One of the best fantasy romances I've read in a long time!!! SO GOOD!!!! One of the best fantasy romances I've read in a long time!!! SO GOOD!!!! ...more
This was probably a 3 or 4-star book for me up until the middle of it. And then the brilliance of what seemed an overdone smart-ass witty writing hit This was probably a 3 or 4-star book for me up until the middle of it. And then the brilliance of what seemed an overdone smart-ass witty writing hit me. Here's what I think happened: it was like meeting a weird stranger that keeps baffling you with his/her oddities--after enough time with this stranger, strangely enough, he/she becomes a non-stranger. As in, you know this person now. Thus, once I got over the weirdness that is Mary Iris Malone and the odd too-smart spot-on writing of this novel, I fell deeply in love with it. It now shone brilliantly, separating this wonderful novel from every other novel I've ever read. I started collecting bits of its brilliance in the form of quotes, like the following:
"I call it Mim's Theorem of Monkey Do Monkey Don't, and what it boils down to is this: it is my belief that there are some people whose sole purpose of existence is to show the rest of us how not to act."
In the same witty note of Mim herself I would add, damn straight it is. That quote will resonate with me for the ages because it seems to have put into the exact words a theory I've had in my mind forever. Aren't those the best quotes? Damn straight.
Or the absolute hats-off coolness of the dialogue in instances like:
"So--I think my best course of action here is to just, you know, let the ridiculousness of that sentence marinate."
Boom, indeed. Let me tell you this: if you feel like I did a few chapters in, if the oddness and wittiness feels forced at first, push on and keep going. By the time you close the book at the end, you'll be grateful you did. Very few times in life do we encounter books that resonate so very deeply with a generation and its readers. This book is indeed a collection of oddities and it's told in a wonderful voice that I will miss dearly. The characters, my God, the characters. They were amazing. The slow onion-peel of the plot, beyond amazing. Do yourself a favor and pick this book up soon.
NOTE: I would say it's for the more mature readers in the Young Adult readership. Also, I highly recommend the audio version, if you're into that....more
NOTE: Somewhat more mature than the regular YA, it includes routine use of drugs, casual sex and constant f-words.
Very well written, this novel is a pNOTE: Somewhat more mature than the regular YA, it includes routine use of drugs, casual sex and constant f-words.
Very well written, this novel is a portrayal of mental-illness and how it affects those around the mentally ill person. Emma's fresh and honest voice was very powerful. Her realization and feelings about her mother's illness was insightful and thought-provoking. There are very few YA books dealing with schizophrenia and its effects, and this was a very powerful exploration from an outside perspective. The only other book I had read about this specific illness was Schizo and it was told from the mentally ill's perspective.
I feel somewhat ambiguous toward the fact that some issues were left unresolved and were not really addressed further. But I liked the open ending. It was a quick read for a book with such depth. Overall, it will appeal to the older YA audience with an interest in psychology and it's effect of familiar bonds. ...more
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