⋙ [PDF] Goodbye Perfect [Jan 30 2018] Barnard Sara Sara Barnard 9781509852864 Books

Goodbye Perfect [Jan 30 2018] Barnard Sara Sara Barnard 9781509852864 Books

Download As PDF : Goodbye Perfect [Jan 30 2018] Barnard Sara Sara Barnard 9781509852864 Books

Goodbye Perfect [Jan 30 2018] Barnard Sara Sara Barnard 9781509852864 Books

Rating: 4.5 Stars

Bonnie had been Eden's anchor since she was first fostered by her family. But, right before their GCSEs, Bonnie ran away. The search for Bonnie uncovers some secrets she had been keeping, and these revelations threw Eden's world off balance.

There were a lot of interesting topics touched upon in this story - taboo entanglements, scholastic pressure, children caring for their parents, but for me, this was all about Eden and her relationships.

Eden was quite jaded, and I couldn't blame her. She spent her early years in an unstable home with her addict mother, and carried many scars from that time with her.

"I'm picky about people at the best of times, but when it comes to my inner circle, the people I let into my heart, I'm ruthless."

She trusted and loved Bonnie, who she saw as steady and loyal. Bonnie's secrets and lies really hurt Eden, and forced her to reevaluate many aspects of her life. I was never led to believe that Bonnie and Eden had any sort of co-dependent relationship, but still, the time apart from each other allowed Eden to take a closer look at many things, and I really loved the way she began to see herself and her family.

There was a lot of exploration of family and adoption. It was pretty clear, that Eden still struggled with her mother's abandonment, and perhaps, feared that the love the McKinley's showed was not what it seemed. However, through different interactions and inspection of many situations, Eden began to see her foster mother and foster sister in a different light. I really loved seeing her understanding of them grow, and their affections for one another warmed my heart.

This event also triggered Eden to re-examine her ideas about love and her future, as well as her loyalty to Bonnie. Most of these new viewpoints filled me with joy, but it the new realization of her friendship with Bonnie, which broke my heart. Seeing a long friendship like that begin to crack really saddened me, though I couldn't fault Eden for the way she felt.

I loved all the introspection and relationships, but one thing never failed to bring a smile to my face - Connor.

"His mum and gran say he's the best boy on the the planet. "

I agree with mum and gran. He was one of those beautiful, soft boys, who just made everything better for me. Because, he was his mother's caregiver, he was older than his years, and he had this gigantic heart. He was open and honest and respectful. His relationship with Eden just seemed so healthy, and I love seeing teen romance like this.

I am warning you - the ending was not all nice and tidy, but there were enough lovely things set in motion for me to be satisfied.

Overall: A beautifully told and compelling story examining the complexities of family, love, and friendship.


Tags : Goodbye, Perfect [Jan 30, 2018] Barnard, Sara [Sara Barnard] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. Please Read Notes: Brand New, International Softcover Edition, Printed in black and white pages, minor self wear on the cover or pages,Sara Barnard,Goodbye, Perfect [Jan 30, 2018] Barnard, Sara,PAN MACMILLAN U.K,1509852867

Goodbye Perfect [Jan 30 2018] Barnard Sara Sara Barnard 9781509852864 Books Reviews

If there’s anything I enjoy in the YA contemporary genre, it’s conflict—especially when the drama going down is something that real teens face, and especially when it’s a topic that authors aren’t often willing to tackle. A lot of authors could write a similar story and keep it black and white—girl’s best friend runs away, girl tells police, best friend is brought home, pedophilia is vilified, and that’s a wrap. That’s not Sara’s style at all.

The thing is, there are two huge obstacles to Bonnie’s coming home, and we’re reminded of them often 1) Eden feels a duty to protect her best friend, because what 15-year-old doesn’t think they’ve got things figured out? and 2) Bonnie ran away with her teacher. She wasn’t taken kicking and screaming; she’s been groomed by this powerful, attractive, seemingly ‘caring’ figure in her life and he’s convinced her they have an entire life together. Bonnie doesn’t want to come home, so how can Eden force her to?

