“The World on Either Side” by Diane Terrana was INTENSE, and a little slow-paced. It deals with some really important issues, and I definitely recommend giving it a shot. Just please be sure to check content/trigger warnings.

I truly wanted to love this but I sadly couldn’t connect with the characters. I found the plot intriguing but I had to skim the last 40%, which really sucks. I don’t have an issue with the writing (in fact I loved it! the grief metaphors pulled at my heart) but I’m a big fan of character driven books so I was let down that I couldn’t connect with any of the characters in this.

This is the type of book I wanted to love, but never felt connected to. I didn't like the main character very much, and found her lack of cultural awareness time and time again a little annoying. I get why so many people love it though.

I'm fascinated by the use of elephants in grief metaphors. Because this elephant is clearly a metaphor for the protagonist's relationship with her deceased boyfriend. I don't love the trope of a grieving character finding themselves in a foreign country. IN all this book is interesting and contemplative but a bit lacking in punch.

I was surprised to find that this book addresses so many important issues. The writing style was very enjoyable and I loved the mother/daughter relationship.

Thanks to Netgalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review~

Thank you Netgalley and Publishers for granting me early access to "The World On Either Side".

This book did top my favorite reads this year, however I'm currently in the middle of a major move, and will definitely come back at a later time and write out a full review and rating.

Thank you so much!

This book ended up not being for me. I did not connect to the characters or story. I ended up skimming the majority of it and because of that, I will not be rating this book on other platforms as it would be unfair to the book and author.

The World on Either Side by Diane Terrana follows the story of Valentine as she deals with her boyfriend’s death and the subsequent depression. After what Valentine claims is an accidental overdose, her mother decides traveling through the Thai mountains together would be a good change of pace. With their eclectic travel companions and a mysterious boy named Lin, Valentine and her mother embark on a journey both physically and mentally draining. Tragedy strikes when the group encounters a herd of murdered elephants. What follows is Valentine and Lin running deeper and deeper into the forest attempting to save an orphaned elephant calf and avoid certain death.

There were so many things I loved about this book. The amount of work the author obviously put into researching the culture and countries the characters visit, the war, the tourism industry, etc. The characters, especially Valentine and her mother. The lush description of the mountains in Thailand. Because of it’s handling of forgiveness and compassion, this is a story that will most definitely stick with me for a long while. However, I would like to mention that the relationship between Valentine and Lin becomes uncomfortable and a little bit gross when it is revealed that there is a ten year age gap between them, with Valentine being only 16 and Lin being “25ish”. This revelation gave the bond they’d formed (and I grew attached to) an unfortunate aftertaste.

From Valentine’s grief and pain, palpable on the pages, to the effects of war, poaching and tourism on small countries, The World on Either Side addresses important and complicated topics unflinchingly. Diane Terrana explores grief, sexual assault, the bond between mother and daughter and how much forgiveness plays a part in healing with beautiful prose and flawed characters. This books proficiency at balancing devastating content with interesting and well-developed characters is what makes it a must read.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. Thank you NetGalley.\


This book had well-developed characters, an easy-to-follow storyline, and a beautiful writing style.
It was seriously one of the most unique and beautiful books I've ever read.
I will definitely be reading more by this author!

This was one of the most beautiful books I've ever read. I have such a full heart after having read this and the emotion it inspires is unparalleled.
This book was incredibly atmospheric, the author easily managed to transport her audience to Thailand and boy did I want to be there. The jungle, the animals, the food-- oh man this book made me so hungry! This was a really dark, morbid, shocking, hurtful YA book that needed to be written and I'm glad it was. It covered horrific, devastating content and did not shy away from the truth, it was balanced pretty beautifully by Valentine's sarcasm and wit so we didn't entirely drown in our despair. I think that was entirely necessary and really enjoyed it.
At its core, this book is so very humbling. It's a book about heartbreak yes, but also so much more. It covers grief in so many ways. The grief we feel for what we can't control, for what we tell ourselves we can, for our ignorance...There was not a word wasted or an emotion missing throughout this short (213 pages!!) novel. It was masterfully crafted and incredibly grounding. I cannot begin to express the way this has emotionally and spiritually transported me in such an impactful way.
One of the best debut novels I've ever read. A complete and utter must-read.

When Valentines boyfriend passes away she has a hard time dealing with her feelings and emotions. After overdosing on some pills Valentine's mom decides a mom and daughter trip to go traveling through the Thai Mountains would do her daughter some good.

This book deals with a lot of issues such as grief, animal cruelty, rape, murder and even global issues. Even though this book is a work of fiction there is a lot of nonfiction through out the book such as kid soldiers and the government. I liked how informative it was along with its poetic words in the story. I also enjoyed the mother daughter relationship in this book.

