Review:
Title: The Chance You Won’t Return
Author: Annie Cardi
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Publication Date: April 22, 2014
Format: Hardcover
Source: Library
Genre: YA, Contemporary, Romance
Blurb:
Driver’s ed and a first crush should be what Alex Winchester is stressed out about in high school – and she is. But what’s really on her mind is her mother. Why is she dressing in Dad’s baggy khaki pants with a silk scarf around her neck? What is she planning when she pores over maps in the middle of the night? When did she stop being Mom and start being Amelia Earhart? Alex tries to keep her budding love life apart from the growing disaster at home as her mother sinks further into her delusions. But there are those nights, when everyone else is asleep, when it’s easier to confide in Amelia than it ever was to Mom. Now, as Amelia’s flight plans become more intense, Alex is increasingly worried that Amelia is planning her final flight – the flight from which she never returns. What could possibly be driving Mom’s delusions, and how far will they take her?
Thoughts:
I grabbed this book at the local library a few weeks ago. I’m not quite sure what made me pick it up, although I think that it was on the “New” shelf in the YA section. Anyway, I read it at my Grandparents house on a Saturday morning.
To be honest, this book was a little boring. Although Alex has some character growth due to her mother’s mental state there really isn’t a substantial plot to this book. Although plot-less books can work (Eleanor and Park comes to mind) it did not work in this case. There wasn’t a lot of movement to the story, it was relatively stagnant.
The only mover and shaker was Alex’s mom, and while yes she was the main problem in the story Alex is supposed to be the protagonist. She never really shared her feelings so I struggled to connect to her as a reader.
There was nothing particularly remarkable about the prose of this book, which I found disappointing. If the style had been more precise and if the plot would have moved differently I would have been happier with the end all of this book. My only take away was how devastating it would have been for me to have my mother in that type of state, and I didn’t see any of that hysteria in Alex. It made her seem phony to me.
Conclusion:
Although this was a unique idea, the poor execution and odd development of the characters makes it a book that I will refrain from recommending.
Dust Jacket Ramblings:
As a whole, I really like this cover. But there is one nit-picky detail that bothers me. The font used for the authors name in no way compliments the amazing title font. Other than that, I say A+. It fits the book very nicely.
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