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FROM OUR READERS: Reader comments on AIMEE by Mary Beth Miller
In March we shared an advance reading copy of AIMEE by Mary Beth Miller with a group of Teenreads.com readers asking them for their candid feedback on this title that is scheduled to release in May 2002. What follows are unedited comments from nine readers.
I really enjoyed reading AIMEE by Mary Beth Miller. It is the story of a girl, Zoe, who is charged with murder for helping her friend commit suicide which she didn't do, the media even calls her Dr. Kevorkian. This book is very suspenseful since only little by little are the events leading up to AIMEE's suicide revealed. By doing this I feel the author is showing how Zoe is coming to terms with the suicide and healing. One of the best parts about this book is that it brings up a lot of issues that face teens today: suicide, depression, drug and alcohol use, in a realistic way. Another interesting aspect of AIMEE was that it didn't seem like I was reading from a journal, the first person perspective is very well done. AIso, the main character's name isn't revealed until almost the end of the book. I found it interesting that AIMEE also means friend in French. Finally, I would recommend AIMEE to anyone fourteen and up who wants a good, suspenseful read.
—BEATLES536@aol.com
My friend and I both won a copy of this book, and excitement suffused our bodies when we opened our post office boxes and found the book. We retreated to my apartment with chamomile tea and snacks to fortify our voyage through the book. We monopolized the living room for hours while we read.
We both finished the book in one sitting. That says a lot, doesn't it? I was really impressed by the author's uncanny ability to get into the character's head, while we never even know the narrator's name. The characters were so realistic it was scary. After finishing the book, we sat in numb silence for a very long time, just empathizing with Zoe's plight. AIMEE could be any one of many of my friends. This could happen to me...that's what really hit home. Even though the book was fiction, it didn't feel like it. I know that this author is going to go a long way. I don't really have any criticism of the book, only that I thought that the parents of Zoe were a little one-dimensional at first, but later in the book, we got more insight. The therapist character didn't seem developed enough to me. Honestly, it was one of those books that I really wished that didn't have to end....
—Eternal201@aol.com
Dear Teenreads,
I was one of the group chosen to read and review an advance proof of the novel AIMEE by Mary Beth Miller. I loved this book! I could barely put it down. Zoe is such a real, believable character, and you feel her angst and pain. While the book deals with heavy issues, such as suicide, anorexia, and abuse, I did not find it overly depressing or pessimistic. At first, I admit I was put off by the negative premise, but I found myself increasingly wrapped up in Zoe's sad little world, and wanting her to get better and come to terms with the past. AIMEE teaches a positive message, that of being a "survivor" (as Zoe is described by her psychiatrist "Marge"), persevering even when you think there is nothing left to live for, and discovering that life really is beautiful and precious after all.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I was impressed to learn that AIMEE is the author's first novel. I hope Mary Beth Miller continues producing good stories like this one.
Thank you for the opportunity to review this book. I would love to read other books for you in the future.
—AquaWeezer@aol.com
AIMEE by Mary-Beth Miller is a fantastic narrative that brilliantly chronicles the life of a young girl struggling through adolescence with the weight of her friend’s suicide and the burden of being cut off from her childhood friends on her shoulders. I loved how the author captured even the darkest emotions of the narrator so perfectly that it made me feel like they were happening to me. This is a wonderful story of friendship, loyalty, insanity, recovery and hope that can appeal to almost anyone who is ever lost something special to them. AIMEE grabs onto your heart from the beginning and takes you on an emotional roller-coaster ride so enticingly delicious you can’t put it down until it comes to a complete stop; and even then it stays intact to your soul. Miller is a brilliant author, and this being her first novel; I can't wait for what's to come.
—LauraM322@aol.com
After curling up on a comfortable futon, I was immediately drawn into the book. AIMEE, by Mary Beth Miller, was a gem. Truly one of a kind. Recounted by a girl who just lost her lifelong best friend, it gave me an amazing perspective on suicides. For a debut novel, it was terrific and profound, making me think about it more than usual.
AIMEE was not the girl who "wrote" the book, but her best friend instead. AIMEE had committed suicide earlier, and for therapy, her best friend had to write what she went through with AIMEE and her posse of friends. She recounted what had happened up to the tragic death of AIMEE, giving the readers a slow yet steady flow of curiosity which increases until some revelations were made. The ending was complete and satisfying, making me feel like I had a good dose of reading. I really enjoyed the book and I absolutely would look forward to miller's next novel if there is any.