I really appreciated that Sara was willing to go there, without ever making it seem as though what was happening was anything less than awful. Her approach is incredibly refreshing and necessary in its honesty, which might be my favorite thing about her writing as a whole. On top of that, Eden is biracial (white/Brazilian), adopted, dyslexic, and struggles in school—all of this leading up to a phenomenal commentary regarding how different the media would be reacting to the entire situation if the girl in question weren’t a white, able-bodied, middle-class girl with perfect grades like Bonnie.

Besides the genuine way she approached the topic at large, my other favorite thing about this whole story was Eden’s boyfriend, Connor. Sara writes the sweetest, softest boys as love interests and Connor is just so wholesome and precious and loving. I adored the fact that his steadiness contrasted so starkly against the ridiculousness of the situation Eden had been forced into; likewise, her adopted parents are flawed but mostly wonderful, and I loved the support system Eden had in place.

Unfortunately, while I enjoyed Goodbye, Perfect very much, it just wasn’t quite a home run for me! I’ve actually sat on this review for a few days in hopes of nailing down why it never hit 5-star status, and I’m still not sure, but I had the same issue with my other read of Sara’s, A Quiet Kind of Thunder. She writes lovely characters and plots, but something about the stories never fully “wows” me.

That aside, this is a quality contemporary read that I wholeheartedly recommend checking out for yourself. I know Sara Barnard is going to continue being an author I reach for time and time again because I trust her to craft really enjoyable stories that perfectly straddle the line between heavy and comforting, and I can’t wait for my next read of hers!

I’d recommend this, and any of Sara’s other works, to anyone who enjoys YA contemporary releases and is looking for a healthy mix of conflict and fluff.
Rating 4.5 Stars

Bonnie had been Eden's anchor since she was first fostered by her family. But, right before their GCSEs, Bonnie ran away. The search for Bonnie uncovers some secrets she had been keeping, and these revelations threw Eden's world off balance.

There were a lot of interesting topics touched upon in this story - taboo entanglements, scholastic pressure, children caring for their parents, but for me, this was all about Eden and her relationships.

Eden was quite jaded, and I couldn't blame her. She spent her early years in an unstable home with her addict mother, and carried many scars from that time with her.

"I'm picky about people at the best of times, but when it comes to my inner circle, the people I let into my heart, I'm ruthless."

She trusted and loved Bonnie, who she saw as steady and loyal. Bonnie's secrets and lies really hurt Eden, and forced her to reevaluate many aspects of her life. I was never led to believe that Bonnie and Eden had any sort of co-dependent relationship, but still, the time apart from each other allowed Eden to take a closer look at many things, and I really loved the way she began to see herself and her family.

There was a lot of exploration of family and adoption. It was pretty clear, that Eden still struggled with her mother's abandonment, and perhaps, feared that the love the McKinley's showed was not what it seemed. However, through different interactions and inspection of many situations, Eden began to see her foster mother and foster sister in a different light. I really loved seeing her understanding of them grow, and their affections for one another warmed my heart.

This event also triggered Eden to re-examine her ideas about love and her future, as well as her loyalty to Bonnie. Most of these new viewpoints filled me with joy, but it the new realization of her friendship with Bonnie, which broke my heart. Seeing a long friendship like that begin to crack really saddened me, though I couldn't fault Eden for the way she felt.

I loved all the introspection and relationships, but one thing never failed to bring a smile to my face - Connor.

"His mum and gran say he's the best boy on the the planet. "

I agree with mum and gran. He was one of those beautiful, soft boys, who just made everything better for me. Because, he was his mother's caregiver, he was older than his years, and he had this gigantic heart. He was open and honest and respectful. His relationship with Eden just seemed so healthy, and I love seeing teen romance like this.

I am warning you - the ending was not all nice and tidy, but there were enough lovely things set in motion for me to be satisfied.

Overall A beautifully told and compelling story examining the complexities of family, love, and friendship.