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Ein emotionaler Einblick in die Seele eines jungen Mädchens, das schon viele Pflegefamilien kennengelernt hat, aber kein Vertrauen fassen kann …
16 Familien und Heime, das ist die nüchterne Bilanz der erst elfjährigen Olivia. Olivia fasst schwer oder gar kein Vertrauen, zu oft ist sie enttäuscht worden. Emotionale Nähe versetzt sie in Panik, und zugleich sehnt sie sich unendlich nach Liebe, Freundschaft und Familie. Doch wer sollte sie schon mögen, wütend und unberechenbar, wie sie ist? So ist Olivia zunächst irritiert, wie gelassen die Iveys reagieren, zu denen sie gerade gekommen ist. Das Leben mit ihnen könnte so schön sein. Doch je stärker Olivias Bindung wird, desto größer wird ihre Angst, dieses endlich gefundene Zuhause wieder zu verlieren. Ein hochemotionales Jugendbuch und zugleich ein starkes Plädoyer für mehr Achtsamkeit.
16 Familien und Heime, das ist die nüchterne Bilanz der erst elfjährigen Olivia. Olivia fasst schwer oder gar kein Vertrauen, zu oft ist sie enttäuscht worden. Emotionale Nähe versetzt sie in Panik, und zugleich sehnt sie sich unendlich nach Liebe, Freundschaft und Familie. Doch wer sollte sie schon mögen, wütend und unberechenbar, wie sie ist? So ist Olivia zunächst irritiert, wie gelassen die Iveys reagieren, zu denen sie gerade gekommen ist. Das Leben mit ihnen könnte so schön sein. Doch je stärker Olivias Bindung wird, desto größer wird ihre Angst, dieses endlich gefundene Zuhause wieder zu verlieren. Ein hochemotionales Jugendbuch und zugleich ein starkes Plädoyer für mehr Achtsamkeit.
224 pages, Paperback
First published November 7, 2013
10 people are currently reading
326 people want to read
About the author
Sally Nicholls
45 books282 followers Sally Nicholls is a prize-winning British children's author. She was born and grew up in Stockton-on-Tees. On finishing school, Nicholls chose to travel around the world. Her first novel was Ways to Live Forever.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 58 reviews
August 12, 2015
Sometimes the rating system feels very inadequate. I didn't "really like" this book in the sense of having a pleasurable reading experience; in fact, it was an almost horribly painful book to read. However, I still feel obligated to give it four stars in order to acknowledge that it does a number of things really well. First of all, it is extremely "readable" and I could hardly put it down after the initial chapters. Although the content may not be emotionally appropriate for many children (more on this), the writing style is -- with simple sentences, vivid descriptions and great control of the flashback scenes which inform the present action. Second, the first-person voice of Olivia is strong, consistent and emotionally affecting. Olivia is an abused child who has been in and out of many foster care homes. The author deftly weaves her former experiences into her present situation, in order to show how her damaging past has shaped her responses to what could be a promising present. Third, the author has really done her research and it shows. There is a very well-balanced portrayal of the "care system" -- with both good and bad carers, and good carers who are also not up to the task of parenting such a damaged child.
The novel begins with Olivia being taken to live with the Iveys: Jim (father), Daniel and Harriet (his children) and an older fostered child called Grace, who also has a baby called Maisy. The Iveys live in a large, rambling period house in the country, with fields and animals. Despite her deeply rooted mistrust and many, many fears, Olivia has a cautious liking for the Iveys -- but she cannot seem to stop or manage her bad behaviour. Although Olivia has only a partial understanding of her own behaviour and emotions, the author does a fantastic job of balancing out Olivia's perception of the world with an insight into how others (her former foster parents and her therapist) see and understand her.
After a promising start with the Iveys, Olivia becomes fixated on the ghost of Amelia Dyer -- a Victorian baby farmer who had once lived in the house, and was responsible for the murder of a number of babies. (Amelia Dyer was a real person, although the Ivey's house is a fictional place.) The inclusion of this ghost story element is mostly successful, I think. In some ways it is distracting, and I wonder if the author included it because supernatural horrors are a bit easier to cope with than the very real horrors of life as an abused child? (The creepy gothic elements of the book are certainly played on in the marketing of the book, when it is actually more of a realistic "problem" novel.) At any rate, Olivia's fears of the dark, or being alone, of being rejected or even done away with all become heightened as she becomes increasingly convinced that she is being haunted by Amelia Dyer. Even worse, the ghost wants her to do bad things and is acting through her. As with many children's books, the story is working on two levels. I can see that a younger child may be taken in by the ghost story; an adult will read it all more metaphorically.
