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Only Child
We went to school that Tuesday like normal.
Not all of us came home . . .
Huddled in a cloakroom with his classmates and teacher, six-year-old Zach can hear shots ringing through the corridors of his school. A gunman has entered the building and, in a matter of minutes, will have taken nineteen lives.
In the aftermath of the shooting, the close knit community and its families are devastated. Everyone deals with the tragedy differently. Zach's father absents himself; his mother pursues a quest for justice -- while Zach retreats into his super-secret hideout and loses himself in a world of books and drawing.
Ultimately though, it is Zach who will show the adults in his life the way forward -- as, sometimes, only a child can.
Not all of us came home . . .
Huddled in a cloakroom with his classmates and teacher, six-year-old Zach can hear shots ringing through the corridors of his school. A gunman has entered the building and, in a matter of minutes, will have taken nineteen lives.
In the aftermath of the shooting, the close knit community and its families are devastated. Everyone deals with the tragedy differently. Zach's father absents himself; his mother pursues a quest for justice -- while Zach retreats into his super-secret hideout and loses himself in a world of books and drawing.
Ultimately though, it is Zach who will show the adults in his life the way forward -- as, sometimes, only a child can.
352 pages, Hardcover
First published February 6, 2018
About the author
Rhiannon Navin
2 books296 followersRHIANNON NAVIN grew up in Bremen, Germany, in a family of book-crazy women. Her career in advertising brought her to New York City, where she worked for several large agencies before becoming a full-time mother and writer. She now lives outside of New York City with her husband, three children, and two cats.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 2,385 reviews
February 16, 2018
Audiobook....read by a very talented child with a growing resume by the name of Kivlighan de Montebello.
Kivlighan has appeared in 11 films, 1 theater production, 2 television shows, and 5 voice overs. I was so impressed by the presence of this child’s voice - ( honestly one of the very best VOICE OVERS I’ve listened to in my entire history of audio-listening.
I HAD TO LOOK THIS KID UP. WHO WAS HE? Pretty amazing - that’s for sure!!!
His talent ( for what his job was to do) impressed me - - different- but - WOW- like Sherman Alexis did with his memoir “You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me”.
This child -Kivlighan-is a PRO voice narrator!!!!
Granted .....I’ll admit - there were definitely times that I felt this 6 year child was speaking much more precocious than any six-year-old child I knew.
When I first started listening to this - Paul and I were both piddling around in the yard.
It was dangerous listening to “Only Child” with Paul. My husband was a bad boy influence!
He started laughing. Then I started laughing. This ‘child’ said things that were funny but also things that we both felt no kid would ever say….NOT THE WAY HE SAID THEM.....but.....he was so darn adorable—I didn’t care.
I wasn’t far enough into the book yet...to ever believe I’d find him having me cry real tears a HALF DOZEN TIMES....
I just LOVED HIS VOICE. Plus .....as the story continued ( by now Paul was long gone)- this story became more and more REAL.
NOW IS A GOOD TIME TO SAY:
IT IS DEEPLY SAD - DEVASTATING- of what happened in Parkland, Florida yesterday. A senseless violent mass shootings— sooo horrific - I can’t even wrap my mind around what the families are going through. Yet ...I am so so sorry for the suffering the families are going through.
I can’t believe I was actually listening to ‘this’ story when Paul walked in the door and said ... “have you heard the news in Florida?” I hadn’t ..
Fiction/ non fiction..
What to make of all this?
Six year old Zack is one incredible phenomenal character. Memorable!!!
The start of this book begins with the horrific shooting at McKinley elementary. The writing has our full attention instantly....
LIFE CHANGED INSTANTLY.....
And.....
Zack’s older brother, Andy, was killed....
The rest of this book - the next 85 percent of the storytelling - takes us inside the Taylor family. We meet Jim, Melissa, ( Zack’s parents), extended family members, the gun man’s family, neighbors, and others in the community. The largest focus is on what’s happening in the Taylor family from Zack’s perspective.
DURING THE LATE HOURS FROM ZACK’S BED:
“Pop pop pop..... screaming sounds were coming out of my mouth but then I heard daddy’s voice, “Zack, it’s ok”..... but I still made screaming sounds and I couldn’t help it because the gun man was back again. How did he get in our house....and now he’s going to shoot us and we will be dead like Andy”.
The nightmares began ‘instantly’, too, as soon as the Zack was back home.
When Zack’s grandmother, Mimi, went grocery shopping, and brought bananas back to the house along with other items… Zack was furious inside. He knew that the only person in the family that like bananas was Andy. Zack got so mad inside that he threw those bananas away.
This was just one example of how his ‘acting out’ was seen as a bother.
Zack became an annoyance. He was in the way of the ‘adults’ being busy grieving.
His mother was under extreme stress — for weeks - months - everything was “not now Zack”. Her ‘acting out’ hurt everyone around her - besides herself.
When my own father died - I was 4 years old - I remember those months of neglect.. “stay away from mom”. “Mom is too sad to have time for me”.
Months of neglect turned into years.
It was pretty painful for me reading how often Zack was left alone. It was obvious to see that his mommy thought it was easier if he was just out of the way. I didn’t have those words ( the obvious ) when I was 4 years old. But it ‘was’ the painful truth. I wasn’t included in daddy’s loss. What does a 4 or 6 year old know? LISTEN TO ZACK......HE KNOWS MORE THAN THE ADULTS IN HIS HOUSE!!!
I remember wanting to speak to my mother one day about missing my daddy. She said... “well his death was a hell of a lot harder on me than it was on you”. I believed her. Now I know she was wrong. Loss is not a competition.
For awhile Zack noticed that his mom he was busy cleaning invisible messes. His Daddy stayed in his office in the house all the time.
Zack created a hide-a-way spot for himself in his brothers room inside the closet. It became his secret hiding place where he like to read books to his brother and talk to him. The books he was reading from used to be his brothers ...they were adventure stories -He had all 53 books to the Magic Treehouse books. These books turn out to be wonderful wise inspirations about healing ��� but I’m jumping ahead of myself.
Zack’s parents were dealing with their grief differently and separately - each dealing with the loss of their son in their own way. NOT Effectively!
Zack was left to figure out how to grieve alone too. His books were giving him great supportive ideas. They stimulated his own creative imagination and gave him strength. I was moved!
However .....when a house is on fire - ( not literally) - people IN THE HOUSE IN MAJOR CHAOS —it’s not easy for ANY book to inspire miracles.
Soon fighting between Zack’s parents elevated like RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS!
My God .....it got so darn ugly - (frightening to me) - so you might be able to image what parents screaming at each other are doing to a 6 year child.
There was a scene at the funeral that I related with. Zack and I shared an embarrassing- shameful feeling.
Zack was 6.
I was 4.
Zack had an ‘accident’ in his pants. I did too.
As children - we were all dressed up and we were supposed to be big boys and girls - mommy was going to have a very hard day. Well, pooping in your pants at the family funeral- when already petrified to even LOOK INSIDE THE BOX- and pooping in your pants is a hard day for a child too.
The author did excellent job
getting across the damage that is done by parents to children —even if justifiably so- when they are neglected.
AND........how parents fighting hurts kids -
AND that loss is deeply felt by kids too. ..
Zack painted a ‘feelings’ painting with colors to express how he was feeling
Red - was for embarrassing
Black - was for scared
Gray/green - was for mad and angry
Yellow was for happy
An invisible hole what’s for loneliness.
White was for sympathy.. (he came up with sympathy with his dad).
Zack was a very special child. His family experience an unbearable loss. His parents had other problems bursting at the seams ‘before’ the tragic school rampage where 19 families at Zack’s school directly were affected.
The reality is .....the families suffering from the events in Florida yesterday - were also dealing with challenges ‘before’ too.
Author Rhiannon Navin opens our eyes to see things we have not thought about -
Yes —- this book makes you cry —-but it does other things too.
As uncomfortable as it was to witness the parents fighting —AGAIN AMAZING VOCAL NARRATOR—it was valuable to witness it from a CHILD’S Ears.
Maybe it’s a cop out when adults say, “Oh, children are resilient”.
Perhaps, but are we sure? Do adults justify children’s resiliency for their own benefits?
I loved this book - I loved Zack’s dad. I loved Zack’s teacher.
AND.....I especially loved ZACK TAYLOR!!!
Kivlighan has appeared in 11 films, 1 theater production, 2 television shows, and 5 voice overs. I was so impressed by the presence of this child’s voice - ( honestly one of the very best VOICE OVERS I’ve listened to in my entire history of audio-listening.
I HAD TO LOOK THIS KID UP. WHO WAS HE? Pretty amazing - that’s for sure!!!
His talent ( for what his job was to do) impressed me - - different- but - WOW- like Sherman Alexis did with his memoir “You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me”.
This child -Kivlighan-is a PRO voice narrator!!!!
Granted .....I’ll admit - there were definitely times that I felt this 6 year child was speaking much more precocious than any six-year-old child I knew.
When I first started listening to this - Paul and I were both piddling around in the yard.
It was dangerous listening to “Only Child” with Paul. My husband was a bad boy influence!
He started laughing. Then I started laughing. This ‘child’ said things that were funny but also things that we both felt no kid would ever say….NOT THE WAY HE SAID THEM.....but.....he was so darn adorable—I didn’t care.
I wasn’t far enough into the book yet...to ever believe I’d find him having me cry real tears a HALF DOZEN TIMES....
I just LOVED HIS VOICE. Plus .....as the story continued ( by now Paul was long gone)- this story became more and more REAL.
NOW IS A GOOD TIME TO SAY:
IT IS DEEPLY SAD - DEVASTATING- of what happened in Parkland, Florida yesterday. A senseless violent mass shootings— sooo horrific - I can’t even wrap my mind around what the families are going through. Yet ...I am so so sorry for the suffering the families are going through.
I can’t believe I was actually listening to ‘this’ story when Paul walked in the door and said ... “have you heard the news in Florida?” I hadn’t ..
Fiction/ non fiction..
What to make of all this?
Six year old Zack is one incredible phenomenal character. Memorable!!!
The start of this book begins with the horrific shooting at McKinley elementary. The writing has our full attention instantly....
LIFE CHANGED INSTANTLY.....
And.....
Zack’s older brother, Andy, was killed....
The rest of this book - the next 85 percent of the storytelling - takes us inside the Taylor family. We meet Jim, Melissa, ( Zack’s parents), extended family members, the gun man’s family, neighbors, and others in the community. The largest focus is on what’s happening in the Taylor family from Zack’s perspective.
DURING THE LATE HOURS FROM ZACK’S BED:
“Pop pop pop..... screaming sounds were coming out of my mouth but then I heard daddy’s voice, “Zack, it’s ok”..... but I still made screaming sounds and I couldn’t help it because the gun man was back again. How did he get in our house....and now he’s going to shoot us and we will be dead like Andy”.
The nightmares began ‘instantly’, too, as soon as the Zack was back home.
When Zack’s grandmother, Mimi, went grocery shopping, and brought bananas back to the house along with other items… Zack was furious inside. He knew that the only person in the family that like bananas was Andy. Zack got so mad inside that he threw those bananas away.
This was just one example of how his ‘acting out’ was seen as a bother.
Zack became an annoyance. He was in the way of the ‘adults’ being busy grieving.
