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Dec 20, 2011

Emily rated it:

This book literally had me sleeping with the light on. It's not just sad, it's very creepy towards the end. I spent about two thirds of the book thinking it was good and really captured the pain and loneliness of a young girl who is ostracised and has no friends because of the situation with her severely depressed mother. How sometimes she'll come home and find the house empty and have to go out searching for hours until she finds her mum wandering up the street in her nightgown. How she is forc More...

0 comments like (15 people liked it)

Feb 22, 2012

Annalisa rated it:

This is my first experience with Williams and I had high hopes and high expectations, but this book didn't work for me. For starters, the voice is all wrong. Despite the main character being 14 years old, her voice is so juvenile. Even if she had to deal with a mentally ill mother and a complete lack of social integration at school because of it, she'd still be less childish than this girl. Maybe for an 11-year-old I could believe the voice--and it is a strong voice which is a risk I appreciate More...

5 comments like (4 people liked it)

Mar 09, 2011

Reading Vacation's Mom rated it:

Powerful would be an understatement. Miles From Ordinary goes where other young adult books seldom go as it explores the world of mental illness.

Lacey is a young teen whose dream of a normal life is not realistic because she is the caregiver to her mentally ill mother. Facing this serious situation, Lacey is forced to grow up quickly. I found myself completely drawn into Lacey’s world. A world of fear and vulnerability – love and family bonds.

Carol Lynch Williams slowly drops bits of the past in More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Dec 04, 2011

Terri rated it:

I had high expectations for this book. I am in a book club for adults who read "children's" literature. We are reading twelve book this month (this was number eight for me), four contenders for the Caldecott, four contenders for the Newbery, and four for the Printz. This was one of the books we will be discussing as a Printz contender. My expectations for this book were quickly dashed - no way will this win the Printz, in my humble opinion. I am not sure why it was include on our list. More...

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Oct 27, 2011

Barky rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

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Aug 12, 2011

Amanda rated it:

I am torn between a 3 or 4 star rating. The book was slow paced but kept me wondering what was going ot happen next, I just felt like the ending was a bit vague and left too open. I really enjoyed Carol Williams other book, The Chosen One, much more so I thought I would give this one a try too.

The enitre 197 page book is set in one day. Lacey and her mentally crazy mother both get jobs, and Lacey is excited to get some free time away from her crazy mother. Most of the book is a litt More...

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Aug 07, 2011

Karleneb rated it:

I actually would give this book 4 1/2 stars, if it would let me. It was a very emotional story, and in places, it hurt to read. I felt so bad for Lacey and her situation. Williams really got inside the mind of this girl. Because I was so into her thoughts and her internal life, sometimes it was a little jarring when she interacted with others in the outside world. A few times, she acted in ways that seemed out of character. That is why it lost 1/2 a star for me.

But otherwise, it was More...

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May 31, 2011

Corinne added it

Ordinary: common, unremarkable, usual

One would be hard=pressed to say that fourteen yr. old Lacey led an ordinary life.

She lives alone, with her mom, no father on the scene, no siblings --ok, ordinary.

Her aunt, who used to live with them and with whom she has a very close relationship, has moved out because of "a lifestyle disparity with her sister, Lacey's mom -- ok, ordinary.

Lacey does not do much outside of school and does not have any More...

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Apr 22, 2011

Walt rated it:

Light-years from middling, not just MILES FROM ORDINARY.

That is Carol Lynch Williams's latest novel for youngsters, and it is light-years from middling.

I enjoyed reading the novel, but, in the interests of full disclosure, I am an oldster, and probably not among those of its primary audience. After reading Williams's THE CHOSEN ONE, however, I just had to read her latest offering, which is set in a very real, if atypical, world.

Recently, as my wife and I walked thro More...

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Apr 20, 2011

Missy (Missy's Reads & Reviews) rated it:

I didn't know what to expect from this story. Having no prior reading experience of Carol Lynch Williams, I was intrigued with praises of her writing but still clueless. After reading Miles from Ordinary, I can say that I will be singing her praises as well.

Whatever I may have been thinking this book was, it was not. The story is beautifully written and so moving. It was also set in only one day's time, which was amazing to me. You'd think something like that wouldn't be able to live More...

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Apr 06, 2011

Alisha rated it:

I had extremely high hopes for Miles From Ordinary considering that I loved The Chosen One. That book was deep, shocking, and heartwrenching. I remember sobbing for a half hour after I finished The Chosen One about three hours after I started it. I expected the same thing from Miles From Ordinary and ultimately, I ended up a tad bit disappointed.

