Official Review: 10 truths and one lie by Jacara reid

[Chigozie Anuli Mbadugha]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "10 truths and one lie" by Jacara reid.]

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1 out of 4 stars

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10 Truths and One Lie by Jacara Reid is a collection of four stories - Sally May, Twisted Roses, Change Me, and My Best Friend’s Husband. The stories explore several coming of age themes such as bullying in schools, family upheaval, sexuality, child molestation, domestic violence, and post-traumatic stress disorder. These themes are topical, relevant, and thought-provoking.

The characters are flawed and not superheroes. This makes them likable, and one can follow them empathically on their journeys in the book. The book is easy to read and understand because the dialogue is natural and smooth. The stories were written from multiple points of view. Having multiple narrators in a story can cause confusion, but the author handled it well. This method of writing helped me understand what was going on in each character’s head and the reason why they took some decisions in the book.

My favorite story was Sally May. I enjoyed reading this story because it shed light on the adventures and exploits of adolescents. The story Sally May highlights the need for parents to be good role models to their children and to think seriously about the consequences of their actions on their children and wards. I was appalled that a father could make irresponsible statements in the presence of his son. The son ended up quoting his father and using this statement to justify his actions: “My pop said a man takes any opportunity to get him some pussy.” The aspect of bullying schoolmates for being different was explored. This story can teach readers to be more tolerant of others. Another lesson to learn from this story is that there can be grave consequences for sexual adventures.

The book was definitely not professionally edited. I think it would have benefited from several rounds of editing. To be honest, I have not read a book that had so many grammatical, punctuation, and typographical errors in recent times. I found the first ten errors in this book on the first page of the book. The outlay of the book was also inadequate. Each story should have started on a separate page. However, only a line or two separated the stories.

For all the reasons mentioned above. I can only rate this book 1 out of 4 stars. However, because I feel that the themes explored in the stories are important, I sincerely hope the author can work on the book and correct the errors. In its present state, I am afraid I cannot recommend it to anyone.

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10 truths and one lie
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[kandscreeley]

It does sound like the stories are relevant for our world. It's just too bad that they weren't edited more thoroughly. Hopefully the author will heed your advice and get them up to snuff. Thanks.

[Stephanie Elizabeth]

That's such a shame because it sounds like it could be a really great book that focuses on heavy topics. Thanks for the honest review!

[Nisha Ward]

It sucks that this book has so many editing problems because it sounds like it explores some pretty heavy issues regarding social problems. Gonna pass until it gets fixed.

[writingShannon]

That is a bummer! Good news for the author is that the content was good, so editing should be an easy fix. Worth the price of a copy editor.

[Delaney35]

It's such a shame it's not well-edited. The premise sounded super promising and could be quite impactful if it didn't have so many errors.

[Chigozie Anuli Mbadugha]

It does sound like the stories are relevant for our world. It's just too bad that they weren't edited more thoroughly. Hopefully the author will heed your advice and get them up to snuff. Thanks.

I hope so too. Thanks for reading and commenting. Deeply appreciated!

[Chigozie Anuli Mbadugha]

That is a bummer! Good news for the author is that the content was good, so editing should be an easy fix. Worth the price of a copy editor.

Definitely worth the price of a copy editor! I totally agree . Thanks for your insightful comment.

[Chigozie Anuli Mbadugha]

It's such a shame it's not well-edited. The premise sounded super promising and could be quite impactful if it didn't have so many errors.

Very true! Thanks for reading my review!

[Chigozie Anuli Mbadugha]

It sucks that this book has so many editing problems because it sounds like it explores some pretty heavy issues regarding social problems. Gonna pass until it gets fixed.

I understand your feeling. Would have passed as well... but I had already opted to review. Thanks for reading my review. Cheers!

[Chigozie Anuli Mbadugha]

That's such a shame because it sounds like it could be a really great book that focuses on heavy topics. Thanks for the honest review!

Thanks for reading and commenting. Deeply appreciated!

[janelwhite]

This is a unique book with it containing four different parts. The topics are modern and compelling. I too have a difficult time reading a book peppered with grammatical errors! It doesn’t sound like one I will pursue. Thank you for that review!