His mother was under extreme stress — for weeks - months - everything was “not now Zack”. Her ‘acting out’ hurt everyone around her - besides herself.
When my own father died - I was 4 years old - I remember those months of neglect.. “stay away from mom”. “Mom is too sad to have time for me”.
Months of neglect turned into years.
It was pretty painful for me reading how often Zack was left alone. It was obvious to see that his mommy thought it was easier if he was just out of the way. I didn’t have those words ( the obvious ) when I was 4 years old. But it ‘was’ the painful truth. I wasn’t included in daddy’s loss. What does a 4 or 6 year old know? LISTEN TO ZACK......HE KNOWS MORE THAN THE ADULTS IN HIS HOUSE!!!
I remember wanting to speak to my mother one day about missing my daddy. She said... “well his death was a hell of a lot harder on me than it was on you”. I believed her. Now I know she was wrong. Loss is not a competition.
For awhile Zack noticed that his mom he was busy cleaning invisible messes. His Daddy stayed in his office in the house all the time.
Zack created a hide-a-way spot for himself in his brothers room inside the closet. It became his secret hiding place where he like to read books to his brother and talk to him. The books he was reading from used to be his brothers ...they were adventure stories -He had all 53 books to the Magic Treehouse books. These books turn out to be wonderful wise inspirations about healing ��� but I’m jumping ahead of myself.
Zack’s parents were dealing with their grief differently and separately - each dealing with the loss of their son in their own way. NOT Effectively!
Zack was left to figure out how to grieve alone too. His books were giving him great supportive ideas. They stimulated his own creative imagination and gave him strength. I was moved!
However .....when a house is on fire - ( not literally) - people IN THE HOUSE IN MAJOR CHAOS —it’s not easy for ANY book to inspire miracles.
Soon fighting between Zack’s parents elevated like RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS!
My God .....it got so darn ugly - (frightening to me) - so you might be able to image what parents screaming at each other are doing to a 6 year child.
There was a scene at the funeral that I related with. Zack and I shared an embarrassing- shameful feeling.
Zack was 6.
I was 4.
Zack had an ‘accident’ in his pants. I did too.
As children - we were all dressed up and we were supposed to be big boys and girls - mommy was going to have a very hard day. Well, pooping in your pants at the family funeral- when already petrified to even LOOK INSIDE THE BOX- and pooping in your pants is a hard day for a child too.
The author did excellent job
getting across the damage that is done by parents to children —even if justifiably so- when they are neglected.
AND........how parents fighting hurts kids -
AND that loss is deeply felt by kids too. ..
Zack painted a ‘feelings’ painting with colors to express how he was feeling
Red - was for embarrassing
Black - was for scared
Gray/green - was for mad and angry
Yellow was for happy
An invisible hole what’s for loneliness.
White was for sympathy.. (he came up with sympathy with his dad).
Zack was a very special child. His family experience an unbearable loss. His parents had other problems bursting at the seams ‘before’ the tragic school rampage where 19 families at Zack’s school directly were affected.
The reality is .....the families suffering from the events in Florida yesterday - were also dealing with challenges ‘before’ too.
Author Rhiannon Navin opens our eyes to see things we have not thought about -
Yes —- this book makes you cry —-but it does other things too.
As uncomfortable as it was to witness the parents fighting —AGAIN AMAZING VOCAL NARRATOR—it was valuable to witness it from a CHILD’S Ears.
Maybe it’s a cop out when adults say, “Oh, children are resilient”.
Perhaps, but are we sure? Do adults justify children’s resiliency for their own benefits?
I loved this book - I loved Zack’s dad. I loved Zack’s teacher.
AND.....I especially loved ZACK TAYLOR!!!
June 8, 2018
My reviews can also be seen at: https://deesradreadsandreviews.wordpr...
“Zach’s story starts on the worst day of his life, and takes him on a journey no-one could have expected”
The book opens with six-year-old Zach, his teacher, and his classmates hiding in a closet. A gunman has entered the school and they can hear shots being fired. It was extremely intense; I could feel the anxiety of the characters. Zach tells us how they had just come in from recess and they were about to start math lessons when the noisy pop sounds started. And then Zach heard them yelling “lockdown, lockdown, lockdown! “ They had practice lockdown drills before and Zach thought it had been fun. “Lockdown meant don’t go outside like for the fire alarm, but stay inside and out of sight."
But Zach knows this isn’t a practice drill. In the closet, he remains as still as he can. Even though the closet is small and stuffy. He can still hear the pop noises and screams coming from outside the closet.
“Yesterday we did all the things we do every Tuesday because we didn’t know that today a gunman was going to come.”
Then it’s over. But in the chaos of the aftermath, so much is happening. Normal rules don’t apply. Zach is still scared. In the days that follow, for Zach, everything looks the same but nothing feels the same. While the adults around him try to cope, he finds his own way of coping. He has a “secret hideout”, a place he can read and lock up negative thoughts in his “brain safe”. But he still has nightmares where he hears the “pop noises” over and over.
Zack sees and hears so much of what is going on around him. The adults are all trying to cope in their own ways, ways that Zach doesn’t understand. The adults don’t see that Zach is there listening to everything they say and do.
I couldn’t help but fall in love with Zach. He was a wonderful narrator. His feelings were so honest and at times he seemed older than his years. In many ways, this child had better coping skills than the adults around him. And amidst all of the confusion and uncertainty, this six-year-old boy helps starts the long process of healing.
In my opinion, this was a well-written novel with many excellent characters. Though I’ve read other books about school shootings, this is the first I’ve read that is told from the perspective of a young child. I think it made it even more emotional. It’s incredibly sad how timely this novel is.
An insightful and honest read about life, death, loss, anger, guilt, forgiveness, and hope.
“Only Child” was an incredibly powerful read that will likely stay with me for a very long time. I’m certainly looking forward to reading more from Rhiannon Navin.
I'd like to thank Mantle Publishing for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review.
“Zach’s story starts on the worst day of his life, and takes him on a journey no-one could have expected”
The book opens with six-year-old Zach, his teacher, and his classmates hiding in a closet. A gunman has entered the school and they can hear shots being fired. It was extremely intense; I could feel the anxiety of the characters. Zach tells us how they had just come in from recess and they were about to start math lessons when the noisy pop sounds started. And then Zach heard them yelling “lockdown, lockdown, lockdown! “ They had practice lockdown drills before and Zach thought it had been fun. “Lockdown meant don’t go outside like for the fire alarm, but stay inside and out of sight."
But Zach knows this isn’t a practice drill. In the closet, he remains as still as he can. Even though the closet is small and stuffy. He can still hear the pop noises and screams coming from outside the closet.
“Yesterday we did all the things we do every Tuesday because we didn’t know that today a gunman was going to come.”
Then it’s over. But in the chaos of the aftermath, so much is happening. Normal rules don’t apply. Zach is still scared. In the days that follow, for Zach, everything looks the same but nothing feels the same. While the adults around him try to cope, he finds his own way of coping. He has a “secret hideout”, a place he can read and lock up negative thoughts in his “brain safe”. But he still has nightmares where he hears the “pop noises” over and over.
Zack sees and hears so much of what is going on around him. The adults are all trying to cope in their own ways, ways that Zach doesn’t understand. The adults don’t see that Zach is there listening to everything they say and do.
I couldn’t help but fall in love with Zach. He was a wonderful narrator. His feelings were so honest and at times he seemed older than his years. In many ways, this child had better coping skills than the adults around him. And amidst all of the confusion and uncertainty, this six-year-old boy helps starts the long process of healing.
In my opinion, this was a well-written novel with many excellent characters. Though I’ve read other books about school shootings, this is the first I’ve read that is told from the perspective of a young child. I think it made it even more emotional. It’s incredibly sad how timely this novel is.
An insightful and honest read about life, death, loss, anger, guilt, forgiveness, and hope.
“Only Child” was an incredibly powerful read that will likely stay with me for a very long time. I’m certainly looking forward to reading more from Rhiannon Navin.
I'd like to thank Mantle Publishing for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review.
April 2, 2018
I finished this book about the effects on one family in the aftermath of a school shooting just days before the horrific school shooting in Florida. What a powerful and remarkable novel! The author’s decision to write from the point of view of a first grader who survived provides a brilliant and welcome perspective; one I’ve not seen in other “school shooting” fiction. I’ll step onto my soapbox now and say that instead of once again just offering “thoughts and prayers,” every politician should read this book and enact meaningful gun reform laws NOW! And for readers, while the book can be disturbing to read, it is one not to be missed.
February 19, 2018
Once again fiction takes us into reality, a reality that I wish wasn't true. A school shooting, taken out of our recent headlines, a six year old boy named Zach survives, his ten year old brother does not. Our narrator is Zach, his voice as he takes us into not only his feelings but those of his parents. Heartbreaking for sure.
Am somewhat of an outlier with my rating. Seems like because of the subject, the young narrator that this book should garner a higher rating but..I had trouble believing a six year old could reason his way through do much that Zach does, from finding a way to express his feelings in colors, to uniting people who are so emotionally injured. I have five boys, none like this at six, just couldn't go there. Plus, though having the narrator do young does bring an emotional quotient to this read, that an older child or adult wouldn't, an innocence that is appealing, it also made it repetitive at times, and just over done at others. How long can one be in the mind of a child? The message of the book is a good one, reminding us that those left behind also need care, but I just didn't like it as much as I thought I would. It is being compared to the novel Room, on the basis of the child narrator, but I wasn't a fan of that book either.
Many readers have embraced this book fully. I wish I could, as I said it does impart a perfect message, but in an imperfect, in my view, way.
ARC from Edelweiss.
Am somewhat of an outlier with my rating. Seems like because of the subject, the young narrator that this book should garner a higher rating but..I had trouble believing a six year old could reason his way through do much that Zach does, from finding a way to express his feelings in colors, to uniting people who are so emotionally injured. I have five boys, none like this at six, just couldn't go there. Plus, though having the narrator do young does bring an emotional quotient to this read, that an older child or adult wouldn't, an innocence that is appealing, it also made it repetitive at times, and just over done at others. How long can one be in the mind of a child? The message of the book is a good one, reminding us that those left behind also need care, but I just didn't like it as much as I thought I would. It is being compared to the novel Room, on the basis of the child narrator, but I wasn't a fan of that book either.
Many readers have embraced this book fully. I wish I could, as I said it does impart a perfect message, but in an imperfect, in my view, way.
ARC from Edelweiss.
March 10, 2018
4 timely and emotional stars to Only Child ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
Review of the audio! 🎧
Only Child was released eight days before the school shooting at Stoneman Douglas High School. I wasn’t sure if I was ready for this one, but it came highly recommended by my friend, Elyse, especially the audio version, which is narrated by a child, a child prodigy, really, speaking in first person.
Zach becomes an “only child” when his sibling, his brother Andy, was killed during a school shooting. Zach’s-eye view is portrayed as he relays conversations between his parents, the shifting dynamics of his family, the interactions with the shooter’s family, and so on all from Zach’s perspective. I thought this was a risky choice because Zach is only 6 years old, and there were perceptions and things he said that weren’t quite developmentally appropriate for even the most precocious six-year-old. Also, I think I’ve gotten more used to multiple narrator stories, and I only heard from Zach. Those things said, the risks are worth it because I think profound messages are conveyed by hearing this young voice describe how his family was affected by the tragedy of a school shooting and the loss of a sibling.
