Lagi asyik-asyiknya liatin rak-rak buku di Gramedia PS ma adek, eh saya malah ketemu buku ini. But there's a good story squirreled away in the affectations, and it's a book many kids will quite enjoy. There are some problems with Ways to Live Forever, but it's probably because of Nicholls' tender and impressionable age. Admittedly, this was embarrassingly anxiety-inducing at first, but being with Sam as he slowly dies eases that nervousness, if only because here's a kid, albeit a fictional one, who's facing the grim reaper with a savage bravery, and I'm getting upset about death. Let's revisit that: A children's book caused me to think about my own death. So disarming are these facts that several caused me to put the book aside and seriously consider my own death. Throughout the books, she tosses off factoids about coffins, leukemia, and souls in a nearly insouciant manner.

Perhaps even more astonishing is how Nicholls handles death. That Sam never feels sorry for himself, that he fights with his mother, that he is unapologetically stubborn are all the more meaningful as life slips from his fingertips. This is the book's primary strength: in Sam, young readers will find a strong, likable boy who's been dealt a rotten hand.

Furthermore, his ruminations about death and dying are particularly child-like. Although he's prone to thoughts that are a little out of sync with a kid his age, he is unusually grounded.

Nicholls, for all her faults and reckless abandon, creates quite a lovely character in Sam. Because a Little Baby Jesus Christmas Miracle happens. Sam's handwriting, pictures, photos, and ticket stubs litter the book. This is equivalent to Nicholls clicking her stopwatch and calling out, 'Go!'ĥ. Sam makes a list of things to do before he dies. Sam's best friend is Felix, a sage in a wheelchair, also battling a terminal illness. In other words, she's the stock little sister that populates every YA novel too lazy to create a real character.ģ. Sam has an adorable sister, Ella, who is feisty and irrepressible. Her first novel, Ways to Live Forever, was written at the tender age of 23 and has all the trappings of youthful shmaltz:ġ. Sally Nicholls could quite possibly be Nicholas Sparks for the middle school set. Page Two-Oh-Four: *uncontrollable sobbing* Page One-Seventy-Two Thoughts: No! This is manipulative! This book wants me to cry! I will not! Page One-Thirty-One Thoughts: Why am I scared of dying all of a sudden? Also, this is pretty heady stuff for young readers. Page Seventy-Six Thoughts: Actually, this might turn out to be cheesy. Page One Thoughts: This stupid book is going to make me cry. But for Ways to Live Forever, one really must follow my thought process.

Sally nicholls ways to live forever