This is what I've been doing this week since school starts on Monday, and book club meets tomorrow. This is my new favorite reading nook. I'm excited to discuss Before I Fall. For those of you that read along with us, feel free to submit your own discussion question in the comments (below) or via email. You can also make it anonymous. Check back Sunday for our video discussions and meeting notes.
So am I allowed to post my reaction to the book? or is this particular thread just reserved for discussion questions about the book?
ReplyDeleteHere is my comment. Courtney (or Kayla, Marissa, Melisa, or Bess), you can decline to approve it if this isn't the place for it; I won't be put off at all!
ReplyDeleteIf it's okay though, here goes...
I had a really hard time with this book. And I'm worried there's no way for me to express my views without sounding like I mean to suggest that anyone who liked it should be ashamed of themselves. I do not think this. I thought the book, for example, was better than Impossible; better written, more intelligent, more interesting. Nevertheless, I think it would be accurate to say that this book actually offended me to a mild extent.
**SPOILER ALERT**
I found myself asking, "What would a companion volume to this book look like -- in particular, another book told from the point of view of Juliet Sykes, one which ran concurrently to the events of this book and then continued on for, say, another year?" (There's a question for y'all, by the way.)
For my own part, I think a plausible answer to this question is that Sam's "saving" Juliet makes things even worse for Juliet; much worse. We discover that she's been tormented by these bitchy popular girls for years. For this reason, among others, she is suicidal (hopefully this isn't the only reason Juliet wants to die). Then one of the popular girls runs out into the street and dies pushing her out of the way of a truck when she is trying to kill herself. So now, not only did Sam and her friends treat Juliet just horribly, but now she indirectly (but very intimately and obviously) responsible for Sam's death. If everyone didn't hate or pity or recoil from Juliet already, they are going to now. But it's even worse, because previously, no one had a real compelling reason to hate Juliet, especially herself, knowing all she does about Lindsay. But after Sam's death, not only are others going to think they have a good reason to be repulsed by her, but Juliet is most certainly going to blame and hate herself.
In short, Sam didn't save Juliet. She may have extended her life for a bit, but she's ruined Juliet's life more thoroughly than she ever did prior to the allegedly heroic sacrifice she makes at the close of the novel. This just made me squirm.
(continued...)
ReplyDeleteAnd this is really only one aspect of an overarching complaint I had, which was that Sam is incredibly self-absorbed. Or perhaps better: the book is self-absorbed on Sam's behalf. The failure of the author to seriously contemplate the real effect that Sam's "sacrifice" would have on Juliet is one instance of this. But more generally, even though Sam dies, everything gets resolved on her terms. It is the height of being an entitled little brat. Sam gets to choose how she exits this life. She gets to be the hero. She gets to enjoy all the good things about her life on that last day. She gets to dump the crappy boyfriend and give him his comeuppance. She gets to kiss and connect with her "true love." (And geez, poor Kent! We as readers aren't ever asked to think about how gruesome it would be to suddenly have one's seven year crush reciprocated, make out with this girl, and then an hour later, have her get squashed by a truck right outside your house where you've been hosting a party with lots of underage drinking. Yeah, like that's not going to be a horrible life-defining incident. Gah... but to continue...) She gets to take away Juliet's slap-in-the-face moment with a simple "I know" -- yes, I know I've been a bitch, but you don't get the satisfaction of feeling that you had anything whatsoever to do with me arriving at this epiphany. No, Sam's moral progress is all her own and on her own terms. I don't think things work this way. I think real moral progress is painful and uncertain. In real cases of moral progress, we make a choice -- a hard choice -- and then we have to wait to see what the consequences will be, because more often than not, they aren't what we'd prefer. In this fictional account of moral progress, Sam knows what the results of her choices are going to be (or if she screws it up, she's gets to try again the next day). She gets to be a moral queen without any of the doubt and uncertainty that normally accompanies making choices. It bleeds dry what is difficult and painful about trying to be a good person.
(Finally, I should say that in fairness to me and my very critical reaction to the book, I did not come at the novel with any antecedent negative attitudes. In fact, I read at least half this book liking the story and liking the main character. I felt like the author had to work to make me have bad feelings towards Sam. And yet, most of the (hopefully mild) hostility above is actually directed toward the author, who should have known better, and not toward Sam, who seemed like a fairly ordinary teen and remained quite likable even at the end of the story.)
This book was not a favorite of mine. It seemed very much intended to be a moral tale. But it did not succeed in doing any of the things that compelling and gripping moral tales typically do for me.
I feel like a complete troll. A mean nasty party-pooping troll.
I'm so offended by your criticism. Are you judging me for liking the book Scott? :)
ReplyDeleteActually, I think your comments are completely valid. I even thought of most of them as I was reading the book, but wasn't as upset/bothered by them as you . . . or as I would have been under different circumstances. I read the book VERY quickly, glossing over issues that might have otherwise offended me.
I enjoyed how well-written it was, that she could mix authentic teen dialogue with sometimes lyrical language. Not your usual combination, but she made it work. Yes, tt was completely self-absorbed, but for me, the main theme was self. SHE was the one who changed in those 7 days of . . . what? . . . purgatory? Not completely, but somewhat. She wasn't really meant to change anyone's life (and didn't if you believe in one single ultimate reality . . . since for everyone else there was simply the last day), just her own self. A self-adjustment, as it were, before moving on. And I thought the author did a fantastic job of creating a believable development of character. Did she change enough for my liking? No. I too was annoyed that she could settle back and still adore her self-centered, extremely hurtful friends even on day seven (true, that comes from a self-absorbed, fairly immature author).
I agree that the biggest flaw was the the Juliet ending. Ach. I thought of that outcome too (i.e., this is the girl who caused our friend to die). And Kent. Poor guy. But again, it was about Sam's personal journey . . . no one else's. I never though of her as saving Juliet's life, just learning to be unselfish enough to give up her own. Juliet has to save her own.
I know that's simplistic, and it's certainly not MY moral code, but I thought it was effective as a teen novel. I stand by my four stars!!!!!
Scott. You are a troll. I kid, I kid! I am glad you read it for this perspective. And I very much like Christina's response. So thanks to both of you for reading and for commenting. Hopefully, this will make for a better discussion of the novel tonight. Hopefully, if we don't down a bottle of vodka beforehand, and dance on top of Marissa's coffee table to Mary J. Blige. Don't worry, if we do, we definitely won't drive anywhere.
ReplyDeleteThanks Scott and Christina! It was fun to read your comments--I'm sure they'll launch a few good discussions tonight. For whatever reason, I don't know how I feel about the book yet, but I agree that the author is a talented writer. We should try to Skype you both in sometime!
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