"As You Wish" was an intriguing YA fiction about a small town in Nevada with a big secret- when their residents turn 18, they get to make a wish in a special cave which will come true. What we learn later in the book is that the wishes are restricted (can't impact the world outside of the town, e.g. you can wish to be the prettiest person in the town, but not the prettiest person in the world). Anyway, Eldon is about to turn 18, and he has no idea what to wish for. The town worships the wishing cave, and it seems that everyone's lives are in decline after making their wish at 18. It doesn't give him a lot of confidence in the value of wishing.
"Wishing either gets you everything or nothing. And it's a gamble everyone is willing to take." Unable to decide what to do, Eldon begins to interview people in the town about their wishes. We get to read these as little stories in between chapters about the present- what led them to their wish, their wish as it was made, and the aftermath of their wish. I found it all very intriguing and interesting to follow. There was a pretty good diversity in wishes, but notably, there was a lot of regret around what people had wished for. It was really thought-provoking. I am not sure I would have made a better wish at 18 years of age- it's a tough time to make the biggest decision of your life. The book raises a lot of questions about morality and priorities.
"You're looking for someone else to save you, when really, we can only ever save ourselves." There are some really big, thought-provoking statements in this book. The whole cast of characters was pretty interesting- even the adults which we encounter throughout the book (the principal in particular- but there are a lot of great ones). The characters were extremely well-developed and seemed very three-dimensional. Eldon's BFF, Merrill, was probably one of my favorites- he has a million conspiracy theories and they are all endlessly entertaining. Eldon is not always the best person, but he experiences a lot of growth throughout the book, and it all ties in seamlessly with his quest for a wish.
Overall, I found this to be a much deeper book than I was expecting, and it really gave me a lot to think about. It raises some big questions about the meaning of life and the decisions we get to make along the way. I would be interested to see more of the aftermath/ a sequel of this book as I found all the stories of the many townspeople really intriguing. This is a really great (but not light) read, and I highly recommend it!
"Wishing either gets you everything or nothing. And it's a gamble everyone is willing to take." Unable to decide what to do, Eldon begins to interview people in the town about their wishes. We get to read these as little stories in between chapters about the present- what led them to their wish, their wish as it was made, and the aftermath of their wish. I found it all very intriguing and interesting to follow. There was a pretty good diversity in wishes, but notably, there was a lot of regret around what people had wished for. It was really thought-provoking. I am not sure I would have made a better wish at 18 years of age- it's a tough time to make the biggest decision of your life. The book raises a lot of questions about morality and priorities.
"You're looking for someone else to save you, when really, we can only ever save ourselves." There are some really big, thought-provoking statements in this book. The whole cast of characters was pretty interesting- even the adults which we encounter throughout the book (the principal in particular- but there are a lot of great ones). The characters were extremely well-developed and seemed very three-dimensional. Eldon's BFF, Merrill, was probably one of my favorites- he has a million conspiracy theories and they are all endlessly entertaining. Eldon is not always the best person, but he experiences a lot of growth throughout the book, and it all ties in seamlessly with his quest for a wish.
Overall, I found this to be a much deeper book than I was expecting, and it really gave me a lot to think about. It raises some big questions about the meaning of life and the decisions we get to make along the way. I would be interested to see more of the aftermath/ a sequel of this book as I found all the stories of the many townspeople really intriguing. This is a really great (but not light) read, and I highly recommend it!