Pushing the Limits

Pushing the Limits

Katie McGarry

456 pages

"The worst type of crying wasn't the kind everyone could see- the wailing on street corners, the tearing at clothes. No, the worst kind happened when your soul wept and no matter what you did, there was no way to comfort it. A section withered and became a scar on the part of your soul that survived."

Echo Emerson's mom attacked her, leaving terrible scars all down her arms. Echo didn't know how it happened, and nobody would tell her. The one time a psychiatrist had pushed her to remember, she had a mental breakdown, leaving her to fear she'd end up being just like her mom. Noah Hutchins is a foster kid, struggling to deal with the loss of his parents and the inability to see his brothers. They never thought they would cross paths, until their new psychiatrist thrusts them together. Noah teaches Echo that she doesn't have to hide her scars. Echo helps Noah understand that his brothers will always love him. 

I really thought this was a great book. It had many layers: the conflict between Echo and her mother, between Noah and the foster parents of his brothers, and the relationship that forms between Echo and Noah. The end made me want so much more. I really loved how McGarry put a note in the back, listing all the songs she used to help her write this novel. Her inclusion of the song that follows the book really helped me understand where Noah and Echo ended up going after the words of her book ended.

Pages this Semester: 860

"You're an addict. You need stories the way the furrow needs the plow."

-Bill Willingham