Olivia's self-destructive tendencies are probably entirely realistic, but they are very difficult to read. Perhaps some children will enjoy the way she plays out and manipulates authority; I don't know. She deliberately hurts the people who actually care for her, and ends up hurting herself in turn. Perhaps some young readers will have a "lightbulb" moment of understanding when they see how Olivia undermines herself? I wouldn't really recommend this novel for the truly tender-hearted or sheltered child, but tougher children -- who have experienced more difficulties in life, particularly with inconsistent and inadequate parents -- may really respond to it.
The novel begins with Olivia being taken to live with the Iveys: Jim (father), Daniel and Harriet (his children) and an older fostered child called Grace, who also has a baby called Maisy. The Iveys live in a large, rambling period house in the country, with fields and animals. Despite her deeply rooted mistrust and many, many fears, Olivia has a cautious liking for the Iveys -- but she cannot seem to stop or manage her bad behaviour. Although Olivia has only a partial understanding of her own behaviour and emotions, the author does a fantastic job of balancing out Olivia's perception of the world with an insight into how others (her former foster parents and her therapist) see and understand her.
After a promising start with the Iveys, Olivia becomes fixated on the ghost of Amelia Dyer -- a Victorian baby farmer who had once lived in the house, and was responsible for the murder of a number of babies. (Amelia Dyer was a real person, although the Ivey's house is a fictional place.) The inclusion of this ghost story element is mostly successful, I think. In some ways it is distracting, and I wonder if the author included it because supernatural horrors are a bit easier to cope with than the very real horrors of life as an abused child? (The creepy gothic elements of the book are certainly played on in the marketing of the book, when it is actually more of a realistic "problem" novel.) At any rate, Olivia's fears of the dark, or being alone, of being rejected or even done away with all become heightened as she becomes increasingly convinced that she is being haunted by Amelia Dyer. Even worse, the ghost wants her to do bad things and is acting through her. As with many children's books, the story is working on two levels. I can see that a younger child may be taken in by the ghost story; an adult will read it all more metaphorically.
Olivia's self-destructive tendencies are probably entirely realistic, but they are very difficult to read. Perhaps some children will enjoy the way she plays out and manipulates authority; I don't know. She deliberately hurts the people who actually care for her, and ends up hurting herself in turn. Perhaps some young readers will have a "lightbulb" moment of understanding when they see how Olivia undermines herself? I wouldn't really recommend this novel for the truly tender-hearted or sheltered child, but tougher children -- who have experienced more difficulties in life, particularly with inconsistent and inadequate parents -- may really respond to it.
June 9, 2014
Trigger Warning: Discussion of physical, emotional and verbal child abuse and its aftermath. Descriptions of PTSD, including flashbacks and dissociation. Nothing graphic.
Oh. My. God.
I wish I had written this.
Olivia's mental space is so brilliantly crafted. She has PTSD, and her therapist says she has symptoms, but she says they are superpowers. Because being able to hear things others can't hear is good, and always being aware means she can see things coming, and she can almost read minds because she's so good at reading people.
She thinks she's evil. I think she's a manipulative little shit of a child who is so incredibly logical and justified I want to foster her myself.
She has flashbacks, and they merge with seeing/hearing ghosts, because they are all linked together in ways she has to protect herself. Babies crying remind her of her mother. She's scared of the dark. She rules all her old foster homes, because she will not take anything lying down.
Here, have a quote:
I only had to open my mouth to start screaming and he'd pick up the book again. I sort of liked that I could get him to do what I wanted, and I sort of didn't, because the sort of dad who can be outsmarted by an eleven-year-old probably isn't smart enough to protect me from all the people I need protecting from.
and another,
I thought I really might kill him. I could do it, I bet. [...] They wouldn't be able to send me to someone like Violet if I killed Jim. They'd have to put me in prison. Violet couldn't get me in prison, and I bet no one else would either. I'd be the eleven-year-old murderer, and no one would dare do anything to me in case I killed them.
and another,
"Careful on the stepping stones," they'd say. "Or you'll get eaten by alligators!"
When I first met them, I didn't realise they were kidding. I thought we really were going to get eaten by alligators, and I couldn't understand why everyone looked so cheerful about it. When I figured it out, I got pretty annoyed. Here I was working hard to keep Hayley and me safe, playing nice so they didn't dump us, watching and listening all the time, so when they started hitting us, I wouldn't be taken by surprise. And they'd had me worrying about alligators and Darth Vader.
This is why this book is brilliant.
It's harsh. The ghost story is so satisfying as an expression of Olivia's issues, her wants, and her mental distress. (It's probably less satisfying as an actual ghost story. I wasn't quite able to put on my childish headspace and see what younger!me would have thought.)
