quippe | Entries tagged with annabel pitcher

The Blurb On The Back:

My name is Tess Turner – at least, that’s what I’ve always been told.

I have a voice but it isn’t mine. It used to say things so I’d fit in, to please my parents, to please my teachers. It used to tell the universe I was something I wasn’t. It lied.

It never occurred to me that everyone else was lying too. But the words that really hurt weren’t the lies: it was six hundred and seventeen words of truth that turned my world upside down.

Words scare me, the lies and the truth, so I decided to stop using them.

I am Pluto. Silent. Inaccessible. Billions of miles away from everything I thought I knew.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Annabel Pitcher’s third YA novel is an emotionally charged contemporary tale covering pushy parents, bullying and personal identity and although some elements didn’t work for me (the talking torch needlessly infantilised Tess, some of self-destructive behaviour and wilful blindness seemed contrived and I wish that she’d confronted her father’s poor behaviour), the bullying scenes and Tess’s hurt and despair made this a stirring and powerful read. I completely believed in Tess’s reaction to discovering that her dad is not her biological father, her decision to remain silent and some of her self-destructive impulses (notably her desire to be Anna’s friend). However, I didn’t buy her behaviour with Isabel (which seemed to exist solely to leave Tess isolated) or the budding romance with Henry (who is too idealised) and her role as a pawn in a teacher romance seemed contrived and a little crude (especially her refusal to acknowledge the same). That said the bullying scenes really resonated with me as did her reaction to the same (although I don’t see why she needed to be overweight) and ultimately, the skill of Pitcher’s writing carried me through to the end and really resonated with me.

Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.

The Blurb On The Back:

Zoe Collins has a dark and terrible secret that she dares confess to no one. But one day she hears of a criminal on death row who knows all about secrets. And lies. And betrayal. Desperate to confide in someone, Zoe picks up a pen.

These are the letters that she wrote.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Annabel Pitcher’s highly anticipated follow-up to MY SISTER LIVES ON THE MANTELPIECE is a love triangle thriller told in an epistolary format that’s won a host of awards (including the 2013 Waterstone’s Children’s Book Prize). Having greatly enjoyed Pitcher’s debut, I was disappointed that this didn’t live up to my expectations. The book revolves around a love triangle between Zoe and brothers Max and Aaron, which contains all of the contrivances necessary for the plot to keep moving forward. Unfortunately the triangle’s so skewered in one direction that it’s easy to guess who’s died but I also struggled to see what either brother saw in Zoe, who’s self-absorbed and more than a little shallow. One character’s skeevy behaviour (including sending out a topless picture of Zoe) goes without much comment or censure while a family subplot involving Zoe’s parental grandfather (who’s suffered a stroke) fizzles out without resolution. Ultimately the only thing that kept me going was the distinctive voice that Pitcher gives Zoe in the letters, which feel fresh and authentic while the downbeat ending felt realistic. It’s just a shame that the ending is then undone by the bonus final chapter of Dot’s diary, which is written in an overly cutsey style and tags on a revised ending that’s more open-ended and hopeful. Ultimately, I think that Pitcher’s one of the most exciting writers in YA at the moment and although this book didn’t work for me, I would definitely read her next one.

The Blurb On The Back:

Ten-year-old Jamie hasn’t cried since it happened. He knows he should have – Jasmine cried, Mum cried, Dad still cries. Roger didn’t, but then he is just a cat and didn’t know Rose that well, really.

Everyone kept saying it would get better with time, but that’s just one of those lies that grown-ups tell in awkward situations. Five years on, it’s worse than ever: Dad drinks, Mum’s gone and Jamie’s left with questions that he must answer for himself.

This is the story of a young boy’s struggle to make sense of the loss that tore his family apart.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

A tender and poignant debut novel that examines the effect that the sudden and tragic death of a child can have on the remaining family, this was a wonderful book that I found very moving and I think that children aged 11+ would get a great deal from it. I won’t be surprised if this book is among the nominations come awards season.

Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the free copy of this book.