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Dear Charlie
Death should never meet the young. But it did. Thanks to my brother, death made fourteen new friends that day. Maybe even fifteen, if you count Charlie.
At sixteen, Sam Macmillan is supposed to be thinking about girls, homework and his upcoming application to music college, not picking up the pieces after the school shooting that his brother Charlie committed.
Yet as Sam desperately tries to hang on to the memories he has of his brother, the media storm surrounding their family threatens to destroy everything. And Sam has to question all he thought he knew about life, death, right and wrong.
At sixteen, Sam Macmillan is supposed to be thinking about girls, homework and his upcoming application to music college, not picking up the pieces after the school shooting that his brother Charlie committed.
Yet as Sam desperately tries to hang on to the memories he has of his brother, the media storm surrounding their family threatens to destroy everything. And Sam has to question all he thought he knew about life, death, right and wrong.
287 pages, Paperback
First published October 20, 2016
14 people are currently reading
505 people want to read
About the author
N.D. Gomes
2 books18 followersND Gomes is originally from Scotland, but spent ten years living in America working as an educator in the public school districts.
She has an M.Ed. in Education and is working towards an MLitt. in Scottish Literature and Creative Writing.
She loves to read a variety of YA and adult fiction in all genres, and is always on the lookout for a new book recommendation. ND Gomes has an enthusiasm for books, travel, photography, yoga, vegetarian cooking, and spending time with her family, friends, and chocolate Labrador.
Her YA debut DEAR CHARLIE and second novel BLACKBIRD is published by HarperCollins imprint HQ in the UK.
ND Gomes is represented by Silvia Molteni at Peters, Fraser and Dunlop
She has an M.Ed. in Education and is working towards an MLitt. in Scottish Literature and Creative Writing.
She loves to read a variety of YA and adult fiction in all genres, and is always on the lookout for a new book recommendation. ND Gomes has an enthusiasm for books, travel, photography, yoga, vegetarian cooking, and spending time with her family, friends, and chocolate Labrador.
Her YA debut DEAR CHARLIE and second novel BLACKBIRD is published by HarperCollins imprint HQ in the UK.
ND Gomes is represented by Silvia Molteni at Peters, Fraser and Dunlop
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 117 reviews
October 21, 2016
School shootings have been the plague of our world for far too long, and unlike diseases and natural disasters, they always leave us with someone to blame. We’ve all grieved with the families of those who were lost, but few of us stop to think about the parents and siblings of shooters. Dear Charlie offers a new perspective, a painful look into the devastation and shame of one such family.
Sam’s brother Charlie killed himself suddenly and he took fourteen other people along with him. In the aftermath, Sam is struggling to make sense of things, to reconcile the brother he knew with the person who took a gun to school and used it. No matter how hard he tries, Sam can’t remember any warning signs, anything that could have helped him foresee this tragedy in time.
Sam is just trying to find his place in his horrible new life. He can’t go back to the same school he was attending with his brother and he can’t reconnect with his old friends. He feels alone and isolated, abandoned by his community and his grieving parents. There are obviously no magical cures for such senseless tragedy, and Gomes captures this perfectly, but people can heal even in the most horrible circumstances and find peace and strength they didn’t know they possessed.
N. D. Gomes writes beautifully, and skillfully avoids being melodramatic. Dear Charlie isn’t at all about Charlie, and that becomes more and more clear as the story progresses. It is about Sam finding his footing and allowing his life to take a new shape, a more mature, wounded but recovering outline. Gomes delves deep into Sam’s emotions and displays all the anger, guilt, sadness and loneliness for us to see. It is heartbreaking, but also empowering, and it forces us to look at things in a whole new way.
Overall, this is a painful book, but worth reading and absorbing. It helps build compassion for those who are sometimes beyond our notice, especially compared to larger, more obvious tragedies. Even with his quiet, withdrawn demeanor, Sam speaks loudly of the things we might not want to hear, and his voice stays with us and leaves a permanent impact.
Sam’s brother Charlie killed himself suddenly and he took fourteen other people along with him. In the aftermath, Sam is struggling to make sense of things, to reconcile the brother he knew with the person who took a gun to school and used it. No matter how hard he tries, Sam can’t remember any warning signs, anything that could have helped him foresee this tragedy in time.
Sam is just trying to find his place in his horrible new life. He can’t go back to the same school he was attending with his brother and he can’t reconnect with his old friends. He feels alone and isolated, abandoned by his community and his grieving parents. There are obviously no magical cures for such senseless tragedy, and Gomes captures this perfectly, but people can heal even in the most horrible circumstances and find peace and strength they didn’t know they possessed.
N. D. Gomes writes beautifully, and skillfully avoids being melodramatic. Dear Charlie isn’t at all about Charlie, and that becomes more and more clear as the story progresses. It is about Sam finding his footing and allowing his life to take a new shape, a more mature, wounded but recovering outline. Gomes delves deep into Sam’s emotions and displays all the anger, guilt, sadness and loneliness for us to see. It is heartbreaking, but also empowering, and it forces us to look at things in a whole new way.
Overall, this is a painful book, but worth reading and absorbing. It helps build compassion for those who are sometimes beyond our notice, especially compared to larger, more obvious tragedies. Even with his quiet, withdrawn demeanor, Sam speaks loudly of the things we might not want to hear, and his voice stays with us and leaves a permanent impact.
October 21, 2016
This story was so hard to get through. It's not amazing. It isn't enjoyable or entertaining. It tells the heartbreaking story of what happens to the family. And it does so in a very real way. Sam isn't perfect, or sweet, or disturbed, he is normal. His family is normal. The media is despicable as usual. The society reacts as one would expect for better or worse. It's a sad book of misplaced judgement, but also of living on.
November 1, 2016
Blimey Dear Charlie was a heck of an emotional read. Seriously. Chocolate required – I give you fair warning.
The utter horror that encompasses a school shooting has been fictionalised a fair bit, Dear Charlie though I found gave it a particular resonance. Focusing as it did not on the shooters, or the mother of, or the victims families but on the sibling left behind who is supposed to what? Hate his brother now? Call him a monster? Sam is facing that having lost so much and through his writings to Charlie we feel every moment.
Sam faces himself as much as he does Charlie within the narrative, a new school, a new attempt to make friends in an atmosphere that finds him vilified and lashed out at for the most part. A bunch of misfit students might be his starting point but the press hover, his parents are falling apart and there is no easy road back from this tragedy.
It is utterly gripping considering this is not a thriller, I was completely involved immediately with Sams struggle to understand, to come to some acceptance. The writing is beautifully done and the layers of grief that you find are heartbreaking. A media storm is one thing but an internal storm is quite another, Sam has both and then some.
Completely believable, occasionally beautiful, always compelling, Dear Charlie will stay with you for a long time after reading it. Batten down the hatches and read this – it will touch your soul.
Highly Recommended.
The utter horror that encompasses a school shooting has been fictionalised a fair bit, Dear Charlie though I found gave it a particular resonance. Focusing as it did not on the shooters, or the mother of, or the victims families but on the sibling left behind who is supposed to what? Hate his brother now? Call him a monster? Sam is facing that having lost so much and through his writings to Charlie we feel every moment.
Sam faces himself as much as he does Charlie within the narrative, a new school, a new attempt to make friends in an atmosphere that finds him vilified and lashed out at for the most part. A bunch of misfit students might be his starting point but the press hover, his parents are falling apart and there is no easy road back from this tragedy.
It is utterly gripping considering this is not a thriller, I was completely involved immediately with Sams struggle to understand, to come to some acceptance. The writing is beautifully done and the layers of grief that you find are heartbreaking. A media storm is one thing but an internal storm is quite another, Sam has both and then some.
Completely believable, occasionally beautiful, always compelling, Dear Charlie will stay with you for a long time after reading it. Batten down the hatches and read this – it will touch your soul.
Highly Recommended.
December 19, 2016
Dear Charlie is the heart-wrenching story of Sam Macmillan and his parents as they try to continue their lives in the wake of a tragedy committed by Sam's brother Charlie.
How did Sam's loving brother Charlie commit such a devastating act? Why did Charlie take the lives of so many innocent people at Pembrook Academy? What drove Charlie to do this and then take his own life? These are all questions that plague Sam like a disease. Sam is left to deal with the consequences of his brother's final actions: he has no friends, his father is drinking, his mother cannot let go, he has to start in a new school, the hate mail, the graffiti, the media hunt. Dear Charlie explores the consequences of being a family member to someone who commits an unforgivable crime, in this case, a school shooting and mass murder.
This book is not entertaining. It is not fun. It is certainly not an easy read. It is, however, an emotionally charged read that explores human nature in many forms. As Sam struggles to move on, we see him come to terms with his own feelings: upset, anger, loneliness and finally hope. Hope that at some point his life can return to normal and he will no longer be looked upon as 'Charlie's brother'.
This book reminds us that in the aftermath of such tragedies, it is not only the victims families who hurt. We so often overlook the family of the killer that we forget how much this act has changed their lives forever. This book dealt with that so well. It showed the significant difficulties that Sam and his family faced and I really felt that they were very realistic.
This is a beautifully written, emotionally driven and heart-wrenching read. I would highly recommend this book to anyone and everyone.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my copy in exchange for an honest review.
How did Sam's loving brother Charlie commit such a devastating act? Why did Charlie take the lives of so many innocent people at Pembrook Academy? What drove Charlie to do this and then take his own life? These are all questions that plague Sam like a disease. Sam is left to deal with the consequences of his brother's final actions: he has no friends, his father is drinking, his mother cannot let go, he has to start in a new school, the hate mail, the graffiti, the media hunt. Dear Charlie explores the consequences of being a family member to someone who commits an unforgivable crime, in this case, a school shooting and mass murder.