This might be one of those books best appreciated by children's librarians, because the layers when you can see them as an adult are fantastic.
I just love these characters and want them to be happy, and as much as I know they are fictional, I know there are far too many realities in this book for me to be comfortable. It makes me want to become a fucking awesome and dedicated foster mum.
Oh. My. God.
I wish I had written this.
Olivia's mental space is so brilliantly crafted. She has PTSD, and her therapist says she has symptoms, but she says they are superpowers. Because being able to hear things others can't hear is good, and always being aware means she can see things coming, and she can almost read minds because she's so good at reading people.
She thinks she's evil. I think she's a manipulative little shit of a child who is so incredibly logical and justified I want to foster her myself.
She has flashbacks, and they merge with seeing/hearing ghosts, because they are all linked together in ways she has to protect herself. Babies crying remind her of her mother. She's scared of the dark. She rules all her old foster homes, because she will not take anything lying down.
Here, have a quote:
I only had to open my mouth to start screaming and he'd pick up the book again. I sort of liked that I could get him to do what I wanted, and I sort of didn't, because the sort of dad who can be outsmarted by an eleven-year-old probably isn't smart enough to protect me from all the people I need protecting from.
and another,
I thought I really might kill him. I could do it, I bet. [...] They wouldn't be able to send me to someone like Violet if I killed Jim. They'd have to put me in prison. Violet couldn't get me in prison, and I bet no one else would either. I'd be the eleven-year-old murderer, and no one would dare do anything to me in case I killed them.
and another,
"Careful on the stepping stones," they'd say. "Or you'll get eaten by alligators!"
When I first met them, I didn't realise they were kidding. I thought we really were going to get eaten by alligators, and I couldn't understand why everyone looked so cheerful about it. When I figured it out, I got pretty annoyed. Here I was working hard to keep Hayley and me safe, playing nice so they didn't dump us, watching and listening all the time, so when they started hitting us, I wouldn't be taken by surprise. And they'd had me worrying about alligators and Darth Vader.
This is why this book is brilliant.
It's harsh. The ghost story is so satisfying as an expression of Olivia's issues, her wants, and her mental distress. (It's probably less satisfying as an actual ghost story. I wasn't quite able to put on my childish headspace and see what younger!me would have thought.)
This might be one of those books best appreciated by children's librarians, because the layers when you can see them as an adult are fantastic.
I just love these characters and want them to be happy, and as much as I know they are fictional, I know there are far too many realities in this book for me to be comfortable. It makes me want to become a fucking awesome and dedicated foster mum.
February 7, 2014
Close Your Pretty Eyes is the story of Olivia, an eleven-year-old girl who has lived in numerous foster homes after being taken away from her abusive mother. Her sixteenth home is an unusual one: an old farmhouse that was once home to the notorious baby murderer Amelia Dyer. Olivia starts to see and hear strange things and it soon becomes clear that Amelia may still be around, and it looks like she has dark intentions...
This book easily gets five stars just for how brilliantly written it is. Sally Nicholls is an incredible writer who seems to have a superhuman ability to really get into the heads of her characters and the world that they live in. Olivia's story is truly harrowing and she is also a very interesting character, especially given her unreliable narration.
Don't let the cover fool you - this isn't really a horror book. Although the ghost story ties the book together, overall it has a lot more in common with the likes of Jacqueline Wilson than with Stephen King. It's a window into Olivia's life in care and how being abused has affected every aspect of how she thinks and acts.
The only problem with this book for me is something that I think is purely down to personal taste: it's so realistic that it doesn't really seem like a story. I often find this is the case with more literary books. I just really wished that the ending could have been a little more conclusive, and offered just the tiniest bit more hope. (I felt exactly the same with Sally's previous book, *All Fall Down* - easily one of the best books I've ever read and the most upsetting!) Although in general I'm a sucker for the big happy ending, I'm perfectly fine with sad endings too. All I ask is - not to be patronised by being told everything will be alright when it won't be - but for that little grain of hope. Neil Gaiman's paraphrasing of GK Chesterton's quote is so important to me: "Fairy tales are more than true. Not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten." When I read a story in which the dragon can't be beaten, I at least want to see that there's a chink in its armour...
Anyway, like I said, I think that is a matter of preference, and I feel it would be wrong to deduct points for it. This is a dark, atmospheric, affecting and important book and it will stay with you for a very long time.
This book easily gets five stars just for how brilliantly written it is. Sally Nicholls is an incredible writer who seems to have a superhuman ability to really get into the heads of her characters and the world that they live in. Olivia's story is truly harrowing and she is also a very interesting character, especially given her unreliable narration.
