This book was a bit heavier than I was expecting. I was prepared for a sad book that would tug at my heart, but this book was just downright depressing.

I think in a way, Colasanti does a pretty good job of showing what some kids go through in school. However, some of it was a bit too extreme. I know some kids have a really difficult life at home and in school, but I kind of wished Colasanti had made it just a tad less because it would have been more realistic. Bullies have their targets, but it seemed like pretty much the whole school was against her.

Noelle sort of irritated me because she was so whiny. At the same time, I do sympathize with her, and I understand that with the difficult home life and the bullying at school.

But I do find it a bit hard to believe that she would get over it so quickly. Yes, a real tragedy struck, waking her up from this daze of hers. But it seems like everything fell into place easily - home, school, boys, even Matt defending her. I'm sure it opened her eyes, but at the same time, realistically, people in these situations do not get over it that quickly because they have been damaged for so long. Things like these take time to heal, and I felt her "recovery" was too rushed.

Still, not a bad book at all. I enjoyed it in a sad kind of way.