Hello, Feaders!
I have been in a week-long (or more) hiatus due to my school battles – especially midterm exams. Now, I’m back and ready to give you some bookish thoughts again. So for today’s menu, I want to share with you my latest read book, Both of Me by Jonathan Friesen.
It was a good book that the end goes better in that way. I will be reviewing it today and I don’t want to mumble all the things here much so without further ado, here goes my thought about it.
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It was supposed to be just another flight, another escape into a foreign place where she could forget her past, forget her attachments. Until Clara found herself seated next to an alluring boy named Elias Phinn—a boy who seems to know secrets she has barely been able to admit to herself for years.
When her carry-on bag is accidentally switched with Elias’s identical pack, Clara uses the luggage tag to track down her things. At that address she discovers there is not one Elias Phinn, but two: the odd, paranoid, artistic, and often angry Elias she met on the plane, who lives in an imaginary world of his own making called Salem; and the kind, sweet, and soon irresistible Elias who greets her at the door, and who has no recollection of ever meeting Clara at all. As she learns of Elias’s dissociative identity disorder, and finds herself quickly entangled in both of Elias’s lives, Clara makes a decision that could change all of them forever. She is going to find out what the Salem Elias knows about her past, and how, even if it means playing along with his otherworldly quest. And she is going to find a way to keep the gentle Elias she’s beginning to love from ever disappearing again.
-o-
The end is really not what I expected that way. I much think of Clara’s idea. It does sound good but then we can’t interfere on how Friesen made the outcome to be like that. It was good that way, I guess, as I do not consider it totally bad at all. Actually, it kind of match how the story been with Elias Phinn, his DID (Dissociative Identity Disorder) and how it actually happened that somehow does relate with Clara’s life. Though, I really can’t believe that’s how I anticipated the last pages for the conclusion of their whole journey.
The book is interesting in some sorts but disappointing in the others. Though I’ve been exposed to both world of Eliases and Clara, I never felt to be attached to them much. I don’t know why but it is what I feel after I read this. Not that I don’t like it at all. The plot and writing are great. Obviously, I think I’m just finding something different here. Anyway, I think this is really a good fast time read and for the record, I’d only read this first book that does have the multiple disorder thing as the plot twist. Much to read more about it, I guess, with a different perspective as this one is indeed unique.
This is the first book of Friesen that I’ve read this year – I happened to own another one of his that I haven’t read yet which is funny because I owned that ‘another one’ before I owned this book. He is the second author as I’ve known other than John Green which had the female character as his main in the story. I need to read more of his works especially that other one – Aquifer.
I actually rated this as 3.5 stars. That’s it.
About the Author
Jonathan Friesen
Author of Jerk, California, his first young adult novel which received the ALA Schneider Award.
He is an author, speaker, and youth writing coach from Mora, Minnesota.
When he’s not writing, speaking at schools, or teaching, Jonathan loves to travel and hang out with his wife and three kids.
Find out more on his website @ jonathanfriesen.com and thru his Twitter account, @FriesenJonathan
Thank you for reading!
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