lisamandina3

So, as I started this book, I really didn't think I was going to like it because the main character, Sam, is just so unlikable. And I know that was the whole point of it, but still, I just didn't think I'd ever feel sorry enough for her that I could get into it. And that was disappointing because I loved the book Deliriumby the same author. And it was also bad because it is one of the possible nominees for next year's Gateway books that I have to read since I am a reader/selector again. It just seemed to me like a cross between the book A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens and the movie Groundhog Day with Bill Murray.However, once I got into the book, I got sucked in. Every morning that Sam woke up, I wanted to see what she would do differently. It was the whole chaos theory in action. What did Sam need to do differently, first to save herself from dying. And then, when that didn't work, and she woke up again, what was it she actually needed to fix in order for it all to end? And how would she get it fixed? In a way, it brought my thoughts back to Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher. The reason I think this, is because even though the main character is so unlikable, just seeing how each little detail of what she did, or changed, affected those around her, well I think it's something good for teens/people to read. All these titles make me think of the book How Full Is Your Bucket? Positive Strategies for Work and Life, a book my school district used as kind of a theme one year for the school year. It's a book I think everyone should read at some point in their life, the younger the better. I just think sometimes, myself included, that people don't realize how something they say off-handedly or out of their own frustration can really hurt someone else in a way they never intended. So even though I was sure I was not going to give this book any higher than 3 stars, I ended up with 4, which is pretty good for me with a character I didn't like. Once you get into it, like I said, it's hard to put down until you know how each day ends, and if what she's done will fix it.