This book is not entertaining. It is not fun. It is certainly not an easy read. It is, however, an emotionally charged read that explores human nature in many forms. As Sam struggles to move on, we see him come to terms with his own feelings: upset, anger, loneliness and finally hope. Hope that at some point his life can return to normal and he will no longer be looked upon as 'Charlie's brother'.
This book reminds us that in the aftermath of such tragedies, it is not only the victims families who hurt. We so often overlook the family of the killer that we forget how much this act has changed their lives forever. This book dealt with that so well. It showed the significant difficulties that Sam and his family faced and I really felt that they were very realistic.
This is a beautifully written, emotionally driven and heart-wrenching read. I would highly recommend this book to anyone and everyone.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my copy in exchange for an honest review.
January 3, 2017
All my reviews can be found at http://thebookreviewcafe.com
I decided to read this book after seeing the book advertised on Twitter and I’m so glad I did. As you can imagine a book that deals with a difficult and emotive subject isn’t going to be a light read by any means. The author deals with the subject with sensitivity and doesn’t use the plot to add shock value. Sam should be enjoying the best years of his life, but instead the sixteen-year-old is trying to deal with the fact his older brother Charlie was the perpetrator of a mass school shooting, leaving fourteen people dead before killing himself. I don’t feel I’m giving any spoilers at this point as it’s all in the book description.
If I’m honest I have never really given much thought to the perpetrators family up until now, when these story’s reach the headlines I always find my sympathies lie with the deceased victims families. Dear Charlie concentrates very much on the after mass, (so there are no graphic scenes in case you were wondering). As the reader joins Charlie’s family on their journey the author explores the issues of a family left behind, a family who are judged, ridiculed and hounded by the media, a family so fragmented by events you can’t help wondering if they will ever be a “normal” family again.
You can’t help feeling empathy for Sam as he struggles to come to terms with his brothers heinous crimes, he gets little support from his family and his friends have deserted him, this is a young boy who wants to be accepted by his peers and not treated like a pariah. The authors describe Sam’s feelings and thoughts with such conviction you cannot help but become emotionally involved with his character. I was surprised that the author doesn’t give the reader answers to what drove Charlie to commit such a terrible act, but in not going into great detail about the why’s of Charlie’s crimes the author encourages the reader to see the person behind the crime, a son, a brother, and friend.
Dear Charlie is not fast paced or action filled, so I would imagine this is not a read everyone would enjoy. For me this is a novel that is very much character driven, and one that deals with emotions of very credible characters.Sometimes poignant, sometimes heartbreaking this is a book that will provoke an array of a wide range of emotions. This is a fairly short read but don’t think for one minute it lacks depth it’s very well written and despite this being billed as a YA read I think it’s a book that’s well worth reading whatever your age. I couldn’t say I enjoyed this book due to the subject matter but I did find it an emotive and a thought provoking read.
I decided to read this book after seeing the book advertised on Twitter and I’m so glad I did. As you can imagine a book that deals with a difficult and emotive subject isn’t going to be a light read by any means. The author deals with the subject with sensitivity and doesn’t use the plot to add shock value. Sam should be enjoying the best years of his life, but instead the sixteen-year-old is trying to deal with the fact his older brother Charlie was the perpetrator of a mass school shooting, leaving fourteen people dead before killing himself. I don’t feel I’m giving any spoilers at this point as it’s all in the book description.
If I’m honest I have never really given much thought to the perpetrators family up until now, when these story’s reach the headlines I always find my sympathies lie with the deceased victims families. Dear Charlie concentrates very much on the after mass, (so there are no graphic scenes in case you were wondering). As the reader joins Charlie’s family on their journey the author explores the issues of a family left behind, a family who are judged, ridiculed and hounded by the media, a family so fragmented by events you can’t help wondering if they will ever be a “normal” family again.
You can’t help feeling empathy for Sam as he struggles to come to terms with his brothers heinous crimes, he gets little support from his family and his friends have deserted him, this is a young boy who wants to be accepted by his peers and not treated like a pariah. The authors describe Sam’s feelings and thoughts with such conviction you cannot help but become emotionally involved with his character. I was surprised that the author doesn’t give the reader answers to what drove Charlie to commit such a terrible act, but in not going into great detail about the why’s of Charlie’s crimes the author encourages the reader to see the person behind the crime, a son, a brother, and friend.
Dear Charlie is not fast paced or action filled, so I would imagine this is not a read everyone would enjoy. For me this is a novel that is very much character driven, and one that deals with emotions of very credible characters.Sometimes poignant, sometimes heartbreaking this is a book that will provoke an array of a wide range of emotions. This is a fairly short read but don’t think for one minute it lacks depth it’s very well written and despite this being billed as a YA read I think it’s a book that’s well worth reading whatever your age. I couldn’t say I enjoyed this book due to the subject matter but I did find it an emotive and a thought provoking read.
October 10, 2016
REVIEW BY BETH
Dear Charlie is such a clever novel. In the aftermath of an awful tragedy we get to look at the world in a new light, from the perspective of those left behind. Sam’s brother is murderer and he is also dead. Charlie killed fourteen people in his school and then himself and Sam and his family are left trying to make sense of how and why. Gomes’ idea to look at things from this perspective is fascinating and Sam is a great character who goes through almost every emotion imaginable.
Forced to go to a new school and trying to keep a low profile Sam finds people who will accept him, or at least seem to. He is trying to stay above water and handle living without Charlie as well as living with all of the backlash that comes with having a brother who could commit such an atrocity. The family receive death threats, bricks through the window and struggle to cope. This comes at a time where they need to grieve for Charlie too, because he is still theirs despite everything.
This novel makes even the hardest most impossible situations seem like they can be handled. It will be hard but people have to make it through and it does have a surprising feel-good edge which was definitely unexpected.
The character development and growth in this novel is what makes it stand out. As I said Sam goes through practically every emotion you could imagine whilst still trying to handle all the regular feelings you feel at sixteen years old. It is a very emotional book as Sam attempts to rebuild relationships with his parents, find an outlet for his feelings with his therapist and show his new friends he is just like them, that he isn’t Charlie.
Gomes gets deep inside the mind of her characters and makes them fascinating to read about. I think it could have helped to have a little more input from the side of the victim’s families and perhaps their brothers and sisters (a dual narrative could have worked here with a sibling of one of the victims set against Sam’s story) but on the whole it is a wonderful book.
Dear Charlie is such a clever novel. In the aftermath of an awful tragedy we get to look at the world in a new light, from the perspective of those left behind. Sam’s brother is murderer and he is also dead. Charlie killed fourteen people in his school and then himself and Sam and his family are left trying to make sense of how and why. Gomes’ idea to look at things from this perspective is fascinating and Sam is a great character who goes through almost every emotion imaginable.
Forced to go to a new school and trying to keep a low profile Sam finds people who will accept him, or at least seem to. He is trying to stay above water and handle living without Charlie as well as living with all of the backlash that comes with having a brother who could commit such an atrocity. The family receive death threats, bricks through the window and struggle to cope. This comes at a time where they need to grieve for Charlie too, because he is still theirs despite everything.
This novel makes even the hardest most impossible situations seem like they can be handled. It will be hard but people have to make it through and it does have a surprising feel-good edge which was definitely unexpected.
The character development and growth in this novel is what makes it stand out. As I said Sam goes through practically every emotion you could imagine whilst still trying to handle all the regular feelings you feel at sixteen years old. It is a very emotional book as Sam attempts to rebuild relationships with his parents, find an outlet for his feelings with his therapist and show his new friends he is just like them, that he isn’t Charlie.
Gomes gets deep inside the mind of her characters and makes them fascinating to read about. I think it could have helped to have a little more input from the side of the victim’s families and perhaps their brothers and sisters (a dual narrative could have worked here with a sibling of one of the victims set against Sam’s story) but on the whole it is a wonderful book.
July 20, 2023
3.5 I would have preferred no romantic relationship as it felt superficial and pointless, just extra unneeded drama. I would have preferred more focus on Sam's friendship with Dougie instead. This was definitely a middle grade novel but nevertheless I enjoyed it and cried my eyes out multiple times. A refreshing and thought-provoking take on the aftermath of a school shooting and it's effects on the shooters' family.
October 17, 2016
School shootings are a sad phenomenon of our time and have been the subject of numerous YA novels in the past years. I’ve read two of those, Matthew Quick’s
Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock
and Marieke Nijkamp’s
This is Where It Ends
. Both are gripping, emotional novels, each dealing with different points of view on the matter. Quick’s book is written from the point of view of the shooter, while Nijkamp’s novel shows us differing perspectives of teens involved in a school shooting. Dear Charlie takes a very different tack, though its story is equally compelling and emotional. N.D. Gomes focuses her novel on the aftermath of a school shooting and what happens to the family of the culprit.
What sets Dear Charlie apart from many narratives featuring school shootings is its UK setting, instead of the more common US setting. I’d never heard of school shootings in the UK and some quick research revealed that there haven’t actually been any school shootings in which a student was the shooter, though the 1996 Dunblane shootings did kill 16 primary school students. What made the story even more effective to me, was the fact that it was set in 1996, the year in which I was 16/17 and so would have been the same age as Sam and the friends he makes at his new school could have been more extreme version of my friends—we weren’t quite goth or ego, but we were close. Gomes evokes the era very well, both through music and other pop culture phenomenons. Every chapter heading is a song from that time and it could have served as a playlist for my last year of grammar school.
