Paperweight by Meg Haston
Pages: 285
Publish date: July 2nd
Publisher: Hot Key Books (Five Mile Press)
ISBN: 9781471404566
Purchase: Book Depository – Amazon UK – Amazon US – Amazon AU
Seventeen-year-old Stevie is trapped. In her life. In her body. And now in an eating-disorder treatment center on the dusty outskirts of the New Mexico desert.
Life in the center is regimented and intrusive, a nightmare come true. Nurses and therapists watch Stevie at mealtime, accompany her to the bathroom, and challenge her to eat the foods she’s worked so hard to avoid.
Her dad has signed her up for sixty days of treatment. But what no one knows is that Stevie doesn’t plan to stay that long. There are only twenty-seven days until the anniversary of her brother Josh’s death—the death she caused. And if Stevie gets her way, there are only twenty-seven days until she too will end her life.
In this emotionally haunting and beautifully written young adult debut, Meg Haston delves into the devastating impact of trauma and loss, while posing the question: Why are some consumed by their illness while others embark on a path toward recovery?
Paperweight:
I received a copy of Paperweight by Meg Haston for an honest review from Hot Key Books (Five Mile Press). This has in no way influenced my review.
I have been reading mixed reviews about Paperweight and I can see why some people may not have liked it, but I loved it. Paperweight is such an emotional, gut-wrenching read. I was trying not ball out crying on the train.
Paperweight follows seventeen-year-old Stevie and her journey in a treatment centre and man this book is hard to read. I also think that this book might be triggering for some people.
All I wanted to do was hop in the book and hug Stevie, I just felt for her so much. I wanted to cry so many times while reading Paperweight because Stevie emotions were so wonderfully conveyed.
I also think that it being in, first person made such an impact. It would have felt so different, if it was from third person and it might have felt – fake.
“If you let this disease take you, you’re giving up all the power you actually do have. Just giving it up, without a fight.” – Page 209
I liked that Meg Haston flipped through the present and the past. We weren’t just told what had happened to Stevie, but it’s shown and that made such an impact. However, sometimes it was difficult to distinguish what was the past and what was the present.
I liked both the stories that we were being told. The one before Stevie entered the treatment centre was certainly interesting to read about. The reader was able to see how she turned into the person she is at the time of the novel. But this time is also heartbreaking because the reader is able to see before Stevie released how hurtful her relationships were.
I also enjoyed the story inside the treatment centre. It was very, very hard to read, I am not going to lie. But it was also quite amazing and done brilliantly. Haston could have gone somewhere else with Paperweight, she didn’t let all the medical information take over. It all felt real.
I also actually like a lot of the side characters. Ashley, oh gosh, my heart ached for her. I wanted to hug all the girls in the treatment centre. It was all heartbreaking.
I really didn’t like Eden, but she had problems of her own and so I did feel for her a little bit. However, she was certainly manipulative and it not only her herself, but those around her, and for the most part, Stevie.
She is a virus, and I have been fevered with her since the first day of the seminar. I thought she was the cure. That she could fix me. But instead she’s kept me sick, and needing her, because that’s what she needed. – Page 230
Paperweight is written beautifully. We could have had a protagonist that whines all the time, but instead we didn’t see Stevie whining. We see her struggling and trying to come to terms with herself.
There is some stuff that I am not going to mention as it think it will wreak the surprise that comes with reading Paperweight.
Overall, Paperweight is a powerful, heartbreaking and beautiful contemporary. With beautiful writing from Meg Haston and a story that could be real for anyone.
Have you read Paperweight? What did you think of it? Will you read it?
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