Another interesting choice the author made was having Adam be “troubled,” not that unlike the shooter. I enjoyed how she explored this dynamic within Zach and Adam’s family members, and likewise, in their interactions with the shooter’s family.
In my opinion, Only Child is not a sad book. It’s hopeful for there is hope in healing. It’s not a tragic book, rather it’s an important book because we have to keep the dialogue open in order to keep our children and communities safe.
Review of the audio! 🎧
Only Child was released eight days before the school shooting at Stoneman Douglas High School. I wasn’t sure if I was ready for this one, but it came highly recommended by my friend, Elyse, especially the audio version, which is narrated by a child, a child prodigy, really, speaking in first person.
Zach becomes an “only child” when his sibling, his brother Andy, was killed during a school shooting. Zach’s-eye view is portrayed as he relays conversations between his parents, the shifting dynamics of his family, the interactions with the shooter’s family, and so on all from Zach’s perspective. I thought this was a risky choice because Zach is only 6 years old, and there were perceptions and things he said that weren’t quite developmentally appropriate for even the most precocious six-year-old. Also, I think I’ve gotten more used to multiple narrator stories, and I only heard from Zach. Those things said, the risks are worth it because I think profound messages are conveyed by hearing this young voice describe how his family was affected by the tragedy of a school shooting and the loss of a sibling.
Another interesting choice the author made was having Adam be “troubled,” not that unlike the shooter. I enjoyed how she explored this dynamic within Zach and Adam’s family members, and likewise, in their interactions with the shooter’s family.
In my opinion, Only Child is not a sad book. It’s hopeful for there is hope in healing. It’s not a tragic book, rather it’s an important book because we have to keep the dialogue open in order to keep our children and communities safe.
February 28, 2018
This is heartbreaking material, so timely and so relevant given the continuing horrors of school shootings. An amazing read that will stay in my mind for a long time to come. There are many reviews on this book, but I would like to recommend my good friend Elyse's review which had me bypass so many other books that I pushed this one up the pile.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Cannot recommend this highly enough!
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Cannot recommend this highly enough!
May 24, 2021
Lonely is when you want to be with someone instead, and it’s a sad feeling. Alone doesn’t have to be bad, because you can feel good when you’re alone. We decided we both like that sometimes, to be alone. My room used to be for alone, not lonely.
I know I have not read that many books, but I had never read something so stressful, heartbreaking, life-changing, and heartwarming until I finished reading Only Child.
Only Child follows the life of Zach Taylor and his family as they grieve, mourn, and cope. Zach is a six-year-old in first grade and a school shooting survivor (the description on GR says he is seven, but on chapter 31, Zach's dad says he is six). Eighteen individuals died that day, and his brother Andy, who was three years older than him, was, unfortunately, a victim. While dealing with grief and sorrow, his mother focuses on getting justice for her son and the rest of the parents who lost a loved one by holding the shooter's parents accountable and responsible. As Zach begins to feel lonely throughout time, he finds comfort in his secret hideout, which ends up being his brother's closet. He passes the time by reading books, like The Magic Tree House series, or painting his feelings with a specific color representing an emotion. As he begins to see his life unfold since the events at his school, Zack begins to find his voice in his healing journey and becomes determined to bring back the love he used to feel from his loved ones to get through some of their darkest moments together.
I don’t know what a soul looks like. Mommy said it’s all your feelings and thoughts and memories, and I thought maybe it looks like a bird or something with wings, like the wing on the charm Miss Russell gave me. I wondered if your soul still has your face when it goes up to heaven, because otherwise how do the people who love you who are already in heaven know it’s your soul and find you so you’re not lonely and you can be together?
As mentioned before, I had never read something so stressful, heartbreaking, life-changing, and heartwarming until I finished reading Only Child. It was 4 AM, and while I was not planning on reading so late, I couldn't leave it until I finished. Rhiannon Navin's storytelling was not one for my weak heart, and imagining the narrative she wrote was an easy but painful journey.
While I've never experienced a shooting happening near me (and I hope I never do, and I hope no one ever does, but when you live in the U.S., it isn't easy to remain hopeful), it wasn't something I could avoid imagining. Reading through the perspective of Zach, who is 6-years-old, made it worse. Generally, stories told through children's perspectives aren't usually a perspective I'd want to read, especially from an adult read, but Zach's had my full attention since the first page. Navin portrayed a realistic portrayal of him squeezed in a closet with his classmates while his teacher did her best to comfort the students and protect them. While the story begins with a school shooting, the story isn't only about that.
Today started out like a normal day, but now it was all changed. And Andy wasn’t going to get in his bed anymore, so it would stay made nice.
Zach is a sympathetic character. I cried for him when he wanted to tell everyone the truth about his brother, or when he forced himself to hold in his tears during his crucial moments. I felt the confusion he felt about his feelings for his brother's death. I felt his sadness when he came to think it would have been better if he died instead of his brother. I felt his loneliness when he decided to turn his brother's closet into a hideout and would later start speaking to his brother, an entire made-up illusion. I felt his happiness when he found comfort alone. I felt his optimism when he tried to use the joy Jack and Annie would look for in The Magic Tree House books and turn them into part of his life.
Zach became traumatized, and no one noticed it until it was almost too late. This is such a large problem in so many families, especially families who struggle to accept mental health and how mental illness can affect their children. From a personal perspective, I say this, but I come from a family that is still struggling to understand and accept my mental health. While I'm not traumatized in the ways Zach is, there is still so much I go through that I cannot explain to both of my parents and other sides of my family. Sometimes I feel bad for my cousins because they have parents who are worse than my parents in accepting mental illnesses.
“Heaven is for the souls of good people. The souls of bad people go somewhere else.”
The story is more about emotions and feelings. It is about healing and forgiving. It is about feeling like you’re in debt to someone because you feel as if you’re the only one to blame for something you didn’t cause. While Zach is only a 1st grader, he had a strong voice, and all I wanted was for him to yell through a mega phone so he could let out everything he was feeling. I think a child like Zach is one that would break my heart if I ever met a child like him. He was weak but tried his best to remain strong. He did his best to be there for his parents, even when it felt as if they weren’t there for him. He felt like it was his fault, and he thought it would have been better if he had died and not his brother. He felt so many different emotions and was unsure what was right and what was wrong. Although he was only a child, he was strong and intelligent, but he was also suffering on his own. His vulnerability just broke me.
Adding on to that, I think the author did an amazing job of portraying Zach's character. Since the story is told through his perspective, the story can be read like a middle-grade novel, but it is clear as to why it is not. With that being said, Zach's journey felt realistic and upsetting, all while acting and showing us his child personality. I appreciated the author's approach to this, and I was glad Zach's attitude was reflected in a modern way, not one where he was too mature or too young to understand.
What stressed me out the most was Zach's parents, especially his mother. I thought I could understand them completely, but I struggled. While I'm not a parent, it wasn't easy to put myself in Zach's mother's shoes. At first, I understood her—the loss of a child is never something no parent can get over—and while I understood how mad and upset his mom was, I couldn't understand why she tried taking up the spotlight, even though she denied it. She wanted to portray herself as the victim only while ignoring the fact that many others, including her 6-year-old son, were affected and unwell. Zach's dad, on the other hand, was a lot more understanding, in my opinion. He also tried to hide his emotions to make himself be seen as strong, but deep down, he was lonely, isolated, and was just as upset as everyone else. What I appreciated the most was how loyal he stayed to try to make Zach feel better, and his positivity and strength towards him is the sole reason I continued having hope for the entire family.
He went straight from sleeping to dead, so I didn’t think he even noticed that he died. Sometimes at bedtime I think about that and I get scared to go to sleep, because what if I die when I’m sleeping and don’t even notice?
The reason I say this book was life-changing was because of how it made me reflect on the people around me. Never in my life have I ever cried at a fictional work from start to finish, and I can only thank Rhiannon Navin for doing an excellent job of breaking my heart while also stitching it back together.
Reading about how Zach and his family dealt with the loss of Andy makes me think of my brother and my parents and how, before I know it, they can be gone. Since young, I grew up with this mentality of many beliefs and myths that I slowly starting unpacking as false. Life isn't forever, and we truly do live only once. We're part of a spectrum that can just disappear out of nowhere. Before we know it, there's no time to reflect on ourselves and our loved ones. We could have been having one of the best or worst days of our life before the moment that took everything together.
Not only that, but Zach's memories of his brother also had me recall my good and bad memories with my brother, and how on multiple occasions, we would act like Zach and Andy. Andy was the older brother, the kind that would threaten Zach by telling him to leave him alone at school and to pretend they aren't brothers. My brother is two years older than me, and growing up, I knew he felt embarrassed to call me his sister. I think about how much our relationship has developed, progressed, and grown throughout the years. We went from friends to enemies to friends again, and it is a journey I would go through again if it meant keeping him alive.
Only Child is, shortly, about finding comfort and happiness in the people you love the most. It is about realizing that for them to be strong, you need to be strong. It is about courage, vulnerability, sympathy, and finding reason in life. It is about forgiveness and healing. It is about forgiving the people who you thought took away a piece of your own life.
“Battle scars. Every man has to have some. Shows you’re not a wimp.”
November 14, 2018
A very strong book striving to give a very private view into a child's perseption of the world. Of couse, I wouldn't really say that the writer got it too good, how children think, there are many different things that stick out. Still, the emotions and the family are very well written and well accentuated.
The small details worked great: the angel charm, the mother's psychological developments, synestetics, the books as a way to cope with the tragedy. Lovely.
*BEWARE OF SPOILERS*
Medicating an ODD? Gosh, these people have been killing their son long before the shooter in a society-approved, medical way.
As for the shooter kid, Charlie's son, what he did to his family is beyond horrific. I believe that his family was one of the most affected. I cannot imagine just how paindul it is not only to lose one's kid but also to know he killed a bunch of people on his way out. Awful situation.
Q:
“Secret hideout,” I whispered into the closet. “This is going to be my top secret hideout.” I started to like sitting in the quiet and listening to my breathing: in—air up my nose—out through my mouth with a puff, in, out, slow now, because I wasn’t really that scared anymore. (c)
Q:
“Grandma?”
“Yes, darling?”
“Is Andy still there, at the school?” ...
“Andy is not at the school anymore,” she said, and she made the coughing sound a few more times. “Andy is up in heaven now with God. God is going to take care of him for us now.”
“But how did he get up to heaven from the school? Did he get like zoomed up there?” (c)
Q:
When I let myself think about yesterday, the scared feeling came back, so I tried not to let those thoughts float around in my brain anymore. (c)
Q:
I started to think about how it was going to be without Andy—it was going to be better at home. There wouldn’t be any more fighting, and I was going to be the only child in the family, so Mommy and Daddy could do a lot more stuff with just me. Like they could both come to my piano recitals and they could both stay for the whole time. That never happened before—because of Andy. (c)
Q:
I don’t know what a soul looks like. Mommy said it’s all your feelings and thoughts and memories, and I thought maybe it looks like a bird or something with wings, like the wing on the charm Miss Russell gave me. I wondered if your soul still has your face when it goes up to heaven, because otherwise how do the people who love you who are already in heaven know it’s your soul and find you so you’re not lonely and you can be together? (c)
Q:
... I couldn’t get the bad thoughts to go into the brain safe. (c)
Q:
“Did the gunman’s soul fly up to heaven, too? Will it try to hurt Andy’s soul there?”
