I guess it's obvious I prefer Hopkin's YA. I skipped parts in this and that's something I don't often do. I seriously didn't like the last page or so of each persons part - the 'this-part-is-meant-for-you-to-learn-something-now' parts. That's how it felt to me and I didn't like the separation from the story, over and over and over and over again.
I hope Hopkin's doesn't switch over to adult for good. IMO she's meant for YA and it's meant for her. I'll cross my fingers and hope for more YA and less adult.
I hope Hopkin's doesn't switch over to adult for good. IMO she's meant for YA and it's meant for her. I'll cross my fingers and hope for more YA and less adult.
Let me start this review by saying that I was very skeptical for a book in verse. I hadn't experienced one yet and am not much of the poetry fan, so I started this book with some apprehension. After saying that, this is a must read. Although the topics are controversial and the subject matter can be hard to read at times, the fact that it is written in verse worked so well. I was given enough details to feel like I was reading a full book, but not too much, so I could use my imagination. Blown away.
Told from the perspectives of three women who are right around that mid-life crisis point and all are second guessing the decisions they made that lead them to the life they are in currently. I thoroughly enjoyed how Hopkins broke up a few poems for each character and it was all labeled, so I could easily dip back into that characters mind and life and wasn't confused as to who was talking. I experienced every emotion reading this book, from laughing to crying, and even anger towards these women who were making decisions that affected them and their families. The reality of the situations the characters were put in made the verse personal and enabled the story to hit me deeper than I thought it would.
This book can be read by those who love poems and verse AND for those who are a little unsure of this whole different reading experience. I am going now to find her YA books and see how they compare to this adult novel.
Told from the perspectives of three women who are right around that mid-life crisis point and all are second guessing the decisions they made that lead them to the life they are in currently. I thoroughly enjoyed how Hopkins broke up a few poems for each character and it was all labeled, so I could easily dip back into that characters mind and life and wasn't confused as to who was talking. I experienced every emotion reading this book, from laughing to crying, and even anger towards these women who were making decisions that affected them and their families. The reality of the situations the characters were put in made the verse personal and enabled the story to hit me deeper than I thought it would.
This book can be read by those who love poems and verse AND for those who are a little unsure of this whole different reading experience. I am going now to find her YA books and see how they compare to this adult novel.
This book was definitely a mind-changer. I'm not much of a poetry person, so the thought of this book being written in "poetic verse" was not very appealing to me, but the book was definitely written in a way that made it accessible in easy-to-read shorts bursts. By writing in poems, the author is able to include very descriptive, philosophical views on events.
Now that I've talked about the style of writing, let's get to the core of the book. It is essentially about people's relationships with each other. In telling the story of extramarital affairs, the author doesn't disguise any of the details, nor does she really condone or condemn the women. And I like that. It's good to be able to read it without bias from the writer. All Hopkins does is let us know why things happen, and from that, we as readers can draw our own conclusions.
One thing that I am not satisfied with is the ending. Nothing seems to really conclude itself. But, I also understand why Hopkins would choose to end the book like that; life is not that easy and problems do not appear and then solve themselves as easy as 1-2-3.
This book is amazing, it really puts you into the three women's place - their situations and their feelings and reasoning behind every action. Being young myself, I feel like I have definitely learned something about life and love by reading this book.
Now that I've talked about the style of writing, let's get to the core of the book. It is essentially about people's relationships with each other. In telling the story of extramarital affairs, the author doesn't disguise any of the details, nor does she really condone or condemn the women. And I like that. It's good to be able to read it without bias from the writer. All Hopkins does is let us know why things happen, and from that, we as readers can draw our own conclusions.
One thing that I am not satisfied with is the ending. Nothing seems to really conclude itself. But, I also understand why Hopkins would choose to end the book like that; life is not that easy and problems do not appear and then solve themselves as easy as 1-2-3.
This book is amazing, it really puts you into the three women's place - their situations and their feelings and reasoning behind every action. Being young myself, I feel like I have definitely learned something about life and love by reading this book.
