Friday, December 27, 2013

Reconstructing Amelia

My goal is to read 100 books by the end of 2013.  I just finished book 92.

Reconstructing Amelia by Kimberly McCreight

Summary (via the book jacket):
When Kate, single mother and law firm partner, gets an urgent phone call summoning her to her daughter's exclusive private school, she's shocked.  Amelia has been suspended for cheating, something that would be completely out of character for her over-achieving, well-behaved daughter.
Kate rushes to Grace Hall, but what she finds when she finally arrives is beyond comprehension.  Her daughter Amelia is dead.  Despondent over having been caught cheating, Amelia has jumped from the school's roof in an act of impulsive suicide.  At least that's the story Grace Hall and the police tell Kate.  In a state of shock and overcome by grief, Kate tries to come to grips with this life-shattering news.  Then she gets an anonymous text:
Amelia didn't jump.
The moment she sees that message, Kate knows in her heart it's true.  Clearly Amelia had secrets, and a life Kate knew nothing about.  Wracked by guilt, Kate is determined to find out what those secrets were and who could have hated her daughter enough to kill.  She searches through Amelia's e-mails, texts, and Facebook updates, piecing together the last troubled days of her daughter's life.

My Opinion:
What an incredibly well-written book.  It's hard to say I enjoyed reading it because I felt nauseous the entire time, but it definitely kept my attention and I read it quickly to find out what would happen.  The entirely realistic portrayal of bullying and peer pressure was difficult to read (and made me want to lock my kids, especially my 3 daughters, away in a tower so I don't have to send them to high school).  Although most of the plot points were foreshadowed, it didn't take anything away from the journey and the way everything came together was still a surprise.

Quote from the Book:
"Because in some magical, cosmic way, mothers were supposed to know every important thing about her children.  Kate had worried from the start that she might lack this special motherly intuition, but she'd always believed her genuine closeness with Amelia would overcome any shortfall.  She'd been so very wrong.  That was obvious now."

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