Tuesday 27 May 2014

The Impossible Knife of Memory by Laurie Halse Anderson

Hardcover: 391 pages
Publisher: Viking Children's Books (7 Jan 2014)
ISBN-13: 978-0670012091

For the past five years, Hayley Kincain and her father, Andy, have been on the road, never staying long in one place as he struggles to escape the demons that have tortured him since his return from Iraq. Now they are back in the town where he grew up so Hayley can attend school. Perhaps, for the first time, Hayley can have a normal life, put aside her own painful memories, even have a relationship with Finn, the hot guy who obviously likes her but is hiding secrets of his own.

Will being back home help Andy’s PTSD, or will his terrible memories drag him to the edge of hell, and drugs push him over? The Impossible Knife of Memory is Laurie Halse Anderson at her finest: compelling, surprising, and impossible to put down.


Cover: I really like that the significance of this cover, that becomes far more obvious when reading the book.

This is a hard book for me to review.  It's not a bad book.  But I went into it expecting a deep story with a lot of feeling.  But it just didn't evoke the level of emotions I was looking for.
I've heard a lot of amazing things about Laurie Halse Anderson, in particular her novel Speak.  So when this popped up on my Goodreads feed, I read the synopsis, was intrigued and decided to pick it up.  The topic of post traumatic stress caused by time spent in Afganistan and Iraq- while not one I'd read about before, interested me.
Hayley is an interesting character- she takes care of herself and her father, as he is unable to.  But the way she refers to people- as either a freak or a zombie.  She wasn't the most relatable or likable character.
The romance element- came seemingly from nowhere.  I liked Finn- but the romance just didn't 100% click for me.
Over all this was an ok read for me- I went into this wanting a deep, emotionally wrecking read- but it didn't really have that kind of effect on me at all.
I didn't connect with the characters at all.
2.5/5 stars.

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