Like The Lovely Bones and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Cammie McGovern's breakout novel is at once a hypnotic t...
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Apr 20, 2008
William
rated it: 
Eye Contact wants to be two books. The better book follows the path of acceptance and eventual, albeit limited, understanding between Adam, a nine-year-old autistic boy, and his mother Cara. The novel starts strongly with these two, especially in illuminating Adam’s thought processes, and in describing the mother’s difficult work of encouraging Adam to develop both within and beyond her expectations. But the half of Eye Contact that wants to be an engaging thriller is the half whose genes domin
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Jan 31, 2009
Janet
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When a little girl is murdered, the only witness is a nearly non-verbal autistic boy. His mother, and several other characters have to try to find out what happened and why. At times the plot seemed somewhat driven by what I considered to be too many convenient disabilities. However, the best parts of the book belong to a lonely teenage boy, who is aware of the social implications of being part of a "special" group of children, and his own outsider status. He puts himself in the ro
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Aug 17, 2008
Tara
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The plot is every mother's, teacher's and community's nightmare. 2 kids disappear off of a school playground and when they are found a little girl is dead and the other is a boy with Autism who has retreated into himself which in turn makes the characters have to look into their pasts and unearth secrets that will change all of there lives. It starts of fairly linear but then it delves into a variety of storylines including a group of middle schoolers in a social skills group for "kids wit
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Aug 02, 2008
Aleathia
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
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Jun 08, 2010
Maria (Ri)
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This literary mystery feels like a cross between Jennifer McMahon's _I Promise Not to Tell_ and Mark Haddon's _Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time._ It is a compelling look at autism, both from the child's and the parent's perspective. Adam, a 9 year old austic boy finds himself witness to a murder. While the novel is about the mystery of the murder, it is more about the relationship of Adam and Cara, his mother. The story is told from several people's perspectives. While some ring tru
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Jun 19, 2011
Karol
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This book is amazing! Great insights on every page, but it's a bit difficult to read because it involves IEP's and teacher documentation that I am trying to escape on this, my summer break! The author messed up a bit with introducing too many characters, and if Hedder hadn't made a sticky note cheat sheet in the front cover, I'd be lost. :)
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Mar 08, 2009
Desiree
rated it:
This book had the potential to be really great. The first half of the book was fantastic. The second half was not as good, although it was decent. I hated the "grown-up" Kevin and his mother... they pretty much ruined the greatness of the book. The trick Kevin and Suzette played on Cara was immature and ridiculous... I would hope most adults wouldn't come up with a plan like this.
Some of the events in the second half were too unrealistic... what kind of adult would lure More...
Some of the events in the second half were too unrealistic... what kind of adult would lure More...
Sep 14, 2011
Kari
rated it:
http://www.imperfectclarity.net/blog/201...
From the moment I read the first sentence of Eye Contact by Cammie McGovern, I was absorbed.
Cara’s son, Adam, is a ten year old autistic boy who, at the beginning of the book, has disappeared from his elementary school grounds with a girl about the same age named Amelia. When Amelia is found dead in the woods behind the elementary school and Adam is believed to be the only witness, Cara is thrown into a whirlwind of trouble with the More...
From the moment I read the first sentence of Eye Contact by Cammie McGovern, I was absorbed.
Cara’s son, Adam, is a ten year old autistic boy who, at the beginning of the book, has disappeared from his elementary school grounds with a girl about the same age named Amelia. When Amelia is found dead in the woods behind the elementary school and Adam is believed to be the only witness, Cara is thrown into a whirlwind of trouble with the More...
Aug 08, 2009
Gena
rated it:
I thought a few times that I had it all figured out, and was surprised at how wrong I was as the plot details twisted and turns. Here's what I can tell you without giving anything away. It's the story of two children, both with autism, who disappear into the woods behind their elementary school. Several hours later, Adam emerges, but beautiful blonde Amelia does not. Adam shuts down completely, but through a partnering with another child determined to solve the crime and assuage his own conscien
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May 20, 2009
Jessica
rated it:
I think if the story had been told strictly from Cara's viewpoint, it wouldn't have been as good.
