Never Enough in Sophomore Reading Challenge

Oct 16, 2011 Sarah (YA Love) rated it really liked it

Shelves: young-adult-lit, realistic-fiction, contemporary-ya, 2012-release, july-release, read-in-2012, sophomore-reading-challenge, siblings, recommended-summer-reading-2012

Review originally posted at Y.A. Love

For some reason I’m having a tough time writing this review like normal, so I’m going to try a bullet list review today featuring what worked and didn’t work for me.

What Worked for Me:

I like the dynamics in Claire and Loann’s relationship. It’s easy to identify with Loann and understand how disconnected from Claire she’s become. In the beginning of Never Enough it’s hard to say whether Claire feels this way as well, but Loann feels it. She feels awkward and Review originally posted at Y.A. Love

For some reason I’m having a tough time writing this review like normal, so I’m going to try a bullet list review today featuring what worked and didn’t work for me.

What Worked for Me:

I like the dynamics in Claire and Loann’s relationship. It’s easy to identify with Loann and understand how disconnected from Claire she’s become. In the beginning of Never Enough it’s hard to say whether Claire feels this way as well, but Loann feels it. She feels awkward and ugly in comparison to Loann, and like she isn’t interesting enough to spend time with Claire and her friends. Claire is set up as this perfect doll who can do no wrong. It’s obvious that Claire isn’t perfect, especially based on the summary, but she’s found a way to deceive those around her. This deception is one of the biggest reasons why Claire and Loann struggle with their relationship because Loann finds that she can’t trust her sister. Loann’s always looked up to Claire, even when her family and friends are constantly comparing her to Claire. They share a tight bond which falters as the story progresses.
I like Marcus’s character. He brings out a different side of Loann; he brings out her more confident side. She’s not always confident around Marcus, but she discovers that she can be more than Loann’s sister when she’s around him. As their friendship grows, Loann begins to detach herself from Loann’s shadow, even though she’s still constantly thinking about her and comparing herself to Claire. This is when Loann finds photography and independence. She feels comfortable around Marcus and can be herself. Even though it’s difficult for Loann to stop comparing herself to her sister, the reader can see her character growing and finding herself.
When looking for a book dealing with eating disorders, Never Enough doesn’t fall into that usual category since we’re not in the shoes of the character dealing with the actual eating disorder. We’re watching everything through a bystander’s, Loann’s, eyes. We see how it affects her and her relationship with her sister. Denise Jaden has written a book that those who have a friend or relative battling with an eating disorder can read and connect with.

What Didn’t Work for Me:

The pacing and length are off in Never Enough. I had read almost 200 pages and was left wondering when the real conflicts in the story were going to develop. At this point there had been hints about Claire’s eating disorder and a lot of story set up, but nothing major was going on. There is one big development between Loann and another character that shocked me, but that was about it. I wish that either the story moved faster, or that there were less side stories tied in (Marcus’s home life, Loann’s parents’ marriage faltering, etc.) I will say, however, that by the end of the book I could see what Denise Jaden was doing by writing the story this way and I appreciated it. I’m worried, though, that my students might not stick with the book because of the “slow parts” as they would say. Never Enough would probably work better for me if it were about 100 pages shorter.
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Oct 28, 2011 Princess Bookie rated it really liked it

Shelves: read2012

My Thoughts: What a wonderful second novel from Jaden who sucks you into this story that is a gut wrenching, heart breaking story.

We are introduced to Loann and her sister Claire. In Loann's eyes, Claire is perfect. She's older and always been the one to look up too, according to their parent's. Loann has spent her life being told, "why don't you try to be more like your sister, more popular, more outgoing, more everything.?”

Loann has gotten used to being in the background. She also has a crush ...more

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Oct 14, 2011 Hannah rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites, own-finished-copy, 2012

Wow. Never Enough was so good. Really, that's basically all I can think right now. I liked Denise Jaden's debut, Losing Faith, but I wasn't quite as impressed as most people seemed to be. And the description for Never Enough sounded pretty average, nothing I haven't read before. But Never Enough really took me by surprise - I ended up loving it!

I love sister stories. I only have a younger brother, but I've always wished I had an older sister, so I enjoy reading sister stories like this one. Loan Wow. Never Enough was so good. Really, that's basically all I can think right now. I liked Denise Jaden's debut, Losing Faith, but I wasn't quite as impressed as most people seemed to be. And the description for Never Enough sounded pretty average, nothing I haven't read before. But Never Enough really took me by surprise - I ended up loving it!

I love sister stories. I only have a younger brother, but I've always wished I had an older sister, so I enjoy reading sister stories like this one. Loann and I clicked from the first page on. She's easy to relate to, and I felt for her. Her relationship with Claire is so well-done. It's complex and deep and just... wow. Even when they don't get along, their bond is so strong - it's just amazing.

Reading this family's story is heartbreaking. This is hard to talk about without spoiling anything, but it's so sad to see how Claire's issues tear apart the entire family. It was eye-opening to see how much is changed by this one thing. I would have liked to know more about the parents, but I don't mind too much that we don't know more, since that's kind of the point.

Then there's the... well, I don't even know what to call it. It feels wrong to call what Loann and Marcus have romance, because their bond is so much deeper than that. For all of you out there who are sick of insta-love, Never Enough is for you! The relationship between Loann and Marcus develops so, so slowly - in a good way. Their bond is incredibly deep. I don't even know what to say - these two together just made me so happy!

I also loved reading about Loann's photography! Photography is fascinating to me, and I really enjoyed reading about everything Loann did with her camera.

The only storyline that I thought was a little underdeveloped is Loann's relationship with her two (ex-)best friends. I would have liked to know more about the fallout and why it happens, since I never really got what motivated Loann's ex-best friend to do what she did. I also would have liked more about where they stand towards the end.

I liked the second part of Never Enough better than the first one - in the beginning, I found myself bored a few times. I much preferred the faster pace of the ending to the slow beginning. The ending of Never Enough is perfect - it's sad but hopeful at the same time. Even though it's heartbreaking, it made me feel strangely fulfilled when I turned the last page.

In a word, this book is powerful. I am in awe of Denise Jaden's grasp of relationships - how she managed to create such deep bonds between her characters, how she made me feel each of Loann's emotions, is beyond me. This is an important book - I can't recommend it enough!

Reviewed at http://www.paperbacktreasures.blogspo... ...more

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May 01, 2012 Darlene rated it it was amazing

Shelves: for-review, arc, canadian-book-challenge, 2012-sophomore-reading-challenge

I received this Advance Reviewer Copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive any compensation for my review, and the views expressed herein are my own.

Wow! I feel emotionally spent!

The Contemporary Young Adult genre is not one that I normally read. However, when I read the synopsis, I was immediately drawn to the heavy themes of the book.

Never Enough is narrated in the first-person by Loann Rochester, a high school junior. She has been eclipsed her entire life by ...more

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