I'm going to start out by saying that Miles From Ordinary starts out sloooowwww, like really, really, really slow. I took me about three More...

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Mar 16, 2011

Angela rated it:

Great concept but uneven execution

In Williams' MILES FROM ORDINARY, thirteen-year-old Lacey just wants a normal day. Since her aunt left a year ago, Lacey has been forced to take care of her mentally ill mother by herself. In an attempt to gain some freedom and some income for both of them, Lacey gets her mother a job as a cashier while she plans to volunteer at the local library. Hoping against hope that she will have one ordinary day and maybe make a friend in the process, Lacey dr More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Mar 08, 2011

Amy rated it:

After reading the summary on this book, I wasn't sure what to expect. What was Lacey's Mother recovering from and what is Lacey worried about? Yet, as I read the book, I didn't worry about the reason so much and just enjoyed the writing that the author was telling.

Lacey is worried about starting her first day as a volunteer at the library. Her mother is also starting her first day of work at the local grocery store as a checker. As you read the book, you can feel the intensity of w More...

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Mar 08, 2011

Kristin (Beneath Shining Stars, I Read) rated it:

At the age of thirteen, would you care for your ailing mother on your own? Could you endure your classmates and the whispers around town? Lacey has been putting up with it for years and although things haven't been as bad as they've been before--for her mother--it's a far cry from the road to recovery. When summer comes, Lacey manages to convince her mother to apply for a job as a cashier at the local grocery store and she applies to work at the library over the summer. And although she loves bo More...

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Feb 26, 2011

Kelly rated it:

Lacey’s a 14-year-old with heartbreaking dreams. It’s her first day of work (she’s volunteering at the library) and she’s so excited because she’s going to have a day free of taking care of her mom. She hopes it’ll lead to a summer of fun times at the library and maybe she’ll make a friend and she can have a sleepover. Her dreams are so small because her mom’s sick. She hallucinates that her father (Lacey’s grandfather) talks to her. (He’s been dead for years.) I’m not sure exactly what he More...

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Mar 31, 2011

Linna rated it:

MILES FROM ORDINARY's short length and young characters may make it seem aimed mostly at a middle grade audience, but the story is so involving that it could easily pull in teenagers and adults alike.

My first experience with Williams' books was, unlike many, not The Chosen One. Instead, I read Glimpse last summer, and it was a unique and absorbing novel that uses simple prose that surprisingly manages to hit home. MILES FROM ORDINARY brings you into Lacey's life, troubled family mem More...

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Mar 05, 2011

Melissa (i swim for oceans) rated it:

Lacey is, on the outside, your everyday 14 year old girl. At home, however, she's the sole caregiver for her mother who is plagued every day by paranoia, delusions and bipolar tendencies. Lacey loves her mother more than anything in the world, but she relishes the time away from her mother - those little moments where she can be herself and be a teenager. She is excited for a summer full of the little joys in life. She wants sleepovers, trips to the library and an escape from her mother's delusi More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Mar 01, 2011

Karin rated it:

Lacey is filled with excitement and anxiety. Today is the first day of her volunteer job at the public library and her mother's first day as a checker at Winn-Dixie. Lacey can't wait to have some time out of the house - some time for herself.

Lacey has been the sole caretaker of her mother ever since her Aunt Linda was forced to leave a year ago. Lacey's mother's paranoia and depression has only gotten worse, leaving Lacey scared that her mother won't be able to manage her job outs More...

2 comments like (1 person liked it)

Sep 13, 2011

Kvothem rated it:

This is a haunting story about 14 year old Lacey and her mom. It's a story of how Lacey's life is and has been affected by her mom's depression, how all the kids made fun of Lacey and her mom, so she has no friends, and how Lacey needs to take on the role of a parent in the relationship encouraging her mom, pushing and cajoling her mom, trying to get her mom out of the house, trying to get her mom to take a job at the Winn-Dixie. Lacey's mom believes that her dad (Lacey's grandfather)is haunting More...

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Mar 19, 2011

Basma rated it:

My review:

This is my very first time reading a book by Carol Lynch Williams but I promise you it won't be the last one.

This book captivated me from the first page. Miles from Ordinary only took place in one full day and only 3 settings. But the flashbacks made it seem like a rich and a full novel. Carol Lynch Williams made it very easy to be able to picture the 13 year old character and what she was going through.

The book is about Lacey who struggles with he More...