The entire premise behind this is enough to make your skin crawl. Nobody wants to think about children disappearing, or children being murdered. Nobody wants to imagine how their lives would be turned upside-down upon finding out that their child has gone missing.
That's the entirety of this novel. It's told in a way that draws out your fears (even if you aren't a parent), play More...
The entire premise behind this is enough to make your skin crawl. Nobody wants to think about children disappearing, or children being murdered. Nobody wants to imagine how their lives would be turned upside-down upon finding out that their child has gone missing.
That's the entirety of this novel. It's told in a way that draws out your fears (even if you aren't a parent), play More...
Dec 17, 2010
C.
rated it: 
Eye Contact (Paperback)
by Cammie McGovern
What a great story! McGorvern touches our heart, inspires us and entertains us with a great psychological mystery. The author has an excellent insight into the topic and builds up the story cleverly. Cara is Adam's mother, a 9 year old child on the autism spectrum. She is a very good single mother and is devoted to his development and happiness. A tragedy happens in his school. A little girl has been found dead and Adam is the More...
by Cammie McGovern
What a great story! McGorvern touches our heart, inspires us and entertains us with a great psychological mystery. The author has an excellent insight into the topic and builds up the story cleverly. Cara is Adam's mother, a 9 year old child on the autism spectrum. She is a very good single mother and is devoted to his development and happiness. A tragedy happens in his school. A little girl has been found dead and Adam is the More...
Nov 20, 2009
Laya
rated it:
I totally love this book. It's one of my favorite recent reads. I loved how the author, Cammie McGovern, sort of went deeper into the mind of autistic children. She showed that most of the time, they do know what they see, but they can't find the words to describe it, or they don't know the words to decribe it.
I really liked the relationship between Cara and Adam. You can tell how much she loved her son and how determined she was to making sure that she could teach him, and she was so More...
I really liked the relationship between Cara and Adam. You can tell how much she loved her son and how determined she was to making sure that she could teach him, and she was so More...
Mar 06, 2010
Stacy
rated it:
Eye Contact by Cammie McGovern was a nice change. It is a story of 2 children who wander off into the woods during recess, and only one returns.
Adam is nine years old and has autism. The little girls body was found, dead, in the woods, with little clues to her killer. The only person who saw what happened was Adam, but he does not talk freely due to his Autism.
Adam takes a little turn and starts to pull back into his shell. Adams mother Cara is intent to help him and ex More...
Adam is nine years old and has autism. The little girls body was found, dead, in the woods, with little clues to her killer. The only person who saw what happened was Adam, but he does not talk freely due to his Autism.
Adam takes a little turn and starts to pull back into his shell. Adams mother Cara is intent to help him and ex More...
Oct 03, 2009
Janet
rated it:
I read this book because it's about autism, and for that reason I was rewarded. I thought the plot was fine for developing characters (I noticed in other reviews that the plot seems to be criticized.) In fact, I read this book like: if I had autism in my life (a loved one, myself or others,) and like everyone who does live with it, is simply trying to figure it out for themselves; and if I wanted to do that with what I've learned through an exercise of fiction, then, I'd hope to do it as well as
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Aug 20, 2011
Rachel
rated it:
I really liked this book.
It centers around an autistic boy, Adam, with a mother who has a mysterious past. He and his friend go out to the woods and only Adam returns - his friend is found dead. The police then have to use the few leads they have to find the killer. It was a well-written mystery and the author keeps you guessing until the bitter end.
Now my grievances. **SPOILER ALERT** It bothered me how almost everyone seemed to be impaired in some way - mentally or phys More...
It centers around an autistic boy, Adam, with a mother who has a mysterious past. He and his friend go out to the woods and only Adam returns - his friend is found dead. The police then have to use the few leads they have to find the killer. It was a well-written mystery and the author keeps you guessing until the bitter end.
Now my grievances. **SPOILER ALERT** It bothered me how almost everyone seemed to be impaired in some way - mentally or phys More...
