the justice system, of poverty and trauma. the protagonist may be a teenager, but her life is not the typical coming of age story.
love u, anais. dreaming of you in paris.
threegoodrats's review against another edition
4.0
My review is here.
"We're in the middle of the universe, right now, right at this exact minute! Does that not bother you?" p.87
"We're in the middle of the universe, right now, right at this exact minute! Does that not bother you?" p.87
sdayleen's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
booksandbabble's review against another edition
Wasn't a fan of the main character or the writing style.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, Violence, and Cursing
novabird's review against another edition
2.0
At times I wonder, what the criterion are for labeling a book as, ‘Young Adult,’ does it have to contain contemporary youth content? “The Panopticon,” covers a plentitude of ‘youth content issues,’ from: gender identity and sexuality, pedophilia, compulsive masturbation, and bestiality, to self-harm of cutting, to violence from dysfunctional families to young offender violence, to rampant drug use and rabid expletives. But for what purpose is this type of content used?
In this case, the main character Anais is a repeat, replete offender whose mental health is questionable after multiple Adverse Childhood Events. If this was the intention of all the horrific content to expose the reality for ‘children in care,’ then it works.
However, it is up to the reader to try to define Anais’ schizophrenic type episodes from her paranoid internal dialogue. I am not sure the resolution of her mental health would be something that the young adult reader would ‘get,’ and that they would just interpret it as an ‘easy out.’ No, I am not disparaging the intellect of youth, I am questioning whether or not youth would have been exposed to the nurture versus nature debate that the resolution brings up. The ending affirms the idea of
As a result, the nightmarish content of the novel is overdone for the purposes of outlining the mental health issues, a narrower focus of abuse atrocities would have given the plot more solidity. Unfortunately, for me this exposé of youth issues was gratuitous, because many of the examples were embodied in tertiary characters and thus the motivation for their behaviour is not examined. What I also strongly disliked was the rampant use of ‘kamikaze cocktail,’ drugs presented in a positive light as a way of ‘dealing with,’ life and modeled by social workers. I think is highly questionable. There absolutely was no message of sobriety.
I almost gave this a 1 but for it making me think about 'situational environments,'I find that this book is simply a 2 for okay.
In this case, the main character Anais is a repeat, replete offender whose mental health is questionable after multiple Adverse Childhood Events. If this was the intention of all the horrific content to expose the reality for ‘children in care,’ then it works.
However, it is up to the reader to try to define Anais’ schizophrenic type episodes from her paranoid internal dialogue. I am not sure the resolution of her mental health would be something that the young adult reader would ‘get,’ and that they would just interpret it as an ‘easy out.’ No, I am not disparaging the intellect of youth, I am questioning whether or not youth would have been exposed to the nurture versus nature debate that the resolution brings up. The ending affirms the idea of
Spoiler
change or escape from a situational environment resolves Anais mental health concernsAs a result, the nightmarish content of the novel is overdone for the purposes of outlining the mental health issues, a narrower focus of abuse atrocities would have given the plot more solidity. Unfortunately, for me this exposé of youth issues was gratuitous, because many of the examples were embodied in tertiary characters and thus the motivation for their behaviour is not examined. What I also strongly disliked was the rampant use of ‘kamikaze cocktail,’ drugs presented in a positive light as a way of ‘dealing with,’ life and modeled by social workers. I think is highly questionable. There absolutely was no message of sobriety.
I almost gave this a 1 but for it making me think about 'situational environments,'I find that this book is simply a 2 for okay.
scmiller's review against another edition
I have a difficult time with contemporary drug-riddled books like these. They’re written too hard.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Self harm, Classism, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Police brutality, Addiction, Body horror, Confinement, Pedophilia, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Violence, Vomit, Drug abuse, Drug use, Alcoholism, Blood, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, and Sexual assault
emilylinman's review against another edition
2.0
Unfortunately the lack of a clear storyline really put me off this book. I didn’t find the main character very relatable at all; couldn’t quite work out what was really going on at all and just didn’t get into it. It glossed over some rather serious issues throughout and that didn’t sit too well with me either
celjla212's review against another edition
3.0
I struggled to get into The Panopticon. I'm not exactly sure where the story is set, but it does take some time to get into the main character's dialogue...it's filled with a ton of Scottish slang, which was very disconcerting for this southern American girl. To get used to it (I never really did), you have to understand the concept that words ending in "no" or "not" are instead changed to "nae". As in "cannot" changes to "cannae" and so forth. Tons of other vernacular too, lets me know this book wasn't written with an American audience in mind. But that's OK.
The main character, Anais, is beyond fascinating as a psychological case study. She's 15 years old but has been in over 20 different foster homes since birth. When she finally did have a steady place to live and an adult she could count on, she lost her. Anais runs around chaotically on a drug and sex fueled existence, and seems to commit crimes simply because she can. Her attitude is overwhelmingly negative, but inwardly she's introspective and imaginative. She holds out hopes that only a child who's lost everything in life can.
Once Anais began making connections with the other kids in the Panopticon, she really started to come out of her shell. People her age are the only ones she relates to and trusts, and with her past even connecting to other kids is a stretch. The other "inmates" are just as damaged or even more so than she is, and Anais, despite what all adults in her life think of her, shines in a protective role over her fellow criminals.
It's hard to know if the elaborate things Anais thinks up are drug induced hallucinations, products of mental illness, or just the result of a girl who has nothing but her imagination. Either way, I truly hope something great happened for Anais.
I rated the book a 3 because I feel like the title implied something that was never really delivered on. In the Panopticon, it's known that everything you do can be seen at all times. But if this is so, and it's supposed to be a rehabilitative center for kids, why are they allowing them to get away with so much? Maybe that was part of the "experiment", I'm not sure. In any event, I thought that the idea of "Big Brother" watching these kids was not developed at all, and this was a big part of what I expected from the book.
The Panopticon may be about a teenaged girl but it is definitely not a young adult book. The pages are full of sex, drug use, profanity, violence, and even rape. It'a a tough read, but worth it.
The main character, Anais, is beyond fascinating as a psychological case study. She's 15 years old but has been in over 20 different foster homes since birth. When she finally did have a steady place to live and an adult she could count on, she lost her. Anais runs around chaotically on a drug and sex fueled existence, and seems to commit crimes simply because she can. Her attitude is overwhelmingly negative, but inwardly she's introspective and imaginative. She holds out hopes that only a child who's lost everything in life can.
Once Anais began making connections with the other kids in the Panopticon, she really started to come out of her shell. People her age are the only ones she relates to and trusts, and with her past even connecting to other kids is a stretch. The other "inmates" are just as damaged or even more so than she is, and Anais, despite what all adults in her life think of her, shines in a protective role over her fellow criminals.
It's hard to know if the elaborate things Anais thinks up are drug induced hallucinations, products of mental illness, or just the result of a girl who has nothing but her imagination. Either way, I truly hope something great happened for Anais.
I rated the book a 3 because I feel like the title implied something that was never really delivered on. In the Panopticon, it's known that everything you do can be seen at all times. But if this is so, and it's supposed to be a rehabilitative center for kids, why are they allowing them to get away with so much? Maybe that was part of the "experiment", I'm not sure. In any event, I thought that the idea of "Big Brother" watching these kids was not developed at all, and this was a big part of what I expected from the book.
The Panopticon may be about a teenaged girl but it is definitely not a young adult book. The pages are full of sex, drug use, profanity, violence, and even rape. It'a a tough read, but worth it.
cmurphy808's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
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
3.75
k_f_c's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
This book is a gem. It explores the theme of children in care in a sensitive, funny and heartbreaking style. I will remember Anais for a very long time.