REVIEW Stolen by Lucy Christopher

A Printz Honor book, "Stolen" by Lucy Christopher is the haunting account of a 16 year old girl, Gemma, who was kidnapped by Ty, a rugged and handsome older man with an undeniable fire behind his eyes. As the book unfolds in an Australian desert so far removed from everything that all Gemma can ever find is sand, sand, and more sand. She hates the land because she didn't chose it, she hates Ty for taking her there. But as Ty himself unfolds, and Gemma starts listening, things don't seem quite as black and white.

 *Trigger Warning: This book is about kidnapping. Do not read if this or the topic of Stockholm Syndrome is a trigger for you!*

When I started reading this book, I was hesitant because the girl who recommended it to me responded to me saying that I already hated Ty from reading the synopsis by saying she did too but reading the book changed that. My fear was that the book would glorify it, and defend his actions, and romanticize the idea of being kidnapped by a man who was "different." But this book isn't like that.

Written as a letter to Ty, this book goes through the story with such a raw honesty and intense intimacy the pulls at the heart strings. If you find yourself prone to skipping to dialogue, this book might be bit hard to get through because of the way it's written. However, as it is written as a dialogue, written as a letter, I'd say it is still worth a shot. I have little to complain about with this book.

The way that it was written was innovative and fresh, and proved most effective to tell the story. No spoilers, but the whole way this was written is tied up nice and neat and beautiful at the end. The story as a whole is so incredibly well put together-- my only complaint would have to be that one transformation comes slightly too late in the book. That being said, I think the way that Christopher developed the character relationship was flawlessly executed. Her attention to detail and the care she took with not rushing the progression and with not rushing Gemma's opening up to the idea of getting to know her captor are the only way that this book work. Without her careful, close-eye, this book would have fallen flat. All she had to work with was the relationship between Gemma and Ty, the relationship between Gemma and the land, Gemma and London, and Gemma with her situation. This and her contrast of nature and city as well as her exploring beauty and art might sound like a lot but compared to most YA books, she has a very limited field to work with. And that she does, without overworking any section. In short, this book was so elegantly and honestly written and arranged that I am surprised it's not being taught at my school currently.

In the way that "Speak" brought rape into conversations in classrooms, I believe "Stolen" follows suit, helping to bring up this conversation in this generation. In the age when Amber Alerts are sent directly to our phones and the stories of the victims of abduction are so sensationalized that we are so desensitized to it that I assumed this book would make light of Stockholm Syndrome. I'm impressed with this book and know that I will be going out and buying my own copy because I got mine from my school's library.

My Rating: 5/5

Would I recommend: Yes Yes Yes

To: Anyone who enjoys innovative YA fiction, anyone who enjoyed "Speak" or novels that deal with similarly serious subjects.
If you liked...
Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

My Playlist for this Book:

Basket Case by Sara Bareilles

Hero by Family of the Year

When You Can't Sleep at Night by Of Mice & Men

Links:
Buy this book on Amazon here, on Barnes and Noble here, Powell's here, or be a boss and Buy Independent!!!
See this book on Goodreads here and Shelfari here.
Read a review of this book on the Guardian here, and see the book on the author's website here.

:)
R