Dear Charlie’s narrative is powerful due to the close focus on Sam. Sam is shown in all his facets, sometimes he can be a jerk, but he is loveable and his utter bewilderment at the predicament he’s found himself is heartbreaking. The cognitive dissonance between ‘his’ Charlie and the Charlie shown in the media and Sam’s struggle to make sense of this disparity is at the heart of the story. As is Sam’s difficulty in coming to terms with what happened and what it means to his life. Because while he not only lost his brother and schoolmates and teachers, he has also lost his place in his community. The family is harassed by people on the street, their house vandalised, and generally shunned by their community. When Sam has to move schools to a school a village over, he is shunned and bullied by his class mates, only finding acceptance among a small group of outsiders.
And while Sam is trying to cope with all of the above, he also has to deal with all of the usual teenage stuff, such as falling in love, trying to figure out how to fit into a new group of friends, and navigating the generally choppy waters of the last year of secondary education. I loved his group of friends. Izzy, Dougie, Worm, Max, and Debbie form a safety net for Sam, though this isn’t without its troubles either. The slowly growing attraction between Sam and Izzy created ripples in the group’s dynamic that soon turn into waves that topple Sam over. I really liked how Gomes played this out and the final resolution to how the group fits together.
Another interesting element of the narrative is Sam’s relationship with his parents and their relationship to each other. We witness the breakdown of Sam’s parents’ marriage and their coping (or not coping) with what happened to Charlie. Sam’s feelings of isolation in his own home and the complete shutdown of communications between the three of them were painful to read, but felt so true, that when occasionally they do seem to reach each other it feels like a ray of light in the darkness.
Dear Charlie is a heart-breaking book that ends on hope. We follow Sam to the depths of his grief and confusion, but we also see him climb out of them with the help of his friends and his therapist, whose role I loved. It is a searingly emotional book, but one that’s lightened by Sam’s dark sense of humour. I loved this book, for Sam and for its unconventional look at the aftermath of a school shooting. Dear Charlie is N.D. Gomes’ debut YA novel, but hopefully not her last because I greatly enjoyed her writing. Highly recommended.
This book was provided for review by the publisher.
What sets Dear Charlie apart from many narratives featuring school shootings is its UK setting, instead of the more common US setting. I’d never heard of school shootings in the UK and some quick research revealed that there haven’t actually been any school shootings in which a student was the shooter, though the 1996 Dunblane shootings did kill 16 primary school students. What made the story even more effective to me, was the fact that it was set in 1996, the year in which I was 16/17 and so would have been the same age as Sam and the friends he makes at his new school could have been more extreme version of my friends—we weren’t quite goth or ego, but we were close. Gomes evokes the era very well, both through music and other pop culture phenomenons. Every chapter heading is a song from that time and it could have served as a playlist for my last year of grammar school.
Dear Charlie’s narrative is powerful due to the close focus on Sam. Sam is shown in all his facets, sometimes he can be a jerk, but he is loveable and his utter bewilderment at the predicament he’s found himself is heartbreaking. The cognitive dissonance between ‘his’ Charlie and the Charlie shown in the media and Sam’s struggle to make sense of this disparity is at the heart of the story. As is Sam’s difficulty in coming to terms with what happened and what it means to his life. Because while he not only lost his brother and schoolmates and teachers, he has also lost his place in his community. The family is harassed by people on the street, their house vandalised, and generally shunned by their community. When Sam has to move schools to a school a village over, he is shunned and bullied by his class mates, only finding acceptance among a small group of outsiders.
And while Sam is trying to cope with all of the above, he also has to deal with all of the usual teenage stuff, such as falling in love, trying to figure out how to fit into a new group of friends, and navigating the generally choppy waters of the last year of secondary education. I loved his group of friends. Izzy, Dougie, Worm, Max, and Debbie form a safety net for Sam, though this isn’t without its troubles either. The slowly growing attraction between Sam and Izzy created ripples in the group’s dynamic that soon turn into waves that topple Sam over. I really liked how Gomes played this out and the final resolution to how the group fits together.
Another interesting element of the narrative is Sam’s relationship with his parents and their relationship to each other. We witness the breakdown of Sam’s parents’ marriage and their coping (or not coping) with what happened to Charlie. Sam’s feelings of isolation in his own home and the complete shutdown of communications between the three of them were painful to read, but felt so true, that when occasionally they do seem to reach each other it feels like a ray of light in the darkness.
Dear Charlie is a heart-breaking book that ends on hope. We follow Sam to the depths of his grief and confusion, but we also see him climb out of them with the help of his friends and his therapist, whose role I loved. It is a searingly emotional book, but one that’s lightened by Sam’s dark sense of humour. I loved this book, for Sam and for its unconventional look at the aftermath of a school shooting. Dear Charlie is N.D. Gomes’ debut YA novel, but hopefully not her last because I greatly enjoyed her writing. Highly recommended.
This book was provided for review by the publisher.
October 17, 2016
3.5 Stars
I received a free digital copy from the author/publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest feedback.
In Dear Charlie, sixteen-year-old Sam is trying to deal with the fact his older brother Charlie was the perpetrator of a mass school shooting, leaving fourteen people dead before killing himself. This story follows Sam’s path to attempting to understand his brother’s action and forgiving him.
This is a very emotional and for the most part a very well-told story. Sam is the type of kid you want to take under your wing - he’s quiet and shy on normal days and now in the wake of the terrible acts committed by his brother he’s left to deal with the fallout of that and accepting the hate that’s thrown at his family for Charlie’s actions. There were parts of this book that had me choking back tears simply for the fact that I felt SO MUCH for Sam. I needed to hug him and tell him everything was okay.
I really loved that this novel focused so little on Charlie and the past events and events that led up to the shooting but mostly focused on Sam and the family as they dealt with the mess left behind. When these kind of massacres happen, there are social profiles and every aspect of the killer’s life is broadcast and analysed including who the parent were and how they raised the child - but I can’t remember specific incidents when I heard or even thought about a shooter’s innocent sibling. A sibling that still needs to just be a normal teenager and make friends, go to dances and kiss people they fancy. Sam let us see what it would be like for someone like that. He took on a huge part of the guilt for Charlie’s actions and seemed to think it was okay he be punished for what his brother did and for something he didn’t see coming or control. And not only that but Sam is left dealing with his parent’s grief and their growing hatred and misunderstanding of each other. This kid just had so much on his plate. There is also the fact that in between everything Sam also had to learn how to grieve for his brother, who no matter what he did, he still loved.
“She hugged me tightly and it was then that I realised that no one had ever acknowledged my brother’s death. They talked of his actions, his troubles, the monsters inside his head. But they never talked about his death, or my family’s loss. My brother was dead and he was never coming back. Yes, I mourned him. Yes, I missed him. And I was sick of being ashamed of that."
The bad sides of this story would be that once Sam fell in with Dougie, Izzy and friends, I basically felt like the story turned into another Perks of Being a Wallflower. From Sam feeling ‘saved’ by the group of friends and then completely lost when they turn their back on him to how his crush on Izzy develops and played out, I felt like Sam turned into Perks’ Charlie. There were just too many similarities for me.
Overall though, I liked this book and it was a fast-paced read and kept me gripped till the end. And as I said, all the hugs for Sam!
I received a free digital copy from the author/publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest feedback.
In Dear Charlie, sixteen-year-old Sam is trying to deal with the fact his older brother Charlie was the perpetrator of a mass school shooting, leaving fourteen people dead before killing himself. This story follows Sam’s path to attempting to understand his brother’s action and forgiving him.
This is a very emotional and for the most part a very well-told story. Sam is the type of kid you want to take under your wing - he’s quiet and shy on normal days and now in the wake of the terrible acts committed by his brother he’s left to deal with the fallout of that and accepting the hate that’s thrown at his family for Charlie’s actions. There were parts of this book that had me choking back tears simply for the fact that I felt SO MUCH for Sam. I needed to hug him and tell him everything was okay.
I really loved that this novel focused so little on Charlie and the past events and events that led up to the shooting but mostly focused on Sam and the family as they dealt with the mess left behind. When these kind of massacres happen, there are social profiles and every aspect of the killer’s life is broadcast and analysed including who the parent were and how they raised the child - but I can’t remember specific incidents when I heard or even thought about a shooter’s innocent sibling. A sibling that still needs to just be a normal teenager and make friends, go to dances and kiss people they fancy. Sam let us see what it would be like for someone like that. He took on a huge part of the guilt for Charlie’s actions and seemed to think it was okay he be punished for what his brother did and for something he didn’t see coming or control. And not only that but Sam is left dealing with his parent’s grief and their growing hatred and misunderstanding of each other. This kid just had so much on his plate. There is also the fact that in between everything Sam also had to learn how to grieve for his brother, who no matter what he did, he still loved.
“She hugged me tightly and it was then that I realised that no one had ever acknowledged my brother’s death. They talked of his actions, his troubles, the monsters inside his head. But they never talked about his death, or my family’s loss. My brother was dead and he was never coming back. Yes, I mourned him. Yes, I missed him. And I was sick of being ashamed of that."
The bad sides of this story would be that once Sam fell in with Dougie, Izzy and friends, I basically felt like the story turned into another Perks of Being a Wallflower. From Sam feeling ‘saved’ by the group of friends and then completely lost when they turn their back on him to how his crush on Izzy develops and played out, I felt like Sam turned into Perks’ Charlie. There were just too many similarities for me.
Overall though, I liked this book and it was a fast-paced read and kept me gripped till the end. And as I said, all the hugs for Sam!
