Picture Us in the Light

by Kelly Loy Gilbert

Book Overview

"Picture me madly in love with this moving, tender, unapologetically honest book."-- Becky Albertalli, #1 best-selling author of Simon Vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda

Danny Cheng has always known his parents have secrets. But when he discovers a taped-up box in his father's closet filled with old letters and a file on a powerful Bay Area family, he realizes there's much more to his family's past than he ever imagined.

Danny...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1484726022
• ISBN13: 9781484726020
• Release Date: April 2018
• Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
• Length: 368 Pages
• Weight: 1.24 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.3" x 5.6" x 8.3"
• Age Range: 14 to 17 years
• Grade Range: Grades 9 to 12

Customer Reviews

The cover doesn't do this book any justice

The writing and the story was so much better than the cover. I hope that one day the publisher would replace it. I'm glad that I decided to give this book a chance before judging the book by its cover and deciding not to read this one. There's just so much more to this book than meets the eye. I know, sounds cliché... But one thing that surprised me about this book was its diversity. Immediately, I was drawn to the story and its main character. It's rare when I read a book that feels "unique" and "different." For instance, the main character had been self-aware, intelligent, and observant. All in all, this had been an interesting and a fresh-take on a coming of age story that's meant to pull the reader's heartstrings.

A Beautiful Story

I wasn't exactly sure what I would be getting myself into when I picked up this book, but it ended up being a very beautiful story. The leading character, Danny, is where the focus of the story lies but there are a multitude of stories within his own. Even if the story is technically about him, I feel like its meaning extended beyond more than just the one individual. The narrative was beautifully written and I was definitely intrigued. However, I do have to admit that it didn't feel like anything was happening until I was more than half-way through the book. The first 200 or so pages essentially functioned as backstory. While this payed off in the long-run, it did initially make me feel like I had to push my way through the first half of the book to get to the good stuff. Overall, I would rate this book around 3.5 stars!