Book Review: The Girl Next Door by Selene Castrovilla

Since I discovered that Adobe Digital Editions 2.0 is accessible with screen readers, I’ve downloaded a number of ebooks. Most were scientific books, with a few being memoris, and to be honest I until now hadn’t ifnished any. I usually bought my ebooks at Bol.com, the largest online media store in the Netherlands. However, when they switched to an inaccessible bookshelf format for downloading ebooks, I decided to try out Kobo. I also wanted to spread my wings in the reading departmnet, so I decided to check out some juvenile fiction, because I always used to like that better than adult fiction. In fiction, my taste is similar to that in memoirs: the book has to cover medicl, social or psychological issues. The Girl Next Door by Selene Castrovilla seemed to meet that requirement. Besides, it cost only E3,-, so I wouldn’t have wasted a lot of money if it turned out to be crap. In the end, I’m not disappointed at all.

Synopsis

Two teens are forced to make some very grown-up decisions when one of them is diagnosed with terminal cancer, twisting them into an unpredictable nightmare. Best friends since toddlerhood, Samantha and Jesse grapple with the realization that they are actually in love. What now? Beautifully written while handling a very heavy topic, Castrovilla addresses the universal question: In a world where the worst can strike at any time, how can we ever feel safe?

Review

Reading the first page, I was not thrilled. Was middle grade fiction that simple, or was my English that advanced, it being my second language? Within pages, I had to change my mind on this, because it turned out I didn’t understand some of the more commonly used words – maybe my English isn’t that advanced after all. Even so, the book is quite readable.

The book isn’t too fast-paced, but it doesn’t ge tlong-winded either. I was able to guess pretty soon that Jesse wasn’t going to get a miracle cure fo rhis cancer, but other than that, the book was not predictable at all. I wondered at several points from halfway through the book on whether the end was coming up. I don’t mean this to say the book is boring, but there were several moments at which point Jesse could’ve died and the book would be over.

What I also liked about the book, was that I developed both sympathy for and disgust with almost all characters. For example, Gwen, Jesse’s mother, starts out as a bitch, and I genuinely thought that I’d hate her throughout the book. Gradually, however, I was led to understand her better and in the end, I liked her somewhat. The book is written from Samantha’s point of view, but I believe most characters in fact ar epretty formed.

The topic covered in this book is of course quite sad, but the book didn’t just make me feel sad. I alternated between feeling angry, sad, happy, surprised and a lot of other feelings. In the end, I was left with peace. That is exactly what this book aims to teach.