Excellent story with writing that flowed off the page. The dual time-line with flashbacks to her youth really propelled the story forward. I felt connected to Elisabeth and the raw pain she is still overcoming as she works past the trauma of her childhood. A beautiful story for anyone needing inspiration and the courage to believe in their own strength and resilience.

A young woman moves to a secluded town where she can be anonymous. She doesn’t trust people after a very traumatizing childhood which we see glimpses of in alternating chapters. Justice, aka Elisabeth, fights to keep everyone and every memory out until she meets the next door neighbor, Noah. An emergency may just force Elisabeth out of her shell.
Good book although the medical trauma is quite descriptive so it was a bit much for me. The relationships and characters were pretty good and kept me reading.

Moving, emotional and an excellent read about trauma and how the roads we take to try and heal. A book about finding and excepting yourself. I good book for anyone wanting to see what another endures.

Thank you NetGalley and Dutton Books for Young Readers for the advanced E-edition of this touching book in exchange for my honest review

This was a lovely read. The writing was fantastic, and reading through Elsabeth was both beautiful and heartbreaking. This book is widely advertised as YA. And While I think many of more mature (17+) readers could handle this content and the trauma explored, it would not be a good fit for a HS library which serves 13 year olds. Perhaps a rebranding at New adult?

This book. This writing. This is creativity that feels so very real. It is extremely deep and human.
I received an advanced readers copy of I Am the Cage written by Allison Sweet Grant from Dutton Books via NetGalley. This is my unsolicited opinion. I really appreciate being given the opportunity to read and review this profound book. Elisabeth Amos lives in Fish Creek, Wisconsin. She works for the equally quiet Mr. Terry Ito at the Treasure Box which is sort of a souvenir shop. She spends her days dusting, selling and ordering products such as snow globes and lavender soap. She constantly tells herself, "I am all right."
This is a powerful book for me. As I read, I learned bit by bit about present day Elisabeth, she works, she goes home; alone. This is what she has lived for. Next, I run into a chapter that is titled "Then" the first of many. I am carried back in time, bit by bit where it is explained what has formed who Elisabeth is. There is information about her past, in her memories. I read the medical term, fibular hemimelia. This young woman, in a way, has been born of a medical condition. It's treatments, public prejudice, family reactions, childhood trauma and so much more. It is a hugely touching story in my mind.
This author knows physical and spiritual pain in my opinion. The descriptions are perfect when the character, as a child, speaks up. If any reader wants to try and understand someone who is enduring chronic pain and trauma, read this book! If you want to get a glimpse into the world and memories of a child who lives with medical trauma, loss of trust, even into adulthood, this story is IT. I can so relate to this character. This is my first big Wow book I've read in 2025. I think it deserves to be up for awards.
The author has carefully crafted solid characters to be part of Elisabeth's life. Her mother is a major force, her sisters, believable siblings and Kasey, a dear best friend. Mr. Ito has a small part but is integral. When you are a kid, the bad guy just may be a doctor, sad to say. Or it could be a parent. The reader has thoughts and reactions in that matter. Then. there is the neighbor, Sheriff Noah Harmon. Does Elisabeth find anyone to trust?
Triggers: Childhood medical trauma, adult expectations, mistrust and long-term pain.
Some language.

What an achingly beautiful all around! For a novel that is technically considered "YA," I AM THE CAGE is incredibly mature, raw and genuinely vulnerable in both its plot and prose. Although a bit slow to start (at least, for me), Grant's writing is very captivating and nuanced while also still maintaining its ability to be easy to understand and follow along with; furthermore, I really loved the slow-building of plot points coming together and realizations being made/coming to fruition as the story unfolds. Elisabeth's story and character arc is honestly..... terribly heartbreaking all around, and yet still very relatable on an emotional level. This book explores the themes of mental health/illness; recovery from trauma; learning to accept and grow around painful past memories &/or grief while still honoring the space they may hold over/in our lives; and how to acknowledge and heal from abuse – among others – all in a very empathetic and honest way. I thought Grant did a great job when it came to portraying all the complexities found within Elisabeth's relationship with her mother, Iris, as well as the latter's "failings" and overall lack of inaction when it came to her daughter's struggles. On the other side of things, Elisabeth's support system - made up of her friends and colleagues - were also very well-written; they aren't perfect, of course, but they show up for Elisabeth in all the ways that count most: with empathy, kindness, patience, and acceptance— even when times are hard and even when they may not understand the true depth of Elisabeth's feelings or situation. Overall a wonderful read to start off the year and I truly believe many readers, like myself, will find something within these pages that they can resonate and walk away with.

