G36 Book Review of Nobody But Us by Kristin Halbrook
Author: Kristin Halbrook
ISBN: 978-0-06-212126-4
Publisher: Harper Teen
Type of book: 2000s, running away, horrible pasts, growing up, abuse, protection, violence
Year it was published: 2013
Summary:
Will
Maybe I'm too late. Maybe Zoe's dad stole all her fifteen years and taught her to be scared. I'll undo it. Help her learn to be strong again, and brave. Not that I'm any kind of example, but we can learn together.
When the whole world is after you, sometimes it seems like you can't run fast enough.
Zoe
Maybe it'll take Will years to come to terms with being abandoned. Maybe it'll take forever. I'll stay with him no matter how long it takes to prove that people don't always leave, don't always give up on you.
Characters:
The only thing that stood out about the characters is the speech pattern; that of Will using the "low-caste" speech and of Zoe using the "normal speech." Will is very protective and tends to have violent tendencies in certain areas. He rarely talks of his past and of his emotions. Despite Zoe's intelligence, she's a, well, idiot in multiple instances. She also is a helpless damsel character. Her thoughts are of Will and she commits many mistakes that could have been avoided. She also tells a little of her past, but that's it. If the two had a relationship, it was not symbiotic but parasitic instead. I didn't sense any chemistry between the two and the author tries too hard with the writing.
Theme:
Running away isn't as glamorous as you think it is.
Plot:
This is written in first person narrative from Will's and Zoe's point of views. The author, in my opinion, didn't really know how to balance reality outside the world between reality of Will's and Zoe's world. What do I mean by that? I had a hard time understanding where they were, as well as getting to know them as separate and individual people. Sometimes the characters blended into one another thus it was hard to distinguish. It would have helped if the author gave more focus to the world outside of Zoe and Will. As sad as it sounds, I was almost relieved when the book was over. (Considering the way it ended, yeah...) I also think that towards the end, the author just got frustrated with the story and simply gave up.
Author Information:
(from goodreads.com)
born
The United States
gender
female
website
http://www.kristinhalbrook.com
twitter username
kristinhalbrook
genre
Young Adult, Children's Books, Literature & Fiction
member since
October 2009
About the author:
When I was little, I wanted to be a writer, the President of the USA or the first female NFL quarterback. Despite being able to throw a wicked spiral, I didn't really grow to the size needed for the NFL. Then, as I got older and studied more, I came to realize there were better ways to effect positive change than becoming president. The first one, however, stuck. Even when I was pursuing other dreams, I always took time to write here and there. NOBODY BUT US will be published by HarperChildren's in 2013.
When I'm not writing or reading (which is what I do all day, in all of my work), I'm spending time with pixies, my Mad Scot soulmate, and one grumpy cocker spaniel; traveling across oceans and time; cooking and baking up a storm and watching sunsets and waves crash on the beach. I currently live, love and explore in The Emerald City, though I occasionally make wispy, dream-like plans to move to New York, Paris or a Scottish castle one day (if just temporarily). You can reach me at kristinhalbrook@gmail.com.
Opinion:
(If you are reading this on goodreads, my grading for this book is zero stars, not one...) I badly wanted to like this book. The premise is interesting, that of protection, running away and love between two teenagers. But too many things killed what should have been an enjoyable novel. The only thing the author does right is the distinct characters and their voices. Other than that, everything is tipsy-turvy. There is trouble between reality and the writing; seriously, making out on a highway is safe? There is no balance between the outside world and that of the world seen by Will and Zoe. Although the author tries to de-glamorize "together forever" situation by showing the real world problems such as money, gas, food, and so forth, some of it was ridiculous. Zoe, you are aware that pads and tampons cost 25 cents in those disposable machines, aren't you? Also, if you leave a lot of money or wallet with a waitress, won't you end up on news anyways? (on yahoo.com there are plenty of stories of people leaving huge amount of money for servers...) Unfortunately, a very poor and unrealistic as well as a boring novel. I kept thinking that the author was trying to convey this type of feeling when you're listening to t.a.t.u's song "not gonna get us", but the book doesn't live up to the hype of that song.
Quick notes: I won this book on goodreads.com thus this review will appear in its entirety on goodreads as well as the blog
0 out of 5
(0: Stay away unless a masochist 1: Good for insomnia 2: Horrible but readable; 3: Readable and quickly forgettable, 4: Good, enjoyable 5: Buy it, keep it and never let it go.)
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