Don't let the cover fool you - this isn't really a horror book. Although the ghost story ties the book together, overall it has a lot more in common with the likes of Jacqueline Wilson than with Stephen King. It's a window into Olivia's life in care and how being abused has affected every aspect of how she thinks and acts.
The only problem with this book for me is something that I think is purely down to personal taste: it's so realistic that it doesn't really seem like a story. I often find this is the case with more literary books. I just really wished that the ending could have been a little more conclusive, and offered just the tiniest bit more hope. (I felt exactly the same with Sally's previous book, *All Fall Down* - easily one of the best books I've ever read and the most upsetting!) Although in general I'm a sucker for the big happy ending, I'm perfectly fine with sad endings too. All I ask is - not to be patronised by being told everything will be alright when it won't be - but for that little grain of hope. Neil Gaiman's paraphrasing of GK Chesterton's quote is so important to me: "Fairy tales are more than true. Not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten." When I read a story in which the dragon can't be beaten, I at least want to see that there's a chink in its armour...
Anyway, like I said, I think that is a matter of preference, and I feel it would be wrong to deduct points for it. This is a dark, atmospheric, affecting and important book and it will stay with you for a very long time.
October 9, 2018
It's a good horror story.
December 5, 2013
It only took Sally Nicholls one page for me to love this book, the very first page when Olivia says something went wrong when she was born. She was born evil she believes which is why her mother hated her. These are only a few paragraphs but already I wished I could fix her life.
I read this book in one sitting and I will admit there were tears threatening to escape rather frequently. Now, while I loved Olivia I didn’t always like her, at times she’s really awful but that makes her so believable. She’s angry and pushes people away because if there is one thing she’s learned is that no one ever stays. I know what that’s like, so to me Olivia was utterly convincing as a character.
Olivia believes she has super powers, which is why she hears the ghost in her new home and nobody else can. She can’t sleep because it’s not safe. Between Olivia’s emotional minefield and the events at the house you really are in for an emotional roller-coaster.
Close Your Pretty Eyes had a good story but it’s Olivia that makes this book wonderful.
I read this book in one sitting and I will admit there were tears threatening to escape rather frequently. Now, while I loved Olivia I didn’t always like her, at times she’s really awful but that makes her so believable. She’s angry and pushes people away because if there is one thing she’s learned is that no one ever stays. I know what that’s like, so to me Olivia was utterly convincing as a character.
Olivia believes she has super powers, which is why she hears the ghost in her new home and nobody else can. She can’t sleep because it’s not safe. Between Olivia’s emotional minefield and the events at the house you really are in for an emotional roller-coaster.
Close Your Pretty Eyes had a good story but it’s Olivia that makes this book wonderful.
March 22, 2014
This wasn't the best book ever. It was easy to read but for me the story just didn't work. The main character is an eleven year old who believes she is evil as she has been rejected from so many foster homes etc. The problem is she behaves badly to preempt any disappointment. The actual issue of the hurt done to her is convincing, but the attempt to link it to the discovery of a ghost in final house she stays in is much less convincing. There is a temptation to say 'same old same old' with the exploration of a troubled childhood, but that would be unfair. It is almost though as if that part isn't for a young audience at all. It reads a little bit like a case study. The structure is inventive but the plot doesn't gel, overall disappointing.
October 13, 2018
Honestly, I have to say that Olivia was really annoying and that it was her fault that she kept getting thrown out of foster cares. But overall, this book was really good.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 11, 2015
This book had a profound effect on me, and I couldn't write a review immediately because of this.
11 year old Olivia is on her nineteenth foster placement, and by now she is a very disruptive and nasty child. The book pulls no punches about what the effects of living with such a child are, and what it must be like to have her in your class. But then, each chapter about the present alternates with a chapter about her previous placement, going back in time, and you begin to understand what makes Olivia behave as she does. In each flashback we see a slightly less disruptive Olivia, and then what happens to her, forcing her to add another disruptive behaviour to protect herself. By the end of the book, you feel sympathy with the poor damaged Olivia, anger with the system which in many ways forced her to be the way she is, and profound hope against hope that this placement will be her last, although you know that realistically, it won't be. A very moving book.
11 year old Olivia is on her nineteenth foster placement, and by now she is a very disruptive and nasty child. The book pulls no punches about what the effects of living with such a child are, and what it must be like to have her in your class. But then, each chapter about the present alternates with a chapter about her previous placement, going back in time, and you begin to understand what makes Olivia behave as she does. In each flashback we see a slightly less disruptive Olivia, and then what happens to her, forcing her to add another disruptive behaviour to protect herself. By the end of the book, you feel sympathy with the poor damaged Olivia, anger with the system which in many ways forced her to be the way she is, and profound hope against hope that this placement will be her last, although you know that realistically, it won't be. A very moving book.
