Author: Laura Wiess
Publisher: MTV Books
Pub. Date: January 2, 2007
Length: 212 Pages
Summary (from goodreads):
They promised Meredith nine years of safety, but only gave her three.
Her father was supposed to be locked up until Meredith turned eighteen. She thought she had time to grow up, get out, and start a new life. But Meredith is only fifteen, and today her father is coming home from prison.
Today her time has run out.
My thoughts: I expected some great things from this book, mostly because Ellen Hopkins said "This is the first book in a very long time that made me say, 'Wish I'd written this.'"But while I was reading this book, I didn't see anything that really stood out or made me think "I really loved that." I had a hard time getting through it and even skimmed some parts because they bored me. I did enjoy reading Such a Pretty Girl because Laura Wiess tackles a unique subject that most authors shy away from and I wanted to see how it ended up, (the last quarter or so was pretty good) but unfortunately that's where my fascination with the book ended.
Meridith was promised nine years of safety, safety from her father who got sent to jail for child molestation. She was supposed to be long gone by the time he returned home, but when they let him out six years early for good behavior, her hope vanishes. She’ll have to endure being with him for three years, and she's terrified he will try again, and she can’t suffer through it anymore. But how can she escape him without the guilt that by doing so he will only go after someone else?
One of the biggest problems I had with this story was the characters. I give Laura Wiess credit for her writing, because I was so into Meridith's head that I disliked everyone she did, but I also disliked the people I was supposed to like, including her. Her mother's denial almost went so far that I didn't believe it and found it to be fake. The rest of the characters were unhelpful even though they were supposed to be wanting to help Meridith so much and cared for her. I don't know if this was because Meridith was a poor character or because everyone else was.
There were a few flaws in the plot that weren't very easy to ignore. But to avoid spoilers, I won't mention any of them. I had some of same problems with Wiess' other book, Leftovers. Overall, Such a Pretty Girl was an okay read, but I don't know if I would recommend it or not.
Rating:
 |
| 2 Moons |
Hm, what an interesting concept for a book. I agree that the author does touch on a subject that most wouldn't. Still, I think the book would creep me out more than anything. Great review though!
ReplyDeleteI love all of these book reviews that you have! I'm not sure if I would read this, especially when you didn't recommend it. I'm a classic literature kinda gal!
ReplyDeleteI actually really liked this book, although for obvious reasons I couldn't stand her mother and father. Thanks for the honest review! :)
ReplyDeleteThe summary of the book sounds interesting and sounds like it touches on a very serious subject. The cover is really pretty as well.
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry you had issues with this book. I kind of want to read this, just to see if I may like it a bit better, but at the same time I'm a bit afraid too.
I've seen this cover around a bit, but haven't really heard much about it until now.
Great review, thank you so much for being honest!