“Oh goodness, Zach, no! Heaven is for the souls of good people. The souls of bad people go somewhere else.”
Q:
MOMMY GOT CHANGED into a different person at the hospital. She came home after three sleeps and she looked different and acted different (c)
Q:
My room used to be for alone, not lonely. (c)
Q:
“Did you go up to heaven, or where did you go?” my brain said to Andy’s face. Andy’s face disappeared. “Anyway, I hope you did.” (c)
Q:
I NEVER KNEW YOU COULD FEEL MORE than one feeling inside of you at the same time.
Especially feelings that are opposites. I know you can feel excited, but when you do what made you excited, the excited feeling goes away and you feel happy because it was fun. Or sad because it’s over already, like right after everyone leaves from your birthday party. But more than one feeling at the same time, right next to each other or on top of each other and all mixed up inside you? I never knew that could happen. (c)
Q:
OK, so far:
Red—Embarrassed
Gray—Sad
Black—Scared
Green—Mad/Angry
And what color is for lonely? I thought that lonely had to be like a see-through color, so no color at all, because when you’re lonely it’s like you’re invisible from other people, but not invisible in a good way like a superhero, but in a sad way. But the piece of paper is white, so how do you make a see-through color on a white paper? Then I had an idea for that. I got out my scissors and cut out the middle of the paper, so there was like a picture frame around a rectangle of see-through nothingness in the middle. Lonely—see-through. (c)
Q:
I thought I was also feeling happy. I felt happy that I didn’t die from the gunman. (c)
Q:
I could lie down on Andy’s sleeping bag and look at the feelings. Now they were separated and that made it easier to think about them. (c)
Q:
All the people outside our house did the things they always do, and I wondered if they even knew that inside our house everything was changed.
The only thing from the outside that matched the inside of our house was the rain. It rained and rained, and it was like it was never stopping, like Mommy cried and cried and she was never stopping. (c)
Q:
I started to pretend like I was in a bad dream and that I was watching myself walk around and do stuff in the dream, because this was not how I wanted real life to be like. (c)
Q:
After breakfast today I looked at the outside world through my window and I wished I could be on that side, where real life was still there. At first I just saw the rain and I watched the circles the raindrops were making in the puddles on the sidewalk. (c)
Q:
I DIDN’T KNOW WHY IT’S CALLED a wake if it’s for someone who isn’t going to be awake ever again. (c)
Q:
I thought it was kind of funny I was going to wear Andy’s wake suit at Andy’s wake. Not funny like you want to laugh, but strange funny. (c)
Q:
Mommy was holding my hand. She squeezed it tighter and tighter, and it got too tight, but I didn’t try to pull my hand away. Mommy needed to squeeze it, I thought. (c)
Q:
... I didn’t move from my spot by the door, because I started to get to know this spot and I didn’t want to get to know anything else in the room. (c)
Q:
I thought it was the most beautiful tree I ever saw, and I was happy that it was going to be right there, next to Andy’s grave. (c)
Q:
I thought about how Daddy was wrong when he said Charlie didn’t get hurt, because he did. His son died, too, so his feelings were hurting about that, like ours because Andy died, except it was worse for Charlie because his son killed his angels, and that was worse than just dead. (c)
Q:
So maybe then if we could have tried to notice those things around us, everyone would have felt happier, and then we would have had no fighting. (c)
Q:
“The first secret of happiness that Jack and Annie learn from the man in Japan, and it’s to make Merlin feel better. It’s that you have to pay attention to the small things around you in nature.”
“OK, Zach, sweetie? I don’t know what you’re talking about right now, but I have a lot of things on my mind. Can we talk about this later?” (c)
Q:
MOMMY AND DADDY made the world’s longest thunderstorm. ...
When Mommy and Daddy were in the same room, right away I could feel the storm clouds starting to grow, like they were getting all dark and heavy at the ceiling. I know a thunderstorm happens when warm air goes up and cold air comes down and they crash together and make big clouds, and the clouds make rain and lightning and thunder. Well, in our house it was like Mommy was the cold air and Daddy the warm air, and when they crashed together, they made a storm of words and yelling and crying.
I got pretty good at noticing when it was about to happen, and I tried to get out of there just in time. Upstairs, in the hideout, shut the door! (c)
Q:
“You’re not having very good sympathy,” I said to Mommy. (c)
Q:
I stood by the coffee table and looked at my feet, because I didn’t want to look at Daddy’s new self. (c)
The small details worked great: the angel charm, the mother's psychological developments, synestetics, the books as a way to cope with the tragedy. Lovely.
*BEWARE OF SPOILERS*
Medicating an ODD? Gosh, these people have been killing their son long before the shooter in a society-approved, medical way.
As for the shooter kid, Charlie's son, what he did to his family is beyond horrific. I believe that his family was one of the most affected. I cannot imagine just how paindul it is not only to lose one's kid but also to know he killed a bunch of people on his way out. Awful situation.
Q:
“Secret hideout,” I whispered into the closet. “This is going to be my top secret hideout.” I started to like sitting in the quiet and listening to my breathing: in—air up my nose—out through my mouth with a puff, in, out, slow now, because I wasn’t really that scared anymore. (c)
Q:
“Grandma?”
“Yes, darling?”
“Is Andy still there, at the school?” ...
“Andy is not at the school anymore,” she said, and she made the coughing sound a few more times. “Andy is up in heaven now with God. God is going to take care of him for us now.”
“But how did he get up to heaven from the school? Did he get like zoomed up there?” (c)
Q:
When I let myself think about yesterday, the scared feeling came back, so I tried not to let those thoughts float around in my brain anymore. (c)
Q:
I started to think about how it was going to be without Andy—it was going to be better at home. There wouldn’t be any more fighting, and I was going to be the only child in the family, so Mommy and Daddy could do a lot more stuff with just me. Like they could both come to my piano recitals and they could both stay for the whole time. That never happened before—because of Andy. (c)
Q:
I don’t know what a soul looks like. Mommy said it’s all your feelings and thoughts and memories, and I thought maybe it looks like a bird or something with wings, like the wing on the charm Miss Russell gave me. I wondered if your soul still has your face when it goes up to heaven, because otherwise how do the people who love you who are already in heaven know it’s your soul and find you so you’re not lonely and you can be together? (c)
Q:
... I couldn’t get the bad thoughts to go into the brain safe. (c)
Q:
“Did the gunman’s soul fly up to heaven, too? Will it try to hurt Andy’s soul there?”
“Oh goodness, Zach, no! Heaven is for the souls of good people. The souls of bad people go somewhere else.”
Q:
MOMMY GOT CHANGED into a different person at the hospital. She came home after three sleeps and she looked different and acted different (c)
Q:
My room used to be for alone, not lonely. (c)
Q:
“Did you go up to heaven, or where did you go?” my brain said to Andy’s face. Andy’s face disappeared. “Anyway, I hope you did.” (c)
Q:
I NEVER KNEW YOU COULD FEEL MORE than one feeling inside of you at the same time.
Especially feelings that are opposites. I know you can feel excited, but when you do what made you excited, the excited feeling goes away and you feel happy because it was fun. Or sad because it’s over already, like right after everyone leaves from your birthday party. But more than one feeling at the same time, right next to each other or on top of each other and all mixed up inside you? I never knew that could happen. (c)
Q:
OK, so far:
Red—Embarrassed
Gray—Sad
Black—Scared
Green—Mad/Angry
And what color is for lonely? I thought that lonely had to be like a see-through color, so no color at all, because when you’re lonely it’s like you’re invisible from other people, but not invisible in a good way like a superhero, but in a sad way. But the piece of paper is white, so how do you make a see-through color on a white paper? Then I had an idea for that. I got out my scissors and cut out the middle of the paper, so there was like a picture frame around a rectangle of see-through nothingness in the middle. Lonely—see-through. (c)
Q:
I thought I was also feeling happy. I felt happy that I didn’t die from the gunman. (c)
Q:
I could lie down on Andy’s sleeping bag and look at the feelings. Now they were separated and that made it easier to think about them. (c)
Q:
All the people outside our house did the things they always do, and I wondered if they even knew that inside our house everything was changed.
The only thing from the outside that matched the inside of our house was the rain. It rained and rained, and it was like it was never stopping, like Mommy cried and cried and she was never stopping. (c)
Q:
I started to pretend like I was in a bad dream and that I was watching myself walk around and do stuff in the dream, because this was not how I wanted real life to be like. (c)
Q:
After breakfast today I looked at the outside world through my window and I wished I could be on that side, where real life was still there. At first I just saw the rain and I watched the circles the raindrops were making in the puddles on the sidewalk. (c)
Q:
I DIDN’T KNOW WHY IT’S CALLED a wake if it’s for someone who isn’t going to be awake ever again. (c)
Q:
I thought it was kind of funny I was going to wear Andy’s wake suit at Andy’s wake. Not funny like you want to laugh, but strange funny. (c)
Q:
Mommy was holding my hand. She squeezed it tighter and tighter, and it got too tight, but I didn’t try to pull my hand away. Mommy needed to squeeze it, I thought. (c)
Q:
... I didn’t move from my spot by the door, because I started to get to know this spot and I didn’t want to get to know anything else in the room. (c)
Q:
I thought it was the most beautiful tree I ever saw, and I was happy that it was going to be right there, next to Andy’s grave. (c)
Q:
I thought about how Daddy was wrong when he said Charlie didn’t get hurt, because he did. His son died, too, so his feelings were hurting about that, like ours because Andy died, except it was worse for Charlie because his son killed his angels, and that was worse than just dead. (c)
Q:
So maybe then if we could have tried to notice those things around us, everyone would have felt happier, and then we would have had no fighting. (c)
Q:
“The first secret of happiness that Jack and Annie learn from the man in Japan, and it’s to make Merlin feel better. It’s that you have to pay attention to the small things around you in nature.”
“OK, Zach, sweetie? I don’t know what you’re talking about right now, but I have a lot of things on my mind. Can we talk about this later?” (c)
Q:
MOMMY AND DADDY made the world’s longest thunderstorm. ...
When Mommy and Daddy were in the same room, right away I could feel the storm clouds starting to grow, like they were getting all dark and heavy at the ceiling. I know a thunderstorm happens when warm air goes up and cold air comes down and they crash together and make big clouds, and the clouds make rain and lightning and thunder. Well, in our house it was like Mommy was the cold air and Daddy the warm air, and when they crashed together, they made a storm of words and yelling and crying.
I got pretty good at noticing when it was about to happen, and I tried to get out of there just in time. Upstairs, in the hideout, shut the door! (c)
Q:
“You’re not having very good sympathy,” I said to Mommy. (c)
Q:
I stood by the coffee table and looked at my feet, because I didn’t want to look at Daddy’s new self. (c)
August 4, 2018
5 STARS...I'd give it 10 if i could
I. Am. Emotionally. Destroyed. I started this book and finished it within 3 hours and I couldn't stop reading it! It was so much more than what I was expecting and for being a debut novel this was incredible. I read this for my book club and I'm so glad we chose to read it.
