We All Fall Down by Robert Cormier
#48 in my book challenge for the year, and #24 in my summer reading challenge was We All Fall Down by Robert Cormier, a recommendation from Michael Cart’s history of YA, From Romance to Realism. We All Fall Down is a tightly written, hard to put down novel about the effects of violence. A family’s house is trashed, and a daughter is left in a coma. The novel switches views among her sister, one of the trashers, and a witness to the event. Each character is troubled in realistic ways, and the ending manages to be both redemptive and dark. There was a surprise that I was expecting, though, so that wasn’t effective for me. The strong plot, writing and characters all contributed to a novel that I’d recommend for older audiences, not just for young adults.