March Book Reviews

Review: The book Girls Like Us is very unique.The book is told from the perspectives of Quincy and Biddy, two special-ed graduates arranged to live together by their school. What I found unique about it was how it was written. The girls take tapes of themselves talking about their day, internal thoughts, and the struggles they face in their day-to-day lives. The book is written like how the tapes are supposed to sound, with some words being written like a transcript. I feel like it adds a little more to how the readers view Biddy and Quincy, and shows the differences in their attitudes. I like how the characters' stories are told as well-not all at once, but with hints throughout the story giving peeks at the trauma they have, and how the girls’ stories are revealed in a scene where they confide in each other. Other than the main characters, the side characters are also written well. You can see how Liz, the old woman who lives next door and kind of watches over the girls, sometimes makes assumptions about them based on their disabilities, but learns from the girls that those assumptions aren’t true, and can be damaging. The story deals with topics of assault, in the cases of both girls. The topic is handled well though, not only showing the emotions that Quincy faces after it, as well as how Biddy is still traumatized by her own assault years later, while still having the girls face justice and get closure. I do feel like the book gets kind of rushed, especially around the end, and could be hard to follow along. I would recommend this book for readers who like realistic fiction, and books that speak out about hard hitting topics such as trauma.

Review: This book is very interesting. The Proctor’s claims about secrets the 4 friends are hiding pulls readers in, making us wonder what will happen next. The characters are very complex-each of them has their own strengths and flaws. Many of them aren’t great people, and all of them are keeping secrets. I like the pacing of the book, how slowly each friend’s secret is exposed, and how this allows the readers to better understand the reactions of the other characters, as well as the victims themselves. The setting of this book, a wealthy private school, adds to the tension of the story. The main characters are both impacted by the rumors and their environment.  I like how the protagonist, Nancy, and her friend Alexander are affected by this, as they are both from lower-class families, causing the revelation of their secrets to put their scholarships in jeopardy. The ending is also very interesting, and shows how this experience has caused the main 4 to develop as people. While I do think that this book is not for everyone, I would recommend it to readers who like a good mystery and strong characterization.