The opening scene in this book will hit you hard. Imagine: An elementary school and kids are shuffled into a closet. The teacher has to lock the door and tell them to continually quiet down. All the kids can hear are "Pop. Pop. Pop." Some scream, some get sick and some are in total shock about what's happening. They've done lockdown drills before but nothing quite compares to having to do the real thing.
A knock on the door and it's the police, they usher the kids out and into a safe place - the church. Zach, the 6 year old that this book is narrated by, is trying to take it all in as he passes people on the floor. Dead. Covered in Blood. He just wants his Mom & Dad. Eventually his mom gets through to the church and gets him. His Dad shows up and they start to look for Zach's brother, Andy.
The story goes on to take us through the grieving process of a school shooting, how to deal with the shooters family and how mental illness can effect even the smallest in our community - our children. We watch Melissa, Zach's mom, turn into someone completely different, we watch the family start to tear apart and we watch Zach start to blame himself and take on the burden of trying to fix everything that's gone wrong. He reads and comes across four secrets to happiness and he tries to use them to heal everyone. Can you imagine, a six year old trying to fix this truly horrific disaster? What a miraculous child.
There's so much more to this story than what I just wrote but I can't because I don't want to spoil anything. I cried no less than 5 times while reading this book. As a disclaimer: I don't have kids. but this devastated me and I can only imagine if you have kids this book would effect you in an even deeper way. I could literally feel the emotion coming off the page through each and every character. Clearly, this is an emotional book so brace yourself before you read it.
This book is told in the narrative voice of Zach, the six year old boy, and how he views all of the decisions and conversations that his family and people around him are going through. I think sometimes we forget how smart children are and how their perspective of things can sometimes be the best. They can help us heal and they tend to see the best in situations. Does Zach go through some serious emotions? Of course. He just lost his brother and his parents are fighting. However, he is still able to see perspective when it comes to the situation and tries to bring everyone together to "make it good again."
If or when I ever have kids I hope to God that I have a kid like Zach. He is the kind of kid you want to raise and the kind of kid you would want when a tragedy occurs in your life.
As I was reading this I also kept thinking about the kids at Sandy Hook and their families. I can't imagine what that day was like and I now have a tiny bit of insight and emotional empathy towards the parents who had to go through this devastation. Unfortunately, this book is so relevant in our society today and I hope that people read it and take action. There are things we can do and we need to keep fighting.
Which brings me to my last topic that was important in this novel: Mental Health. Again, most of the school shootings happening in today's day in age are done by individuals who are getting guns in their hands who may not be mentally fit to have them. We need to keep talking about this and continue to protect our children. Remember: School should always be a safe place for your kids. Always. So in remembrance of those beautiful Sandy Hook soles we lost, I will continue to keep talking about this and fighting to keep our schools, children, etc. safe.
Everyone should pick up this novel. I think it's powerful, amazing, fantastic, beautiful, emotional, relatable and strong. Hats off to the author for her debut novel. I will be a fan for life.
I think sometimes you can make other people happy by letting them take care of you.
I. Am. Emotionally. Destroyed. I started this book and finished it within 3 hours and I couldn't stop reading it! It was so much more than what I was expecting and for being a debut novel this was incredible. I read this for my book club and I'm so glad we chose to read it.
The opening scene in this book will hit you hard. Imagine: An elementary school and kids are shuffled into a closet. The teacher has to lock the door and tell them to continually quiet down. All the kids can hear are "Pop. Pop. Pop." Some scream, some get sick and some are in total shock about what's happening. They've done lockdown drills before but nothing quite compares to having to do the real thing.
A knock on the door and it's the police, they usher the kids out and into a safe place - the church. Zach, the 6 year old that this book is narrated by, is trying to take it all in as he passes people on the floor. Dead. Covered in Blood. He just wants his Mom & Dad. Eventually his mom gets through to the church and gets him. His Dad shows up and they start to look for Zach's brother, Andy.
The story goes on to take us through the grieving process of a school shooting, how to deal with the shooters family and how mental illness can effect even the smallest in our community - our children. We watch Melissa, Zach's mom, turn into someone completely different, we watch the family start to tear apart and we watch Zach start to blame himself and take on the burden of trying to fix everything that's gone wrong. He reads and comes across four secrets to happiness and he tries to use them to heal everyone. Can you imagine, a six year old trying to fix this truly horrific disaster? What a miraculous child.
There's so much more to this story than what I just wrote but I can't because I don't want to spoil anything. I cried no less than 5 times while reading this book. As a disclaimer: I don't have kids. but this devastated me and I can only imagine if you have kids this book would effect you in an even deeper way. I could literally feel the emotion coming off the page through each and every character. Clearly, this is an emotional book so brace yourself before you read it.
This book is told in the narrative voice of Zach, the six year old boy, and how he views all of the decisions and conversations that his family and people around him are going through. I think sometimes we forget how smart children are and how their perspective of things can sometimes be the best. They can help us heal and they tend to see the best in situations. Does Zach go through some serious emotions? Of course. He just lost his brother and his parents are fighting. However, he is still able to see perspective when it comes to the situation and tries to bring everyone together to "make it good again."
If or when I ever have kids I hope to God that I have a kid like Zach. He is the kind of kid you want to raise and the kind of kid you would want when a tragedy occurs in your life.
As I was reading this I also kept thinking about the kids at Sandy Hook and their families. I can't imagine what that day was like and I now have a tiny bit of insight and emotional empathy towards the parents who had to go through this devastation. Unfortunately, this book is so relevant in our society today and I hope that people read it and take action. There are things we can do and we need to keep fighting.
Which brings me to my last topic that was important in this novel: Mental Health. Again, most of the school shootings happening in today's day in age are done by individuals who are getting guns in their hands who may not be mentally fit to have them. We need to keep talking about this and continue to protect our children. Remember: School should always be a safe place for your kids. Always. So in remembrance of those beautiful Sandy Hook soles we lost, I will continue to keep talking about this and fighting to keep our schools, children, etc. safe.
Everyone should pick up this novel. I think it's powerful, amazing, fantastic, beautiful, emotional, relatable and strong. Hats off to the author for her debut novel. I will be a fan for life.
February 15, 2018
A remarkable debut novel ripped from the much to common school shooting headlines but brilliantly told through a different perspective.
SUMMARY
In ONLY CHILD six-year-old Zack Taylor tells us a story. It’s the story of how he survives a deadly shooting at his school by hiding in his classroom closet with his teacher. But one of the 19 casualties was his 10-year-old brother, Andy. Zach’s mother is utterly shocked and devastated. She is on a desperate quest for justice against the shooter’s parents and has no time for Zach. Zach tells us about how he felt invisible. And how he made a secret hideout and surrounded himself with a picture of his brother, his favorite books and some special drawings he made of his feelings. He is on his own to figure out how to cope. So he starts reading his Magic Tree House books and thinks he has found an answer. Armed with the hope and willfulness of a child, Zach attempts to help his parents find love and forgiveness again.
REVIEW
I finished this heartbreaking book yesterday morning; but by yesterday afternoon the subject of this book became our reality, once again. Another school shooting in another city. This one in Parkland, Florida at a high school where 17 children were murdered, and shattered families are left in tatters. When will it end?
ONLY CHILD left me in tears. It’s heartbreaking because it is so real and so senseless. But it’s also a beautiful story of a child’s resilience and a child’s desire to make things right. With Zack as the narrator, you will be instantly engrossed by his telling of the pops he heard while hiding in the closest. You will marvel at the way he described his feelings with colors, and you will quickly fall in love with this six-year-old’s huge heart.
RHIANNON NAVIN’s debut novel is stellar. The characters are as real as a book can get and the writing is impeccable. While the subject matter may be difficult to read, it’s fascinating and perhaps even valuable to understand it from the mind of a child, who is also a survivor and a sibling of one that is lost forever. I listened to the Audible version of this book, which made it all the more real. The narrator, Kivlighan de Montebello was endearing.
SUMMARY
In ONLY CHILD six-year-old Zack Taylor tells us a story. It’s the story of how he survives a deadly shooting at his school by hiding in his classroom closet with his teacher. But one of the 19 casualties was his 10-year-old brother, Andy. Zach’s mother is utterly shocked and devastated. She is on a desperate quest for justice against the shooter’s parents and has no time for Zach. Zach tells us about how he felt invisible. And how he made a secret hideout and surrounded himself with a picture of his brother, his favorite books and some special drawings he made of his feelings. He is on his own to figure out how to cope. So he starts reading his Magic Tree House books and thinks he has found an answer. Armed with the hope and willfulness of a child, Zach attempts to help his parents find love and forgiveness again.
REVIEW
I finished this heartbreaking book yesterday morning; but by yesterday afternoon the subject of this book became our reality, once again. Another school shooting in another city. This one in Parkland, Florida at a high school where 17 children were murdered, and shattered families are left in tatters. When will it end?
ONLY CHILD left me in tears. It’s heartbreaking because it is so real and so senseless. But it’s also a beautiful story of a child’s resilience and a child’s desire to make things right. With Zack as the narrator, you will be instantly engrossed by his telling of the pops he heard while hiding in the closest. You will marvel at the way he described his feelings with colors, and you will quickly fall in love with this six-year-old’s huge heart.
RHIANNON NAVIN’s debut novel is stellar. The characters are as real as a book can get and the writing is impeccable. While the subject matter may be difficult to read, it’s fascinating and perhaps even valuable to understand it from the mind of a child, who is also a survivor and a sibling of one that is lost forever. I listened to the Audible version of this book, which made it all the more real. The narrator, Kivlighan de Montebello was endearing.
July 7, 2018
Only Child is a book I was hesitant to read, because it is told from the perspective of a young child, however, any concerns I had on this front were for nothing. The book has something of "Room" by Emma Donoghue, which is also narrated by a child, and both offer an interesting perspective in looking at a situation that, when described by an adult, might be just too awful to contemplate. In Only Child, a family is forced to deal with the aftermath of a school shooting and the way Zach, the young boy who lived through it, described everything that follows is both fascinating and so, so sad. The author captures this young boys voice very capably and I never felt it veered into a territory of thought that would have been unrealistic for a six year old. I don't want to give away too much of the plot, but it is a relevant and deeply moving story by a talented new author. I can't believe this is a debut! Recommended!
Find more reviews and bookish fun at http://www.princessandpen.com
Find more reviews and bookish fun at http://www.princessandpen.com
April 25, 2018
Let me just start by saying my only regret is not listening to the audiobook version of this because I’ve seen so many people rave about how incredible the young boy who narrates does. I read a physical copy and still was floored with emotion while reading. This is not an exaggeration. I was fully holding back tears and in need of tissues the entire time I read this book. And it hit me quite early on. Of course, right from the start we are in the closet with Zach and his class while a shooter is in their elementary school.
In this day and age, it's impossible to not be aware of the mass shootings that occur. It's scary to live in a world where we have to be afraid to go to the movies, a concert, or fuck..just go to school and get an education. I'm sure this is something we can all agree on. One of the most recent school shootings was at a high school in my home county & my mom works at the elementary school nearby. My heart sank. It's heartbreaking no matter if you have a connection to the school or place in which the shooting occurred or not.