June 26, 2022
Dear Charlie was an okay book. i understand what the writer was trying to portray with it. school shootings are an interesting (and mostly, misunderstood) phenomenon. many people have their ideas as to why someone would commit mass murder and wonder what factors could have possibly played a significant role to trigger the person. this book isn't meant to explain as to why the particular shooting happened. instead, it focuses mainly on the aftermath of the incident and how the family of the shooter has to deal with all the backlash and unwanted media exposure.
that being said, I didn't like the execution of it. everything about this book was way too dramatized to my liking.
also, maybe learn some writing skills before you start writing a book. (no one cares what sam is wearing on that particular boring tuesday morning, why go in such unnecessary detail?).
and let's not forget about the non-existent character development; the mom is your general hysterical woman, dad's an absent loser and then you have the all-not-so-ordinary quirky little sam. Dear Charlie as a whole lacks progressive CD and a feeling of structure to it.
i think this book could've been better had we gotten more information on charlie's character (like okay he liked art and was a loner... but a tiny bit insight wouldn't hurt.).
i did like the songs that were assigned to each chapter :).
to put it shortly: this is written as your generic Wattpad story, easy and entertaining enough to read but the lacking skills are very apparent.
that being said, I didn't like the execution of it. everything about this book was way too dramatized to my liking.
also, maybe learn some writing skills before you start writing a book. (no one cares what sam is wearing on that particular boring tuesday morning, why go in such unnecessary detail?).
and let's not forget about the non-existent character development; the mom is your general hysterical woman, dad's an absent loser and then you have the all-not-so-ordinary quirky little sam. Dear Charlie as a whole lacks progressive CD and a feeling of structure to it.
i think this book could've been better had we gotten more information on charlie's character (like okay he liked art and was a loner... but a tiny bit insight wouldn't hurt.).
i did like the songs that were assigned to each chapter :).
to put it shortly: this is written as your generic Wattpad story, easy and entertaining enough to read but the lacking skills are very apparent.
November 6, 2016
Sam Macmillan looked up to his older brother Charlie. Sam loves music and Charlie loved art and they had a close bond. But Sam can't figure out how his funny, caring, big brother could buy a black-market gun at 1am one morning, take it to school and shoot 14 people before turning the gun on himself.
Dear Charlie is a story about a family of the shooter, dealing with the fallout after the event. Constant media attention, abuse, hate mail, and bullying follow the family for months until they are not only at breaking point as a family, but each of them all but consumed in their own pain, guilt and confusion.
But surprisingly, a group of teens at Sam's new school accept him as one of their own, giving him a lifeline out of the darkness of what his brother did. Sam discovers more than friendship among this group, even as he battles his therapist who is trying to help, copes with his dysfunctional parents and his own anger at his brother's actions.
This story portraying the aftermath on a shooter's family was well written, travelling through all the emotions they would encounter. Each chapter of ‘Dear Charlie’ begins with a song that portrays the feeling of the chapter. From classical to popular music, the songs add something real to the story. These can be listened to before or after each chapter read. Compelling.
Dear Charlie is a story about a family of the shooter, dealing with the fallout after the event. Constant media attention, abuse, hate mail, and bullying follow the family for months until they are not only at breaking point as a family, but each of them all but consumed in their own pain, guilt and confusion.
But surprisingly, a group of teens at Sam's new school accept him as one of their own, giving him a lifeline out of the darkness of what his brother did. Sam discovers more than friendship among this group, even as he battles his therapist who is trying to help, copes with his dysfunctional parents and his own anger at his brother's actions.
This story portraying the aftermath on a shooter's family was well written, travelling through all the emotions they would encounter. Each chapter of ‘Dear Charlie’ begins with a song that portrays the feeling of the chapter. From classical to popular music, the songs add something real to the story. These can be listened to before or after each chapter read. Compelling.
December 30, 2017
So I was definitely not expecting to finish this book in one day. I’d previously stated in a review this morning that the other book I finished last night would be my final read of 2017 - turns out, it’s this one!
This book tells the story of what happens to a family when a tragedy strikes. School children and teachers are shot resulting in the death of 15 people. Your brother and son is the culprit. How would you cope?
A heartfelt story surrounding the fall out after such a tragedy. It’s not so much about what happened, rather why it happened, and who and what is left behind.
This book tells the story of what happens to a family when a tragedy strikes. School children and teachers are shot resulting in the death of 15 people. Your brother and son is the culprit. How would you cope?
A heartfelt story surrounding the fall out after such a tragedy. It’s not so much about what happened, rather why it happened, and who and what is left behind.
December 10, 2016
A crime book? But not the investigation of a crime but the aftermath and devastation it leaves behind
When Sam's brother Charlie kills 14 people and eventually himself, the blame shifts from the crime itself as his family search for it within themselves. What could they have done. or seen. or known that would have prevented the tragic events that unfolded. A good read worthy of 4 stars. Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for the ARC which I have chosen to review.
When Sam's brother Charlie kills 14 people and eventually himself, the blame shifts from the crime itself as his family search for it within themselves. What could they have done. or seen. or known that would have prevented the tragic events that unfolded. A good read worthy of 4 stars. Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for the ARC which I have chosen to review.
April 26, 2018
What a lovely read!
This book gave me so much perspective in/about life. Although I failed to relate much to Charlie as a character, I eventually did get around to empathising with Sam and his family. The author has managed to open my eyes to the idea of not transferring my hate for the perpetrator of the crime towards their kin, particularly so when even they may have not known, and especially so when their grief is (in all likelihood) many fold.
The idea of the book is depressing, but the narrative itself isn't. The aftermath of a teen shooting his peers at point blank rage is as bad an anyone can imagine. But the maturity with which the author has tilted the focus to the family of the perpetrator in coping up with the consequences of the actions of their own family member is commendable. The emotions are all in place - guilt, fear, anger, pain - all of it. I cannot even imagine the pain and judgment such families may go through in times of crisis like these. Even the media and we, as onlookers, only serve one purpose - feed the hate monster for as long as we can. I get it at some levels. We all want someone to blame, someone to point fingers and say it was all their fault. But was it, really? This book reflected this very idea, that all of us are flawed, and, sometimes, we all need someone to project that hatred/anger/sadness on.
Must read, especially in the light of the recent cases that are being highlighted in India, and probably all across the world.
(The review is vague, but I hope you will find some sense in it.)
This book gave me so much perspective in/about life. Although I failed to relate much to Charlie as a character, I eventually did get around to empathising with Sam and his family. The author has managed to open my eyes to the idea of not transferring my hate for the perpetrator of the crime towards their kin, particularly so when even they may have not known, and especially so when their grief is (in all likelihood) many fold.
The idea of the book is depressing, but the narrative itself isn't. The aftermath of a teen shooting his peers at point blank rage is as bad an anyone can imagine. But the maturity with which the author has tilted the focus to the family of the perpetrator in coping up with the consequences of the actions of their own family member is commendable. The emotions are all in place - guilt, fear, anger, pain - all of it. I cannot even imagine the pain and judgment such families may go through in times of crisis like these. Even the media and we, as onlookers, only serve one purpose - feed the hate monster for as long as we can. I get it at some levels. We all want someone to blame, someone to point fingers and say it was all their fault. But was it, really? This book reflected this very idea, that all of us are flawed, and, sometimes, we all need someone to project that hatred/anger/sadness on.
Must read, especially in the light of the recent cases that are being highlighted in India, and probably all across the world.
(The review is vague, but I hope you will find some sense in it.)
September 10, 2025
3,5
Podobało mi się to, że powieść skupia się na tym, co się dzieje po strzelaninie w szkole, a nie jak do niej doszło. Zwykle chce się wiedzieć, dlaczego do tego doszło, co skłoniło tę osobę do takiego czynu, ale faktycznie - życie toczy się dalej i rodzina musi jakoś funkcjonować.
Była to niezła powieść, choć wydaje mi się, że trochę schematyczna i przewidywalna. Nieobecny ojciec, który chciał wychować synów na "twardzieli", rozhisteryzowana matka, która nie zauważa upływu czasu, no i pozostawiony sam sobie artystyczny brat zamachowcy. To mi zgrzytało i trąciło trochę opowiadaniem z Wattpada. Ogólnie jednak czytało się dobrze, fajnie, że autorka wprowadziła temat terapii i radzenia sobie z traumą, żałobą i żalem. Brakowało mi nieco głębszego wejrzenia w psychikę Sama, mimo że wydarzenia obserwujemy z jego perspektywy.
Daję okejkę za pomysł otwarcia i zamknięcia historii listem do zmarłego brata. I każdy rozdział otwierała inna piosenka, co dawało fajny vibe "starej" książki.
Podobało mi się to, że powieść skupia się na tym, co się dzieje po strzelaninie w szkole, a nie jak do niej doszło. Zwykle chce się wiedzieć, dlaczego do tego doszło, co skłoniło tę osobę do takiego czynu, ale faktycznie - życie toczy się dalej i rodzina musi jakoś funkcjonować.
Była to niezła powieść, choć wydaje mi się, że trochę schematyczna i przewidywalna. Nieobecny ojciec, który chciał wychować synów na "twardzieli", rozhisteryzowana matka, która nie zauważa upływu czasu, no i pozostawiony sam sobie artystyczny brat zamachowcy. To mi zgrzytało i trąciło trochę opowiadaniem z Wattpada. Ogólnie jednak czytało się dobrze, fajnie, że autorka wprowadziła temat terapii i radzenia sobie z traumą, żałobą i żalem. Brakowało mi nieco głębszego wejrzenia w psychikę Sama, mimo że wydarzenia obserwujemy z jego perspektywy.
Daję okejkę za pomysł otwarcia i zamknięcia historii listem do zmarłego brata. I każdy rozdział otwierała inna piosenka, co dawało fajny vibe "starej" książki.
