(Excuse any white stuff on the book, that is just paint) Before any spoilers come (because they're coming), let me give you a little overview. First off: the cover. In one word, interesting? *shrugs because she doesn't know if that's a good or bad thing* It consists of a face (which I don't usually like on book covers, but this is okay because it's a drawing and not a photo of a face) with some scribbles surrounding it. It is written by Alex Flinn, who also wrote Beastly. Essentially, this book is about a sixteen year old boy who gets a restraining order from his ex-girlfriend for domestic abuse. This is one of the best books I've read in a while. I enjoyed it so much that it was actually painful to close the book, both at the end and when I had to do something else. It was very clever and well-written and I just couldn't believe some of the things Nick (the main character) would do. I would recommend this book to everybody. I was reading a lot of reviews on Good Reads and one thing I kept reading was that teachers would keep it in their classrooms or make their students read it because it is so well-written and developed. So if you're a teacher, this book might be something you would want to look into. The ex-girlfriend's name is Caitlyn and there is a sequel called Diva which is about how she is coping with the situation at a performing arts school. I look forward to reading it.
The review is essentially over, and now I just want to talk about what happens (which means spoilers), so if you haven't read it then you are not invited past the end of this sentence.
To all those people who have not read the book, shame on you. I just want to let you know what you are getting yourself in to: spoilers, spoilers, and more spoilers. In the court, when the judge ordered Nick to keep a journal of his experience, I thought that was such a clever way of letting the reader know what had happened between him and Caitlin. It was much more creative than constant flashbacks (I know that when he wrote in journal, his entrees were essentially flashbacks, but he was having them with and on purpose. It wasn't just a random recollection of memories the character decided to remember with no clear rhyme or reason). I looked forward to the journal entrees more than what was happening in the present.
I think the author did this on purpose, but my perception of Nick greatly changed while I was reading this book.At the beginning I was thinking along the lines of his ex-girlfriend being a little over dramatic. But as I continued reading the journal entrees Nick was writing, I started thinking, "What a jerk this guy is! I don't know how his girlfriend stayed with him for so long!" Which I really didn't. I just couldn't understand how Caitlyn didn't just stand her ground and say "Enough!". But I'm sure she had a reason, whether she was afraid or didn't know how to end it, or something else entirely. Towards the end, I could tell that Nick really understood what he did to this girl and he takes responsibility for his actions, which I like. I also liked that he decided to retake the anger management class.
So that's it for today. Did you like the little one way conversation I added at the end or should I omit it completely in future reviews? I hope you enjoyed this review and choose to join me again in the future!
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