I Am the Cage by Allison Sweet Grant is a compelling, heartbreaking novel of hope. As I looked through reviews I wanted to shout back at the reviewers who didn't understand what pain can do to a person, how it can shape you and change your very makeup. I have suffered with this type of life changing pain for the last 13 years and I know how what it does to your relationships, your personality, everything. As Elisabeth was describing the removal of the pin I had a visceral reaction. An excellent novel! Thank you to the author, publisher and Netgalley for an ARC of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

Absolutely horrific and lovely story about a young woman looking to work through her trauma (even though she is running away from it at the start). The writing is beautiful and the tragedy feels real.. Well done!

I don't know that I've ever read a book about medical trauma before. Though she wasn't written as a sympathetic character, I found myself identifying with Elisabeth's mother, who surely made the decision to have her daughter have the surgery because she felt it would be best for her child. We never see the perspective of the mother, who has gone through the experience of having to continually inflict pain on her child, in service of healing her.

I think the teens I teach will like this book. As an adult, I wished for more character development, but I overall enjoyed reading it.

This book is raw and heartfelt. I couldn't put it down. I felt so bad for Elisabeth as she tried to deal with her pain, grief and insecurities. This book is about overcoming those hurts inflicted in the path to find a new direction and a new way of seeing yourself. I loved the people Elisabeth met and befriended in the smail town she fled to - Mr. Ito, Jonathan and of course, Noah. I also loved her one friend who stood by her through the most painful parts of her life. Her mother could certainly have been more supportive and definitely let Elisabeth down when she was most needed, although I'm not sure she meant to do that - she may have just not known how to handle the situation. This was a very emotional read for me and I think it would be for anyone. i highly recommend it.

Thanks to Penguin Group - Dutton through Netgalley for an advance copy.

This will break your heart into pieces. If you have ever been a person who had to make yourself feel small in front of others. If your experiences were always made to feel less important and traumatic than they really were, you'll connect this this book and feel it all over again.

The lingering effects of medical and emotional trauma linger in Elisabeth's every action. She's wary of strangers, love, her family, friends, and her own feelings. This was a fast read that was full of emotion and eventually hope.

4.5 stars
This story of a young woman trying to escape her physical and emotional pain draws the reader in immediately with the ferocious snowstorm. I loved the blending of poetry and how Elisabeth was able to express her grief, anger and frustration through writing. Secondary characters were important to the story.
Elisabeth is a young girl when she endures a brutal surgery and recovery to repair a birth defect. The scars she receives haunt her life. She leaves it all behind to create a new life but can you ever truly leave the pain behind?

Wow. What a lasting effect childhood traumas can do to a person. Such a compelling message with a lesson on acceptance and forgiveness. Elizabeth is such strong young woman who doesn’t realize that strength can either keep her isolated from the world or give her the power to return to a life being a friend, daughter and possibly lover. Really love this story.

I Am the Cage was a stunning and absolutely beautiful work of literature. The writing and poetry was so good, so evocative that I felt like I was right there watching Elisabeth go through everything and I was so moved. The way her trauma, emotional abuse, and mental health were so sympathetically written, it seemed like the author was writing what she knows in a way we can all relate to. That she’s made this her YA debut and seeks to target a younger audience only makes me love it more.

As a mother, I couldn’t understand how Elisabeth’s mother, Iris, could act the way she did. Still, no one is ever really sure what’s in someone else’s head until they share it, and Iris did very little sharing and I loved that the author allowed her some grace in how Elisabeth considered her, acknowledging Iris’ unacceptable behavior while allowing for Iris’ own possible pain. Iris’ inaction and unwillingness to speak up for her daughter showed just how much authority we give to doctors without question as well as how much we cater to others’ perceptions of us.

I loved how friendship was portrayed in the book in both Kacey and Noah. They showed kindness, empathy, patience, and understanding, even when it was hard, even when they didn’t know if it was making any difference. They were a perfect example of unconditional love. Mr. Ito and Jonathan were wonderful examples of how family should be there for you, Mr. Ito as a sort of father figure and Jonathan as a sort of older brother.

Short chapters kept the story moving quickly, moving back and forth between timelines in an organic way. The amount of emotional punch those chapters packed into so few pages was really impressive. I found the entire thing to be so cathartic.

