The book Shine by Lauren Myracle has been on my to-read list for quite a while, and now I have finally gotten to read it! And let me begin by saying that it was definitely worth the wait. I remember hearing Lauren Myracle talking about this particular book at ALAN, about all the hype that surrounded the book (it was nominated as a National Book Award Finalist, then that nomination was taken away, which you can read about here and here). But despite all of that, Shine is a really great book.
Shine opens up with a newspaper article about a young, gay teenage boy named Patrick who has been almost beaten almost to death and left at a local gas station. Cat, the narrator of the book and old childhood friend of Patrick, decides that even though her and Patrick’s friendship had declined over time, she is going to be the one to figure out who assaulted Patrick. But she finds out that a lot of people in her small southern town of Black Creek are harboring a lot of secrets. Will any of them lead her to Patrick’s assaulter? You’ll have to read to find out 🙂
I think the main thing that I liked about this book was the way that Myracle intertwined the plot. In order to figure out what happened to Patrick, Cat had to question a lot of people in her small town, and she was turning up information that certain people didn’t want found out. Meanwhile, the reader finds out a lot about Cat’s past while she runs around, trying to find information, and her past isn’t pretty. While a few things in the novel were a little predictable, I found that I really liked Myracle’s writing style. It was vivid (even in parts you didn’t necessarily want to be vivid) and authentic, and I felt like a real person was telling this story. And that is the mark of a great book 🙂 I also think it was a pretty good book for the LGBTQ community, given that it speaks out against violence against LGBTQ people. Another positive check mark to add to the list of good things about this book.
Well, that’s it for now. Next I will be reading Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore. And two-ish weeks until I go to England. Ahh! So excited!! Until next time, happy reading! 🙂