To Teenreads, thanks for having me review the book. I truly enjoyed it and I would love to do it again so if it is possible, please let me know. Thanks.
—Monkichia@aol.com
When given the opportunity to read AIMEE, by Mary Beth Miller, I jumped at the chance, mainly because I found the basic plot so interesting. The book starts a year after the narrator, Zoe, is tried for her best friend AIMEE's murder/suicide. You are taken backwards through Zoe's life and hear bits and pieces of the full story while she relays them to her psychologist, Marge, somewhat grudgingly. The story itself was extremely intriguing and I found myself actually reading the book in one sitting because I was so eager to get to the end and find out the truth.
This fictitious story was extremely well written, though at times, harder to follow. I think the novel would make an extremely good movie and a bit easier to understand because you are, in fact, clueless until the very end. Mary Beth Miller does an excellent job of dropping a few hints here and there --- just giving the reader enough information to go onto the new page. You learn a lot about the narrator, Zoe and what she is going through --- having been ripped from her close knit group of friends, to moving to a new town and new school during her senior year of high school, to parents that just don't seem to care. I really began to feel for Zoe and her hardships. Overall, I found AIMEE to be an extremely good read for teenagers to adults and highly recommend it.
—DawsnsGal@aol.com
Thank you so much for allowing me to do this! If you ever need people to do this again, I would love to do it. Here is my review.
AIMEE is one of those novels you pick up and don't ever want to put down. From the first page, you are sucked into a world that seems so real, it might as well be your own. The characters are unique, and the story is so intricately woven that you forget you aren't a part of it, and instead you become one of them. Mary Beth Miller does an amazing job of displaying hurt, betrayal, and confusion in a way that feels real to everyone who reads this book. You find yourself hanging onto every word hoping for more details, waiting for the next piece of the puzzle to fall into place. You can't help but be hooked. By using a journal type style, you can gain access to the innermost thoughts of the main character and ultimately to the whole situation. It is one of the most refreshing and distinctively different books out there for teens. Out of the many different options there are, this book treats you like a participant, not an observer. You find yourself anticipating every turn of the page because it brings something new and extraordinary.
Once again. Thank you so much for this opportunity! It was a pleasure!
—SuperKat11@aol.com
Hi, here's my AIMEE feedback!
After reading AIMEE I felt tears forming in the back of my head. I knew they would never fall, because they never do, but it's a true phenomenon for anything to move me enough that I know I'm on the verge of crying. AIMEE isn't a sappy sob story by any means, it's the inner workings of a teenage girl's mind. Even though Zoe has gone through unimaginable experiences her voice is real. Furthermore, her preoccupation with herself and her friends and her "lover" don't seem petty. That's probably why I enjoyed this book as much as I did. The author didn't ridicule the small world teenagers inhabit, she made it feel important, so I felt as if I could put myself in Zoe's place when she was writing about her friends. The style Mary Beth Miller wrote AIMEE in felt almost like slow psychoanalysis. That style gave the book so much tension. Even Zoe accused herself of helping AIMEE, so I reluctantly believed it too, until a climax that snuck into the story so furtively that I didn't realize I was reading about the night of AIMEE's death until halfway through. AIMEE has become my favorite book and beating Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban is a tough job.
If you need more, let me know. I'd be happy to do this sort of thing again! Thanks for the experience!
—LillTiger@aol.com
How would you feel if your best friend had committed suicide while you were in the room next door? How would you feel if everyone thought you had helped her? What if nobody believed you or trusted you, not even your parents? What if the only people who could help you get through the guilt and pain were the ones you were forbidden to see? That's what Zoe has to live with.
In the book AIMEE by Mary Beth Miller you get to read the journal of a girl who is accused of helping to kill her best friend. The journal is a mix of the past and present, letting you know how life was for AIMEE and Zoe before AIMEE's death and at the same time letting you feel the pain and sorrow Zoe is feeling for herself and her friends. AIMEE made the scary world of teen suicide come alive, leaving me shocked, sad, and thankful. I actually appreciate the life I have more now, then I had before reading this book. It's a wonderful book and everyone no matter what age (my Mom actually read it and also enjoyed it) should read it, and learn from it.
—Imaginethat85@aol.com
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