Title:
Author:
My Rating: 4.5/5
Part of a series? No
Genre(s): Contemporary fiction, Mental health, Bildungsroman.
Description/Blurb:
Eighteen-year-old Leonard Peacock knows exactly what he'll do. He'll say goodbye.
Not to his mum - who he calls Linda because it annoys her - who's moved out and left him to fend for himself. Nor to his former best friend, whose torments have driven him to consider committing the unthinkable. But to his four friends: a Humphrey-Bogart-obsessed neighbour, a teenage violin virtuoso, a pastor's daughter and a teacher.
Most of the time, Leonard believes he's weird and sad but these friends have made him think that maybe he's not. He wants to thank them, and say goodbye.
My review:
Although I didn't enjoy this book in the conventional sense, it didn't make me happy and it left me pretty much hating some aspects of the society we live in, I couldn't tear myself away from the book. I was touched by Leonard's struggle, by the relationships with the four people he wanted to give a gift to before he died and the fact that even out of those four, just two really cared about him and only one of those people could truly be called his friend.
After reading the book one particular quote from the final 'letter from the future' (the letters are sent from a place called Lighthouse 1) has really stayed with me. "We never see any boats. But you man the light anyway-just in case. And we got to see it-all these years. The great light. The beautiful sweeping beam! We were here to see it, and that was enough." I found that it really summed up what I took away from the book, your life is that beam, you might feel useless because the people you want to sit up and take notice never do but you shouldn't extinguish that light because other people appreciate it, there is always a reason to keep going.
Honestly, I don't think there's anyone I wouldn't recommend this book to. I can see it becoming one of the timeless coming of age books in the future. Not everybody will enjoy the book or connect with it but I'd tell anyone to give this a go. The first person narrative really allows the reader to get inside Leonard's mind, I admit there are a lot of footnotes to read but to me that made it seem more authentic after all what real person has thoughts that are perfectly linear? I know mine will sometimes flit to another train of thought completely.
It was hard to watch everyone in Leonard's life ignore the warning signs but similar things happen all too often in real life too. I'm sure there are other parents who might brush off concerns as playing for attention. Quick really manages to address suicide in a way that everyone can understand and create a great book in the process.
After reading the book one particular quote from the final 'letter from the future' (the letters are sent from a place called Lighthouse 1) has really stayed with me. "We never see any boats. But you man the light anyway-just in case. And we got to see it-all these years. The great light. The beautiful sweeping beam! We were here to see it, and that was enough." I found that it really summed up what I took away from the book, your life is that beam, you might feel useless because the people you want to sit up and take notice never do but you shouldn't extinguish that light because other people appreciate it, there is always a reason to keep going.
Honestly, I don't think there's anyone I wouldn't recommend this book to. I can see it becoming one of the timeless coming of age books in the future. Not everybody will enjoy the book or connect with it but I'd tell anyone to give this a go. The first person narrative really allows the reader to get inside Leonard's mind, I admit there are a lot of footnotes to read but to me that made it seem more authentic after all what real person has thoughts that are perfectly linear? I know mine will sometimes flit to another train of thought completely.
It was hard to watch everyone in Leonard's life ignore the warning signs but similar things happen all too often in real life too. I'm sure there are other parents who might brush off concerns as playing for attention. Quick really manages to address suicide in a way that everyone can understand and create a great book in the process.
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