Twelve-year-old Hope's life is turned upside down when her older sister, Lizzie, becomes an elective mute and is institutionalized for trying to ki...
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Jan 10, 2012
Emily
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I have been a fan of Carol Lynch Williams' books for a while now but, though I think Glimpse is a decent story, I still believe it to be the weakest I've read so far.
I would be the first to say that the author has a fantastic talent for getting inside the mind of her protagonist and dragging the reader with her along a tumultuous and usually painful journey. Williams' books are all about the characters, the relationships, the emotions and the darkest depths of the human mind. They are More...
I would be the first to say that the author has a fantastic talent for getting inside the mind of her protagonist and dragging the reader with her along a tumultuous and usually painful journey. Williams' books are all about the characters, the relationships, the emotions and the darkest depths of the human mind. They are More...
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Nov 23, 2011
Colin
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I just had to do author research on this author, because I felt it would determine how i felt about the book. First, the thing I really liked: This is a YA novel written in verse. And that's pretty cool. I like it when writers manage to blend genres in interesting ways, and I think Williams pulled it off admirably. It's spare but totally pithy, and the main character is well-developed.
Things I was skeptical of: This is a gritty novel, with what I felt was a stereotypical portrayal o More...
Things I was skeptical of: This is a gritty novel, with what I felt was a stereotypical portrayal o More...
Mar 26, 2011
Alanna
rated it: 
I've never seen a novel quite like this one, written entirely in poetry-format, so that most lines are, at the most, three words long and are frequently made up of just one word. It means that you can easily read all 300+ pages in a day. At first I thought this would annoy me, but I quickly got used to it and sort of enjoyed the stark (and yet chilling) words. This way of writing meant that Williams never gave you very much detail about anything: no long, drawn-out descriptions of the sunset,
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Feb 05, 2011
bjneary
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I read this novel-in-verse by Carol Lynch Williams and couldn't put it down. It was compelling to see the main character, Hope, telling her story about her beloved sister, Lizzy, who doesn't want to live anymore. Hope doesn't know why and it is her process of getting to the truth that is particularly sad. Her conscious mind recalls a pretty normal life with her mother, her sister, Lizzie, and Hope. It is only with her revelations as she recounts her life, that we see a mother who has truly b
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Jan 18, 2011
Barky
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
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Jan 17, 2011
Jan
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Dec 26, 2010
Jessica
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I'm really annoyed at the Amazon summary. It gives away the major secret about Lizzie that Hope is trying to uncover. The summary on Amazon mentions it like it is something that you would find out pretty early on, but as I read through this book I realized that it is the mystery that drives this story, the thing that Hope needs to figure out to help her sister. So if you don't want this book ruined for you, don't read the summary on Amazon! (I haven't looked at other sites, I don't know if it's
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Nov 06, 2010
Karen
rated it: 
This book was amazing! I absolutely loved it and could not put it down! I finished this book in 2 hours...
This is a story about sisters, Lizzie and Hope, who live with only their mother, since their father died when they were younger. Lizzie is now 14, I believe, since it doesn't really say and Hope is a year younger.
Hope walks in on Lizzie attempting suicide and catches her just in time (not a spoiler) and so Lizzie is admitted into a psychiatric hospital.
Th More...
This is a story about sisters, Lizzie and Hope, who live with only their mother, since their father died when they were younger. Lizzie is now 14, I believe, since it doesn't really say and Hope is a year younger.
Hope walks in on Lizzie attempting suicide and catches her just in time (not a spoiler) and so Lizzie is admitted into a psychiatric hospital.
Th More...
