Review: To Die To Live

To Die To Live by Jason Hershey
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I would like to start this review by thanking Jason Hershey. He contacted me through my blog to see whether I would be interested in reading To Die To Live, and after sending me a copy he was lovely when life threw some curveballs our way. First my Kindle decided to give up life, then when my Kindle was working the mobi file of this story errored on me. Through it all Jason Hershey was patient and understanding, something I’m really grateful for. Top marks right there, for being a great human being.

Of course, you care about the actual story. It’s always great to know there is a wonderful human being behind a story, but what you’re reading this for is what I thought of the story.

It’s a very quick read, one you can easily complete in under an hour. Despite the length, it comes with a very deep message and touches upon a very real topic. It really is a very simple book, yet there is so much depth in so few pages. It’s about friendship, about connecting with others, about finding yourself, about doing what is right for you. So much is touched upon in so few pages, so many things important to teens, and it’s truly wonderful.

I now hear you asking why I just gave it three stars. Truthful, it’s a three-point-five read, but I rounded down. The reason I gave it such a rating is because the story was very much a case of telling instead of showing. We were told how things were, rather than being shown. Instead of being able to gauge the reactions, we were told what reactions were. I admit that it works well in such short stories, yet I never find myself fully immersed in stories when such is the type of storytelling. I’m sure many others will enjoy this style of storytelling, but such is not for me.

Overall, a great little read. It’s well worth reading if you’re a fan of young adult stories with real depth.

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