April 1, 2015
I'm really glad I didn't know Amelia Dyer was a real person before I started this. Or, rather, I sort of remember that I did know but I'm glad I hadn't looked her up because this picture is terrifying:
I was reading this at night in a pitch-black Yorkshire village. I thought, 'it can't be that scary, it's a kids book, right?'. WRONG. This book is creepy. It scary on a paranormal level, and distressing on an emotional level. A brilliant blending of real-life and fictional horrors. I honestly think this is the best book Sally has written since Ways to Live Forever. I'm looking forward to reading An Island of Our Own soon. :)
I was reading this at night in a pitch-black Yorkshire village. I thought, 'it can't be that scary, it's a kids book, right?'. WRONG. This book is creepy. It scary on a paranormal level, and distressing on an emotional level. A brilliant blending of real-life and fictional horrors. I honestly think this is the best book Sally has written since Ways to Live Forever. I'm looking forward to reading An Island of Our Own soon. :)
January 6, 2014
I saw this book recommended on a blog about children's books and I had read another book by this author, so I decided to give it a try. It is very well-written, but is quite sad. The eleven-year-old protagonist is mentally scarred by having been abused by her real mother as well as a foster mother, and then shuttled from foster home to foster home. Her defense is to behave as impossibly as she can. It does give you a respect for people who foster children. It can't be an easy job. There is a little ghost story laced throughout the plot, but the real focus is on the difficulties of being a child who perceives herself to be unwanted and unloved. Truly heart-breaking! The ending is inconclusive, so you will think about and wonder about Olivia even after you have finished the book.
July 8, 2015
Close your Pretty Eyes is a brave and bold book because the protagonist is immediately dislikeable and at times difficult to identify with. However each of her actions are fully explained and justified through Sally Nicholls's clear character development and Olivia's backstory. Olivia becomes, as a result, an authentic protagonist who happily doesn't undergo a Disney makeover at any point, but instead she stays true to herself. The ghostly subplot about baby farming was also carefully constructed and added an intriguing historical and paranormal element to the novel heightening the atmosphere as well as raising the stakes for Olivia.
April 17, 2016
I found this book really really good to read. It had thriller aspects, dramatic aspects and emotional heart strings being tugged chapters. It was a very very very good book, i sat for hours reading it today, it was just wonderful. I liked it being written from a young persons perspective, it made it easier to read and understand where she was coming from. I liked the chapters going back in time periods as well, i usually hate books that do that, but it was easy to follow and i felt by the end of the book like i personally wanted to adopt Olivia. Shes a troubled girl, its clear she has mental trauma and illnesses, but i loved her character non-the less. Sally Nicholls did a fantastic job!
October 12, 2015
This book is not for the faint of heart. The main character is a mentally damaged child and we experience the story through her underdeveloped sense of self. There's no holds barred in this book. Olivia suffers constantly, makes others around her suffer, and physically harms herself. The ghost story adds even more horror to the mix and I think this author knew the killing of babies and children made sure the story was as disturbing as possible.
February 14, 2014
Not easy reading the things poor Olivia has been through so far in her short life but a very sensitive moving account of an abused child, moved from home to home.
Read
June 25, 2015Very emotional
June 2, 2014
This heart breaking story is told in the viewpoint of 11 yr old Olivia. Each chapter is focussed on a period in her short life, or people that have fostered her. The reader discovers along the way why Olivia has had 16 foster homes, primarily because of her own shocking, rebellious, destructive behaviour. But these behaviours are all safety mechanisms she has built in defence of the hurt and betrayal she has experienced along the way. Eg. When she misbehaves, steals, spits, lashes out with words or fists, she knows she has done wrong and will eventually be moved to yet another foster family. Not being able to cope with the stress of waiting to be told she is losing another family, she acts appallingly to speed up the process and the anger.
This stems from living with her real mother who was like living with a time-bomb, slowly ticking and anger building until she lashed out at her eldest daughter Olivia. Olivia would pester and annoy and get angry herself until her mother did the hitting and yelling and got it over and done with.
When Olivia moves to Jim’s place, out in the country with his own two children and another foster teen and her own baby, Olivia is keen to settle in. But then she asks who the photo of the scary old woman is on the wall. It is a convicted and hanged Victorian babykiller.
I thought the ghost sub plot to this story wasn’t very strong. But the writing from Olivia’s point of view, and how she expressed her anguish and anger through the separate chapters about different parts of her 11 years of life was excellent. So sad, but so true for so many children.
This stems from living with her real mother who was like living with a time-bomb, slowly ticking and anger building until she lashed out at her eldest daughter Olivia. Olivia would pester and annoy and get angry herself until her mother did the hitting and yelling and got it over and done with.
