Precious

I'll start off by saying I was surprised and a little disappointed with how short the book was. Despite its bleak setting and its turn-away descriptions, I could have kept reading this book long after it ended. That's how gripping it was.

The entire time you're reading you know that Precious is going to be all right in the end. I don't attribute this to having already seen the movie. You just know. Rather than take away from the story, I think this adds to it. You want to see her get out all right and you want to know how.

I also liked how the book ended. It wasn't a Disney ending at all. It wasn't something where all the ends are neatly tied up and it sends you on your way. It ends at a nice, yet appropriately unresolved, place. I like endings like that. However, like I said, I could have kept reading.

Some people won't like this book because of the style. For me, it made the story that much more effective. The flow was natural and stream-of-consciousness, and I was able to fall right into the story and just keep turning pages.

I also feel this story works better as a book than a movie. The movie was well-acted for sure, but it felt very cheesy at times. The book never feels like that. However, I do think the movie is worth a watch, just for Monique's acting chops. Incredible.

I must admit I skipped a large portion of the poetry in this book. It didn't interest me, to be honest. I read all of Precious' poems, but I had no reason to read the ones written by her classmates. Why should I? They're not the focus of the story. You don't really care as much about their stories or their characters as you do Precious'.