Oct 16, 2010
Celestasaurus
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Oct 09, 2010
Melissa
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Why this book is YF I have no idea! It's very adult context is a little disturbing for teens. I would not recommend this book for teens. Adults might find it interesting and tragic, but otherwise, not the best story I've ever read because it was just so tragic and predictable. The mother is the WORST kind--horrible, abusive, neglectful, and broken. All the context and themes in this book are adult in nature. I was a little annoyed by the fact that I had it figured out early in the book too
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Sep 19, 2010
Erin
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I would rate this book between 3.5 and 4 stars. I really enjoyed it. If it weren't such an easy read (I don't mean easy material wise because it's pretty heavy stuff, but I mean flow and length) I would have easily given this a 4 or higher. It was completely captivating. I read it in about 3 hours, maybe a little less. This was a very powerful story that kept unfolding as the verses rolled out.
It was a bit like a puzzle, although it was a little predictable I still had more than a co More...
It was a bit like a puzzle, although it was a little predictable I still had more than a co More...
Aug 21, 2010
Heather
rated it:
I was quite surprised when I flipped through this book to see it's all written in poetry style. And, honestly, I groaned. I'm not a big fan of poetry. I think my main problem with it is that I believe in the rules that go with our use of English – grammar, spelling, punctuation, etc. They all serve a purpose. As such, it can be hard for me to operate outside these rules. Not for lack of trying, just it slows me down SIGNIFICANTLY. Usually.
While written as poetry, this book flows lik More...
While written as poetry, this book flows lik More...
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Aug 09, 2010
Mark
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Having read _The Chosen One_ by Carol Lynch Williams, I was eager to dive into this one, especially after reading raves about it on this site. I was not disappointed at all. Written in free verse, Williams has told a painful and beautiful story of sisters, and what it means to love and protect someone in the face of horrible circumstances.
Hope and Lizzie are sisters, one year apart, living with their mother in a small Florida town. Their father died when the girls were young, in a More...
Hope and Lizzie are sisters, one year apart, living with their mother in a small Florida town. Their father died when the girls were young, in a More...
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Jul 18, 2010
Candace
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Glimpse is an amazing verse novel. There's not much of a description on Goodreads, so I'll try to give you a short description here. Hope and her sister Liz grow up with their mother in Florida. When Hope walks in to find her sister holding a shotgun and about to kill herself her whole life changes.
Her sister is sent off to a hospital and Hope spends the summer trying to figure out why her sister changed so much in such a short period of time. And what is her mother afraid of and tryin More...
Her sister is sent off to a hospital and Hope spends the summer trying to figure out why her sister changed so much in such a short period of time. And what is her mother afraid of and tryin More...
Jul 06, 2010
Becky
rated it:
GLIMPSE is absolutely wonderful. It's 484 pages long, but it's written in verse so in terms of word count it's probably pretty short. I read it over about an hour and a half. It's a quick read and an amazing book so please don't let the length scare you off.
Hope is 13. Her older sister Lizzie is 14. They have other friends, but ever since they were 3 and 4, they've been best friends and they've protected each other. So when Hope walks into their shared bedroom to find Lizzie pointing More...
Hope is 13. Her older sister Lizzie is 14. They have other friends, but ever since they were 3 and 4, they've been best friends and they've protected each other. So when Hope walks into their shared bedroom to find Lizzie pointing More...
Jul 15, 2010
Lora
rated it:
This novel was written in verse and was a very fast read. And it deals with very heavy subject matter. Hope's older sister Lizzie tried to commit suicide and gets hospitalized. Hope misses her sister tremendously and is utterly confused why Lizzie would ever want to end her life. Throughout the story it is revealed that Lizzie and their mother share a secret that is so horrific that Hope can't even begin to understand or believe it.
Carol Lynch William wrote The Chosen One and I More...
Carol Lynch William wrote The Chosen One and I More...
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Feb 19, 2011
K80h
rated it:
This is a dark book, but very well written. I would not say that I would re-read the book, but it was worth the first time through. I was worried about the ending as I made my way through, but it seemed to work perfectly with the story. The free verse form made for easy reading, and I am sure that if I were to read it again, I would pick up on a lot of complexities that I missed along the way.
As a teacher, I would probably not teach the text because of some of the topics presented More...
