Review: The Five Stages of Andrew Brawley by Shaun Hutchinson

The Five Stages of Andrew Brawley by Shaun Hutchinson

Published January 20th 2015

“Andrew Brawley was supposed to die that night. His parents did, and so did his sister, but he survived.

Now he lives in the hospital. He serves food in the cafeteria, he hangs out with the nurses, and he sleeps in a forgotten supply closet. Drew blends in to near invisibility, hiding from his past, his guilt, and those who are trying to find him.

Then one night Rusty is wheeled into the ER, burned on half his body by hateful classmates. His agony calls out to Drew like a beacon, pulling them both together through all their pain and grief. In Rusty, Drew sees hope, happiness, and a future for both of them. A future outside the hospital, and away from their pasts.

But Drew knows that life is never that simple. Death roams the hospital, searching for Drew, and now Rusty. Drew lost his family, but he refuses to lose Rusty, too, so he’s determined to make things right. He’s determined to bargain, and to settle his debts once and for all.

But Death is not easily placated, and Drew’s life will have to get worse before there is any chance for things to get better.”

I’d never heard of this book prior to seeing it on Pulse It and the cover was kinda cool so I picked it up right away. I was pleasantly surprised with this book but at the same time, I was a little disappointed.

The overall premise for The Five Stages of Andrew Brawley is pretty sad. There was a few lines that I smiled at but for the most part, this book just made me sad. I felt so bad for the characters and even sadder knowing that some things that happened in the book, happen in real life.

This whole book was just a big ocean of emotion. The Five Stages of Andrew Brawley is a book that will weigh on my mind for the next few weeks and I’ll always remember it as being really sad. I can’t say I enjoyed reading this book because I didn’t. This book is a really great book but it’s not something I enjoyed reading. It was just so sad.

I had a hard time connecting with the characters because I couldn’t relate to a lot of the thing they’re were going though. It made it hard to really feel for the characters deep down. I felt bad for them but at the same time, it was kind of a disconnected sad.

There was something about the writing that felt a little impersonal, for lack of better word. It felt distant and a little cut off from the characters. This could be some way of the author trying to get some deeper meaning or something to the reader but I just didn’t get it.

Overall, this is an amazing book. It’s so emotional and something that the Young Adult genre needs right now. The Five Stages of Andrew Brawley has added to the YA genre and has made a difference. Maybe this isn’t the most enjoyable book but it’s incredibly important. I’d like to see more people taking about this book because it’s beautiful. It may not be one of my personal favorites but I highly recommend checking it out. I’m definitely going to be getting a print copy of this book in the future.