Regardless, this book broke my heart. It's not something I expected to happen. But damn..I found myself recommending it to anyone I could on the plane I was on. That's how you know you've read a good book - when you can't help but to try and put it in everyone and anyone's hands you can.
This story is narrated entirely by the six year old Zach Taylor. He hid in the closet with his first grade class while a shooter takes nineteen lives. I don't want to ruin anything at all. The only other plot details you should know is Zach's mom is hellbent on holding the shooter's parents responsible for his actions. Besides this, just read the book. You should be prepared to feel emotional.
It is really something to see these events through the mind of a child as he tries to understand what happened and why. Zach tries to make sense of his mom's quest for justice. In fact, it may have been more powerful having this book told from a child's perspective. Such an important read!
In this day and age, it's impossible to not be aware of the mass shootings that occur. It's scary to live in a world where we have to be afraid to go to the movies, a concert, or fuck..just go to school and get an education. I'm sure this is something we can all agree on. One of the most recent school shootings was at a high school in my home county & my mom works at the elementary school nearby. My heart sank. It's heartbreaking no matter if you have a connection to the school or place in which the shooting occurred or not.
Regardless, this book broke my heart. It's not something I expected to happen. But damn..I found myself recommending it to anyone I could on the plane I was on. That's how you know you've read a good book - when you can't help but to try and put it in everyone and anyone's hands you can.
This story is narrated entirely by the six year old Zach Taylor. He hid in the closet with his first grade class while a shooter takes nineteen lives. I don't want to ruin anything at all. The only other plot details you should know is Zach's mom is hellbent on holding the shooter's parents responsible for his actions. Besides this, just read the book. You should be prepared to feel emotional.
It is really something to see these events through the mind of a child as he tries to understand what happened and why. Zach tries to make sense of his mom's quest for justice. In fact, it may have been more powerful having this book told from a child's perspective. Such an important read!
February 23, 2018
This is a heartbreaking tale about the aftermath of a school shooting. Zak Taylor is six years old when a gunman comes into his school and kills nineteen people. Zak and his classmates have survived because their teacher locks the classroom door and they all hide in a cupboard out of sight. Later they find out that Zak's ten year old brother is one of the victims. This story is told from six year old Zak's point of view. Emotions run high in this book as the families try to come to terms with their loss. I loved this book despite the subject matter, it was very emotional and well written. This story will stay with me for a long time. I won this book in a Goodreads Giveaway and I would like to thank the author and the publisher for my copy.
March 3, 2018
A tenderhearted debut novel about healing and family narrated by an unforgettable six year old boy who reminds us that sometimes the littlest bodies holds the biggest hearts and the quiet pics speak the loudest.
This book is about the effect on a family in the aftermath of a school shooting. We get told the story of events fron a first grader called Zach. Zach survives but his 10 year old brother does not. This story is heartbreaking but it's also beautifully written. A poignant and heartbreaking read. Have plenty of tissues on standby. It's hard to believe that this is a debut novel. I do recommend this book.
I would like to thank NetGalley, Pan MacMillian and the author Rhiannon Navin for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.
This book is about the effect on a family in the aftermath of a school shooting. We get told the story of events fron a first grader called Zach. Zach survives but his 10 year old brother does not. This story is heartbreaking but it's also beautifully written. A poignant and heartbreaking read. Have plenty of tissues on standby. It's hard to believe that this is a debut novel. I do recommend this book.
I would like to thank NetGalley, Pan MacMillian and the author Rhiannon Navin for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.
February 17, 2021
A terrible thing has happened. A sick man has gotten into McKinley School. He killed a bunch of people with his gun. One of these is Andy Taylor. His younger brother, Zach, also in the school at the time of the shooting, has survived.
The entire story is told from the point of view of six year old Zach. He sees his parents arguing and drawing away from each other. He feels very lonely and neglected.
I don’t mind dysfunctional people, but when its parents of a small child, it is hard for me to take. The mother Melissa, seeking ‘justice’, seems to be in it more for revenge. Ugly. And the arguing between Melissa and Zach’s father Jim, is very ugly and violent too.
I thought the book very well written and the story flowed well. Unfortunately, though, it had negative triggers for me. Yesterday, I described the book to a friend, and she said she could not read it. Too upsetting.
I have to commend the author though, for making this story so realistic that it evoked in me the responses I experienced.
4 stars.
The entire story is told from the point of view of six year old Zach. He sees his parents arguing and drawing away from each other. He feels very lonely and neglected.
I don’t mind dysfunctional people, but when its parents of a small child, it is hard for me to take. The mother Melissa, seeking ‘justice’, seems to be in it more for revenge. Ugly. And the arguing between Melissa and Zach’s father Jim, is very ugly and violent too.
I thought the book very well written and the story flowed well. Unfortunately, though, it had negative triggers for me. Yesterday, I described the book to a friend, and she said she could not read it. Too upsetting.
I have to commend the author though, for making this story so realistic that it evoked in me the responses I experienced.
4 stars.
January 28, 2018
This novel deals with the aftermath of a school shooting from the point of view of young Zach Taylor. His teacher, Miss Russell, hides her class successfully while a shooter prowls the corridors of McKinley Elementary School, but, when Zach is reunited with his mother, Melissa, and dad, Jim, they find that his older brother, Andy, is nowhere to be found. Later, it is discovered that Andy was one of a number of children who were killed by the adult son of the school security guard, Charles Ranalez.
Andy was bright, excellent at sports and had ODD, or oppositional defiant disorder, which I had never heard of before. Basically, it meant he suffered from bad tempers, and rages, and you quickly get the impression that Zach was a little wary of him. So wary that, at first, he is even a little glad that Andy is gone. Nobody around to laugh at him, or call him names and his parents all to himself. Only, that isn’t to work out quite as he hoped. Unable to reconcile themselves with what has happened, Melissa and Jim pull apart in their reactions to the tragic, and terrible, events and loss of their son.
Jim retreats into work. Melissa is bent on revenge, even though she was the favourite of the kindly Charles Ranalez, when she attended the school. Zach is a small child, alone and afraid, who has to attempt to deal with his feelings, as his parents struggle with theirs. Allowing the viewpoint to be that of a young child helps us see the harsh reality behind the adult politeness. For example, when Jim speaks glowingly of Andy, Zach recalls the arguments that his behaviour caused. As the book continues, he sees the hypocrisy of the adults, begins to learn what Andy really meant to him and, unhappy with all the arguments and stress caused by his brother’s death, he does his best to make bridges between the adults around him.
This is a moving and impressive debut. . The author shows how Zach’s favourite books, The Magic Tree House series (favourites of my own children when younger) help him make sense of his feelings. You really feel for Zach, confused and ignored, while also understanding the behaviour of his parents Who really knows how they would behave in the face of such tragedy and who can judge anybody suffering such pain? Still, this novel shows that it is not just parents who suffer loss, but children too, and adults cannot ignore, or trivialise, their feelings. This would be an excellent book for a reading group, with much to discuss. I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, for review.
Andy was bright, excellent at sports and had ODD, or oppositional defiant disorder, which I had never heard of before. Basically, it meant he suffered from bad tempers, and rages, and you quickly get the impression that Zach was a little wary of him. So wary that, at first, he is even a little glad that Andy is gone. Nobody around to laugh at him, or call him names and his parents all to himself. Only, that isn’t to work out quite as he hoped. Unable to reconcile themselves with what has happened, Melissa and Jim pull apart in their reactions to the tragic, and terrible, events and loss of their son.
Jim retreats into work. Melissa is bent on revenge, even though she was the favourite of the kindly Charles Ranalez, when she attended the school. Zach is a small child, alone and afraid, who has to attempt to deal with his feelings, as his parents struggle with theirs. Allowing the viewpoint to be that of a young child helps us see the harsh reality behind the adult politeness. For example, when Jim speaks glowingly of Andy, Zach recalls the arguments that his behaviour caused. As the book continues, he sees the hypocrisy of the adults, begins to learn what Andy really meant to him and, unhappy with all the arguments and stress caused by his brother’s death, he does his best to make bridges between the adults around him.
This is a moving and impressive debut. . The author shows how Zach’s favourite books, The Magic Tree House series (favourites of my own children when younger) help him make sense of his feelings. You really feel for Zach, confused and ignored, while also understanding the behaviour of his parents Who really knows how they would behave in the face of such tragedy and who can judge anybody suffering such pain? Still, this novel shows that it is not just parents who suffer loss, but children too, and adults cannot ignore, or trivialise, their feelings. This would be an excellent book for a reading group, with much to discuss. I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, for review.
April 28, 2018
This book has all the feels. About 10 pages in I was a sobbing mess.
Zach, a sweet and innocent 6 year old is at school one day when a gunman comes in and starts shooting people. His teacher hides them and eventually the maniac is shot and killed. Zach and the others in his class are taken to a church where parents can take them home. When Zach’s mom shows up she can’t find his older brother, Andy.
The police notify the parents if their children are missing to go to the local hospital where the injured are. But Andy isn’t just injured he was killed by the shooter. To make matters worse the killer was the son of the school’s security guard.
After burying Andy, Zach’s mother begins to retaliate and take action against the family of the shooter to get justice for her boy but at the same time ignores her youngest who was also a victim of this crime. He lived through it and is now a victim to PTSD.
Zach begins painting to help him sort his feelings and starts reading Magic Tree House books in his secret hideout to his brother to help himself heal.
This author couldn’t have written a better novel. It sounded like an actual child was narrating it. I could picture this little boy in my mind the entire time. Fabulous debut novel. Stunningly sad but worth the read.
Zach, a sweet and innocent 6 year old is at school one day when a gunman comes in and starts shooting people. His teacher hides them and eventually the maniac is shot and killed. Zach and the others in his class are taken to a church where parents can take them home. When Zach’s mom shows up she can’t find his older brother, Andy.
The police notify the parents if their children are missing to go to the local hospital where the injured are. But Andy isn’t just injured he was killed by the shooter. To make matters worse the killer was the son of the school’s security guard.
After burying Andy, Zach’s mother begins to retaliate and take action against the family of the shooter to get justice for her boy but at the same time ignores her youngest who was also a victim of this crime. He lived through it and is now a victim to PTSD.
Zach begins painting to help him sort his feelings and starts reading Magic Tree House books in his secret hideout to his brother to help himself heal.
This author couldn’t have written a better novel. It sounded like an actual child was narrating it. I could picture this little boy in my mind the entire time. Fabulous debut novel. Stunningly sad but worth the read.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 26, 2018
I found Only Child a raw heartbreaking story, but so extremely well written that I couldn’t stop turning the pages. It brings it home to me all the real-life shooting in schools that we see on the news and in the papers. The Only Child is narrated by six-year old Zac. Miss Russell did what most teachers would do she hid all of the class from a crazy gun man shooting children at the school. Zac had lost his brother Andy in the shooting. To make this tragedy more heartbreaking it was someone that the small close-knit community was someone that they all knew who shot 19 dead at the school. Just like most parents Zach’s parents found the grieving hard to deal with. Jim, Zach’s dad has kept a dark secret of his own which Zach only finds out when he learns that another boy who Zach knew was shot and died too. I recommend Only Child even though this story is heartbreaking about a gun man shooting in a school as it will take you on a journey through a family in crisis and how they deal with It. I’m sorry but I can’t guarantee that you won’t cry, but very much worth reading.
