Title: Falling into Place by Amy Zhang
Release Date: September 9th 2014
Published by: Greenwillow Books
Buy: Fully Booked
Summary:
On the day Liz Emerson tries to die, they had reviewed Newton’s laws of motion in physics class. Then, after school, she put them into practice by running her Mercedes off the road.
Why? Why did Liz Emerson decide that the world would be better off without her? Why did she give up? Vividly told by an unexpected and surprising narrator, this heartbreaking and nonlinear novel pieces together the short and devastating life of Meridian High’s most popular junior girl. Mass, acceleration, momentum, force—Liz didn’t understand it in physics, and even as her Mercedes hurtles toward the tree, she doesn’t understand it now. How do we impact one another? How do our actions reverberate? What does it mean to be a friend? To love someone? To be a daughter? Or a mother? Is life truly more than cause and effect? Amy Zhang’s haunting and universal story will appeal to fans of Lauren Oliver, Gayle Forman, and Jay Asher.
She's the kind of girl you'd love to love, and the kind you'd love to hate. Liz Emerson was one part of the trio of the most popular juniors in her class. Everyone knows Liz. Everyone. But then Liz crashed her car, and things started to unravel, and people realize Liz Emerson's life isn't perfect, not by a long shot.
Physics has never been a favorite of mine, but I give kudos to Amy Zhang for using Physics to illustrate Liz's life and paint it using cause and effect, Newton's Laws, mass and acceleration, gravity and motion. Told in bits and pieces seven days before Liz attempted suicide, crashed her car and the days that followed, Falling Into Place pushes the readers to slide into what was behind the fragile facade that makes up Liz Emerson's life.
Taking a look in Liz's life is a powerful experience in itself. The layers come off piece by piece as we see Liz on her very best and her very worst, the cruel parts and the lonely parts, the pretense and the dreams, the innocence, the potential and the wishes, the things that led her to break people because she too is broken, and the things she did and wished she did to feel whole again, to just feel, to find meaning in her existence.There are a lot of broken people in this novel, and sadly some of them cannot be put back together, but there are others like Liam, who we find unlikely strength from.
It's a cheerless tale, laid bare to the readers in jumbled thoughts and messy emotions and the potent way that Amy Zhang has told this story in simple narrative is what made Falling Into Place a haunting, meaningful read. Sometimes we need to read a book like this, where we just need to look at things just a little bit closer, where we sometimes need to notice, because we might not know when a friend, the one who was always smiling and laughing, might be the one who needed our help the most. Your heart will give a painful lurch or two when you finish reading this novel. Falling Into Place is a gripping, significant debut that needs to be read by everyone.
Falling into Place is available in Fully Booked.
Content (plot, story flow, character):
The sad nature of this book and the heavy theme might not be suitable for most people, but it discusses a very important issue and presents a theme that we all need to be aware of, so I highly encourage people to read this. It'll definitely help provide an insight on what people going through tough times like Liz would feel and do, and what we in our part can do to help.
Shining: Worthy of a Goddess' Love!
Book Cover:
That cover is deceptive, beautiful but there's more to it than meets the eye.
That cover is deceptive, beautiful but there's more to it than meets the eye.
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| Read this in a couple of hours and I am still stunned. Wow. |
GIVEAWAY TIME!
WIN A FINISHED COPY OF FALLING INTO PLACE!
Rules:
Open to Philippine residents only
(If you know someone from the Philippines who can receive the book for you, then you can join!)
Must be 13 years or older
Ends 2/28
I actually have read this already and I loved it! I ended up crying like a baby on my bed. Intense and poignant. I would really love a finished copy of this book! :)
ReplyDeleteI didn't cry, but the reading experience felt surreal right after. Not sure if I can describe exactly how I feel after reading Falling Into Place.
DeleteI haven't read this but I think it is a good book, and based on your review I got convinced that I really should read it. I must see for myself what this book has to offer. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for this Kai!
And you should. :) Thanks for entering the giveaway!
DeleteI love books with hard topics in them.
ReplyDeleteAnd I think is really cool when authors use subjects to explain and compare them to real life experiences. Once I read a book where the author explain the character's thoughts through Maths.
Great review
Ruty @Reading...Dreaming
You should try reading this, then! I never really liked Math, but this book just used things in Physics that drew parallels with Liz's life and make readers understand what she's going through, I never thought that was possible...
DeleteI'm still not sure if I would like really read this or not. I think the only way to find out is to read it. :) After all, I heard good things about it, including yours.
ReplyDeleteI love reading YA contemporary especially those with tough issues and I think Falling Into Place is right up my alley. Thanks for the chance, Kai! :)
ReplyDeleteI'm a fan of YA and I really like the author of this book, that's why I want to read it.