Aug 03, 2011
Brie
rated it:
This was an interesting novel about a mother with autism, but I have enjoyed others more, such as the Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime. While I enjoyed the complexity of the characters, it seemed like McGovern was trying too hard to lead the readers in a few different directions in search of the solution, and as a result there were an improbable number of people in the seemingly empty woods, with no less than three plausible explanations for the lack of footprints in the mud. At le
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Jan 23, 2012
Elizabeth
rated it:
Let me state first of all that I truly enjoyed this book, especially the parts dealing with the single mom and her autistic son. The author has an autistic son herself, which certainly lends some gravitas to her descriptions of the various therapies Cara, the mother in the book, tries with her son. However, the interconnectedness of the adult characters began to feel rather contrived by the ending. There are some good red herrings in this mystery of who killed a young girl in the woods, but t
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Feb 24, 2010
Stacey
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INSIDE COVER BLURB: As children wage mock battles in the playground of Woodside Elementary School, two students, a little girl and boy, seem to vanish, last seen heading across the soccer field toward the woods behind the school. Hours pass and then only one of them, Adam, a nine-year-old boy with autism, is found alive, the sole witness to an incomprehensible killing. Barely verbal on the best of days, Adam has retreated into a silent world that Cara, his mother, knows only too well. With her c
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Mar 12, 2009
Christen
rated it:
3/11/09: Okay - the reasons I enjoyed this book: fast-paced and kept your attention were also the reasons it's not a great book. Once you get below the surface and start picking it apart, it falls apart. I discussed it in my book club tonight and now after examining it closer, I'm sorry to have to change my star rating from a 3 to a 2.
*****
Original review: I enjoyed this book because it was fast-paced and kept the reader engaged. However, I believe the author had too More...
*****
Original review: I enjoyed this book because it was fast-paced and kept the reader engaged. However, I believe the author had too More...
Nov 05, 2011
Bat
rated it:
Surprisingly, I really enjoyed this novel. McGovern's characters are lonely, intriguing and realistic, a portrait of the lives some of us have to live, whether by chance or by choice or by circumstance.
On one side, the story is a thriller mystery with effective twists involving Cara's (the main character) failed relationships. On the other hand, it's an insightful eye-opener to the world of a mother of a special needs child. It is never preachy, instead it seeks to inform without rep More...
On one side, the story is a thriller mystery with effective twists involving Cara's (the main character) failed relationships. On the other hand, it's an insightful eye-opener to the world of a mother of a special needs child. It is never preachy, instead it seeks to inform without rep More...
Sep 19, 2010
Harriet
rated it:
This book was very interesting. It had the elements of a mystery/suspense book but what makes this book unusual and special is that a boy with autism was at the scene of the crime. Throughout the story, we are given a glimpse into the life of a mother and an autistic son. The book is well written and I felt as if I were standing there watching the story unfold.
There were some elements of the story that I found confusing and that is why I gave the book a four out of five stars. I More...
There were some elements of the story that I found confusing and that is why I gave the book a four out of five stars. I More...
Jul 28, 2011
Megan
rated it:
This book was awesome! A little hard to follow in the beginning until you got use to how the author switched to different characters in the middle of a chapter but that is the only negative thing I have to say about this book. It was very well written. The author either has personal experience with dealing with autistic children or she did a LOT of research for this book. Either way, she knew what she was talking about and made it very simple for someone who has no knowledge of autism to underst
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Jun 05, 2010
Sharonm
rated it:
The only thing that keeps this from a 5 is a slow start. This book about an autistic boy who witnesses a murder is a fascinating character study. As it turns out, many autistic and/or learning disabled people populate the book, and they are all fully realized. The author does a great job of showing how people are seen from a variety of perspectives, and the denouement is suspenseful and yet credible. There are wonderful descriptive sequences in the book, as well, and a few laugh-out-loud moments
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Oct 15, 2009
Laura
rated it:
I've waited a while to write my review giving myself a chance to really digest what I thought of this book. I think it's because I wanted to give it a high rating and my initial reaction was not to do so. However, it's been a week and I'm still feeling like it was an "eh" kind of book.
It felt like this book wasn't exactly sure what to be. There's a portion devoted to a family dealing with Autism. There's a portion dealing with broken relationships, and then there is the mu More...
