The Accident

The Do-Over

by Glasko Klein

When Daniel's friends invite him to a house party, he thinks it's a bad idea. But after some convincing, he agrees to go. On the way there, they get into a car accident and one of his friends gets hurt. A few days later, Daniel receives a mysterious text message from an unknown number asking him if he'd like a do-over. He accepts and somehow is able to repeat the days leading up to the accident. But even if he doesn't go to the party, will that be enough to keep his friends safe?

Genres: Fiction, Young Adult, Realistic Fiction

96 pages, ebook

Published January 1, 2019

Reviews

[jess · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was fine

[Janice Robertson · Rating 1 out of 5]

Don’t know how this YA book got on my radar but I feel super cheated now that I’ve finished it. First of all, it’s more of a short story than a book. Secondly, there are some pretty important questions that don’t get resolved by the end of the book such as Who is sending the texts and how is it that the character gets a do over. Super annoyed at the ending. Writing is too simple and seriously lacking in description. Very disappointing.

[Bobbi · Rating 2 out of 5]

First and foremost, I want to say that the prose was good. That is what saved this from being a one-year for me. I'm going to be spoiling things from here on out. You've been warned.

Daniel and his friends go to a party and get into an accident. He receives a mystery text from an unknown number offering him a do cover of that day.

I thought for sure with that premise, at least one of his friends died. It would be poignant to see what he was willing to do to save someone he cares for. ...Nope. His friend that was driving breaks his arm and Daniel's parents pull him out of driver's ed and ground him for two weeks. Parents are super harsh right?

So he gets the mystery texts and agrees to relive that day to save his friends? From what, Danny-boy, a broken arm and their parents expressing their disappointment calmly? It never becomes clear who/what the texts are coming from. It's not explored at all. We don't see any consequences of his choice, nothing.

So it ends with him asking a girl he hardly knows to take him to the party to save his friends. Another car gets into the accident rather than the one driven by his buddy. He then sagely says "That could have been us." Talk about r/Iam14andthisisdeep.

I am a huge proponent of YA fiction not talking down to its target audience. So, so many great books have come out of the YA genre that cover heavy subject matter without doing so.

So while I am not quite in the never-recommend zone with this one, I'm not a fan. Take that how you will.

[Sarah · Rating 1 out of 5]

The concept of this book was neat, but feels poorly executed. I know it is written for a hi/lo audience, but even taking that into account the end of the story leaves a lot to be offered, unless there would be additional books in the series. Our main character is set into a groundhog day type situation where he gets a chance to go back and prevent a terrible thing from happening. The elements of friendship and romance during the summer for high school students are ones that reach their target, the end is just very rushed. If I had the book in a library collection I would recommend to readers that want something short and faced paced in the realistic fiction genre.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a short little read, one of 6 in a series of YA mini books about teens who get a chance for a "do-over." This is the second one I read, I don't think I liked it as much as the first one I read? But I still gave it the same rating because this was probably the more realistic of the two so far, in terms of teenagers actually making poor choices.

[Shandy Monty · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quick Read

Really quick read. This is a YA "book" in a series where the main character gets a do-over. This is the only one I have read. I'm not sure how this YA book even got on my radar, but overall, it was a quick easy read.

[Zee Gee · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ridiculous

short story with no resolution. 15 more words are required. That’s more than was in the story for heaven’s sake.

[Linda Rickert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun kids book

[Crystal · Rating 3 out of 5]

But why?

What was the point of the do-over? I’m so confused about the ending. I need a few more words to finish this review and I honestly don’t know what to say.

[Bradley · Rating 2 out of 5]

The premise is interesting but the writing leaves sooo much to be desired. This would be an easy read for a book report, but I would strongly recommend passing on this as a leisurely title.

[Natasha · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a short quick read about a boy who wants to save his friends from a car accident. When he gets a text message taking about being able to do a do over he takes the chance to save his friends.

[Jasmine]

aj

[kim]

kind of boring

[Lune · Rating 2 out of 5]

Like the idea but feels like a half written book

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good read

This is a good about summer, teenagers, driver's ed and parties. Would you go back and change a day in your life to right a wrong?

[Calena · Rating 2 out of 5]

At least it was short...

[Susan McGilvray · Rating 4 out of 5]

Big fan of this Do-Over series!

[Leah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book

Really enjoyed it although I wish it were a longer book. Read it in an hour. Solid 4 stars. Quite enjoyable for a short read.

[Ernesto Rivas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great!

A wonderful story about friends thinking they are doing the right thing when maybe they’re not. It’s a great read for sure!

[Sandra Burns · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very very short. I was extremely disappointed in this. Thought it would have been much longer. It left me with many questions. Like, when they did the do over, did it actually work?

[Millennial Book Review · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought that this short story was fine, but it was far too short. The story ends when it should really begin, with a lot of questions unanswered and leaves the reader wondering what happens now that the "do-over" has happened. It felt like there was a lot of build-up with no pay-off.

[Jasmin Carpio · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was a good book because it had a lot of suspense and we don’t know who those texts came from and he was able to save his friends life by doing it over .

[Amber Hughes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short and quick read, for Tweens and Teens about responsibility and making decisions. Great for those young readers who will be behind the wheel as a driver.

[Christina · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was very short and simple, it got it's point across though.