Book: Hate List by Jennifer Brown

Rating: 5 Stars

Release date: September 1,2009 from Little, Brown

Summary: Five months ago, Valerie Leftman’s boyfriend, Nick, opened fire on their school cafeteria. Shot trying to stop him, Valerie inadvertently saved the life of a classmate, but was implicated in the shootings because of the list she helped create. A list of people and things she and Nick hated. The list he used to pick his targets.

Now, after a summer of seclusion, Val is forced to confront her guilt as she returns to school to complete her senior year. Haunted by the memory of the boyfriend she still loves and navigating rocky relationships with her family, former friends and the girl whose life she saved, Val must come to grips with the tragedy that took place and her role in it, in order to make amends and move on with her life.

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Kait Rose

Hate List by Jennifer Brown

September 25, 2009 • 5 stars, contemporary, debut, review, standalone • 3 Comments

Book: Hate List by Jennifer Brown

Rating: 5 Stars

Release date: September 1,2009 from Little, Brown

Summary: Five months ago, Valerie Leftman’s boyfriend, Nick, opened fire on their school cafeteria. Shot trying to stop him, Valerie inadvertently saved the life of a classmate, but was implicated in the shootings because of the list she helped create. A list of people and things she and Nick hated. The list he used to pick his targets.

Now, after a summer of seclusion, Val is forced to confront her guilt as she returns to school to complete her senior year. Haunted by the memory of the boyfriend she still loves and navigating rocky relationships with her family, former friends and the girl whose life she saved, Val must come to grips with the tragedy that took place and her role in it, in order to make amends and move on with her life.

*****

Wow. I don’t really have words to describe how spectacular this book was. It was just so touching and real. I never thought I would enjoy a book about such a tragic subject but Hate List was so hard not to like. Once I got into the story, it was impossible to stop reading.

One of the things I really loved about Hate List was that it switched back and forth from past to present. It starts out as Valerie’s first day back at school after the shooting but then it switches to during the shooting and the days following it. I really loved how that filled in all the gaps and it wasn’t like you were being told what happened, you were being shown what happened. I love that in a book but sometimes it’s just hard to picture. That wasn’t the case with Hate List.

Another great thing about Hate List was the characters. There weren’t actually a lot of main characters but the ones that were important were amazingly well-developed. Valerie was going through so much and she just had such a hard time. Everyone doubted that she wasn’t actually a part of the shooting and then she had to go back to the school where it all happened. Then there was Jessica, the girl whose life Valerie saved. She doesn’t want to like Valerie and Valerie definitely doesn’t want to like her but in the end, it’s hard to choose who you like.

Overall, Hate List was a spectacular book and I really recommend it to everyone. I think it’s so important to have books like Hate List to show how sometimes the smallest things can cause the biggest pain to someone. With all the hate in today’s society this book really shows you how to love not only the people around you, but yourself as well. =]

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