By Sarah Brenwell
Publication Date: January 29th 2015
Rating: 5/5 stars
And these are they. My final moments. They say a warrior must always be mindful of death, but I never imagined that it would find me like this . . .
Japanese teenager, Sora, is diagnosed with ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease). Lonely and isolated, Sora turns to the ancient wisdom of the samurai for guidance and comfort. But he also finds hope in the present; through the internet he finds friends that see him, not just his illness. This is a story of friendship and acceptance, and testing strength in an uncertain future.
*I received this e-Arc from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*
MY THOUGHTS
I can not even describe how many emotions this book hit me with. One moment I was smiling and laughing as though I was friends with all the characters and the next minute I was attempting to hold back my tears! I loved the message it brought across and how the main character,Sora, developed from a person with no hope to a guy who was surrounded by friends and almost felt as though be was a normal person.
I really liked the setting of the book as it was set in Japan and that is new to me. I loved how the setting was described and that we learned that the city life was a hard thing for him because wherever he stepped he felt like he was being frowned upon and pitted. We also learnt how we take so many things for granted like being able to go outside, being able to lift our arms, speak and knowing that we have so much to look forward to other than death. Seeing things from Sora's point of view really made me think because people might always pity the disabled when really they don't want to be treated differently.
I also love how the book incorporated the internet and the new age where our online friends are only a click away. It was heartwarming to see Sora make friends with people who weren't there to judge him and were friends with him for his quirky personality. This book made me want to make the most out of everything I have and do more of what I want to as you never know what is in store. Instead of the book having a typical story where he falls in love with someone, it is about making friends and not feeling as wanted because of a disability.
Overall. I really did enjoy this book. It was beautifully written, the characters were amazing and weren't piled onto the reader and this is definitely a book you should be looking out for this year! I reallly do think this book should be made into a massive film and I really do think this will be one of the best newcomers this year!
Keep Reading,
Naomi...xxx
I really liked the setting of the book as it was set in Japan and that is new to me. I loved how the setting was described and that we learned that the city life was a hard thing for him because wherever he stepped he felt like he was being frowned upon and pitted. We also learnt how we take so many things for granted like being able to go outside, being able to lift our arms, speak and knowing that we have so much to look forward to other than death. Seeing things from Sora's point of view really made me think because people might always pity the disabled when really they don't want to be treated differently.
I also love how the book incorporated the internet and the new age where our online friends are only a click away. It was heartwarming to see Sora make friends with people who weren't there to judge him and were friends with him for his quirky personality. This book made me want to make the most out of everything I have and do more of what I want to as you never know what is in store. Instead of the book having a typical story where he falls in love with someone, it is about making friends and not feeling as wanted because of a disability.
Overall. I really did enjoy this book. It was beautifully written, the characters were amazing and weren't piled onto the reader and this is definitely a book you should be looking out for this year! I reallly do think this book should be made into a massive film and I really do think this will be one of the best newcomers this year!
Keep Reading,
Naomi...xxx
This sounds like an absolutely lovely book! I love this idea of incorporating the old with the new with the internet and everything that influences our lives now. Great review!
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