Review: This Soul Deep Book Receives 10 Stars From Me
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 05 8, 2014
This is probably the hardest review I have ever had to write. I finished Stronger about two weeks ago and have steered clear ever since. I needed time to absorb everything and get my emotions situated. How do you sum up a book that is so powerful and full of heart? I practically highlighted the whole book! How do you do it justice when the story and characters are so real that you WANT them to be real so that you can tell them how you feel.So that you find out if they are o.k and they will always remain that way. How do you sum up so many raw emotions? There was actually a part in the book where the main character, Lydia, needed to badly defend herself, but had no way of doing it. I was thinking, OMG Lydia, the proof is right here in the book...just show them the book. Then I realized, my God, this isn't real.She does't really need to prove anything.In the beginning, I was actually rooting for Lydia's lifestyle... the very beginning. She is everything that women swoon over when it comes to bad body on t.v and in books. She is harsh, she drinks, cusses, and sleeps around praying the men won't still be in her bed in the morning. She has no remorse for any of it. I'm thinking, finally we have a bad girl! Its is done about men everyday, why not women? But then the story moves along and I realized, s***, this book is way more than I originally though. It is not your average contemporary romance. This book is soul deep.Stronger is about addiction...all consuming addiction. Lydia is so consumed in her addiction that she doesn't even realize she has a problem until this guy, Aiden, moves into her building. He holds the mirror up to her heart and soul... up to the ugly truth. No matter how many times Lydia tried to look away or break that damn mirror, Aiden is their fixing it and showing her once again. Showing her thing she does not believe or want to see. What Lydia went through killed me. The pain she suffers by her self abuse and the mental and physical abuse she receives from others is heart wrenching.Stronger is one of the most raw books that I have ever read. I have a personal tie to Lydia in so many ways. I have somebody very close to me who has been an addict most of their life. They battle alcoholism every day, and so do I. I am the sober one standing on the sidelines watching this person destroy themselves over and over and over. It is very painful for me. I have tried to be everything for this person... a parent (even though they are older than me), a cheerleader, a coach, a therapist, ect. Nothing ever works and I wonder what I did wrong or what I didn't do. Promises are always broken and lies are told. They often hurt themselves accidentally while drinking. I am left feeling crushed and hopeless. Not only do I relate to the alcoholism in this book, but also some of the abuse that Lydia goes through. All in all this book was heart wrenching for me. While reading it, I cried a couple of times, but a day or two later, I broke down and couldn't stop. It was almost like I was trying to remain strong for Lydia like I do for the person in my life that I spoke of.I know I am rambling and I guess my point is, I feel everybody can relate to this book somehow. It will move people with the hardest of shells. And I believe it will cause people to get help, teach, and heal people. It will give them hope as it has done for me. I know the one main thing this book taught me, well remind me, is that addiction is a disease. Addicts will struggle for their whole lives whether they are sober or not. They are in their own personal hell. Stronger also taught me (reminded me) that there is absolutely nothing I can do to make the person I love stop and I am not a failure for not being able to do so.Stronger = Best book of the year"The shadows gather around the edge of the bed, but for once, they don't continue to advance.They seem to know too -- I can't take anymore. I can't take it and I can't stop."