1.5/5 stars for a few funny lines. The grand scale of things is just laughable when compressed into a high school setting…the stakes have never been l1.5/5 stars for a few funny lines. The grand scale of things is just laughable when compressed into a high school setting…the stakes have never been lower. Idk, maybe social cliques were still rigid in 2003, but the way everyone reacted to Jake being a former nerd was just ridiculous....more
Sarah M. Eden, I’m sending you my therapy bills. I’m a mess right now. Please tell me Lili and Armitage end up safe and happy in the future, I will glSarah M. Eden, I’m sending you my therapy bills. I’m a mess right now. Please tell me Lili and Armitage end up safe and happy in the future, I will gladly read an entire encyclopedia-sized tome of their domestic life....more
3.5/5 stars. I received an eARC from Wednesday Books via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Disclaimer: This book gets major brownie points fo3.5/5 stars. I received an eARC from Wednesday Books via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Disclaimer: This book gets major brownie points for NOT KILLING OFF THE ANIMALS. I was laughing when I realized they'd all been taken to the bunker at the end of the book. Thank you, Alison Stine.
In all seriousness, this book discussed a lot of relevant topics - disability, global warming, community, brainwashing - and I think each one was handled extremely well. The entire book has gaps in the dialogue to signify when Thea misses a word in conversation, which I thought was a brilliant way to show how being deaf in one ear effects her relationship with those around her. Half the time, there was enough context where it was easy to fill in those gaps, but that wasn't always the case, and it was frustrating that Thea's parents had made her constantly work at appearing "normal". I'm so thankful that Stine, who's also deaf in one ear, didn't have Thea ashamed of her disability, even after being bullied for it and living her entire life without accommodations. Her deafness is part of who she is, simultaneously not defining her but also being an important facet of her life.
I have plenty of thoughts on how Thea's father conducted himself and his grand plans for "going back to the land", but I'll try to keep it brief and professional. Given the state of things as of writing this review, this subplot was infuriating, but it was supposed to be. Stine recognizes that there are more people than we may realize who live their lives this way: every man for himself, men at the head of the household, women and children subservient and to do as their told. It's such a lonely, harmful outlook on life, and it didn't even improve things for Thea's family the way her father deluded himself into thinking it did. Limiting media intake, the "homeschooling" system, only relying on each other and not trusting outsiders - none of that was for simplicity's sake, it was for control. Thea's father felt so powerless with how the world was evolving that instead of expressing this in a healthy way or going to therapy, he almost kills himself and his entire family by isolating them all on a failing farm, just to prove that his way of thinking is superior. It's so relevant that it's painful to think about, if I'm being honest. But I'm glad that Stine showed that the things Thea's father was afraid of weren't the bogeymen he believed them to be. Relying on community isn't a weakness, it's a strength. Knowledge is dangerous, but it's empowering as well. His daughter's disability exists, and it shouldn't be sidelined, it should be openly acknowledged.
Alison Stine has given us a multi-faceted look into how we can avoid a bleak, lonely future. I think that's one of the most important aspects, at least for me. She offers solutions and shows that change can improve the state of things, whether on a small scale or a large one. And with change comes hope, which I believe is sorely needed right now....more
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