My View ~ Clean by Amy Reed

 

BOOKS DEVOURED RATING:

5- Moms Fried Chicken, Mashed Potatoes and Dessert. It doesn’t get any better!

 

Synopsis:  (From Good Reads)

Olivia, Kelly, Christopher, Jason, and Eva have one thing in common: They’re addicts. Addicts who have hit rock bottom and been stuck together in rehab to face their problems, face sobriety, and face themselves. None of them wants to be there. None of them wants to confront the truths about their pasts. But they’ll all have to deal with themselves and one another if they want to learn how to live. Because when you get that high, there’s nowhere to go but down, down, down.

Details:

Title: Clean
Author: Amy Reed
Publication Date: July 19th, 2011
Series: None

What Did I Think? 

I had actually planned to have a different review posted today but as soon as I finished Clean I knew I wanted to talk about it right now! I have never felt more grateful to not be an addict than I do after reading this book.  All of those teenagers feel so real and so did their pain.  They were all a bit relatable in one way or another. I have always felt like I did not understand how someone could be an addict.  I still don't really but I think I am closer, or perhaps I understand it as well as I can. I think this is going to be one of those books that everyone who reads it is going to take away something different. 

There was one story that was told by a secondary character that literally made me gag. It was so disgusting I can not even talk about it.  I was told around page 50ish I think and I almost quit reading thinking that if there was just going to be a bunch of the worst things I could never imagine said just for shock value I was out! I am glad that I kept reading. I think maybe it was written for shock value but I also think it was said by the character for shock value and I get that. It made sense in the story so I accepted it.  Still made me want to vomit. (Don't even bother asking, I am serious when I say I can not talk about it. You will just have to read it.)

Olivia, Kelly, Eva, Jason and Christopher all made an impression on me. All of the main characters are so well written and I find that to be quite a feat. I can not recall ever reading a book before that told a story from so many perspectives without some of them getting lost.  I felt a connection with every one of them but I did find that I connected to some more than others.  That to me is part of the brilliance of this story, another person will read it and connect with the other characters more. This is another one of those stories that makes me wish I was a better writer so that I could do justice to the story. I think this is one you just need to read to understand. The best I can do is say that it was like having an inside look at the personal thoughts of a group of kids trying to make it through rehab together. 

BOTTOM LINE: I CAN NOT SPEAK TO ITS ACCURACY BEING THAT I HAVE NEVER BEEN AN ADDICT, BUT I BELIEVE IT. POWERFUL STORY THAT I AM SO GLAD I READ.

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Source: eCopy for Review from Simon & Schuster Galley Grab
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