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Jun 06, 2011

Emily (You Are Beautiful) rated it:

Wow, this book was really good. But also, extremely different. Let's start off by saying that the only thing keeping me from giving this book a 5/5 stars was because at parts, I was really confused. I wasn't really sure what was going on, and although I know it's pretty obvious at the end, the author was still not straight forward as to what exactly was going on with Lacey's mother. Clearly, some type of schizophrenia, I'm assuming, or just straight out crazy.

Other than that, this bo More...

2 comments like (2 people liked it)

Oct 14, 2011

Inspired Kathy rated it:

Miles from Ordinary is a book that can be read in one sitting. Just 197 double spaced pages I flew through this book. It was a heartbreaking, almost haunting, read that left me with feelings of sadness, gratitude and hopefulness. The writing is beautiful but the subject matter is dark. I felt for Lacey and the struggle she had dealing with her mentally ill mother. The love she had for her mother was evident despite the struggles her mother illness brought her. It made me understand better More...

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Feb 07, 2012

Mandy rated it:

Wow...
What an amazing novel.
In general, I am a person who likes what I consider to be a "complete" story when it comes to my young adult books.
Begining. Middle. End. I like traditional character development, chronological story telling. I find it more appropriate for the young adult audience, and more suited to the YA author.
Miles From Ordinary was a big exception to that.
The writing was beautiful and evocative, and the story unfolded in a slightly haphaza More...

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Sep 28, 2011

Lea rated it:

I picked this book at our local public library for a quick read. During the first 2 to 3 chapters I was somewhat disappointed, it was kind of slow paced in the beginning. However, after those first few chapters and once I adjusted to the writing style it became difficult to put down! There were parts of the story that were hard for me to read, only because I could relate on some level since I grew up with a mom that had undiagnosed mental problems. The isolation it causes is definitely something More...

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Apr 25, 2011

Alan rated it:

This is a haunting story about 14 year old Lacey and her mom. It's a story of how Lacey's life is and has been affected by her mom's depression, how all the kids made fun of Lacey and her mom, so she has no friends, and how Lacey needs to take on the role of a parent in the relationship encouraging her mom, pushing and cajoling her mom, trying to get her mom out of the house, trying to get her mom to take a job at the Winn-Dixie. Lacey's mom believes that her dad (Lacey's grandfather)is haunting More...

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Apr 21, 2011

Cynthia rated it:

Told exclusively, charmingly, and hauntingly from young Lacey’s voice, Miles from Ordinary chronicles one day. One day that started off bright and sunny, yet ended dark and stormy.

Written quite beautifully by Carol Lynch Williams, this short read will open the eyes of all its readers. Thirteen-year-old Lacey, the main character, has taken over the roll of caregiver to her mentally ill mother. She often refers to her mother as “sick” while she dialogues to the readers. A turn I highly More...

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Apr 02, 2011

Colleen rated it:

I chose this book because I read Carol Lynch Williams' The Chosen One a couple of years ago and thought it was wonderful. If anything, Miles from Ordinary surpasses that earlier work with its tender and haunting look at one daughter's effort to care for a mother spiralling into madness. 13 year old Lacey has simple desires for her summer- jobs for her and her mother, and the chance to make a friend. The book traces one day in Lacey's life, one day that starts out hopeful only to fall apart in ev More...

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Mar 30, 2011

Sya rated it:

I haven't read anything else by Carol Lynch Williams and wasn't sure what to expect from Miles From Ordinary. It is an extraordinarly brutal story – portraying severe mental illness and it's affect on a family with no frills, no niceties and leaving nothing to the imagination. From the opening lines the writing is blunt and too the point, as it should be. Mental illness is frightening, it can make even the sanest of carers question themselves and is debilitatingly draining for all involved. More...

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Jul 12, 2011

Sandy rated it:

Lacey is only 13 and yet she’s taken care of her mentally ill mother for years. Feeling the need to get away from the responsibility of being her mother’s caretaker, she manages to get a volunteer job at the library, but it means her mother must fulfill her promise to work at a local grocery store. It’s just too much to hope for, and Lacey’s Mom runs away from the job and can’t be found. At least Lacey has a new friend who’s supportive; Jacob is willing to help in the search. Ultimately, it’s Li More...

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Apr 24, 2011

Cleverly rated it:

The depth and emotions were overwhelming. Miles From Ordinary left you with the feeling of being adrift at sea and with no shoreline in sight. This is one of the most powerful reads I have ever read. I could never possess the courage and ability to keep my sanity as Lacey has.

The first page was mind blowing and it just continued on a fantastic pace from that point on. I have so many questions, about how Lacey will turn out and how her life continued on. I want to know so much more. More...

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