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September Read - The War that Saved My Life
By Kristen · 52 posts · 232 views
By Kristen · 52 posts · 232 views
last updated Nov 08, 2016 01:53AM
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What Members Thought
Excerpts from my spoiler-free blog post.
It is apt that I am writing this just before Valentine’s Day as it is love in its numerous manifestations that is central to this novel. There is the love of friendship, the main one here between three 7th grade girls who have been close and committed friends since very young, vowing never to fight. There is sibling love as shown between the main character Bridge and her older brother. There is the love between parent and child that comes wafting through i ...more
It is apt that I am writing this just before Valentine’s Day as it is love in its numerous manifestations that is central to this novel. There is the love of friendship, the main one here between three 7th grade girls who have been close and committed friends since very young, vowing never to fight. There is sibling love as shown between the main character Bridge and her older brother. There is the love between parent and child that comes wafting through i ...more
My two favorite quotes:
"I'll tell you a secret, " he said. "Pretty much nothing is in the budget."
"Life isn't something that happens to you. It's something you make yourself, all the time."
Okay, three:
"Bridge knew why she was here. It's why we're all here, she thought."
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"I'll tell you a secret, " he said. "Pretty much nothing is in the budget."
"Life isn't something that happens to you. It's something you make yourself, all the time."
Okay, three:
"Bridge knew why she was here. It's why we're all here, she thought."
...more
When I read a tweet by Anne Ursu about Goodbye Stranger by Rebecca Stead, calling it both "brilliant and a structural marvel," I knew this was a book I wanted to get a hold of as soon as possible. I mean this tweet was coming from the author who fit Joe Mauer and the Snow Queen into the same book! That and structural marvels are about as rare as a windless day on the frozen prairies of western Minnesota.
So when Goodbye Stranger hit Netgalley, I put in a request for it right away.
I'm so glad I d ...more
So when Goodbye Stranger hit Netgalley, I put in a request for it right away.
I'm so glad I d ...more
No one I've ever asked wishes to redo middle school--and that would certainly be true of the characters in this book! Meet Bridge (yep, changed her name from Bridget after barely surviving an accident and a year of recovery) as she and her two best friends navigate 7th grade. Will their friendship, with their no-fights pact, survive boys, cliques, joining different clubs, boys, parental divorces, and cyber bullying? The further you read, the more they'll become living beings in your own mind. Ad
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Rebecca Stead is an amazing writer. Seventh grade is a hard time in everyone's life. Your body is changing, your friends are changing, your relationships within your family are changing and when you look in the mirror you don't recognize yourself. And Stead is able to capture this time in the story of three best friends who are loyal to each other, even as they expand their worlds to include other people and other interests. The writing style is superb as is always the case with Stead. I'm sure
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This is really more of a middle school and up book, but I adore Stead's writing, and she doesn't disappoint here!
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Touching story about middle school kids with real life problems learning important lessons. Some positive portrayals of teachers, which I always like. It's on some Mock Newbery lists, but I don't think that is going to happen.
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It's a nice little story about friendship and the value of being a good friend. Not as mindblowing as When You Reach Me, of course, since it's definitely in a different league, but still enjoyable and relatable. Rebecca Stead is one of the most consistent YA/ middle grade authors in this era. And the New York setting is always amazing!
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Apr 06, 2015
Maria Caplin
added it
May 24, 2015
Maria
marked it as to-read
Oct 15, 2015
Jennifer
marked it as to-read
