Review: The Disenchantments by Nina LaCour

The Disenchantments by Nina LaCour
Reviewed by Maggie: March 22, 2012
Published February 16, 2012 by Dutton Children's Books
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Something that 18-year-olds and potheads have in common (if they're not one in the same) is that they think everything they say is so DEEP and PROFOUND. The problem is that I don't belong to either group.

The Disenchantments is the story of four friends and bandmates who hit the road after three of them (Colby, Bev, and Meg) graduate from high school. Colby, the lone boy, is our narrator and manager of the Disenchantments. On the eve of the trip, Bev tells Colby that despite their plans to visit Colby's mom in Paris and then backpack around Europe for the year, she's going to college instead. To further complicate matters, Colby has been in love with Bev since they were kids. Nothing like awkward tension and feelings of betrayal to kick off a trip.

Needless to say, this wasn't the light, fun road trip book I was expecting. It was my own fault because I saw the cover, read "road trip" in the summary, and assumed it would be FUN in the SUN! Still, throw France in a story in any shape or form and I'm usually appeased. Unfortunately, I didn't feel engaged in the story until page 246 -- of a 307-page book. For the majority of the book, I felt little connection to the characters. Colby's DEEP 18-year-old thoughts just made me roll my eyes. For example:

We drive past a lumberyard, full of a forest's worth of felled trees. I slow as we pass it. It's almost too big to comprehend.

Okay, homie. He's not the only one emo-ing out, although he does have the best reasons. Alexa, the band member with a year of high school left, gets a splinter in her foot. But to a 17-year-old, a splinter is not just a splinter.

She says, "The world is against me."

Inevitably, when you put 18-year-olds in a room or car together, they come to MEANINGFUL and PROFOUND realizations.

"It's hard."
"What's hard?" I ask.
Bev shakes her head, as if the answer is too big to put into words.
Finally she says, "Growing up."
And there is nothing any of us can say to that. It feels too true for a response.

I was mid-eye roll until I thought back to 2am conversations with my roommates freshman year. Let she who is without self-importance cast the first stone, right? As insufferable as some of the Disenchantments' musings were, they are the typical musings of the age group. The story took a Graffiti Moon-esque turn on page 252 and my interest raised tenfold. The 50 pages that end the book are where the story should've started. That story, and the story that begins at the end of the book, is one I would've loved reading. There is an audience for this book and these characters, but unfortunately it wasn't me.

Final verdict: 3/5 stars.

Review: Hold Still by Nina LaCour

Hold Still by Nina LaCour
Reviewed by Noelle: March 11, 2012
Published October 20, 2009: Dutton Books
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On the one hand it’s kind of fascinating to think about the infinite possibilities of a person’s inner self. To think of all of their thoughts and emotions, not just the ones they share with you.  To imagine all of the puzzle pieces to their personality in one box instead of just the pieces they put on the table.

On the other hand it can be unsettling and even devastating to realize that someone you thought you knew completely has kept an entire side of themselves a secret.  For Caitlin, this discovery comes after her best friend Ingrid commits suicide.  Caitlin is stunned, heartbroken and desperate to understand.

Caitlin’s entire world was Ingrid.  Her hobbies, her idols and her goals were all built through their friendship.  Without Ingrid, all of those things lose their foundation and leave Caitlin distrusting what they even meant to her in the first place.  

Ingrid leaves behind an illustrated journal for Caitlin and through its entries both Caitlin and the reader get a vivid introduction to both the Ingrid Caitlin knew and the Ingrid that kept herself hidden.  Despite only living through Caitlin's memories and the journal entries, Ingrid has a strong book presence. It is very rough to read Ingrid's loss of hope.  The more Caitlin discovers about Ingrid the more she questions what she actually knows about herself as well.  By the end of the journal Caitlin has several new pieces to the puzzle of Ingrid and she must decide how to put them together and what to do with what she learns.

I love when YA protagonists have serious hobbies and specific interests. When I was in high school I was always busy with some kind of wacky side project and I enjoy reading about other people's extracurricular interests. While Caitlin's photography was interesting to explore, I really liked her adventures in tree-house building. In my imagination, her end result looked something like this:

Photo source

My parents would have had to physically drag me inside if we had had one of those in the yard!

What is so great about Nina LaCour is that she allows her characters just to BE and the result is believable, fulfilling character interactions.  Everyone from Caitlin's parents to Ingrid's crush to the new girl in school feel completely natural and it makes the emotional turmoil they all go through that much more poignant.  Hold Still has a quiet and steady delivery that will settle into your heart piece by piece. 

Rating: 4/5 stars