November 11, 2021
This story was so much different from what I usually read, but it still captivated me. It’s a gut-wrenching story about human errors and the natural instinct to find someone to blame.
Gorgeous read.
Gorgeous read.
did-not-finish
October 16, 2023Jag ger upp efter 56 sidor (= 20 % ).
Det är något som inte klaffar för mig som gör att boken känns tråkig trots det oerhört intressanta tema/ämne den tar upp. Delvis kan mitt ointresse bero på att det är en ungdomsbok och jag har nuförtiden svårt för dessa.
Det är något som inte klaffar för mig som gör att boken känns tråkig trots det oerhört intressanta tema/ämne den tar upp. Delvis kan mitt ointresse bero på att det är en ungdomsbok och jag har nuförtiden svårt för dessa.
November 22, 2016
4/5 stars.
*Full review originally posted on my blog, Bookshelves and Biros*
Sam’s brother Charlie walked into his school and shot fourteen people before killing himself. Set in 90’s British suburbia, Sam is struggling to reconcile the brother he knew with the person who committed the atrocity. This is not a story concerned with ‘why?’ or ‘how?’, instead, the story focuses on the aftermath of the shooting and the impact of the event on the people Charlie left behind. I really liked the decision to focus on the effect of the crime as opposed to the cause, a trick that reminded me a little of a UKYA version of one of my favourite books: 19 Minutes by Jodi Picoult. While Picoult looks at the ripple effect from the view point of the family of a victim as well as the family of the shooter, Gomes chooses to focus solely on Charlie’s family; simply and bleakly capturing a family in disarray.
The story follows Sam over a number of months as he struggles to find a place in his new reality: attending therapy, starting a new school and failing to connect with his parents, who are barely making it through each day themselves. Gomes writes in a skillful and straightforward way, focusing on the information and the stories that don’t often make their way into newspapers. How do the families of criminals deal with their own grief and is it right, or even okay, to mourn for people like Charlie?
Told solely from a first person perspective, the author creates a claustrophobic atmosphere that allows the reader to connect with Sam on an emotional level. Bold ideas require bold writing, and the prose is satisfyingly authentic without slipping into the melodramatic. The reader gets to see the world as Sam does, becoming party to the guilt, anger and shame he feels, as well as deep confusion over how to deal with his brother’s death as an event in its own right. Sam’s relationships with the people around him are also beautifully executed, demonstrating the impact that such a momentous event can shape the way we connect with the people we love and the people we meet.
The story is set in mid-to-late 90’s Britain, with each chapter bearing the title of a song and a date. Considering the effort that I assume went into choosing the songs and setting the story in a specific era, I found the book curiously lacking in any defining sense of place or time. Maybe Gomes’ intention was for the reader to be able to imagine an event like this happening in their own town or suburb in any decade, but I would have liked a bit more. Aside from a few carefully placed pop-culture references, I couldn’t point to anything that really made me feel like the book was set in a specific era.
As the months pass and the story progresses, you come to realise that this book isn’t about Charlie. At all. It’s about Sam wading through his grief until eventually a new, different life begins to take shape. It’s about the impact of death in its many different guises and the basic human need to find someone to blame for your own, personal pain. Sometimes there are no easy answers and sometimes there aren’t any answers at all, and that’s something that we’ll all have to accept at some point in our lives. An absorbing, painful and eye-opening novel.
*Full review originally posted on my blog, Bookshelves and Biros*
Sam’s brother Charlie walked into his school and shot fourteen people before killing himself. Set in 90’s British suburbia, Sam is struggling to reconcile the brother he knew with the person who committed the atrocity. This is not a story concerned with ‘why?’ or ‘how?’, instead, the story focuses on the aftermath of the shooting and the impact of the event on the people Charlie left behind. I really liked the decision to focus on the effect of the crime as opposed to the cause, a trick that reminded me a little of a UKYA version of one of my favourite books: 19 Minutes by Jodi Picoult. While Picoult looks at the ripple effect from the view point of the family of a victim as well as the family of the shooter, Gomes chooses to focus solely on Charlie’s family; simply and bleakly capturing a family in disarray.
The story follows Sam over a number of months as he struggles to find a place in his new reality: attending therapy, starting a new school and failing to connect with his parents, who are barely making it through each day themselves. Gomes writes in a skillful and straightforward way, focusing on the information and the stories that don’t often make their way into newspapers. How do the families of criminals deal with their own grief and is it right, or even okay, to mourn for people like Charlie?
Told solely from a first person perspective, the author creates a claustrophobic atmosphere that allows the reader to connect with Sam on an emotional level. Bold ideas require bold writing, and the prose is satisfyingly authentic without slipping into the melodramatic. The reader gets to see the world as Sam does, becoming party to the guilt, anger and shame he feels, as well as deep confusion over how to deal with his brother’s death as an event in its own right. Sam’s relationships with the people around him are also beautifully executed, demonstrating the impact that such a momentous event can shape the way we connect with the people we love and the people we meet.
The story is set in mid-to-late 90’s Britain, with each chapter bearing the title of a song and a date. Considering the effort that I assume went into choosing the songs and setting the story in a specific era, I found the book curiously lacking in any defining sense of place or time. Maybe Gomes’ intention was for the reader to be able to imagine an event like this happening in their own town or suburb in any decade, but I would have liked a bit more. Aside from a few carefully placed pop-culture references, I couldn’t point to anything that really made me feel like the book was set in a specific era.
As the months pass and the story progresses, you come to realise that this book isn’t about Charlie. At all. It’s about Sam wading through his grief until eventually a new, different life begins to take shape. It’s about the impact of death in its many different guises and the basic human need to find someone to blame for your own, personal pain. Sometimes there are no easy answers and sometimes there aren’t any answers at all, and that’s something that we’ll all have to accept at some point in our lives. An absorbing, painful and eye-opening novel.
September 6, 2016
Note: I received an ARC of this book through Netgalley in return for an honest review. This in no way influences my opinion.
This book. I don’t even know where to begin with THIS BOOK!! I don’t know why I do this to myself. I always choose books which I know will make me blubber like a baby and feel all the feels and I go and read it anyway. I torture myself… in a good way. If you are looking for a hard hitting book that hits all of the general stereotypes about a school shooting on the head and then addresses the fact that it isn’t really the way it always appears to be, this would be it.
I loved the unique beginning of the book. It starts of in a letter format, which gives the reader an insight into the thoughts and feelings of Charlie’s brother, Sam. Charlie is now dead, but Sam is struggling to deal with what happened that day and why Charlie did what he did. At first I was worried that the entire book was going to be set in letter, form, but it wasn’t. I don’t want to say too much, but I definitely think that the letter at the beginning helped to highlight the changes and the transitions that the characters go through.
This book dealt with a really tough subject. There are quite a few books out there that look at and deal with the aftermath of a school shooting, but this is the first one that I have read that dealt with the family and what they had to go through in the wake of Charlie’s actions. I found myself rooting for the family to get through it and I was actually angry because the actions within this book of other people, is actually what happens in today’s society.
I think the book highlighted the fact that we are always looking for someone to blame extremely well. Someone always has to take the brunt of it, whether it was the actual person who did it or not. I lao think it highlighted extremely well the way in which the media has a role in swaying the masses. The media can make someone wither love you or hate you and they are always looking for their next victim, whether they are to blame or not.
I wanted to adopt Sam and put him in my little puddle of protection! I felt so sorry for him and I had a hard time dealing with his feelings!! That is how hard hitting this book is! I think I felt pretty much the same way that Sam did and I don’t even know what I would do if I was stuck in his position!
I also think the ending was perfect! I don’t want to give too much away, but I definitely think it helped to highlight the changes the entire family had to go through and the things they had to accept. I struggled with the ending, and it made me bawl my eyes out!! Like a baby. I was a blubbering mess!
I definitely recommend this book because it is so true to society on how we look at school shootings in the aftermath and how we treat the family of the perpetrator afterwards. It is hard hitting, it takes stereotypes and throws them out of the window!! I definitely think this book needs to be read by the masses!! I gave this book 5/5 stars.
This book. I don’t even know where to begin with THIS BOOK!! I don’t know why I do this to myself. I always choose books which I know will make me blubber like a baby and feel all the feels and I go and read it anyway. I torture myself… in a good way. If you are looking for a hard hitting book that hits all of the general stereotypes about a school shooting on the head and then addresses the fact that it isn’t really the way it always appears to be, this would be it.
I loved the unique beginning of the book. It starts of in a letter format, which gives the reader an insight into the thoughts and feelings of Charlie’s brother, Sam. Charlie is now dead, but Sam is struggling to deal with what happened that day and why Charlie did what he did. At first I was worried that the entire book was going to be set in letter, form, but it wasn’t. I don’t want to say too much, but I definitely think that the letter at the beginning helped to highlight the changes and the transitions that the characters go through.
This book dealt with a really tough subject. There are quite a few books out there that look at and deal with the aftermath of a school shooting, but this is the first one that I have read that dealt with the family and what they had to go through in the wake of Charlie’s actions. I found myself rooting for the family to get through it and I was actually angry because the actions within this book of other people, is actually what happens in today’s society.
I think the book highlighted the fact that we are always looking for someone to blame extremely well. Someone always has to take the brunt of it, whether it was the actual person who did it or not. I lao think it highlighted extremely well the way in which the media has a role in swaying the masses. The media can make someone wither love you or hate you and they are always looking for their next victim, whether they are to blame or not.