When Olivia moves to Jim’s place, out in the country with his own two children and another foster teen and her own baby, Olivia is keen to settle in. But then she asks who the photo of the scary old woman is on the wall. It is a convicted and hanged Victorian babykiller.
I thought the ghost sub plot to this story wasn’t very strong. But the writing from Olivia’s point of view, and how she expressed her anguish and anger through the separate chapters about different parts of her 11 years of life was excellent. So sad, but so true for so many children.
April 23, 2017
4 stars
Nicholls took a sensitive subject which most authors don't write about and added a paranormal twist to it which made it even more unique. Olivia's keen sense of everything around her was an interesting ability to explore and the story behind it was heartbreaking. Plus, with the addition of an old portrait of a creepy women, I found myself on the edge of my seat.
Although this book may be classified as "middle-grade", I still enjoyed it for what it was and I liked that Nicholls didn't go out of her way to tone-down what could have been seen for 11 year olds as spooky. However, as this was aimed for a more middle-grade audience, I sometimes felt that the descriptions where very bland and not as good as they could have been.
Olivia annoyed me at times as well. If I don't consider her background, I would see her as stuck-up, rude, obnoxious and spoiled but seeing as she had previously been abused and labelled as a "devil child", I can be a bit more lenient. But she seemed to think that being told she was evil meant she had to act like a brat and do the opposite of what everyone told her to do. Rather than this annoying me, it made my sympathise for Olivia and how confused, lost and angry she was.
My main problem was that the other characters, namely Jim and Daniel, weren't as whole as I would have liked. I liked both of their characters but they just didn't seem real and that's one of the things I look for in a book.
Overall, Close Your Pretty Eyes was a very good book with some minor character development issues.
Nicholls took a sensitive subject which most authors don't write about and added a paranormal twist to it which made it even more unique. Olivia's keen sense of everything around her was an interesting ability to explore and the story behind it was heartbreaking. Plus, with the addition of an old portrait of a creepy women, I found myself on the edge of my seat.
Although this book may be classified as "middle-grade", I still enjoyed it for what it was and I liked that Nicholls didn't go out of her way to tone-down what could have been seen for 11 year olds as spooky. However, as this was aimed for a more middle-grade audience, I sometimes felt that the descriptions where very bland and not as good as they could have been.
Olivia annoyed me at times as well. If I don't consider her background, I would see her as stuck-up, rude, obnoxious and spoiled but seeing as she had previously been abused and labelled as a "devil child", I can be a bit more lenient. But she seemed to think that being told she was evil meant she had to act like a brat and do the opposite of what everyone told her to do. Rather than this annoying me, it made my sympathise for Olivia and how confused, lost and angry she was.
My main problem was that the other characters, namely Jim and Daniel, weren't as whole as I would have liked. I liked both of their characters but they just didn't seem real and that's one of the things I look for in a book.
Overall, Close Your Pretty Eyes was a very good book with some minor character development issues.
October 3, 2014
I'll say, Sally Nicholl's does not flinch from difficult topics. Ways to Live Forever -- which I think very highly of -- dealt with an eleven-year-old boy dying of cancer. The main character of Close Your Pretty Eyes is an abused eleven-year-old girl in the foster care system who has many severe behavioral and emotional issues. Not only that, but she believes the ghost of a "baby farmer" wants her to murder the baby in the house. Needless to say, though the main character is eleven, I would be careful about giving this book to a young kid.
I was impressed that Nicholl stuck to her characterization of Olivia. There was character development, but there was no magical change in her behavior. She must have been a difficult character to write because she was certainly a difficult character to read. Of course, I felt a huge amount of sympathy for Olivia, but she also cruel and mean on many occasions. I felt a certain amount of helplessness while reading.
One criticism I have is that it sometimes felt as though the ghost story and Olivia's story were competing for top spot. The fact that the ghost story was so prevalent at times seemed to diminish the importance of Olivia's arc and narrative. It also took away from the other characters. I wish there had been more time devoted to the foster family and the siblings.
I was impressed that Nicholl stuck to her characterization of Olivia. There was character development, but there was no magical change in her behavior. She must have been a difficult character to write because she was certainly a difficult character to read. Of course, I felt a huge amount of sympathy for Olivia, but she also cruel and mean on many occasions. I felt a certain amount of helplessness while reading.
One criticism I have is that it sometimes felt as though the ghost story and Olivia's story were competing for top spot. The fact that the ghost story was so prevalent at times seemed to diminish the importance of Olivia's arc and narrative. It also took away from the other characters. I wish there had been more time devoted to the foster family and the siblings.
