Traveling Through Pages

Publication: March 19, 2013 by Katherine Tegen Books

Goodreads

Goodreads Summary: "When thirteen-year-old Angela Gracie Chapman looks in the mirror, someone else looks back--a thin, pale stranger, a sixteen-year-old with haunted eyes. Angie has no memory of the past three years, years in which she was lost to the authorities, lost to her family and friends, lost even to herself. Where has she been, who has been living her life, and what is hiding behind the terrible blankness? There are secrets you can’t even tell yourself.

With a tremendous amount of courage and support from unexpected friends, Angie embarks on a journey into the darkest corners of her mind. As she unearths more and more about her past, she discovers a terrifying secret and must decide: when you remember things you wish you could forget, do you destroy the people responsible, or is there another way to feel whole again?"

This is such a thought-provoking and impactful read. 

I enjoyed how much it focuses on Angie's mind and the psychological aspects of being a kidnapping victim. It is definitely not sugarcoated.

Angie's situation is brutal, and it was hard to read at times. I felt a lot of emotion and sympathy for her and her story.

I like how raw and real the book is. Liz Coley definitely did her research and I found all of the psychology elements to be fascinating.

Even though there were not any huge, surprising twists, Angie and the reader go through a very intense journey.

The writing is interesting. The book deals with Angie having multiple personalities. There are some parts of the book written from these personalities. It is a little disorienting and times and hard to figure out. While I admire the writing style, it was hard to get into. I wasn't totally drawn into the story because of the writing style.

There is not any real romance, but Angie does have to deal with going back to school after 3 years of being gone. Her struggles are heart-breaking, but it is nice to see how she develops and which characters are there to help her.

Even with everything happening to her, Angie has a bright personality and I was always rooting for her.

The ending is slightly open-ended, which is frustrating. However, it is not the type of story that can really end. Angie and her family will have to deal with everything that happened for the rest of their lives. It's hard to have a cut and dry ending.

This story is really disturbing at times, but it will stick with me. Angie's mind fascinated me and I felt emotion and hope for her. This is definitely a story that will trouble you, but also make you think!