Special Topics in Calamity Physics

"Parts of this book reminded me of A Secret History. I feel like if you are missing the feels you got from reading A Secret History, try this book. "

"Maybe I do not have the patience or attention span but I was not a fan of the narrative. The story dragged way too long... lots of unnecessary tangent side thoughts that I got lost so many time from the actual story. I'm still glad I read the book because I learned that maybe I am not a fan of stream of consciousness writing style."

"Eh, I liked Night Film much better."

"This book both infuriated and intrigued me...I've never read anything quite like it. <br/><br/>Blue Van Meer is a socially awkward genius (think Sheldon Cooper, but without a geek posse) who has lived a relatively sheltered life. Raised by her professor father, who has spent her entire childhood grooming her to attend Harvard. During her senior year of high school, Blue realizes there may be more to life than academia, and ventures outside her comfort zone...but it comes with a price. <br/><br/>While to book is slow (sometimes VERY slow) to come together, the ending was mind blowing. My biggest snag with this book was I had no idea what literary works/academic papers/etc Blue was referencing, and I didn't know it I should know, or if the author did that on purpose to flesh out Blue's character and make her hard to relate to. <br/><br/><br/>All in all, a solid read and I enjoyed it. It left me thinking long after the last page. <br/>"

"Amazing characters! The plot was lengthy, but the commentary from the main character and her father was incredible and relatable. "

"For almost the entire book, it seems irrelevant that the protagonist's name is 'Blue'. If you are going to name your central character 'Blue', then shouldn't this come up at some point? Perhaps Pessl bit off more than she could chew with this novel. <br/><br/>I began reading this novel fully engrossing myself into every long-winded metaphor and explanation based firmly within texts that are university level, if not above. How important are those aspects of the book? Turns out, not very. The best parts of the books are the parts where Blue just experiences life for what it is and you explore this teenage world with her. <br/><br/>**WARNING--SPOILERS BELOW**<br/><br/>The ending. I hate endings that feel unresolved and this is anything but resolved! It's basically a choose your own adventure book at the end. My issue is that Blue's father, Gareth, adores his daughter, truly adores her. We get evidence of this time and time again and yet....he just takes off?! He is not even there to see her graduate? How is she going to pay for Harvard? Hannah's death was never truly resolved, nor was Blue's relationship with the Bluebloods. Bah! So many loose ends!"