My Rating: 2.5 hearts
Thoughts on the Novel: With the rise in gun violence and the issue
of gun control in the media, it’s not surprising that Marieke Nijkamp’s This is
Where it Ends ended up on my radar. Then, I found out that Nijkamp is an
advocate of diversity in YA, and I knew I had to read her book.
Unfortunately, although This is Where it Ends features PoC and gay
characters, the characters lacked depth. Also, with the story being narrated
from four different viewpoints, it was hard to connect with any of the
characters, especially when some of their voices sounded kind of similar. Furthermore,
I didn’t like that the main characters were so obviously portrayed to be
victims; each had their own sob story, and it was apparent that I was supposed
to sympathize with them. I wish Nijkamp could have written This is Where it
Ends in such a way that I would have cared about her characters even if they
had trivial problems.
In addition to the four viewpoints, there were tweets, texts, and blog
posts from students in between chapters, which were unnecessary to the story. The voice, however, that was clearly missing from the story was that of
the shooter. Those involved in school shootings often have suffered from years
of abuse or have mental health issues – and that appears to be the case with
Tyler – but there seems to be some vital information missing in This is Where
it Ends. What makes Tyer decide violence is the best solution to his problems?
How does a loving brother and boyfriend become capable of so much cruelty in
such a short amount of time?
Although I felt that This is Where it Ends wasn’t suspenseful enough
and – as cold-hearted as it sounds – didn’t really care about most of the
people that died, I did like the ending. There’s a sense of hope that the town
of Opportunity will recover from the senseless violence with time.
This is Where it Ends was released on January 5, 2016 by
Sourcebooks Fire.
Comments
About the Cover: Its simplicity makes it eye-catching.
Hm. I'm with you - I think I would really want the POV of the shooter as well because, as you said, they often have had difficult lives leading up to their decision to pick up a gun. Sorry this one didn't work as well as you'd hoped Z!
ReplyDeleteI have this one on my nightstand, but I haven't been emotionally ready for it due to its subject. It sounds like it's trying to do way too much at the same time. I was worried about not connecting to the characters especially with shifting povs. I still feel like I should give this book a try. We shall see.
ReplyDeleteAh, well that's too bad. I imagine it would be difficult to write such a story, but I would think having the shooter's standpoint would be educational. Disturbing, but educational. I thought The Reluctant Journal of Henry K. Larsen by Canadian author Susin Nielsen handled this topic pretty well - no shooter standpoint, but it's told from the point of view of the shooter's younger brother and it is surprisingly heartwarming.
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry you didn't really enjoy this one - though that sounds weird to say about the book, considering the topic. I'm curious about this one but I think I'll see if I can find it at the library as opposed to buying it.
ReplyDelete-Lauren
I've heard a lot of mixed things about this. Your review matches what everyone else thought. It sucks that this isn't great because it had the potential to be fascinating.
ReplyDeleteWhile I am glad this book exists and that it is making an attempt at including more diversity, it's a little disappointing to hear that the author didn't include the POV of the shooter. I am thinking that would have really added to the story. I am not sure I am going to read this one.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the review!