December 20, 2013
Books can break your heart. That was something I learnt early on. Sometimes they break your heart with one or two enormous impacts that shatter your heart into a million pieces. Other times it tears it up into a couple of pieces. And sometimes, just sometimes, it breaks your heart all the way through; steadily hammering at your heart until it crumbles.
That is what happened in Close your pretty eyes.
Close your pretty eyes is the story of eleven year old Olivia. She has spent her life moving from foster house to foster house and she had a horrible early childhood that has left her... well I don't really know how to describe it. Anyway, she moves into a new house with a new family. A house that the prolific mass murderer Amelia Dyer lived in. Olivia wants the placement to work out but things are very much hindered but the appearance of Amelia's ghost.
I thought that this book was going to be really creepy. And some of it was. I couldn't actually read some parts at night because they made me far too scared. But the majority of it wasn't scary. Just sad and interesting.
Some of the things Olivia did made you want to walk through the pages and shake her, but at the same time you understood her and just wished that someone would get through to her. Can't wait to read ways to liver forever.
Fantastic book- five stars.
That is what happened in Close your pretty eyes.
Close your pretty eyes is the story of eleven year old Olivia. She has spent her life moving from foster house to foster house and she had a horrible early childhood that has left her... well I don't really know how to describe it. Anyway, she moves into a new house with a new family. A house that the prolific mass murderer Amelia Dyer lived in. Olivia wants the placement to work out but things are very much hindered but the appearance of Amelia's ghost.
I thought that this book was going to be really creepy. And some of it was. I couldn't actually read some parts at night because they made me far too scared. But the majority of it wasn't scary. Just sad and interesting.
Some of the things Olivia did made you want to walk through the pages and shake her, but at the same time you understood her and just wished that someone would get through to her. Can't wait to read ways to liver forever.
Fantastic book- five stars.
November 1, 2014
I idly read the first couple of pages of this... and the next thing I knew I'd read the whole book in one sitting, because it was SO engrossing.
Eleven-year-old Olivia has been in care since the age of five, after being taken away from her violent mother, and it's left her a miserable ball of rage. But now she's being fostered by a kind new family - can they make it work?
Within a few pages, my heart was already breaking for Olivia. She's been through so much, and is so scared all the time she doesn't know how to react to things and it comes out as fury and tantrums. But despite what she thinks of herself, and how she acts sometimes, she's not a bad kid. I honestly think Olivia might be the most three-dimensional main character I've EVER read, she comes alive so well, and although she's wise beyond her years about many things, she's also very much still a kid. The ghost story entwined with the main plot is seriously creepy at times too. I'm not one for overly dark MG or YA usually, but none of the violence (often in brief flashback) is spelled out graphically, and there's a great deal of warmth in the book too. The writing is also brilliant, and I cared so much about Olivia I was completely gripped by the story. Highly, highly recommended.
Eleven-year-old Olivia has been in care since the age of five, after being taken away from her violent mother, and it's left her a miserable ball of rage. But now she's being fostered by a kind new family - can they make it work?
Within a few pages, my heart was already breaking for Olivia. She's been through so much, and is so scared all the time she doesn't know how to react to things and it comes out as fury and tantrums. But despite what she thinks of herself, and how she acts sometimes, she's not a bad kid. I honestly think Olivia might be the most three-dimensional main character I've EVER read, she comes alive so well, and although she's wise beyond her years about many things, she's also very much still a kid. The ghost story entwined with the main plot is seriously creepy at times too. I'm not one for overly dark MG or YA usually, but none of the violence (often in brief flashback) is spelled out graphically, and there's a great deal of warmth in the book too. The writing is also brilliant, and I cared so much about Olivia I was completely gripped by the story. Highly, highly recommended.
March 3, 2014
There is no obvious ticking clock, no punchy hero's call but there is a lot of heart. I loved this book because of its authentic voice.
I thought this would be a scary ghost story where a little girl had a call to arms to stop the ghost and save the day. But this story is so much more than that.
It's a damaged child's externalisation of all the hurt she's experienced in her short eleven years. Nicholls uses the ghost story to act as a means for Olivia to express all her terror into something real. Her memories become part of the ghost haunting her at night time.
Nicholls painted a rich and tragic life of a little girl coming to terms with learning to love and to let go.
If you are interested in psychology or want a gripping story then read this book.