I would have loved to have seen what happened with Elisabeth’s relationship with her sisters after her time in Fish Creek. I’m left wondering if she found any kind of closure with them and how they moved forward. I could take or leave any kind of closure with her father, as he didn’t feature heavily in the story. But I can’t fault the book for this in the ratings because I just loved it so much.

With evocative writing and a powerful story that explores the space between who we are and who we let others define us to be, this is sure to be a story that will resonate with readers of all ages.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. I have to say I’m looking like the minority with this one for my review. I did not enjoy it at all. First, I did not feel there was much of a connection with the love interest. I actually found him to be rather rude and blunt at times rather than this warm guy who gets her to open up. Next, I am fortunate to not be someone who suffered childhood trauma, but that being said, I couldn’t even really understand how this was trauma for her. Yes, medial, procedures that intense would really be imprinting and build who you become and be a huge struggle to get past, but I didn’t see people doing or saying things that were really that cruel. The couple that were shared that were unkind semi-acquaintances didn’t even feel realistic. I felt the mother was not well-written or realistic either. The way she talked almost seemed silly and childish. Other family members just didn’t seem consistent in her flashbacks to now. What is the deal with the sisters? At one point she only mentions one? Also, I didn’t care for the style. It read like a juvenile writing attempt with oversimplified dialogue that lacked any real depth, even with the mother and especially with the love interest. Some of the poetry wasn’t bad, but some of it was very rhymey and sing-song, which isn’t my style. Finally, I just couldn’t bring up any feelings for the girl. I was reading and waiting to see where some real feelings would come into play, things she really needed to escape from, and I just couldn’t see it. I’m in no way saying medical trauma is not trauma. I’m saying I don’t see that past surgery and experience making her who she was in the modern day, and I wasn’t feeling anything for her, including empathy. I was surprised at the praise listed for the book as it has some authors I admire. I read a lot, and I can usually get a good feel for a book and whether it’s going to be popular, and I’m just shocked so many people liked it. FYI it’s clean, I didn’t really see triggering things here, it wasn’t worth the read for me as I struggled to finish it

A story of a young woman, Elizabeth, who lives a fairly quiet life, in a small cabin which is in a small town where she knows only a few people. She prefers it that way. She’s been hurt, both emotionally and physically, by so many others ever since she can remember..

And then a snowstorm changes everything. She ends up walking to her nearest neighbor, a man, Noah, who finds her near freezing and takes her into his home so she can recover. A bond is formed, but Elizabeth still has difficulty trusting, for reasons he is not aware of, but he is determined to show her that she can trust him.

This was such a moving and beautiful story, despite the heartbreak, I found it to be very moving, but also very realistic.

A lovely and very moving story.


Pub Date: 18 Feb 2025

Many thanks for the ARC provided by PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group / Dutton Books for Young Readers

Grant had me not wanting to put the book down. Was anyone going to listen and help? Was she ever going to speak up for her needs? The story flowed well and never felt like it was dragging along. There's a hint of romance but it's not center stage.

I am the Cage follows Elisabeth as she hides in a tiny cabin in a small, isolated town called Fish Creek. All she wanted to be is alone and hide from her memories that hurt too much. But a snowstorm sends her plans spinning. She accepts help from her neighbor Noah, the town’s young sheriff. Elisabeth is forced to show more vulnerability than she’d like and realizes that to escape the darkness of her childhood, she needs to let light in.

This is a beautiful book of trauma and healing and finding out its own-voices makes it even more heart-wrenching. The story in this book is so moving and gripping. I loved that it was told in two timelines of present day and Elisabeth’s childhood. The poetry as well was so stunning. I’ve never personally gone through any intensive surgery or medical processes so reading about Elisabeth’s medical trauma of a procedure inflicted to “fix” her was very visceral and haunting. It’s a lot for any child to go through and the author did an amazing job of conveying the emotion and pain she went through.

Elisabeth’s growth in the novel was so beautiful and realistically paced. She’s rightfully angry and traumatized but getting to read about her slowly coming out of hiding was so lovely. Noah is such a sweetheart and endearing, and their relationship was so sweet. Her mom was a lot and their conversation in the later half was infuriating. I wish we got more of her relationship with her sisters as she got older, but I do appreciate that Elisabeth had her friend as a support system. The ending was really lovely and so heartwarming.

Overall, if you like emotional coming-of-age, own-voices stories, I’d highly recommend trying this one!

Thank you to Penguin Teen CA and Netgalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review!