It felt like this book wasn't exactly sure what to be. There's a portion devoted to a family dealing with Autism. There's a portion dealing with broken relationships, and then there is the mu More...
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Sep 30, 2008
Leigh
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Eye Contact is a mystery that centers around an autistic little boy, Adam, and his mother Cara. Adam is found in the woods outside his elementary school next to the dead body of his only friend. The police write off Adam as a witness; due to his autism he is barely verbal, and he is obviously traumatized by what he witnessed. Cara isn't so quick to discount her son's ability to help. She believes that she can get inside Adam's head and solve this mystery. Yet the path that she must take to piece
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Jun 17, 2008
Merry
rated it:
ISBN: 9780143038900
Publisher: Penguin Group USA
Rating: C
Cara must learn to unlock the secrets to her autistic son’s mind in order to help the police solve the murder of another child from his school. Will she be able to delve that deep into his mind or will her efforts prove to be fruitless?
I picked this book for my yahoo group Book of the Month read and I honestly couldn’t be more disappointed, I thought it would be a fascinating thriller that would for More...
Publisher: Penguin Group USA
Rating: C
Cara must learn to unlock the secrets to her autistic son’s mind in order to help the police solve the murder of another child from his school. Will she be able to delve that deep into his mind or will her efforts prove to be fruitless?
I picked this book for my yahoo group Book of the Month read and I honestly couldn’t be more disappointed, I thought it would be a fascinating thriller that would for More...
Sep 09, 2008
Dawn Michelle
rated it:
This was a good book~a fairly quick read for me. Though sometimes frustrating (there are MANY "red herrings" here and quite a few characters to keep track of), it was overall a good read for me.
This is the story of Cara and her son Adam, who is Autistic. Cara is a single mom who is unsure of who Adam's father is. All she is concerned about is Adam and helping him reach his highest potential.
When a young girl is found murdered in the woods close to the school and Ada More...
This is the story of Cara and her son Adam, who is Autistic. Cara is a single mom who is unsure of who Adam's father is. All she is concerned about is Adam and helping him reach his highest potential.
When a young girl is found murdered in the woods close to the school and Ada More...
May 25, 2008
Jeanette
rated it:
this book was on the table at the domicile for $1 for cancer awareness fundraising. it was worth a TON more. it is definitely in my top 10 favorite books. a beautiful, sad, horrifying story of an autistic boy who witnesses the murder of a schoolmate. half of the characters in the story are children/adults with special needs. the story reads from different perspectives and the murderer isnt revealed into far into the book. the story is not so much about the murderer, but about trying to figure ou
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May 01, 2008
Coral
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I found myself extremely enthralled with this book, while at the same time being slightly distracted by the way the story (or perhaps the better word would be stories) unfolds.
The story of Cara and Adam's relationship and that of Adam and the world around him is very powerful. The first half feels like that's what the novel is about, with the murder of a little girl thrown in to bring other characters into their lives. The second half of the novel (and it does feel like a distinct, More...
The story of Cara and Adam's relationship and that of Adam and the world around him is very powerful. The first half feels like that's what the novel is about, with the murder of a little girl thrown in to bring other characters into their lives. The second half of the novel (and it does feel like a distinct, More...
Mar 29, 2008
Erica
rated it:
Loved this! It was a compulsive read..had to finish it once I started it.
Here is the blub from amazon:
From Publishers Weekly
This is a difficult book for a reader. Fletcher has a clean, clear voice for the narrator and for Cara, mother of an autistic child who is found in the woods near the dead body of a retarded girl. But her other voices are unconvincing; they all sound so off that it's hard to distinguish autistic children and adults from those who aren't. Morgan, t More...
Here is the blub from amazon:
From Publishers Weekly
This is a difficult book for a reader. Fletcher has a clean, clear voice for the narrator and for Cara, mother of an autistic child who is found in the woods near the dead body of a retarded girl. But her other voices are unconvincing; they all sound so off that it's hard to distinguish autistic children and adults from those who aren't. Morgan, t More...