I wanted to adopt Sam and put him in my little puddle of protection! I felt so sorry for him and I had a hard time dealing with his feelings!! That is how hard hitting this book is! I think I felt pretty much the same way that Sam did and I don’t even know what I would do if I was stuck in his position!
I also think the ending was perfect! I don’t want to give too much away, but I definitely think it helped to highlight the changes the entire family had to go through and the things they had to accept. I struggled with the ending, and it made me bawl my eyes out!! Like a baby. I was a blubbering mess!
I definitely recommend this book because it is so true to society on how we look at school shootings in the aftermath and how we treat the family of the perpetrator afterwards. It is hard hitting, it takes stereotypes and throws them out of the window!! I definitely think this book needs to be read by the masses!! I gave this book 5/5 stars.
February 23, 2017
I received a copy of Dear Charlie from HarperCollins New Zealand to review. This is N.D. Gomes’ debut novel and is endorsed by Amnesty International UK.
Dear Charlie picks up after Sam’s brother, Charlie, took a gun to school one day and killed fourteen people and then himself. This follows Charlie and his family as they deal with the fallout of what he did while also grieving their brother and son.
I am embarrassed to admit that I’ve never even considered what the family of a shooter goes through. And that makes me feel horrible. I mean, I’ve never blamed them or anything but still. Now I’ve read what a family of someone that’s gone and killed so many innocent people, like a school shooting or shooting up a cinema, might go through. I think the story Gomes told in Dear Charlie is more than likely to happen.
Sam and his parents are trying to understand why Charlie would do the things he did while also grieving someone they love. Not to mention all the judgement and blame and hearing all the things the media will be saying about Charlie like they know him. It must be so confusing and painful. Which is why I can’t believe I’d never even considered what they might be going through. I’ve only ever thought of the victim’s families and what they might be going through. But, Dear Charlie has mae me see things very differently.
I really felt for Sam and his parents. I’m sure a lot of the things they went through in Dear Charlie is what the shooter’s family will go through in real life. One of the biggest things Sam had to deal with was what the media was saying about his brother and realising he may not have known his brother at all. It must be a horrible thing to go through.
I don’t want to give too much away but I will say that I am really glad I read Dear Charlie. I actually passed this onto my mother to read as soon as I’d finished it. I cannot recommend finding a copy of this book enough. It’s definitely a must read.
And if you do read it then you should also read why Amnesty International UK endorsed this book. It’s a really good addition to the book.
Dear Charlie picks up after Sam’s brother, Charlie, took a gun to school one day and killed fourteen people and then himself. This follows Charlie and his family as they deal with the fallout of what he did while also grieving their brother and son.
I am embarrassed to admit that I’ve never even considered what the family of a shooter goes through. And that makes me feel horrible. I mean, I’ve never blamed them or anything but still. Now I’ve read what a family of someone that’s gone and killed so many innocent people, like a school shooting or shooting up a cinema, might go through. I think the story Gomes told in Dear Charlie is more than likely to happen.
Sam and his parents are trying to understand why Charlie would do the things he did while also grieving someone they love. Not to mention all the judgement and blame and hearing all the things the media will be saying about Charlie like they know him. It must be so confusing and painful. Which is why I can’t believe I’d never even considered what they might be going through. I’ve only ever thought of the victim’s families and what they might be going through. But, Dear Charlie has mae me see things very differently.
I really felt for Sam and his parents. I’m sure a lot of the things they went through in Dear Charlie is what the shooter’s family will go through in real life. One of the biggest things Sam had to deal with was what the media was saying about his brother and realising he may not have known his brother at all. It must be a horrible thing to go through.
I don’t want to give too much away but I will say that I am really glad I read Dear Charlie. I actually passed this onto my mother to read as soon as I’d finished it. I cannot recommend finding a copy of this book enough. It’s definitely a must read.
And if you do read it then you should also read why Amnesty International UK endorsed this book. It’s a really good addition to the book.
March 15, 2022
4/5*
Sempre que se tratam de livros que envolvem school shooting, é complicado de descrever o motivo do rating, no entanto, vou tentar.
Primeiro, deixem-me só referir que, quando comecei a ler o livro, achei curioso a história não decorrer nos Estados Unidos (como estamos habituados), mas sim no Reino Unido, onde eu nunca tinha lido um livro que envolvesse tiroteio em escolas. Por curiosidade, fui pesquisar a lei que bane o uso de armas e descobri que a lei que bane foi aprovada em 1997, como resultado de um atentado numa escola em 1996, ano em que decorre a história deste livro. Ou seja, acredito que a autora tenha, em certa parte, baseado a sua história em eventos reais, apesar de no livro o atentado ter sido feito por um adolescente e na realidade por um homem nos seus 40.
Relativamente à história em si, esta foi bastante interessante. Em Dear Charlie nós acompanhamos aqueles que ficaram. Aqueles que conheciam o assassino e têm de lidar com as consequências das suas ações.
Neste cenário, acompanhamos a personagem principal, o Sam, irmão do Charlie. Assim, temos toda uma mistura de emoções por parte da personagem principal ao longo do livro, desde raiva, tristeza, desespero, entre muitas outras.
Afinal, quando uma pessoa que pensamos conhecer faz algo monstruoso, e o mundo todo parece acreditar que somos como essa pessoa, como é que é suposto agir?
E é exatamente a essa questão que o livro tenta responder. No fundo, não é algo completamente diferente, muitos outros já contaram esta história, um exemplo é o Hate List, no entanto, é sempre uma leitura interessante para compreendermos a que nível chega a maldade humana quando falamos de vida e de morte, e a que nível chega a resistência dos que ficam para lidar com as consequências.
Pelo que já referi, penso que é bastante óbvio que, apesar de não ter amado este livro, nem o considerar algo completamente novo, é sim uma leitura extremamente interessante, realista e crua da realidade, e, como tal, deve ser lida, apreciada e utilizada como ponto de reflexão.
Boas leituras.
«They say the truth sets you free. It didn't. It destroyed us.»
Sempre que se tratam de livros que envolvem school shooting, é complicado de descrever o motivo do rating, no entanto, vou tentar.
Primeiro, deixem-me só referir que, quando comecei a ler o livro, achei curioso a história não decorrer nos Estados Unidos (como estamos habituados), mas sim no Reino Unido, onde eu nunca tinha lido um livro que envolvesse tiroteio em escolas. Por curiosidade, fui pesquisar a lei que bane o uso de armas e descobri que a lei que bane foi aprovada em 1997, como resultado de um atentado numa escola em 1996, ano em que decorre a história deste livro. Ou seja, acredito que a autora tenha, em certa parte, baseado a sua história em eventos reais, apesar de no livro o atentado ter sido feito por um adolescente e na realidade por um homem nos seus 40.
Relativamente à história em si, esta foi bastante interessante. Em Dear Charlie nós acompanhamos aqueles que ficaram. Aqueles que conheciam o assassino e têm de lidar com as consequências das suas ações.
Neste cenário, acompanhamos a personagem principal, o Sam, irmão do Charlie. Assim, temos toda uma mistura de emoções por parte da personagem principal ao longo do livro, desde raiva, tristeza, desespero, entre muitas outras.
Afinal, quando uma pessoa que pensamos conhecer faz algo monstruoso, e o mundo todo parece acreditar que somos como essa pessoa, como é que é suposto agir?
E é exatamente a essa questão que o livro tenta responder. No fundo, não é algo completamente diferente, muitos outros já contaram esta história, um exemplo é o Hate List, no entanto, é sempre uma leitura interessante para compreendermos a que nível chega a maldade humana quando falamos de vida e de morte, e a que nível chega a resistência dos que ficam para lidar com as consequências.
Pelo que já referi, penso que é bastante óbvio que, apesar de não ter amado este livro, nem o considerar algo completamente novo, é sim uma leitura extremamente interessante, realista e crua da realidade, e, como tal, deve ser lida, apreciada e utilizada como ponto de reflexão.
Boas leituras.
August 15, 2016
Set in leafy suburbia in the UK, 'Dear Charlie" deals with the aftermath of a school shooting and the effect that it has on the perpetrator's family. Viewed through the eyes of Charlie's younger brother, Sam, this is a heartbreaking and deeply affecting tale of a family torn apart by the atrocity committed by one of their own.
Gomes gives the reader an insider's view of the aftermath of a morning of horror, and the conflict that the family feel - wanting to mourn their beloved son and brother, but bewildered to learn they barely knew him in the harsh spotlight of his actions. How do you deal with someone you've known and loved all their life, turning out to be a mass killer? And how do you carry on with your life when you're tarred with the same brush, becoming the focus of a community's anger and grief, as the closest thing to the deceased guilty party?
Sam's struggles to carry on with his life are really beautifully documented, with the constant threat of bullying, victimisation, rejection and violence overhanging every moment of his daily life, and as his parents' marriage crumbles under the pressure of the fallout from Charlie's act, he has nowhere to turn and nobody to turn to.
After moving schools, he's still treated like an outcast, but is welcomed into the world of the other school outcasts - the punks and the indie kids. But then he goes and falls for the group's leader's girlfriend....
I really enjoyed this book and found it really moving. My only issue was that it lacked a sense of place - there were some weird American elements to the story that made me feel I was no longer reading about a story based in England. The author was born in the UK, but has spent a lot of time in the US, and I felt that this showed in some of the cultural touch points in the narrative. It was only a small point, but it was enough to make it a bit jarring in places.
This small gripe aside, this was a really interesting read and one that has stayed with me since I finished the last page. Highly recommended.
