It’s not that long ago since I’ve heard about Girl In Pieces by Kathleen Glasgow. In fact, the Dutch translation was announced not long after. However, I’ve decided to read this book in English because I wasn’t sure whether it was for me and it’s a lot cheaper in English than in Dutch. I’m not triggered that easily, but if you are, please take them into account. Trigger warnings: Self-harm, alcohol and drug addiction/abuse, suicide attempts.

About the book

• Title: Girl In Pieces
• Author: Kathleen Glasgow
• Publication date: August 30, 2016
• Publisher: Delacorte Press
• ISBN: 9781101934715
• Number of pages: 416
• Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary

Charlotte Davis is in pieces. At seventeen she’s already lost more than most people lose in a lifetime. But she’s learned how to forget. The broken glass washes away the sorrow until there is nothing but calm. You don’t have to think about your father and the river. Your best friend, who is gone forever. Or your mother, who has nothing left to give you. Every new scar hardens Charlie’s heart just a little more, yet it still hurts so much. It hurts enough to not care anymore, which is sometimes what has to happen before you can find your way back from the edge.

About the book

Girl in Pieces by Kathleen Glasgow
Published by Delacorte Press on August 30, 2016
Pages: 416
ISBN: 9781101934715
Genres: Contemporary, Young adult

Charlotte Davis is in pieces. At seventeen she’s already lost more than most people lose in a lifetime. But she’s learned how to forget. The broken glass washes away the sorrow until there is nothing but calm. You don’t have to think about your father and the river. Your best friend, who is gone forever. Or your mother, who has nothing left to give you. Every new scar hardens Charlie’s heart just a little more, yet it still hurts so much. It hurts enough to not care anymore, which is sometimes what has to happen before you can find your way back from the edge.

My review

Expectations

Characters

Writing

Plot

Final thoughts

My review

Expectations

I honestly didn’t know what to expect. I’ve heard from many people that they found this a tough read because of the triggers and the emotions. On the other hand, it’s already an older YA novel which was very popular as well. Booktok let this popularity revive and therefore it’s being translated 7 years later I guess. I’m not always the best match with hypes, but I want to divversify my reading as much as possible and that also means reading books centered around mental health. I decided to get into this reading experience with as little expectations as possible.

Characters

Charlotte “Charlie” Davis is a girl in pieces. She didn’t have the best youth and she lived practically on the streets. After self-harming, she is admitted to a pshychiatric hospital. Here she has to stay for a while before getting back into the outside world. She ends up on the road to Tucson, Arizona, where one of her friends lives. Here she meets Riley West, a charming guy who has his own secrets. This new environment isn’t as healthy as it seems, even though there are also good people out there. The majority of the characters in this book have been or still are struggling with addiction. They all have their own story and they are all not your average boys or girls. At the start of this novel, Charlie is very distant, but when time passes, she opens up more to other people and life itself. In the aknowledgements, Glasgow states that Charlie is a character based on her own experiences and that’s clearly visible.

Writing

I had some difficulties here, especially at the start. Charlie is going thrugh a tough time and keeps her distance. In this part of the book, the chapters are really short, they feel like little fragments. When Charlie is on the road to recovery, the writing develops as well. The chapters are longer and the story became more logic to me. There was actual prose and this works way better for me. However, the writing adapts to Charlies mental health, because whe she’s spiralling again, the writing does that too. Therefore, I didn’t feel involved in this reading experience, I just couldn’t connect to the story. This is by no means an attack to anyone struggling with their mental health. It’s just, I don’t – thanfkully – have experiences with this and this made me struggle with this book.

Plot

Unfortunately, this plot was not really investing to me either. I know this book is character driven, but sometimes it felt to me like everyone had an addiction which became a bit too much for me. I can’t deny it provides us readers a good glimpse of how difficult the road to recovery is. As I stated before, the writing didn’t help me getting intrigued by this novel either. However, the ups and downs that come with recovery get a significant role here which is pretty logic. It would be unrealistic whenever Charlie’s mental health was only going uphill and a relapse was never lurking around the corner. This plot actually supported Charlie and the other characters in their journey.

Final thoughts

Girl in Pieces by Kathleen Glasgow was a tough book to read, but even a tougher book to review. I felt a distance to Charlie and her story, because I just couldn’t connect to any of the characters. Furthermore, the writing was not particularly for me. I never got really intrigued by this novel although the middle part was the easiest for me to read. However, it provides a good glimpse in the journey to recovery and the difficulties one can face.