Author: Alikay Wood
Genre: realistic fiction
Similar books: Farewell Tour of a Terminal Optimist by John Young
The Pull of Gravity by Gae Polisner
Rating:
Summary (provided by publisher): Hattie Larken doesn’t know if she’s ever really been real in her life. A compulsive liar with a quick-witted response to everything, she’s willing to do whatever it takes to just skate through the rest of high school until she can graduate and escape it all: the mind-numbing monotony of this town, the guilt of everything that happened with her dad, and the debt that her mom’s dealing with that she feels responsible for.
But then Hattie finds out she’s dying. Not like in that overdramatic way that people sometimes say they’re dying. She’s literally dying. Apparently, she was exposed to a parasite because of a mistake her mom’s company made. (And no, the irony of that all is not lost on Hattie…) And she’s not the only one. Two other kids from her class also have been exposed to the parasite: Carmen, who seems to be totally perfect, with the class presidency, a loving family, and a totally beautiful girlfriend; and Albie, a quiet kid who survived childhood cancer only to deal with this, which feels like an incredibly cruel joke from the universe.
Hattie, Albie, and Carmen are told they only have thirty to sixty days to live. But instead of just sitting around a hospital and waiting to die, the three kids form an unlikely alliance to live the last days of their lives out to the fullest. Stealing and sailing a boat to Miami? Absolutely. Adopting the turtle that a random college student hands to them? Of course—they couldn’t leave Scooter to fend for himself! Sneaking into the sold-out music festival in town? You better believe it! And if Hattie just happens to find a way to raise some money for her mom through filming all their misadventures—well, she’s not going to not do that then.
My opinion: This is a construct we seem to love to explore - what people do when they know their time is limited. In this case, as in most narratives of this ilk, is a madcap road trip where the characters do things seemingly against their own natures. They take big chances, try things that they've always wanted, and get in all sorts of crazy mishaps. In this case it includes some truly odd details that are perhaps too strange if you overthink them. If you can roll with the plot as it happens it's suitably entertaining. There are certainly edifying messages to take away from it and it feels fairly tongue in cheek. So don't expect a real deep read but it is entertaining and has some reflection backing it up.
Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley
No comments:
Post a Comment