Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Review: Life is but a Dream - Brian James

Where I got it: ARC from publisher for review
Rating: 4 stars  
Cover Rating: 4 stars (The girl's eyes are completely gripping.)
Genre: Young Adult
Publication Date: March 27, 2012
Publisher: Feiwel and Friends
Page Count: 234 p.
Buy it: Book Depository / Amazon
Add it: Goodreads

Sabrina sees the world differently...very differently. Her parents check her into the Wellness Center to make her better. Here she meets Alec, who poses the question: what is better? Alec doesn't want to be turned into a mindless drone, and helps Sabrina try to avoid a similar fate. Sabrina doesn't want to lose the magic in her world, her ability to create and see things as beautiful. Sabrina is drawn to Alec completely and we see her progress and her creativity come to her, but things may not be as easy as they both thought.

So, for the first third of this book I pictured Sabrina as a Manic Pixie Dream Girl, but then she changed. At 1st she was really out there and crazy, but then she started to relax with the treatment. Her progress was easily seen and I liked the glimpses into her life before the treatment center. I wish we knew more about Alec though. I'm not sure that I quite believe his explanation of how he wound up there...maybe it was the truth though. He was a great person anyways, he stayed by Sabrina's side and helped make her feel loved and whole. It was really interesting being inside her head. She saw things completely differently. Sometimes it was beautiful, sometimes terrifying but always interesting. I can't imagine being inside her head for much longer than the book though. I can see how her lines blur together sometimes. One thing that was a bit odd, was her obsession with heaven. She didn't seem particularly religious, but always saw and talked about heaven. It was a bit odd. It could've just been a word to describe her indescribable place though. This was a strange look into a mental patient, who may actually be crazy. Pick this one up and give it a try if you see it.

First Line:
"Something is wrong with the sky."

Favorite Lines:
"I can still smell him on my palms. I can still taste him in my mouth."

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