May 9, 2018
“The thing I later remembered the most about the day the gunman came was my teacher Miss Russell’s breath.”
An endearing story about a 6yr old struggling with grief after a traumatic shooting in his school causes the loss of his brother.
Rhiannon Navin wrote an amazing first novel on experiencing grief and that dislocated feeling as only a child would feel, and as a parent struggling with loss.
This had me in tears - recommend with caution.
5 ☆
(I’ve had this book but with the subject matter I kept putting it off. I’m glad I finally read it, this is an amazing story.)
An endearing story about a 6yr old struggling with grief after a traumatic shooting in his school causes the loss of his brother.
Rhiannon Navin wrote an amazing first novel on experiencing grief and that dislocated feeling as only a child would feel, and as a parent struggling with loss.
This had me in tears - recommend with caution.
5 ☆
(I’ve had this book but with the subject matter I kept putting it off. I’m glad I finally read it, this is an amazing story.)
March 21, 2018
Review and Q & A with Rhiannon Navin...
First I would like to say I loved Only Child. Your writing pulled me in so I couldn’t put down the book until I finished; I think about the characters and how they dealt with tragedy and loss everyday, and I see the value of empathy now more than ever. I felt hesitant when I was ready to pick up my copy – we as a country are experiencing the aftermath of a school shooting once again and emotions are difficult to keep in check when thinking about the minute by minute experience of the kids during the occurrence, so I was not sure I was ready to put myself in the position to live through such a frightening, life changing event along with your young elementary school narrator, Zach. After I finished the last page I decided everyone in the country is ready to read this; in a way it is a guide for how to (and how not to) manage your emotions and understand each other’s feelings and take care of yourself and loved ones during difficult times.
What made you decide to write about a school shooting? Do you have any personal ties to a similar tragedy?
ANSWERS AND More on https://booknationbyjen.wordpress.com
First I would like to say I loved Only Child. Your writing pulled me in so I couldn’t put down the book until I finished; I think about the characters and how they dealt with tragedy and loss everyday, and I see the value of empathy now more than ever. I felt hesitant when I was ready to pick up my copy – we as a country are experiencing the aftermath of a school shooting once again and emotions are difficult to keep in check when thinking about the minute by minute experience of the kids during the occurrence, so I was not sure I was ready to put myself in the position to live through such a frightening, life changing event along with your young elementary school narrator, Zach. After I finished the last page I decided everyone in the country is ready to read this; in a way it is a guide for how to (and how not to) manage your emotions and understand each other’s feelings and take care of yourself and loved ones during difficult times.
What made you decide to write about a school shooting? Do you have any personal ties to a similar tragedy?
ANSWERS AND More on https://booknationbyjen.wordpress.com
March 14, 2018
So, I've always been oddly fascinated with school shootings, maybe because I was in middle school during Columbine and I was terrified of going to school every day after, that being a naturally curious person, I sought out books about this subject, whether fiction or non-fiction. Nineteen Minutes is probably my favorite book of all time, We Need to Talk About Kevin horrified me but I devoured every page, Finding Jake, you get where I'm going with this. When I heard there was a book coming out that would be about a school shooting in an elementary school and would be told from the perspective of a first grader who survives but loses his brother in the horror, I knew I had to read this but knew it would be a heart-wrenching challenge.
Navin does a fantastic job writing this unique perspective and observing the impact on a family after a terrible tragedy like this through the eyes of a six year old. I cried my eyes out over these pages but it was worth it to read this story.
Thank you to Knopf Publishing for providing an advance review copy. All opinions are my own.
Navin does a fantastic job writing this unique perspective and observing the impact on a family after a terrible tragedy like this through the eyes of a six year old. I cried my eyes out over these pages but it was worth it to read this story.
Thank you to Knopf Publishing for providing an advance review copy. All opinions are my own.
August 10, 2018
4.5- the only reason that it wasn't 5 stars was because I had some questions at the end that were not answered.
I read this book for my hometown book club. When reading the back I knew instantly that this would be a book that would break my heart, yet I'd still love it.
The book is about a school shooting that happens at an elementary school. The main character is a 1st grader and his 4th grade brother gets killed. This book is about their recovery and their struggles to grasp what happened and how they will potentially move forward in the future.
This book ripped my heart out. It was written beautifully and I love how it was told from a 6-year-olds perspective.
I read this book for my hometown book club. When reading the back I knew instantly that this would be a book that would break my heart, yet I'd still love it.
The book is about a school shooting that happens at an elementary school. The main character is a 1st grader and his 4th grade brother gets killed. This book is about their recovery and their struggles to grasp what happened and how they will potentially move forward in the future.
This book ripped my heart out. It was written beautifully and I love how it was told from a 6-year-olds perspective.
January 7, 2018
6-year-old Zach Taylor is hiding in the closet with his teacher and other classmates. They cringe in terror as they listen to the sounds of “pop”, “pop”, “pop” in the hallway of their school. A gunman is loose in the school and they have no idea which room he’ll enter next. After the police come, Zach goes to the hospital with his mother, where they learn that Zach’s 10-year-old brother Andy is one of the 19 victims of the shooting. In the days following Andy’s death, Zach’s mother holds the shooter’s parents responsible and goes on a crusade for justice. She becomes someone Zach doesn’t know. He finds refuge in Andy’s closet where Zach reads books to Andy and feels a connection to his lost brother. He tries to sort through his feelings on his own by drawing pictures of his feelings and giving each feeling a color.
This is a very sensitive, beautifully written book about a young boy and his family trying to find their way after the tragic loss of a brother and son. I thought the author did a wonderful job in finding the perfect pitch for this young boy’s voice. The character of Zach is very believable and his experiences and reactions are appropriate for his age. The way he struggles to work out his feelings on his own, as his parents deal with their own grief and aren’t always there for him, just broke my heart. His brother, Andy, suffered from oppositional defiant disorder and was often cruel to Zach. Zach wonders if things might be better without Andy but of course then he has much guilt about those feelings.
The books that Zach read to his brother Andy in the hopes that Andy might hear him in heaven were the Magic Treehouse series. I’ve read several of those books to my grandson and knew the stories that Zach was reading. That connection made it impossible for me to distance myself from the sadness of this book. It was just as though one of my little grandson’s friends was telling this story and made the book’s heartache even more potent.
Out of the mouths of children comes wisdom. Zach’s discovery of compassion and how healing must be done is truly wondrous to read and a lesson that the adults in this book desperately needed.
Highly recommended.
This book was given to me by the publisher in return for an honest review.
This is a very sensitive, beautifully written book about a young boy and his family trying to find their way after the tragic loss of a brother and son. I thought the author did a wonderful job in finding the perfect pitch for this young boy’s voice. The character of Zach is very believable and his experiences and reactions are appropriate for his age. The way he struggles to work out his feelings on his own, as his parents deal with their own grief and aren’t always there for him, just broke my heart. His brother, Andy, suffered from oppositional defiant disorder and was often cruel to Zach. Zach wonders if things might be better without Andy but of course then he has much guilt about those feelings.
The books that Zach read to his brother Andy in the hopes that Andy might hear him in heaven were the Magic Treehouse series. I’ve read several of those books to my grandson and knew the stories that Zach was reading. That connection made it impossible for me to distance myself from the sadness of this book. It was just as though one of my little grandson’s friends was telling this story and made the book’s heartache even more potent.
Out of the mouths of children comes wisdom. Zach’s discovery of compassion and how healing must be done is truly wondrous to read and a lesson that the adults in this book desperately needed.
Highly recommended.
This book was given to me by the publisher in return for an honest review.
February 27, 2018
The whole story is told through the eyes of Zach, a seven year old little guy and it begins on the day a gunman opens fire at his elementary school. I have three small kids, 9, 6 and 3 and my two oldest have participated in multiple lockdown drills. I remember when my oldest daughter came home from kindergarten talking about what to do if “a bad guy comes to my school mommy, we have to hide in the bathroom and stay super quiet.” That chilled me to my core but unfortunately that’s the world we live in. The world I’m raising my gorgeous kids in. It’s terrifying. I was a senior in high school back in 1999 when Columbine happened and I remember how scared and confused I was, how I couldn’t comprehend such a tragic event. All of that to say, I knew this would be a difficult book to read, I knew I would be emotional but I also knew it would be important and I’m extremely glad that I did read this because the author handled everything with grace and compassion.
Zach, what a special little boy he is, he has a piece of my heart. Seeing the entire story through a child’s eyes really brought a simplicity to things, kids are so pure and innocent. Children can often be pushed to the side when adults are dealing with grown up problems and that is what broke my heart the most. I wanted to scoop this little man up and take all of his worries away, that’s how realistic he seemed and his voice? Unbelievably accurate, I felt like I was listening to my daughter talk to me.
I could honestly discuss this book for hours, but I’ll finish up and say that I really feel like this is a vital read for everyone. It’s ripped from the current headlines, and it’s every single parents worst fear. Navin did an amazing job at handling the issues in a sensitive and realistic way, this is truly a special book.
Only Child in three words: Compelling, Moving and Timely.
Zach, what a special little boy he is, he has a piece of my heart. Seeing the entire story through a child’s eyes really brought a simplicity to things, kids are so pure and innocent. Children can often be pushed to the side when adults are dealing with grown up problems and that is what broke my heart the most. I wanted to scoop this little man up and take all of his worries away, that’s how realistic he seemed and his voice? Unbelievably accurate, I felt like I was listening to my daughter talk to me.
I could honestly discuss this book for hours, but I’ll finish up and say that I really feel like this is a vital read for everyone. It’s ripped from the current headlines, and it’s every single parents worst fear. Navin did an amazing job at handling the issues in a sensitive and realistic way, this is truly a special book.
Only Child in three words: Compelling, Moving and Timely.
March 3, 2018
Yesterday we did all the things we did every Tuesday, because we didn't know that today a gunman was going to come.
If you were a fan of Room and A man called Ove I think you will also enjoy Only Child. I've read many books about school shootings, but the opening scene in this book tore my heart to pieces. It must be very difficult to write an authentic sounding 6 year old, especially one going through such a traumatic time with so many events he does not understand. Rhiannon Navin does a stellar job of just that in this book. Zach always sees the world through a child's eyes, even when he is angry, scared or lonely. I felt for both parents, as everyone deals with loss in their own way, and none of us can predict how we will react.
I've read a few reviews saying that the author should have addressed gun control issues and that it was cowardly not do so. I think this is very unfair as the narrator is six years old, and it would be very unnatural for him to do so. This is not a political book but one about the devastating emotional effects of a school shooting. A quick, touching read.
The Story: The aftermath of a school shooting, told from the point of view of a first-grader who hid with his class in a closet while his 10-year-old brother and 18 others were massacred.
March 11, 2018
POP. POP. POP.
I had almost finished reading Only Child when the news broke of yet another senseless and horrific school shooting in the US. Reading a story about a school shooting whilst one was taking place in real life added an extra sadness and poignancy.
The story begins with 6 year old Zach Taylor hiding in a cupboard along with his teacher and classmates during a school lockdown. There is a gunman walking the corridors, shooting children and teachers. In describing the fear and terror that Zach feels in heartrenching detail, the reader is left in no doubt of the trauma that will ensue.
