“Once upon a time, I did not live in Shady Pines. Once upon a time, my name was not Alice. Once upon a time, I didn’t know how lucky I was.”
When Alice was 10, Ray stole her away from her parents. She’s now 15, and thinks he is growing tired of her. Constantly living in a state of fear, she doesn’t doubt her death lays ahead of her. She welcomes it. However, what Ray actually has in mind for her is much worse; he wants her to find him a new Alice, a much younger girl for his exploits. A new girl will likely mean death for Alice, which will end her pain, but can she force her life on someone else?
Living Dead Girl is an emotionally difficult read, made more so by the intentionally stylized writing. Elizabeth Scott writes in short, quick sentences, spoken only from Alice’s point of view. It is highly effective at expressing Alice’s thoughts and connecting the reader to the story. Alice is such a compelling character and Scott does an amazing job at connecting readers to a story that is not only difficult to tell, but goes beyond the capacity of our imaginations. It is a quick read, but very haunting. This book does have a significant amount of violence and sex, and the topics (pedophilia, rape, abuse, abduction) might be very uncomfortable for some readers. Nonetheless, it is an incredibly significant story.
You might like Living Dead Girl if you enjoy books with: stylized writing, quick to read, fast paced plots, emotionally provocative storylines
Other books by Elizabeth Scott: Bloom, Perfect You, The Unwritten Rule, Stealing Heaven, Something, Maybe, Love You Hate You Miss You
If you enjoyed Living Dead Girl you might also like: Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson, Touching Snow by Sindy M. Felin, Boy Toy by Barry Lyga, Leftovers by Laura Wiess, Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson and Such a Pretty Girl by Laura Wiess
Additional Info: Awards include YALSA Best Book for YA (2009), BCCB Blue Ribbon Award (2008), ABC Best Books for Children (2008) – for more see author website
Author Website found here.
Rating: W4/4 C4/4 P4/4 O4/4 PP2.5/4 CR2/4
Grade: S
Covers
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