ReplyDeleteI would love to have this book! Knowing that it is matched with Physics. (ARGH. I hate that subject so much.) I want to know more of the perspective of the author towards Physics especially the Law of Interaction. I have seen this book at FB but did not even tried to take a glimpse on the synopsis and now I'm like... regrets all over! Thank you Kai for this cool chance. Yani @ paperboulevard.blogspot.com
ReplyDeleteI've heard a lot about this book. And even if it's not my usual fare, reading this would diversify my book reading repertoire.
ReplyDeleteGreat review! This sounds like a book I'm going to really like. Thanks for sharing! :)
ReplyDeleteI've read a lot of nice reviews about the book, and well, I'm quite interested to read it. Btw, thanks for the chance! :)
ReplyDeleteThis novel made me cry a lot, you know that type of crying where you don't expect the tears but then they just suddenly fall? It's that kind of difficult crying.
ReplyDeleteIt's such a beautiful novel! Hopefully, whoever wins this, gets the time of his or her life!
I'm a huge fan of YA contemporary and as a reader, I quite intrigued about the story. Super excited about this book. Thank you for the giveaway. :)
ReplyDeleteBecause, I love good books. And I've read its excerpt and it sounds interesting. :)
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteHi Kai. There's been a lot of hype for this book lately and based on your review, I guess it's worth reading. :) Thanks for the giveaway.
ReplyDeleteDanna @ A Reading Habit
I haven't read this book yet but with all the good reviews I've read, I'd love to win the book and read it myself. :)
ReplyDeleteMy friends have been telling me to read Falling into Place because according to them, it's really a good book. But the problem is, I'm always short with money so I can't buy a copy of it in the bookstore. That's why if I'll win here, I can finally make them stop ranting to me regarding that book.
ReplyDeleteI would want to read this book because it's been on my TBR for so long now!
ReplyDeleteI want to read this book because it makes me wonder what makes a popular girl like Liz fall into place?
ReplyDeleteI would really love to read this book. The summary made me wonder why would someone like Liz commit some sort of suicide. What made her do that. And adding science on a story makes me wonder a lot more. Specially that Physics is one of the subjects that I really love. :)
ReplyDeleteI would really want to win this book. Have started reading this but havne't finished it yet because my eyes get teary whenever I stare too long on my tablet.
ReplyDeletewith positive feedbacks and recommendations like yours, who wouldn't like to read the book asap. thanks for this :D
ReplyDeleteRead a lot of good reviews about this book that makes me want to really read this. Can't wait to experience what the readers felt while reading this one :)
ReplyDeleteI've always been fond of books centered on hard topics, things that we rarely discuss in real life, in real and actual conversations. I feel like these kinds of books are something that we need to read in complete solitude, savor each word, and absorb the whole story fully. It may get us all choked up and teary-eyed with a single chapter, a paragraph or maybe just one line, but that's what I'm looking for, exactly, I guess. Something that will make me feel.
ReplyDeleteHaving said all that, I think Falling Into Place, according to many's reviews as well as your own, will make me feel, indeed. And yeah, that's why I want to read it. Also, thanks so much for this giveaway! Stay awesome c:
And oh yeah I think it's awesome that you're an anime lover! (AAAAAHHHHH!!!)
DeleteI've love to win a copy of this book because the excerpt sounds interesting and i love books with heavy theme. :)
ReplyDeleteHaven't read this yet. I am curious how a popular girl would think of killing herself. I was a little down myself in the past months but now able to bounce my spirits up. Thanks for the giveaway. More power.
ReplyDeletePositive feedback from my friends and the whole blogging community. I approach books like these with caution but I'll have to make an exception on this one.
ReplyDeleteI'm curious about the book. It is very interesting which I would love to read! Hope to win Miss Kai! :)
ReplyDeleteI'm a sucker for romance novels which I think/feel it is.
ReplyDeleteI want to try those books involving suicide as a Psych major.
ReplyDeletei have not read a good book in a while. this one looks really interesting
ReplyDeleteI've been pining on this one since it got released. I loved the synopsis from the start. I also have read a lot of positive reviews for this one which makes me more excited to read it!
ReplyDeleteGame hayday : tai game offline - Game ban ca: tai game ban ca an xu
ReplyDeleteThis was a book that I could not stop reading. It was wild and wonderful and heartbreaking all at one time. There were only two problems that I had with this book. One, I never figured out who in the world the narrator was. Two, I felt like it ended so abruptly. I wanted so much more and felt denied. I need to know more! I need to know what happened next and how Liz turned things around. Other than those small issues, I really loved this book and read it voraciously. Highly recommend!!
ReplyDeleteA necessary read for all teens and adults, and although it's emotional and thought provoking, it's humorous and entertaining and a book that won't stay unopened on a bookshelf for long.
ReplyDelete