Wednesday, September 4, 2013

The Infinite Moment of Us by Lauren Myracle


Title: The Infinite Moment of Us

Author: Lauren Myracle

Book #: Standalone


Publisher: Amulet Books

Publish Date: August 27th 2013

Pages: 316

Format: Hardcover


Date Read: September 2nd 2013

Rating
½ / out of 5




Summary:

For as long as she can remember, Wren Gray’s goal has been to please her parents. But as high school graduation nears, so does an uncomfortable realization: Pleasing her parents once overlapped with pleasing herself, but now... not so much. Wren needs to honor her own desires, but how can she if she doesn't even know what they are?

Charlie Parker, on the other hand, is painfully aware of his heart’s desire. A gentle boy with a troubled past, Charlie has loved Wren since the day he first saw her. But a girl like Wren would never fall for a guy like Charlie—at least not the sort of guy Charlie believes himself to be.

And yet certain things are written in the stars. And in the summer after high school, Wren and Charlie’s souls will collide. But souls are complicated, as are the bodies that house them...
(Synopsis taken from Goodreads)

Note:

Some might say that they don't mind explicit sex in YA books, and I don't either. But, I do mind when there is explicit sex in YA books. That I don't like, simply because of the age group that reads young adult books (which is normally 12/13+). I don't mind so much scenes that imply sex, but when a young adult book uses very detailed language to describe sexual actions and sex, it bothers me. I've read many young adult books and have never come across such language about sex as I have in this book. The Infinite Moment of Us should be more appropriately labelled as new adult. It includes very detailed scenes talking about sex, partaking in sexual activities and sex, as well as sending nudes. YA books do not need that. No thank you.

Review:

The first hundred or so pages were pretty rough for me. Just read my statuses for this book. I wasn't liking the insta-love, main character, her parents, her best friend, or her best friend's love interest. I thought they were all stereotypical and boring. The only person I didn't have complaints about in the beginning was Charlie, because I could tell he had a very good heart considering all he's been through.

While with Wren, the struggle is definitely real. I feel very much so the same way she feels, only it has nothing to do with my parents. 
"But I want to do something now, not in eight years. I kind of feel like I have to, or I never will."
This is exactly how I feel right now in my life, and it's the basis on which I connected to Wren. Unfortunately, that was as far as it got for me.

Wren, to me, was cliche, winy and (sadly) very realistic. She frets over everything in her relationship with Charlie and never considers things from his point of view. Why can't he spend every second of the day with me? Why can't he not be busy with his work and life so that he can constantly pay me attention? Why can't he leave his family, including his handicap brother, and leave the country to be with me? Why is he choosing his family over me?!

I actually liked Charlie, the love interest. He's very much a young man, and I didn't have a problem with the way he acted or thought, besides the way the author used very explicit vocabulary when doing so. He had a very rough life, and I found it amazing how he came out of it in the end a good person. While Wren complains that he never told her the things he told Starrla, I didn't see why. He knew Starrla for years, and he only just started to get to know Wren the past two months.

The story was probably, if anything, the best part. While it was not the best ever, I felt it had direction. I wanted to see if Wren was going to be her own person, or back down and be the person her parents want her to be. It was the story that eventually grew on me and that ending that almost made it all feel worth it in the end.

Overall, I enjoyed the story, with it's sweet romance and open ending, despite all the problems I had with the characters. However, I am disturbed that this book is labelled as a young adult when it would more appropriately be new adult. 

Quotes:

She yearned to be her own person, not an extension of her mom and dad, and she longed to do something brave, something that mattered, something that helped others in an immediate and tangible way.

"I guess I think the world is more connected than people realize. I think... sometimes... that scientists... some scientists... want to package things up into neat little boxes. Explain, explain, explain, until there aren't any mysteries left. Well... I like the mysteries. I want to understand them, or try to, but I don't want to put them away in boxes. And if there doesn't seem to be an explanation for something, I don't want that to scare me away. I don't want to force an explanation to fit or to throw my hands in the air and give up."


On My Goodreads:

http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/648576677

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