As a teacher, I would probably not teach the text because of some of the topics presented More...
Jul 16, 2010
Liza
rated it:
This is a large book, but I read it in one sitting. The story is told in verse and moves quickly. What seems like a family story about two sisters and their mother really presents itself more like a suspense story about the youngest daughter trying to unravel the mystery of what happened to her sister. Even though I knew the ending from a colleague before I started the book, I was still able to feel all the tension toward the story's climax.
Everything, from the characterizations More...
Everything, from the characterizations More...
Oct 17, 2010
Presented in verse is the unraveling of the mystery of why Liz just wants to disappear. Hope finds her sister with a gun contemplating suicide, Liz is rushed to a therapeutic hospital where she chooses not to speak.
The verses are carefully crafted as Hope travels the painful path to understanding Liz, her mother and the complex aftermath of her dad's death.
The format is simple and spare with an undeniable wallop. The reader won't easily forget this tragic tale.
Additional not More...
The verses are carefully crafted as Hope travels the painful path to understanding Liz, her mother and the complex aftermath of her dad's death.
The format is simple and spare with an undeniable wallop. The reader won't easily forget this tragic tale.
Additional not More...
Sep 11, 2011
Terri
rated it:
"Glimpse," by Carol Lynch Williams, may be threatening to some teens because of its first appearance - it is nearly 500 pages in length and the cover is entirely uninviting. However, if you can entice a teen into really examining and reading the cover, actually opening the book, and reading the very first page - he or she will be hooked.
In the fashion of Ellen Hopkins or Cathy Ostlere or Patricia McCormick, Carol Lynch Williams has written a novel in verse with terrific tee More...
In the fashion of Ellen Hopkins or Cathy Ostlere or Patricia McCormick, Carol Lynch Williams has written a novel in verse with terrific tee More...
Jul 11, 2011
Emily (You Are Beautiful)
rated it:
This book has mixed reviews... It was good, but at the same time it was kind of boring.
ONCE AGAIN, Carol Lynch Williams did the same thing that pissed me off with her last book "Miles From Ordinary"...
SHE WOULD NOT STRAIGHT OUT STATE EXACTLY WHAT THE PROBLEM WAS...
Whenever there's a problem in the book, and the main character finds out the big secret or the problem as to why whatever happened, happened, she NEVER straight out SAYS IT.
This is really hard to expl More...
ONCE AGAIN, Carol Lynch Williams did the same thing that pissed me off with her last book "Miles From Ordinary"...
SHE WOULD NOT STRAIGHT OUT STATE EXACTLY WHAT THE PROBLEM WAS...
Whenever there's a problem in the book, and the main character finds out the big secret or the problem as to why whatever happened, happened, she NEVER straight out SAYS IT.
This is really hard to expl More...
Dec 10, 2010
Sierra
rated it:
Read this in under two hours, that's how captivating and simply enticing it is.
To start, 'verse books' are always a quick, fun read for me. I can read the entire 400+ page book in basically one sitting, where I would normally get maybe 200 pages done normally, so that's what drew me into the book. Now, I would have, under normal circumstances, put the book down once I learned that the MC was just about to turn 12...her sister being only 14. BUT, after reading...I don't know, 30? pages b More...
To start, 'verse books' are always a quick, fun read for me. I can read the entire 400+ page book in basically one sitting, where I would normally get maybe 200 pages done normally, so that's what drew me into the book. Now, I would have, under normal circumstances, put the book down once I learned that the MC was just about to turn 12...her sister being only 14. BUT, after reading...I don't know, 30? pages b More...
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Feb 03, 2012
Inkbitten
rated it:
Judged By Cover: *Insert Gold Star Here*
The cover of this book is beautiful, simply beautiful. I love the way the sun is hitting the girls face so that you can't see it, leaving that to the imagination, and the way that it gives a rural feel to the whole thing, It's beautiful. I'm guessing the girl with the bike is suppose to be Hope, But I can't be too sure. Overall I really liked this cover and I would give it a gold Star.