Thank you Netgalley and Orca Books for providing a copy of this book for an honest review.

*I received an e-galley of this book through NetGalley.com in return for an honest review.

3.5 stars

The World on Either Side follows the story of a teenager dealing with depression in the wake of her boyfriend's death. In order to get Valentine out into the world again, her mom takes her halfway around the world to Thailand. What at first seems like a perfect utopia will soon turn out to have plenty of problems of its own.

It doesn't matter that this book is labeled as YA: it deals with complicated topics that don't receive enough attention in any form of media. Most of all, it talks about the dark side of tourism through the lens of animals and humans. Everyone's affected. For the amount of political opinions shoved into these pages, it rarely came off as preachy, and instead readers get the chance to learn along with Valentine. She's not perfect, neither are we.

The characters' imperfections are exactly what make them so real. They truly come alive on the page. Even the side characters are written with extreme depth, and Terrana makes sure that every character gets a moment to shine. Valentine especially deals with difficult events, and shows quite a bit of growth as the story progresses. This might actually be part of my complaint, though.

The plot progresses very fast once they go to Thailand. Although that makes it approachable, it feels unrealistic. I think the adventure bits could have been drawn out a bit more, maybe not in description, but at least in time frame. This would make Valentine's change of heart more digestible.

I would recommend this to you if you are interested in animal rights, are looking for a vegetarian main character who's not insane (I know I was!), or want an adventure story with more depth. I don't want you to be intimidated by the darkness of the themes, because in the end, this is still an enjoyable YA read. You should read this in a treehouse, on a porch swing, or in a very, very, very late night.

I would not recommend this to you if you want a lighthearted love story or a slow-going, character-driven novel.

CONTENT WARNINGS:
- loss
- lots of violence
- suicidal thoughts
- drug overdose
- cutting
- sexual assualt
- attempted rape
- animal abuse (graphic)

The World on Either Side - 3/5 Stars

The World on Either Side took on difficult, heavy topics and wasn't an easy read because of it.

And that's what made it great.

I love how the author didn't shy away from writing damaged characters and the complex emotions that come along with them. They were great characters too. Complex and well-developed.

I don't know enough about Thailand and Burma to determine how accurate these cultures were portrayed, but assuming the author is credible, I learned a lot. As someone who wants to travel all over SE Asia eventually, this was an enlightening read. I especially liked how the author talked about the negative effects tourism has on countries like Thailand:

"The tourists—people like us—are complicit. They fund the sex trade. They ignore the animal abuses because they like to ride elephants. Jesus. They go to refugee camps to see neck rings."

I did have one really big issue with the book, and that was the age difference between the two characters in a romantic relationship. It was cute and I was rooting for them until I realized there was a ten year age gap. A relationship between a 16-year-old girl and a 25 or 26-year-old man is not okay and an especially alarming thing to promote to a young adult audience—even if he "looks" like a kid. It was such an unnecessary detail to the story, but it ended up making this book problematic.

Content warning for rape, suicide, self-harm, animal abuse, and poaching. I do hope that content warnings like these will be included in published copies of the book! While I am not personally sensitive to this kind of content, many people are.

I definitely think this book is worth the read. It deals with so many important topics but does so in a way that doesn't feel preachy. I liked how its cast of characters came from a variety of backgrounds and all had different viewpoints to present the reader. The plot was the perfect combination of thrills and heartbreak, and it read so poetically. And the main character, Valentine, is a character that many will be able to relate to—especially those who have dealt with grief and depression.

Thank you Orca Book Publishers for the opportunity to read the book early! It's a great debut, and I can't wait to see what comes next from this author.

Here is my Goodreads review link:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2930903546?

Thank you to Orca Book Publishers and NetGalley for giving me the chance to read this eArc.

I used to be Valentine. I had that hard knot of pain in my heart that is described so well in this book after dealing with grief for a few years. That’s why I love The World On Either Side so much. I didn’t have that pain in my heart as a teenager though, I had it at twenty-nine and it just goes to show how this book could speak to young adults and adults as well.

I went into this book knowing it would deal with grief but I was afraid it would gloss over the issues happening in Thailand and Myanmar (Burma) – issues I don’t really know well enough of myself. But this story took Valentine’s grief, and the issues going on in these countries and gave me a book that spoke to my heart. It also gave me an understanding of the disturbing things going in these countries.

Valentine is going through so much after her boyfriend Amir dies. She is depressed and in a tunnel of grief. Her parents are afraid to lose her but she can’t seem to come out of the dark cave she’s in. So her mom decides that they leave Canada and take a trip to Thailand together. And not just to the city of Bangkok, they are signed up to trek through the hills of Northern Thailand to visit the hill tribes. It’s her mom’s desperate attempt to make her leave the room she hasn’t left since Amir has died.