As the reader soon discovers, Zach survived the shooting but his 10 year old brother Andy was not so fortunate. He was one of the 19 victims and the story focuses on his parent’s and Zach’s trauma in the aftermath of the tragedy.
Only Child is told through Zach’s voice and it is fair to say he stole a piece of my heart. His young brain was trying to process events without really knowing how to. From his initial feelings of relief that Andy wasn’t there to be to mean to him anymore and then to the realisation that his brother was never coming back – Zach felt the full gauntlet of emotions.
His parents were so focused on their own grief that Zach all but got left behind. They weren’t being deliberately unkind, but each was broken. They were trying, and failing, to find a way to cope. For Zach’s mother this meant from initially being in a numb and drugged state to ultimately seeking retribution and public condemnation on the shooter’s family. His father tried to support both his wife and Zach but eventually found solace in his work and began to spend more time away from the family. There were times when I actively disliked the mother for her apparent disregard of her young son’s feelings; I wanted to shake her and tell her “you still have a son that needs you”.
Only Child is a stunning and powerful debut that my review can’t possibly do justice to. A family, and community, torn to shreds at the hands of another. Family relationships are put under severe strain when trying to come to terms with losing a child in this way.
In my opinion, the author perfectly articulated Zach’s emotions and his distress and bewilderment at events. For all his simplistic way of describing things, he seemed wise beyond his years and actually put some of the adults to shame with their behaviour.
Only Child is an emotional and often heartbreaking read but because of Zach it is also an uplifting one too. I thought it was wonderful and it deserves to be a massive success for the author.
I had almost finished reading Only Child when the news broke of yet another senseless and horrific school shooting in the US. Reading a story about a school shooting whilst one was taking place in real life added an extra sadness and poignancy.
The story begins with 6 year old Zach Taylor hiding in a cupboard along with his teacher and classmates during a school lockdown. There is a gunman walking the corridors, shooting children and teachers. In describing the fear and terror that Zach feels in heartrenching detail, the reader is left in no doubt of the trauma that will ensue.
As the reader soon discovers, Zach survived the shooting but his 10 year old brother Andy was not so fortunate. He was one of the 19 victims and the story focuses on his parent’s and Zach’s trauma in the aftermath of the tragedy.
Only Child is told through Zach’s voice and it is fair to say he stole a piece of my heart. His young brain was trying to process events without really knowing how to. From his initial feelings of relief that Andy wasn’t there to be to mean to him anymore and then to the realisation that his brother was never coming back – Zach felt the full gauntlet of emotions.
His parents were so focused on their own grief that Zach all but got left behind. They weren’t being deliberately unkind, but each was broken. They were trying, and failing, to find a way to cope. For Zach’s mother this meant from initially being in a numb and drugged state to ultimately seeking retribution and public condemnation on the shooter’s family. His father tried to support both his wife and Zach but eventually found solace in his work and began to spend more time away from the family. There were times when I actively disliked the mother for her apparent disregard of her young son’s feelings; I wanted to shake her and tell her “you still have a son that needs you”.
Only Child is a stunning and powerful debut that my review can’t possibly do justice to. A family, and community, torn to shreds at the hands of another. Family relationships are put under severe strain when trying to come to terms with losing a child in this way.
In my opinion, the author perfectly articulated Zach’s emotions and his distress and bewilderment at events. For all his simplistic way of describing things, he seemed wise beyond his years and actually put some of the adults to shame with their behaviour.
Only Child is an emotional and often heartbreaking read but because of Zach it is also an uplifting one too. I thought it was wonderful and it deserves to be a massive success for the author.
February 22, 2022
**Thanks to First To Read for providing me a complimentary copy of ONLY CHILD in exchange for my honest review**
Six-year-old Zach hides in a closet with his teacher and classmates while s gunman kills nineteen students and staff, including his older brother Andy. Now his mother cries all the time and snaps at him, his dad escapes to work and Zach tries to make sense of it all.
Calling ONLY CHILD a special book seems inadequate to express my feelings about Rhiannon Navin’s debut novel. Told from Zach’s point of view, I felt as if a young boy was showing (not telling) the story of trying to comprehend the uncomprehendable. His youthful honesty, whether about peeing the bed or at time feeling glad his brother was gone tugged at my heart. Zach’s little body, filled with so much compassion and love made me want to reach into my Kindle and hug his pain away.
While I loved Zach, I wanted to shake his mother. I understood her behavior from an psychointellectual perspective, I had trouble feeling empathy for the way she treated Zach. Her pain blinded her. His father handled Andy’s death in more helpful manner, but that and his past transgression contributed to Zach’s mother’s agony.
Navin’s stunning writing never felt like an adult faking a child’s POV. The voice sounded more authentic than ROOM and though sometimes s difficult read, I liked it much more. ONLY CHILD should top all the Best Lists. I can’t wait to see what Navin writes next.
Six-year-old Zach hides in a closet with his teacher and classmates while s gunman kills nineteen students and staff, including his older brother Andy. Now his mother cries all the time and snaps at him, his dad escapes to work and Zach tries to make sense of it all.
Calling ONLY CHILD a special book seems inadequate to express my feelings about Rhiannon Navin’s debut novel. Told from Zach’s point of view, I felt as if a young boy was showing (not telling) the story of trying to comprehend the uncomprehendable. His youthful honesty, whether about peeing the bed or at time feeling glad his brother was gone tugged at my heart. Zach’s little body, filled with so much compassion and love made me want to reach into my Kindle and hug his pain away.
While I loved Zach, I wanted to shake his mother. I understood her behavior from an psychointellectual perspective, I had trouble feeling empathy for the way she treated Zach. Her pain blinded her. His father handled Andy’s death in more helpful manner, but that and his past transgression contributed to Zach’s mother’s agony.
Navin’s stunning writing never felt like an adult faking a child’s POV. The voice sounded more authentic than ROOM and though sometimes s difficult read, I liked it much more. ONLY CHILD should top all the Best Lists. I can’t wait to see what Navin writes next.
February 18, 2018
Reading this book the day AFTER the real life shooting in Parkland, FL. I debated whether to read it but since it’s here from the library for 2 weeks, I decided to try and see. The story is told by the 7 year old in a school shooting and the author did a great job with it. Very heartbreaking and unfortunately this is happening more and more IRL. When will it stop?
December 11, 2017
Zach is seven years old when his world collapses. A mentally ill man enters his elementary school with a gun. One of those murdered is Zach's ten year old brother Andy, a bright and vivacious child with Oppositional Defiant Disorder whose management had already stressed their parent's marriage. They are unable to agree on anything now: the mother bent on revenge, the father showing understanding of Zach's regression while he goes to work and carries on.
Zach is left on his own to deal with the conflicting feelings he is experiencing. In his secret hideout in Andy's closet he colors his emotions on separate paper; they are easier to handle this way. Red for embarrassment for peeing in bed like a baby. Black for for being scared and the bad dreams at night in which he relives the day of the school shooting. Green, like the Incredible Hulk, for anger. Gray for the sadness, like clouds on a rainy day.
He also returns to his favorite book series in which children learn the secrets of happiness.
Rhiannon's debut novel Only Child is written in Zach's voice, told from his perspective. The adult world feels distant and nearly unmindful of his existence. As adult readers, we understand the hints that pass over Zach's understanding. And we are heartbroken for Zach and for his parents as well.
It is marvelous that Zach is the moral compass of the story. He demonstrates a wisdom that the adults lack; caught up in their own pain they are oblivious to each other's needs. Zach seeks for healing and wholeness, and as the novel ends with Christmas time arrived, he is truly the light which comes to show the way to salvation for his broken family: forgiveness, kindness, thinking of others, and clinging to love.
The journey into the horror of a school shooting resolves by showing us how to live in this world. In the end, I was glad to have read this book, even now in mid-December when others turn to light holiday fare.
I received a free ebook from the publisher through First to Read in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.
Zach is left on his own to deal with the conflicting feelings he is experiencing. In his secret hideout in Andy's closet he colors his emotions on separate paper; they are easier to handle this way. Red for embarrassment for peeing in bed like a baby. Black for for being scared and the bad dreams at night in which he relives the day of the school shooting. Green, like the Incredible Hulk, for anger. Gray for the sadness, like clouds on a rainy day.
He also returns to his favorite book series in which children learn the secrets of happiness.
Rhiannon's debut novel Only Child is written in Zach's voice, told from his perspective. The adult world feels distant and nearly unmindful of his existence. As adult readers, we understand the hints that pass over Zach's understanding. And we are heartbroken for Zach and for his parents as well.
It is marvelous that Zach is the moral compass of the story. He demonstrates a wisdom that the adults lack; caught up in their own pain they are oblivious to each other's needs. Zach seeks for healing and wholeness, and as the novel ends with Christmas time arrived, he is truly the light which comes to show the way to salvation for his broken family: forgiveness, kindness, thinking of others, and clinging to love.
The journey into the horror of a school shooting resolves by showing us how to live in this world. In the end, I was glad to have read this book, even now in mid-December when others turn to light holiday fare.
I received a free ebook from the publisher through First to Read in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.
December 22, 2018
Zach is shuffled by Miss Russell, his teacher, along with the rest of his class into the cloakroom. The door is held shut. From outside come strange popping noises. By the time Zach and everyone emerge from the confined space nineteen people are dead, fifteen of them children at the school. So many families are affected by the tragedy. Grief affects people in different ways and this community is no different. Zach’s mother is on a vengeful quest for justice. His father withdraws. Zach is left a lot of the time to find his own way of coping with the situation, his mixed feelings and the changes that these events have wrought in his family.
Told from the unique perspective of six year old Zach, this is a heartbreaking story of a family trying to deal with grief and circumstances no parent should ever have to deal with. Yet, sadly in today’s world it is not all that rare. How well the reader responds to this story may well depend on how accepting you are and how authentic you feel the six year old narrator voice is. Most of the time I thought it came across well. Occasionally though it seemed to veer into thoughts or concepts that were beyond the scope of most six year old’s. Both Zach’s parents were realistically portrayed if not always likeable. At times I became so annoyed with them. But then, who knows how each of us would respond if faced with such a tragic situation?
I found this a riveting and thought provoking read. My main problem was I felt after all that had gone before, the ending was a little too neatly and quickly resolved. But still, a book worth reading. A timely message especially in light of recent events in our world. It will be interesting to see what this author writes next.
Told from the unique perspective of six year old Zach, this is a heartbreaking story of a family trying to deal with grief and circumstances no parent should ever have to deal with. Yet, sadly in today’s world it is not all that rare. How well the reader responds to this story may well depend on how accepting you are and how authentic you feel the six year old narrator voice is. Most of the time I thought it came across well. Occasionally though it seemed to veer into thoughts or concepts that were beyond the scope of most six year old’s. Both Zach’s parents were realistically portrayed if not always likeable. At times I became so annoyed with them. But then, who knows how each of us would respond if faced with such a tragic situation?
I found this a riveting and thought provoking read. My main problem was I felt after all that had gone before, the ending was a little too neatly and quickly resolved. But still, a book worth reading. A timely message especially in light of recent events in our world. It will be interesting to see what this author writes next.
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