Rating: 4.5 stars
Cover Rating: 4.5 stars (It's simple and gender neutral, which I like. I also appreciate that the bone picture is carried throughout the novel.)
Genre: Young Adult
Genre: Young Adult
Publication Date: August 25, 2009
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Page Count: 262 p.
Add it: Goodreads
Jonah wants to break every bone in his body, because broken bones grow back stronger. His slightly younger brother Jesse is allergic to everything and can practically only eat protein shakes and apples. His baby brother won't stop crying. So Jonah knows it's up to him to be the strong one. He has to take care of Jesse. How can he do a good job though, when he keeps breaking his bones? The answer is, he can't. His self-destruction send him down a bad path and Jonah may be the one who needs the most help.
This was a very interesting story. The concept of someone breaking their bones so that they can be stronger makes no sense to begin with. Ones Jonah explains the whole reason of why he believes it though, it makes more sense...maybe too much sense. Jonah was an okay character, he had a lot of stuff going on though. I'd go a little crazy to if I were in a house with a baby that wails non-stop and a brother who could die just by breathing the same air as milk or eggs. It's a lot of stress and pressure with no relief. It was nice getting to know Jesse too. He didn't let his allergies stop him from excelling at other things, like sports, but he did not want to build up a food tolerance. He had very bad feelings towards food, as I imagine anyone in his position would. I didn't care for Charlotte much. She didn't seem to fit in with the other characters very well. She was sort of just a normal busybody. *shrug* I did like Naomi though. I loved how intense she was when she got into something. She was a little spitfire and a good person. She was a bit destructive though, but she made a lot of good points.
I was really confused on Jonah's whole broken bone theory until closer to the end when he explains it in full. It made it easier to see where he was coming from then, even if it still was completely logical.
This is a great book for boys or girls who are struggling with anything. There's self-harm, siblings who get a lot of attention for being sick and parents who bicker, so anyone who feels alone in any of those things should check out this book. This was a pretty quick read, but it did touch on a lot of heavy issues. I love Hannah Moskowitz and can't believe it took me so long to read this one.
First Line:
"The first feeling is exhilaration."
Favorite Line:
"Her eyes are huge and humid."
As soon as you mentioned the bone-breaking I thought it sounded a little strange, but then again teens can get odd ideas from time to time, especially when they're stressed and it sounds like Jonah has a lot to be stressing over. I have read one of Hannah's books so I am definitely keen to read the rest.
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