Book Review - Lessons from a Dead Girl by Jo Knowles

Title: Lessons from a Dead Girl
Author: Jo Knowles
Year: 2007
Page: 215
Genre: Young Adult

New to me author? Yes
Read this author again? Maybe
Tearjerker? No
Where did it take place? US
FTC Disclosure: Borrowed from the library

Summary (from goodreads.com):
Leah Greene is dead. For Laine, knowing what really happened and the awful feeling that she is, in some way, responsible set her on a journey of painful self-discovery. Yes, she wished for this. She hated Leah that much. Hated her for all the times in the closet, when Leah made her do those things. They were just practicing, Leah said. But why did Leah choose her? Was she special, or just easy to control? And why didn’t Laine make it stop sooner? In the aftermath of the tragedy, Laine is left to explore the devastating lessons Leah taught her, find some meaning in them, and decide whether she can forgive Leah and, ultimately, herself.

First Sentence:
Leah Green is dead.

 
Why did I pick this book?
I read about this book from Reading Through The Night's review. It sounded intense. I like reading YA that deals with issues (rather than the more chicklit ones) so this sounds like my type of books.

My thoughts:

• I am a bit disappointed - the plot was a bit predictable for me, especially given that you know one of the characters died right from the first sentence. 

• I think I'd have enjoyed this book more had I read it as a teenager. 

• It was a difficult topic, and an important one, just that I felt indifferent about the characters. I didn't feel very emotional about them despite all the bad things that happened to them. The writing was easy enough to read, but I guess the characters just didn't grow on me. I hope I don't sound off as cold - I DO cry at sad books but this book just didn't have that affect on me.

• The plot was okay - each chapter was a "lesson" the main protagonist learned about friendship, so it provided an interesting structure of the book. I guess I just didn't really learn anything new. Again, I may be too old for the book...

• The cover is okay, you get the meaning behind it once you have read the book. 

• This will be part of my Take Another Chance Challenge #9 - Same Word, Different Book Entries. The other book is Postcard from a Dead Girl. I was drawn to both titles, but sadly, both books disappointed me (the Postcard book more so than this one). 

Quote:

"We only hate what we don't understand." p74

 
Rating: 3 Stars

 

Have you read this book? 
If you have, I would love to hear what you think! I'll link your review here if you wish!

Challenges:
100+ Reading
Young Adult
Take Another Chance