Gomes gives the reader an insider's view of the aftermath of a morning of horror, and the conflict that the family feel - wanting to mourn their beloved son and brother, but bewildered to learn they barely knew him in the harsh spotlight of his actions. How do you deal with someone you've known and loved all their life, turning out to be a mass killer? And how do you carry on with your life when you're tarred with the same brush, becoming the focus of a community's anger and grief, as the closest thing to the deceased guilty party?
Sam's struggles to carry on with his life are really beautifully documented, with the constant threat of bullying, victimisation, rejection and violence overhanging every moment of his daily life, and as his parents' marriage crumbles under the pressure of the fallout from Charlie's act, he has nowhere to turn and nobody to turn to.
After moving schools, he's still treated like an outcast, but is welcomed into the world of the other school outcasts - the punks and the indie kids. But then he goes and falls for the group's leader's girlfriend....
I really enjoyed this book and found it really moving. My only issue was that it lacked a sense of place - there were some weird American elements to the story that made me feel I was no longer reading about a story based in England. The author was born in the UK, but has spent a lot of time in the US, and I felt that this showed in some of the cultural touch points in the narrative. It was only a small point, but it was enough to make it a bit jarring in places.
This small gripe aside, this was a really interesting read and one that has stayed with me since I finished the last page. Highly recommended.
April 12, 2020
A book that has been on my Netgalley shelf for a considerable amount of time is Dear Charlie by N.D Gomes. Fun fact, this was a book I wished for on a complete whim, and I was genuinely not expecting to have my wish granted. Dear Charlie follows the aftermath of a school shooting through the eyes of the shooter’s younger brother Sam, who is struggling with the question of what drove his caring older brother to commit an atrocious act. I went into Dear Charlie with low expectations and I was surprised at how much I enjoyed it (as much as you can enjoy a book focused on such a tragic act). After a few chapters, I became completely engrossed in Sam’s life and I read Dear Charlie in a matter of hours. Unlike other books out there that feature school shootings, Dear Charlie offers a different take. Set in the UK during the Nineties, it focuses on the lives of Sam and his family, who are left to face the outpouring of hatred and fury from the community. It’s rare to find a book that looks at the impact an act has on the family of the shooter, and N.D Gomes captures the slow deterioration of the relationships within Sam’s family in a heartbreaking and poignant way. Overall, I found Dear Charlie to be a thought-provoking and emotional read, with a similar feel to The Perks of Being a Wallflower. Dear Charlie is a definite recommend from me to those of you looking for your next read, and I could kick myself for not reading this book sooner.
February 16, 2017
Truly shattering.
I'll warn you this isn't a beach read, but...read it anyways. This book will make you ask questions you never thought you'd ask. It will make you angry, it will make you sad. But best of all, it will make you think.
I'll warn you this isn't a beach read, but...read it anyways. This book will make you ask questions you never thought you'd ask. It will make you angry, it will make you sad. But best of all, it will make you think.
October 28, 2019
TRIGGER WARNING: sparatoria scolastica, suicidio, bullismo.
Anche in questo caso, come nella mia recensione precedente di The Memory of Light, l'avviso è quasi superfluo perché la storia si svolge dopo l'evento.
Se mi seguite da un po', sapete che questo non è neanche il primo libro che leggo sull'argomento. Ci sono stati Hate List e la sua novella companion Say Something, c'è stato Violent Ends e c'è stato Close Your Eyes. Poi ne ho un altro qui a casa da leggere, un'eARC di NetGalley sul Kindle e due libri di non-fiction in wishlist su Amazon.
Il setting di Dear Charlie non era specificato e mi ha sorpresa perché, a differenza degli altri, questo non è ambientato negli Stati Uniti; come Close Your Eyes è ambientato in UK, un luogo dove la gun culture non si può proprio dire che sia la stessa e che per questo fa ancora più effetto.
E lo fa perché, nonostante l'assenza di espliciti riferimenti e collegamenti, la sparatoria di questa storia - sebbene in circostanze e con protagonisti diversi - fa tornare alla mente il massacro di Dunblane avvenuto in Scozia nello stesso anno in cui è ambientato Dear Charlie. Così come sono reali i riferimenti ad un altro massacro avvenuto nel 1987 sempre in UK e citato - cambiando dinamiche e protagonisti - nel libro e che poi nel 1997 sia stata fatta una legge per il controllo delle armi, fatto che viene riportato anche nel libro.
Siamo nel 1996 e questa non è la storia di Charlie, non è la cronaca di quell'ultimo giorno di scuola in giugno in cui ha ucciso quattordici persone.
Questa è la storia di Sam, che quel giorno ha perso suo fratello e la cui vita è cambiata per sempre, facendo anche implodere il rapporto tra i suoi genitori che era già compromesso da un po' di tempo.
Inizia con una lettera che Sam scrive a Charlie sul quaderno che la sua psicoterapeuta gli ha consigliato di tenere per affrontare le sue emozioni, il trauma, i suoi incubi. Una lettera in cui Sam gli scrive quanto gli manchi, ma anche quanto lo odi in quel momento.
Sta per iniziare un nuovo anno scolastico e la Pembrook Academy non vuole più che Sam frequenti quell'edificio per tutto ciò che potrebbe ricordare ai sopravvissuti, così Sam è costretto a frequentare la scuola del paese vicino.
Ma così come sono ancora assediati dai giornalisti a casa e la faccia di Charlie è su tutti i notiziari locali e nazionali, anche Sam viene riconosciuto ovunque vada e guardato con odio e paura e diffidenza.
Seguiamo Sam per un anno e vediamo come lui e la sua famiglia siano emarginati, isolati, abbandonati, - e come lui si senta abbandonato anche dai suoi genitori. Vediamo come instaura un'incerta amicizia con un gruppo di ragazzi a scuola a cui apparentemente non sembra importare cosa abbia fatto suo fratello perché di fatto lui non è Charlie. Vediamo come il rapporto tra i suoi genitori si logori sempre di più. Vediamo come sono ancora tormentati dai giornalisti che vogliono dichiarazioni, che alla televisione speculano sulle motivazioni dietro il gesto di Charlie: droga, videogiochi e film violenti, bullismo, negligenza dei genitori... ogni giorno il motivo cambia.
Vediamo Sam che cerca di avere una vita da adolescente normale: prima ad aspettarlo c'era l'audizione per la Royal Academy of Music, ma dopo che il suo mondo è cambiato la musica e il pianoforte non hanno più fatto parte della sua vita. Ora invece gli sembra incredibile avere degli amici con cui passare il tempo fuori casa e una ragazza per cui avere una cotta.
Ma Charlie è sempre con lui.
Vediamo come Sam cerca di trovare una risposta agli eventi di quel giorno, come cerca di conciliare il fratello maggiore che si era sempre preso cura di lui con quello che ha ucciso tutte quelle persone. Conosceva davvero Charlie? Hanno ragione i media e lui alla fine non lo conosceva davvero? Come può quel ragazzo che amava tanto l'arte e dipingere aver commesso un atto così atroce? C'era qualcuno che conosceva davvero suo fratello?
Dear Charlie affronta un argomento non facile e lo fa con delicatezza e maestria.
Se Close Your Eyes gli è vicino per il setting, Hate List gli è vicino invece per un altro motivo. In Hate List era Valerie, la ragazza di Nick, ad essere lasciata a se stessa con le domande sulla persona che era davvero Nick. E a Valerie veniva negato il diritto di piangere qualcuno che amava solo a causa di quello che aveva commesso.
Qui è la stessa cosa: tutti si chiedono come i genitori ne fossero all'oscuro, se fossero davvero così negligenti da non aver colto i segnali. Ai Macmillan viene negato il diritto del dolore per aver perso un figlio e un fratello - un ragazzo che ha sì commesso un massacro, ma che era anche parte della loro famiglia e dei loro cuori. E per quanto colpevole, non hanno forse il diritto di piangere anche i genitori e il fratello dell'assassino? È stato inevitabile per me pensare a Sue Klebold, madre di uno degli autori del massacro alla Columbine High School nel 1999 - una donna che ignorava cosa progettasse il figlio, ma che quel figlio lo amava e che ora è un'attivista.
Mi rendo conto che si tratta di un argomento controverso perché la rabbia e il dolore non guardano in faccia nessuno e agli occhi dei famigliari delle vittime di un atto così violento, tutti quelli legati alla persona che l'ha commesso sono colpevoli.
Ma lo sono davvero?
L'unica parte di questo romanzo che mi ha fatto storcere il naso è quella centrale, quella in cui l'autrice si è lasciata un po' andare nella parte "amorosa" - per quanto io abbia apprezzato la volontà di rendere Sam un ragazzo che si vuole riappropriare di una vita da adolescente, su quella parte si è marciato un po' troppo considerata la portata del resto.
Tuttavia resta un bel libro, scritto bene e senza manipolazioni emotive - non vuole dare giustificazioni, non vuole offrire spiegazioni. L'ultima parte mi ha anche commossa.
È un libro coraggioso che offre una nuova prospettiva all'interno di tragedie di questa portata perché quasi mai si parla del dolore della famiglia del colpevole.
È la storia di Sam e della sua famiglia, è la storia dell'elaborazione del lutto, è la storia di un trauma, è la storia che non dimentica ma che ad un certo punto va avanti.
Anche in questo caso, come nella mia recensione precedente di The Memory of Light, l'avviso è quasi superfluo perché la storia si svolge dopo l'evento.
Se mi seguite da un po', sapete che questo non è neanche il primo libro che leggo sull'argomento. Ci sono stati Hate List e la sua novella companion Say Something, c'è stato Violent Ends e c'è stato Close Your Eyes. Poi ne ho un altro qui a casa da leggere, un'eARC di NetGalley sul Kindle e due libri di non-fiction in wishlist su Amazon.
