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Read advance reader review of Before I Die by Jenny Downham, page 3 of 3

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Before I Die by Jenny Downham

Before I Die

by Jenny Downham
  • BookBrowse Review:
  • Critics' Consensus (10):
  • Readers' Rating (56):
  • First Published:
  • Sep 25, 2007, 336 pages
  • Paperback:
  • May 2009, 336 pages
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  • Jane (Prospect KY)
    Before I Die by Jenny Downham
    Although I gave this book an overall three, it was not an average book. I thought the first third of the book could do with some rewriting -- just didn't grab me right off the bat.The more I got into the story, the more interested I became.

    I have never been with a young person who died so can't speak with any authority about whether or not this book relates experiences which are believable. My experience in being with elderly persons at the time of their death tells me that the author did a fairly good job of describing the gradual disorientation which occurs.

    Probably the least developed characters were the adults in the novel. I felt with a little rewriting this story could really grab your heartstrings. As it is currently, I just felt annoyed at the omissions and the poorly developed characters. The flow of the story was off and overall I just ended the book with a sense of frustration about 'what it could have been'.
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