I've wanted to try something by Catherine Ryan Hyde because of all the positive things I've read about her writing but starting out with her first published book probably wasn't the best idea. ( )

After reading many of Hyde's wonderful books, I finally read her very first published novel. It was a very tough story but I'm such a huge fan of hers that I wonder now, if I would have appreciated her writing as much if I had read it just after it was published. Living life adds depth to what you can read and appreciate and I am certainly old enough now to see how well Hyde has continued to be able to reach into her characters and provide readers with incredible meaning. Beautiful ending. ( )

Not an easy read - but a wonderful one. This is her first published novel, and will be one of my favorites (working my way through all her books now). Told through an unreliable narrator POV, the main character is mentally ill throughout the book, and yet her insights regarding people and the way the world works are childlike and true. Her journey, though hard and downward spiraling, is uplifting. I sobbed at the end.

Pick this one up if you don't mind hard hitting novels with truth as a base.
I so enjoyed it. ( )