Hold Still Review

Hold Still by Nina LaCour

Publisher: Dutton

Release date: October 20, 2009

Source: Publisher

dear caitlin, there are so many things that i want so badly to tell you but i just can’t.

Devastating, hopeful, hopeless, playful . . . in words and illustrations, Ingrid left behind a painful farewell in her journal for Caitlin. Now Caitlin is left alone, by loss and by choice, struggling to find renewed hope in the wake of her best friend’s suicide. With the help of family and newfound friends, Caitlin will encounter first love, broaden her horizons, and start to realize that true friendship didn’t die with Ingrid. And the journal which once seemed only to chronicle Ingrid’s descent into depression, becomes the tool by which Caitlin once again reaches out to all those who loved Ingrid—and Caitlin herself

Review:

It’s hard to put into words how I felt about Hold Still. It was filled with so much emotion, great characters, and a unique plot line. Caitlin was a terrific main character and her narration was heart wrenching and extremely personal. From the first page I was drawn into the book. I’ve never read many books about suicide before so I was wondering how LaCour would present it. She did an excellent job and I really felt for Caitlin and all she was dealing with. I really liked the inside look at Ingrid’s feelings through her diary. It’s hard to imagine that the person you’ve always felt closest to could really have this whole other life going on. Caitlin’s reaction to all the secrets Ingrid revealed in her diary would be the same as mine, a mix of surprise, horror, and sadness that my best friend couldn’t open up to me enough for me to help her. Caitlin’s depression in the beginning of the book really changed by the end, and I loved the characters that help her recover.

Taylor, Dylan, Maddy… they were all fantastic and very well developed. They were all the people Caitlin needed to make the leap over her depression. Dylan was the perfect friend for Caitlin, not a replacement for Ingrid, but a new friend, someone else Caitlin could open up to. Caitlin had a lot of different conflicts going on and, other than her friends, building and photography really helped her. I learned a lot about photography that I never knew and made me realize how true that statement is that “a picture is worth a thousand words”. In addition to taking pictures, Caitlin also worked on building a tree house. She bonded better with her family and could release a lot of her anger while she was up in the sky hammering in nails and bolts. Hold Still was realistic, heart breaking, and overall very well written. It’s a book I will recommend again and again, and Caitlin is a character that will remain in my mind. A fantastic read, I’m looking forward to more by Nina LaCour.

Overall: 4.5 out of 5 stars