Review: The Survival Kit by Francesca Freitas

Title: The Survival Kit
Author: Donna Freitas

My Rating: ★★★★☆
Genres: YA, Contemporary, Realistic Fiction
Published October 11th 2011 by Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Format Read: Hardcover, 351 pages
Goodreads/Amazon/Book Depository

Description from Goodreads

When Rose’s mom dies, she leaves behind a brown paper bag labeled Rose’s Survival Kit. Inside the bag, Rose finds an iPod, with a to-be-determined playlist; a picture of peonies, for growing; a crystal heart, for loving; a paper star, for making a wish; and a paper kite, for letting go.

As Rose ponders the meaning of each item, she finds herself returning again and again to an unexpected source of comfort. Will is her family’s gardener, the school hockey star, and the only person who really understands what she’s going through. Can loss lead to love?

My Review:

I'm not sure why I'm so interested in reading books about death and loss. Maybe it's because I've never experienced the loss a loved one, and so I want to know and understand what it's like. However, I don't think I fully understand it yet, and I don't know how I'll react if something that horrible ever happens to me. But I've read and loved a couple of novels that portray honest emotional responses to loss, and I've just added The Survival Kit to that list of wonderful books, because this novel is simply beautiful. It's sweet and I really, really enjoyed reading it.

I liked that Rose's mom leaved her a 'survival kit' to help her go through her loss and grief. I liked that each item in the survival kit eventually helped Rose during hard moments, and that Rose knew exactly when she had to use them.

The beginning of the book was really slow, the first chapters were like an introduction to either the objects in Rose's survival kit or the characters, but thankfully around 60 pages or so a few interesting stuff began to happen. Although I usually don't like reading slow-paced books, I liked how The Survival Kit took its time to talk about Rose and what was going on with her. I got to know her really well which is why I ended up deeply caring for her; I believe I wouldn't have loved this book as much as I did if it just gave me a glimpse of her life.

After her mom's death, Rose finally acknowledged Will, and the two just clicked. They realized that they understood each other really well, so they became good friends and then more than friends. But since things were going so smoothly between the two of them, I already knew that there would be a little bit of drama towards the end.

Will is an okay love interest. Well, maybe he's more than okay. I really like that he's mature and responsible, and I totally get why Rose is so into him. He's an amazing hockey player and he's got the looks and all. But when he did this huge mistake I was like:

How can you not care Will???

I really enjoyed the book though. The ending was so beautiful, and I love how the author listed all the songs on Rose's playlist at the end of the book.

Review: Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock by Matthew Quick

Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock by Matthew Quick

My Rating: ★★★☆☆
Genres: YA, Contemporary
Published August 13th 2013 by Hachette Audio
Format read: Audiobook, SYNC
Goodreads/Amazon/Audible/Book Depository

Description from Goodreads:

How would you spend your birthday if you knew it would be your last?

Eighteen-year-old Leonard Peacock knows exactly what he'll do. He'll say goodbye.

Not to his mum - who he calls Linda because it annoys her - who's moved out and left him to fend for himself. Nor to his former best friend, whose torments have driven him to consider committing the unthinkable. But to his four friends: a Humphrey-Bogart-obsessed neighbour, a teenage violin virtuoso, a pastor's daughter and a teacher.

Most of the time, Leonard believes he's weird and sad but these friends have made him think that maybe he's not. He wants to thank them, and say goodbye.

My Review:

I'm not sure how I feel about this book, but I think I kinda liked it, so I'll give it a 3 stars.

Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock is about Leonard, a teenage guy, who delivers presents to his "friends" on his eighteenth birthday, before he goes to kill his former best friend and then himself.

Leonard is a very strange character. He's pessimistic and sharp, and the way he sees life has made me think a lot, which I believe is the reason why I kept putting this book down. Also, he can be irritating sometimes, and I have to say that I really got annoyed with certain things he said. At first I thought he was being overly dramatic, and I found it hard to relate to his overwhelming feelings. However, I was also curious to know more about him; I wanted to know why he felt the way he felt, and to fully understand why he was so negative about life and his future. And when I finally understood, I truly felt sad for him. I think he is a very complex character. And although I didn't like him at first, as the story progressed he grew on me and won me over.

One thing I really liked about this book was reading about Leonard's inner struggle. He was determined to accomplish his mission, but I kept noticing that he was constantly looking for "excuses" to do otherwise. This fact was what made me think that maybe there is still hope for him.

The side characters were interesting enough, but Herr Silverman was the only one I ended up liking; I wish I had a teacher like him, but I think he's too good to be true.

The ending. Well, I'm not sure how I feel about the ending. <spoiler>I want to know what happens with the characters</spoiler> so I'm disappointed with how the story ended, but at the same time I think the ending was beautiful. So, like I said, I'm very confused.

The audiobook. The narrator did a good enough job narrating the story. I think his voice was a bit harsh, but it suited Leonard's personality well; it didn't bother me so much, and after a few chapters I got used to it. What I didn't like, though, was that I often got confused with the characters because the narrator's voice didn't vary much. Overall, I think it was a decent performance.