March 17, 2015
Not an easy read. It is quite dark as it deals with abuse of a child and the profound effect that it has on her. Before I started the book I thought it was more of a ghost story but that plot line is only a side story. Instead we really get to see how the main character feels and why she reacts so badly to many situations in her life. It is so well written that you empathise with her while wanting to make her realise that she is SO wrong! Very frustrating. Overall it is a bleak book and not easy to read from a content point of view. I liked that the ending was left open, leaving you the reader to decide whether it will be positive or negative
May 10, 2015
I loved this book! it was about a girl called Olivia and this is her 16th foster placement everywhere she's been she's been kicked out nobody has ever loved her. At this placement she is staying with the Iveys with Jim Ivey and his children. There is a ghost haunting the house who's name is Amelia Dyer from the Victorian Era she used to pretend to adopt children because families would pay a lot in those days and then kill them. This story was creepy and really quick to read even though the text was very small. I loved it! This is the 3rd book i've read by Sally Nicholls and i'm still loving her writing and her stories so will try to get them all if i can.
November 5, 2015
It falls somewhere between young adult and adult. In a way it reminds me of Room because as readers we definitely know more than the narrator/protagonist and it deals with serious issues such as abuse. But at the same time it was super creepy and maybe the narrator was reliable in some aspects. It kinda broke my heart with all the things Olivia experienced in the past. It's very dark. Well-written with very realistic characters. I didn't give it five stars because I wanted a little more to the ending but I can probably name about 5 books whose endings I liked...so authors work on endings, thanks!
March 11, 2014
This is a very, very well written novel.
The spookiness of it, absolutely the heartache, and the way it evoked blind hope in me that things would get better for Olivia made it a (painful) treat to read. Olivia's voice is utterly believable.
The insights in this story have actually changed some of my opinions and understanding of certain behaviours. The characters stayed very alive in my mind, even when I wasn't reading, and I doubt it will be a story that fades from my forethought quickly.
Beautiful and very sad. Sad because it reads like truth.
The spookiness of it, absolutely the heartache, and the way it evoked blind hope in me that things would get better for Olivia made it a (painful) treat to read. Olivia's voice is utterly believable.
The insights in this story have actually changed some of my opinions and understanding of certain behaviours. The characters stayed very alive in my mind, even when I wasn't reading, and I doubt it will be a story that fades from my forethought quickly.
Beautiful and very sad. Sad because it reads like truth.
March 30, 2016
What is this? What is life?! This is Children's Fiction?!
I LOVED IT.
This is exactly the kind of book that I was looking for to justify the fact children's fiction can be creepy and scary and gruesome for adults itself. Maybe it's because we can look past the childish-ness in Olivia's tone.
I honestly can NOT imagine a girl this affected. I feel so bad for her. But i am really happy that she recognized the fact that she like Daniel and Harriet.
I am so so sad.
I LOVED IT.
This is exactly the kind of book that I was looking for to justify the fact children's fiction can be creepy and scary and gruesome for adults itself. Maybe it's because we can look past the childish-ness in Olivia's tone.
I honestly can NOT imagine a girl this affected. I feel so bad for her. But i am really happy that she recognized the fact that she like Daniel and Harriet.
I am so so sad.
August 8, 2015
the book is well written as in
olivia was clearly suffering from a very serious trauma from the abuses she suffered from her mother and a foster mother. strangely, she was not committed to an asylum… i have mixed feelings about olivia. i pitied her but at the same time i loathed her.
olivia was clearly suffering from a very serious trauma from the abuses she suffered from her mother and a foster mother. strangely, she was not committed to an asylum… i have mixed feelings about olivia. i pitied her but at the same time i loathed her.
September 14, 2015
Although I liked this book, I hated Olivia Glass. The girl is an absolute state - a turmoil mind caused by her abusive, alcoholic mother. Olivia continues through-out the book to blame every grown up for wrong-doing and is unable to accept responsibilty for her own violent temper; attacking all those trying to support and help her. I don't think I wish to keep this book, but I am happy to have read it.
February 13, 2014
Is there really a ghost? Or is it like the narrators "superpowers", the painful effects of childhood abuse.
The actions and motives of a child shaped by bad parenting and abuse are shown believably, yet without making us lose sympathy for the eleven year old as she tells her story.
I'd like a sequel, where we see more of the slow healing and dangerous failures, and more ghostly discoveries.
The actions and motives of a child shaped by bad parenting and abuse are shown believably, yet without making us lose sympathy for the eleven year old as she tells her story.
I'd like a sequel, where we see more of the slow healing and dangerous failures, and more ghostly discoveries.
May 13, 2014
Bizarrely I'd read a novel a year ago centered on the same Victorian baby farmer featured here, hadn't realised it was a focus in this novel when I chose it!
Well written crossover fiction, gritty and true to the ups and downs of the UK care/fostering system. The false narrator aspect adds a childlike quality to some tough, adult themes.
Well written crossover fiction, gritty and true to the ups and downs of the UK care/fostering system. The false narrator aspect adds a childlike quality to some tough, adult themes.
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