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Summary: You Just Never Know...
Review: Born in the 1960's, Cassandra Jane Maxwell didn't have an easy start in life, and that trend of misfortune seemingly continued throughout her childhood, teenage, and early adult years. Her father was a drunk, her mother dead, her grandmother only alive to help for a short time, and her only true friend a nerdy but well-intentioned boy, Joey Divers. After going through a couple of foster homes and feeling isolated from and unloved by everyone, Cass hooks up with the wrong group. She finds a faith in God, but falls in with a group of Christians whose leader, Sky, is not really all he seems. Through the bad times, the moments of happiness, the hippie commune, and the foster homes...take a trip with Cassandra. You just never know until you've read the book. I picked this up at the library, not expecting much beyond a fairly easy and forgettable read. Not quite. Yes, this book is incredibly readable, but it is because it is well-written and engaging. It is written in first person, so it really seems like Cassandra Jane is talking to you. And let me tell you, it's a conversation you never want to end! It's obvious that Carson has a fabulous grasp for her character, and her descriptions never waver. I loved how although Cass got pressured into doing things that were unwise, the reader realized that underneath it all, she was a creative, intelligent, and discerning person who just wanted to be loved and fit in. Her grapples with faith and God are realistic, and the fact that her faith journey is up-and-down and far from perfect makes Cass all the better as a character. Some cynics and literary purists may argue that the ending is too perfect or a little rushed. Maybe it's rushed, but I think that's excusable since I don't have a single complaint about the rest of the book. And too perfect? Readers will have been rooting for Cassandra Jane for so long that they won't mind at all! Unpretetious and beautiful. I read it in a day.
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Summary: INTO . . . AND OUT OF . . . A CULT
Review: Melody Carlson got me quick and deep into Cassandra's thoughts and her rough and tumble faith journey of survival. It was hard to pull away from this book, so I didn't. Cassandra's first person account tends toward self-pity at times but in a true-to-life type of way. A bunch of kids make stupid mistakes and learn that doesn't weaken God's power. LOOKING through Cassandra's troubled eyes paints a full landscape of developed characters in an upside down world.
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