Willow

Willow by Julia Hoban
Published April 2, 2009

About the Book:

Seven months ago on a rainy March night, Willow's parents drank too much wine at dinner and asked her to drive them home. But they never made it--Willow lost control of the car, and both of her parents were killed.

Now seventeen, Willow is living with her older brother, who can barely speak to her. She has left behind her old home, friends, and school. But Willow has found a way to survive, to numb the new reality of her life: She is secretly cutting herself.

And then she meets Guy, a boy as sensitive and complicated as she is. When Guy discovers Willow's secret, he pulls her out of the solitary world she's created for herself, and into a difficult, intense, and potentially life-changing relationship.

Julia Hoban has created an unflinching story about cutting, grieving, and starting anew. But above all, she has written an unforgettable tale of first love.

My Thoughts:

This was a re-read for me actually.  I picked the book up at Half Price Books forgetting that I had read it back when it first came out.  As I got a little ways into it, I realized how familiar it was seeming.  I decided I would go ahead and read it again, though, since I had already started in on it.  I also couldn't remember exactly what happened, since it had been around 5 years since reading it.  

This book tackles a difficult subject, and I really appreciate that there are books out there for teens that do this.  That being said, I have mixed views on this book.  The writing itself isn't bad, but the handling of the subject matter is lacking in ways.  I don't want to say too much and give too much of the book away, but I just felt like the subject wasn't handled completely realistically.  The main character, Willow, is also not completely sympathetic, which feels terrible to say all things considered.  She's just very frustrating and written in a way that makes it difficult to completely feel sorry for her.  I loved the character, Guy, but there are things about the relationship between him and Willow that bugged me as well.  In several ways, it is just not a very healthy relationship in my opinion.  Despite all of this, it's not a terrible book.  I gave it 3 stars on Goodreads.