What's Up?
Hope and Lizzie have reli More...
The cover of this book is beautiful, simply beautiful. I love the way the sun is hitting the girls face so that you can't see it, leaving that to the imagination, and the way that it gives a rural feel to the whole thing, It's beautiful. I'm guessing the girl with the bike is suppose to be Hope, But I can't be too sure. Overall I really liked this cover and I would give it a gold Star.
What's Up?
Hope and Lizzie have reli More...
Aug 26, 2011
Melissa
rated it:
Liz and Hope, sisters separated by a year, have always taken care of each other. When Hope finds Liz in the bathroom with the shotgun, Hope wonders what could have done this to her big sister. As Hope remembers more about the past few months, she begins to see a darkness that she never saw before, a darkness and secrets that may swallow Liz and their family whole.
Glimpse is a novel in verse, and a very fast read. Told from the perspective of Hope, flashbacks from her memory show us More...
Jun 01, 2010
Brittany
rated it:
Lizzie and Hope were sisters, and with only a year between them they were also best friends. One day their Momma told them that they were to look out for each other, that was their job. But when Hope walks and and sees her dear sister with a gun pointed to her face, Hope doesn't know what to do. Lizzie get sent to a hospital and the doctors set to work in order to find out what would make Lizzie want to kill herself. While Lizzie is in the hospital, Hope sets out to search her memories of how he
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Apr 19, 2010
Diana
rated it:
After reading a second text by Carol Lynch Williams, I can't say I'm very impressed with her as a writer. 'Glimpse' and 'The Chosen One' are both, in my opinion, highly sensationalized. In a bad way. It comes across in her plot development as well as her general diction. I was particularly bothered by her portrayal of mental health care (again, it veered too far from the course of realism) and the big 'secret' to which the plot synopsis refers is not much of a mystery at all. On the plus si
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Jul 20, 2010
Honey
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Glimpse was a gift of a novel. It was heartfelt and heartbreaking. It's written in verse, which I usually don't like, but it's easy to get past that. Hope and Lizzie are sisters and best friends. Their journey was one of sadness and pain. I really felt for Hope and especially Lizzie. No one should have to go through what they went through. But sadly, it happens. Glimpse really opened my eyes to some of the horrific, unimaginable things that go on in the world. The novel switched from present day
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Feb 05, 2011
Karisa
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Twelve year old girl Hope's life is turned upside down when her older sister Lizzie becomes an elective mute and is institutionalized after trying to kill herself. Ever since their dad died Hope and Lizzie have relied on each other from a young age. Their mother is a reluctant and unreliable parent at best, who turns tricks to support the family. Throughout the course of this lyrical and heartbreaking narrative readers and Hope discover that the mother is prostituting Lizzie and it’s up to Hope
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Jul 14, 2010
P.M.
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12 year old Hope Chapman has been told by her mother to always take care of her older sister, 13 year old Lizzie. Imagine Hope's surprise when she finds Lizzie in the bathroom with a shotgun pointed at her head. Lizzie is institutionalized for treatment while Hope tries to figure out what motivated her sister. Hope and her mother visit the hospital but Lizzie will only speak to Hope. The attending psychiatrist meets with Hope and asks her about Lizzie's diary. After the appointment, Mom threaten
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Jan 12, 2011
Alicia
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Hope is struggling to help her sister after she catches Lizzie with a gun to her head. When Lizzie is institutionalized, the mom seems a little disconnected and there's so much conversation about Lizzie and Hope and their close relationship that Hope's innocence is slowly realizing that there's a big secret in this family.
In essense, the "Chapman girls" are little more than a dysfunctional and abusive mother who prostitutes to "help" give her daughters a good life More...
In essense, the "Chapman girls" are little more than a dysfunctional and abusive mother who prostitutes to "help" give her daughters a good life More...