They meet up with a small group of other tourists as they journey through the hills of Thailand, close to the Myanmar border. They ride elephants, sleep in sleeping bags and barely get to bathe. We get a small glimpse of the political strife happening between the indigenous tribes and government of Myanmar. We also get some lessons on Buddhism.

The book also touched on the subject of elephants and poachers. I think that’s when my heart started to really break, the moment the elephants arrive. It explored the bond between mother and child, not only in the human world, but the animal world as well – in particular with elephants who feel strongly about their young and vice versa. Elephants who grieve. Then there is Lin, who’s backstory is unimaginable and scary for anyone who lives a safe life outside of these countries. I hurt for Lin and what he has been through. He is one of the guides for the group and he has a past that comes back to haunt him and Valentine.

By the end of this book, Valentine sees how much forgiveness plays a big part in healing her broken spirit and how some things in life are not so black and white, especially when it comes to Lin and his life choices. My heart was so sore for Valentine, her mom, for the elephants, Lin, the Karen tribe, the Rohingya and everyone caught up in personal grief and turmoil and the violence that the government has brought upon the people.

I love how courage is what gets our characters through this trek. Valentine goes through some difficult situations on this trip but she has to dig down deep to be braver than she’s ever had to be. We see that she does have fight in her still. Lin’s story also shows us what kind of courage it took for him to survive the life he’s led, and the kind of future that will be best for his situation. We even see how all of this affects Valentine’s mom and how she is fighting for her daughter and the toll it takes.

This book is wonderfully written with the lush descriptions of the trek in the mountains of Thailand through a tourists’ point of view and someone like Lin who belongs there and nowhere at the same time. I felt like I was there with the characters. It made me want to learn more about the Karen and Rohingya tribes and hope one day the conflict will stop. This story explored mental health, love, loss and world issues. And though at times there are dark scenes in this book, the story touched my heart so deeply, the heart that was once a painful ball of hurt and at times still is.

I absolutely loved this book and finished it in one day. I definitely will need a copy of it on my shelf when it releases in September and I look forward to reading more books from this author!

A beautiful story about learning to live with grief and finding I self after tragedy.
A slow pace at the beginning but worth it in the end.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with the ARC. This is a beautiful story about learning what life is about and how to live again after a loss. It was beautifully written and I will be reading more from this author in the future!

Thank you NetGalley and Publisher for this early copy.

I randomly read one chapter of this and then managed to finish the whole book in one night XD It was a well-written, lyrical, and intense book. It looked at grief among many other important topics.

Warning: animal death/mistreatment, attempted assault, and suicide

Hello, I will be adding this review to my Instagram, Goodreads, and blog on September 5th. I will add the links to each review when they are posted. Thank you!

Title: The World on Either Side
Author: Diane Terrana
Genre: YA Contemporary
Publication Date: Sept. 10th, 2019
Contains: Sexual assault, Attempted suicide, Animal cruelty

eARC provided by publisher through NetGalley. All opinions are my own.



Synopsis: "After the death of her boyfriend, sixteen-year old Valentine stops going to school, quits seeing her friends, and, finally, won't leave her bed. Desperate for her daughter to recover, Valentine's mother takes her on a trek in Thailand. In the mountains north of Chiang Mai, Valentine finds a world she didn't know existed, where houses are on stilts and elephants still roam wild. She learns about the Burmese civil war and the relentless violence against the Karen and Rohingya peoples.

Then she meets Lin, a mysterious young elephant keeper tormented by his hidden past, and an orphaned elephant calf, pursued by violent poachers. Together, the three flee deep into the jungle, looking for refuge and redemption." (Goodreads)



My Review:
Let's just talk about the cover first. It is the first thing I noticed and it is gorgeous! Once I read the synopsis, I was hooked. I am not usually one for contemporary but this one just seemed too good to be left unread.

Valentine has had a hard six months and you can feel her pain seep off the pages. It is hard to lose someone that meant everything. It was easy to connect with her and it was nice to see the process of her coping throughout. Although some of her coping wasn't the best, it was still choices some tend to make while they are grieving. Dealing with grief is basically what her character development involved but I was okay with that.

The other characters in the book are pretty minor besides Lin. He is intriguing and catches her eye. Lin has had a hard life and is full of secrets, some he wants to keep to himself which does lead them into danger. He does teach Valentine a lot and grows from the experiences she encounters. When I read through the synopsis I thought that this book would be filled with a relationship, but that was not the case. I think I enjoyed it more because of that since usually jumping right into another relationship isn't always the best when it comes to dealing with grief.

The plot was thrilling and the twists were ones that I didn't see coming. I felt myself not wanting to put this book down.

If YA Contemporary is your thing, definitely check this one out!