Il setting di Dear Charlie non era specificato e mi ha sorpresa perché, a differenza degli altri, questo non è ambientato negli Stati Uniti; come Close Your Eyes è ambientato in UK, un luogo dove la gun culture non si può proprio dire che sia la stessa e che per questo fa ancora più effetto.
E lo fa perché, nonostante l'assenza di espliciti riferimenti e collegamenti, la sparatoria di questa storia - sebbene in circostanze e con protagonisti diversi - fa tornare alla mente il massacro di Dunblane avvenuto in Scozia nello stesso anno in cui è ambientato Dear Charlie. Così come sono reali i riferimenti ad un altro massacro avvenuto nel 1987 sempre in UK e citato - cambiando dinamiche e protagonisti - nel libro e che poi nel 1997 sia stata fatta una legge per il controllo delle armi, fatto che viene riportato anche nel libro.
Siamo nel 1996 e questa non è la storia di Charlie, non è la cronaca di quell'ultimo giorno di scuola in giugno in cui ha ucciso quattordici persone.
Questa è la storia di Sam, che quel giorno ha perso suo fratello e la cui vita è cambiata per sempre, facendo anche implodere il rapporto tra i suoi genitori che era già compromesso da un po' di tempo.
Inizia con una lettera che Sam scrive a Charlie sul quaderno che la sua psicoterapeuta gli ha consigliato di tenere per affrontare le sue emozioni, il trauma, i suoi incubi. Una lettera in cui Sam gli scrive quanto gli manchi, ma anche quanto lo odi in quel momento.
Sta per iniziare un nuovo anno scolastico e la Pembrook Academy non vuole più che Sam frequenti quell'edificio per tutto ciò che potrebbe ricordare ai sopravvissuti, così Sam è costretto a frequentare la scuola del paese vicino.
Ma così come sono ancora assediati dai giornalisti a casa e la faccia di Charlie è su tutti i notiziari locali e nazionali, anche Sam viene riconosciuto ovunque vada e guardato con odio e paura e diffidenza.
Seguiamo Sam per un anno e vediamo come lui e la sua famiglia siano emarginati, isolati, abbandonati, - e come lui si senta abbandonato anche dai suoi genitori. Vediamo come instaura un'incerta amicizia con un gruppo di ragazzi a scuola a cui apparentemente non sembra importare cosa abbia fatto suo fratello perché di fatto lui non è Charlie. Vediamo come il rapporto tra i suoi genitori si logori sempre di più. Vediamo come sono ancora tormentati dai giornalisti che vogliono dichiarazioni, che alla televisione speculano sulle motivazioni dietro il gesto di Charlie: droga, videogiochi e film violenti, bullismo, negligenza dei genitori... ogni giorno il motivo cambia.
Vediamo Sam che cerca di avere una vita da adolescente normale: prima ad aspettarlo c'era l'audizione per la Royal Academy of Music, ma dopo che il suo mondo è cambiato la musica e il pianoforte non hanno più fatto parte della sua vita. Ora invece gli sembra incredibile avere degli amici con cui passare il tempo fuori casa e una ragazza per cui avere una cotta.
Ma Charlie è sempre con lui.
Vediamo come Sam cerca di trovare una risposta agli eventi di quel giorno, come cerca di conciliare il fratello maggiore che si era sempre preso cura di lui con quello che ha ucciso tutte quelle persone. Conosceva davvero Charlie? Hanno ragione i media e lui alla fine non lo conosceva davvero? Come può quel ragazzo che amava tanto l'arte e dipingere aver commesso un atto così atroce? C'era qualcuno che conosceva davvero suo fratello?
Dear Charlie affronta un argomento non facile e lo fa con delicatezza e maestria.
Se Close Your Eyes gli è vicino per il setting, Hate List gli è vicino invece per un altro motivo. In Hate List era Valerie, la ragazza di Nick, ad essere lasciata a se stessa con le domande sulla persona che era davvero Nick. E a Valerie veniva negato il diritto di piangere qualcuno che amava solo a causa di quello che aveva commesso.
Qui è la stessa cosa: tutti si chiedono come i genitori ne fossero all'oscuro, se fossero davvero così negligenti da non aver colto i segnali. Ai Macmillan viene negato il diritto del dolore per aver perso un figlio e un fratello - un ragazzo che ha sì commesso un massacro, ma che era anche parte della loro famiglia e dei loro cuori. E per quanto colpevole, non hanno forse il diritto di piangere anche i genitori e il fratello dell'assassino? È stato inevitabile per me pensare a Sue Klebold, madre di uno degli autori del massacro alla Columbine High School nel 1999 - una donna che ignorava cosa progettasse il figlio, ma che quel figlio lo amava e che ora è un'attivista.
Mi rendo conto che si tratta di un argomento controverso perché la rabbia e il dolore non guardano in faccia nessuno e agli occhi dei famigliari delle vittime di un atto così violento, tutti quelli legati alla persona che l'ha commesso sono colpevoli.
Ma lo sono davvero?
L'unica parte di questo romanzo che mi ha fatto storcere il naso è quella centrale, quella in cui l'autrice si è lasciata un po' andare nella parte "amorosa" - per quanto io abbia apprezzato la volontà di rendere Sam un ragazzo che si vuole riappropriare di una vita da adolescente, su quella parte si è marciato un po' troppo considerata la portata del resto.
Tuttavia resta un bel libro, scritto bene e senza manipolazioni emotive - non vuole dare giustificazioni, non vuole offrire spiegazioni. L'ultima parte mi ha anche commossa.
È un libro coraggioso che offre una nuova prospettiva all'interno di tragedie di questa portata perché quasi mai si parla del dolore della famiglia del colpevole.
È la storia di Sam e della sua famiglia, è la storia dell'elaborazione del lutto, è la storia di un trauma, è la storia che non dimentica ma che ad un certo punto va avanti.
June 6, 2017
A full review is available on my blog!
This book was sent to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This book is due to be released on the 20th October 2016 by Harlequin Mira Ink - Harper Collins!
When I first read the synopsis of this book, I was mildly intrigued. If you read my blog often, you'll know that I have a weird fascination with killers, books that involve murder and death, and definitely taboo subjects, such as school shootings. I don't know why, they just fascinate me to no end. So I immediately jumped at the chance to read this unusual take on a school shooting. You never hear about what happens after the shooting, you rarely read about the family of the shooter so I was intrigued to hear their side, to see what happens to them in the aftermath, how they cope etc. Honestly, I was surprised. I really enjoyed reading this book, it was heart wrenching. I felt so sad for Sam (our main character!) I wanted to hug him and tell him it'll be okay.
January 4, 2018
There was something about this book, maybe the voice, or the audiobook, but it just didn't hold my interest. It should have.
It is a novel which shows the grieving of a young boy after the death and tragic actions of his brother. It should have been harrowing and heartbreaking, but instead, it was really boring. The romance held no interest, and I just didn't feel any connection to the additional characters at all.
I am sure I missed some aspects of this book when listening on the audiobook, but I really wasn't inclined to go back and reread, because I just found that I didn't really care. This ended up being a skim read, and the only reason I didn't DNF was because it was only a 6 hour audiobook, so I just listened to it straight through.
A much better example of this book is 'Hate List'. Dear Charlie also should have held a very unique perspective, the shooting was supposed to have happened in a British secondary school. This would have been a very unusual occurence in Britain, and so much more could have been made about how it would be reacted to and dealt with differently, but to be honest, I felt like the school shooting aspect of this novel didn't matter at all.
It is a novel which shows the grieving of a young boy after the death and tragic actions of his brother. It should have been harrowing and heartbreaking, but instead, it was really boring. The romance held no interest, and I just didn't feel any connection to the additional characters at all.
I am sure I missed some aspects of this book when listening on the audiobook, but I really wasn't inclined to go back and reread, because I just found that I didn't really care. This ended up being a skim read, and the only reason I didn't DNF was because it was only a 6 hour audiobook, so I just listened to it straight through.
A much better example of this book is 'Hate List'. Dear Charlie also should have held a very unique perspective, the shooting was supposed to have happened in a British secondary school. This would have been a very unusual occurence in Britain, and so much more could have been made about how it would be reacted to and dealt with differently, but to be honest, I felt like the school shooting aspect of this novel didn't matter at all.
September 14, 2017
I enjoyed the book as a whole but had a few issues with it. First of all, i found it quite strange how so few where willing to view the situation from Sam's perspective. I completely understand how people would be hesitant to instantly take him in after what happened but I still found it strange how virtually no one would at least hear him out before judging him solely on his brothers actions. Second of, I was a bit disappointed on the character development. It was really well executed and seemed carefully planned out on the parents behalf but when it comes to the protagonist, it was like he completely changed overnight in an unnatural way. This to me seemed sloppy in the writing and planning. Apart from that, it was good.
December 25, 2016
I don't know what went wrong. I don't know if what made me not like the book, was the way it was written, or because I just couldn't believe how the protagonist from one sentence to the other could change. How it was like the protagonist was writing what he should believe.
I just felt like the protagonist was removed from what was happening because of the weird writing style. It almost felt like he was playacting. And now I am angry. And now I am sad. And now I can accept the therapist.
It really bothered me. The writing style. And the way 'the changes' just happened.
Like now I've changed. Now I can see that I wasn't guilty..
I just felt like the protagonist was removed from what was happening because of the weird writing style. It almost felt like he was playacting. And now I am angry. And now I am sad. And now I can accept the therapist.
It really bothered me. The writing style. And the way 'the changes' just happened.
Like now I've changed. Now I can see that I wasn't guilty..
February 7, 2017
Ending too 'neat' for my liking.
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