A. S. King

16-year-old Sarah is an aspiring artist who has dropped out of school and thinks she's in the middle of an existential crisis. Maybe that explains why she keeps running into different versions of herself all across town. When a big family secret is revealed, Sarah sets out to discover what went wrong on the day six years ago when her brother Bruce left home for good.

Still Life with Tornado

Amy Sarig King

A heartbreaking and mindbending story of a talented teenage artist's awakening to the brokenness of her family from critically acclaimed award-winner A.S. King. Sixteen-year-old Sarah can't draw. This is a problem, because as long as she can remember, she has "done the art." She thinks she's having an existential crisis. And she might be right; she does keep running into past and future versions of herself as she wanders the urban ruins of Philadelphia. Or maybe she's finally waking up to the tornado that is her family, the tornado that six years ago sent her once-beloved older brother flying across the country for a reason she can't quite recall. After decades of staying together "for the kids" and building a family on a foundation of lies and domestic violence, Sarah's parents have reached the end. Now Sarah must come to grips with years spent sleepwalking in the ruins of their toxic marriage. As Sarah herself often observes, nothing about her pain is remotely original--and yet it still hurts. Insightful, heartbreaking, and ultimately hopeful, this is a vivid portrait of abuse, survival, resurgence that will linger with readers long after the last page. A New York Times 2016 Notable Children's Book A News & Observer Best Book of 2016 A Publishers Weekly Best Book of 2016 A School Library Journal Best Book of 2016 A Booklist Best Book of 2016 Booklist Top of the List 2016 A Shelf Awareness Best Book of 2016 A BookPage Best Teen Book of 2016 A Bustle Top 30 YA Book of 2016 "Read this book, whatever your age. You may find it's the exact shape and size of the hole in your heart."--The New York Times "Surreal and thought-provoking."--People Magazine ★ "A deeply moving, frank, and compassionate exploration of trauma and resilience, filled to the brim with incisive, grounded wisdom." --Booklist, starred review ★ "King writes with the confidence of a tightrope walker working without a net."--Publishers Weekly, starred review ★"[King] blurs reality, truth, violence, emotion, creativity, and art in a show of respect for YA readers."--Horn Book Magazine, starred review ★ "King's brilliance, artistry, and originality as an author shine through in this thought-provoking work. [...] An unforgettable experience." SLJ, starred review

zaynah

alexandra

3/5 ★

i love art related books, and STILL LIFE WITH TORNADO was exactly what my art-lovin'-self needed. the story follows a girl who is struggling with an 'existential crisis' and can't seem to draw anymore. in reality, i think she's suffering from PTSD. i didn't expect this book to be about tough situations, but i didn't mind that it was.

one thing i enjoyed was that there is no romance – at all. it's rare to find a contemporary YA novel with absolutely no romance, and i felt that this was more realistic. the protagonist talks about how she loves art more than anything else, and i could see that parallel in my real life. i also liked the writing style as there were lots of repetitions and metaphors.

although there aren't many things i DIDN'T like about STILL LIFE, i simply didn't find it memorable. as i write this, it's been a week since i finished the book and i can't remember the main character's name. in this way, i'm a little disappointed because i was hoping it wouldn't be this lackluster. i was also hoping the ending would have more closure. there were two conflicts brought up in the plot and we only know the end result of one. *sigh*

STILL LIFE WITH TORNADO was alright. i really enjoyed the writing and found myself smiling and frowning with the characters. however, i didn't connect deeply with the story and found it average.

Cristian Garcia

Somewhere, somehow I heard about this book and I put it in my "to read" list; I started reading it without having a clue about it, and I liked it. I did not know where the story was going to take me, I just enjoyed the ride. I read the book somehow fast, I was expecting some "paranormal" or "science fictional" element to it, but it was a very normal story, very intimate and real after all. This is not the type of book I read and maybe that is why I liked it, it felt "original".

Midori Kobayashi

love when authors find a way to give a fresh side to already over done themes. i didn't think i would relate to 16yo sarah so much but hey we all have our moments. family abuse and existential crisis is the predominant theme, in case y'all are wondering.

Sven Test

This review was originally posted on Latte Nights Reviews.

When I started reading, I wanted to stop reading this book. I couldn't really connect to the main character. I know a lot of people love this book so I pushed forward. I have to say, I was in for a surprise.

Sarah is sixteen years old and she's going through what she calls "existential crisis". After making the decision of dropping out of school due to an incident, Sarah starts to be an observer in life. Her parents don't speak to each other, and if they do, it's to fight. She hasn't seen/heard from her brother in six years. She follows around a homeless guy because she thinks he's an original idea. And Sarah herself is searching for an original idea. That's when she meets 10-year-old Sarah, 23-year-old Sarah, and later on 40-year-old Sarah. The thing is, Sarah's family went on vacation when she was 10-years-old. Sarah has suppressed feelings of that vacation and therefore, doesn't remember what happened. This is when 10-year-old Sarah helps her navigate through those feelings and finally know why her brother left right after that vacation.

Art let me surround myself with something different. Something new. Something real. Something that was mine.

I don't know what I was expecting from this book, but it wasn't what I got. I actually got more than what I thought I would. As I said before, I couldn't connect to Sarah. The way she would be in the beginning was a little bit annoying for me. As I kept reading, her story spoke to me and I ended up seeing myself in her. Despite the magical realism, I loved how real the story felt.

The magical realism was a surprise for me, but I ended up loving it. I'm not a fan of Magical Realism at all, but A.S. King sold it to me with her writing. While reading, I thought 10, 23, and 40-year-old Sarah would help present 16-year-old Sarah figure out her life and her "crisis". I loved that King took a spin here and these characters played a deeper role in the story of Sarah's mom and brother.

This story is told from Sarah's point of view as well as her mom, Helen's point of view. Helen's point of view added a lot of insight into Sarah's life as well as her own. I thought this was a very nice touch since I haven't really read books with a mom's point of view. I felt for Helen on such a deep level. She's such a strong mom and I admired her throughout the entire novel.

I think when you've been abused by someone for a while, it's like being in a cult. The longer you stay, the more brainwashed you get.

Overall, Still Life with Tornado is a thought-provoking, heart-wrenching and sensitive novel that will move its readers. King combined a lyrical and simplistic prose to bring a moving, eye-opening story on abuse.This review was originally posted on Latte Nights Reviews.

Amanda Kordeliski

I really liked this one. Not as much as Glory O'Brian or Reality Boy, but I really liked it.

Carley Whitehead

Weird but really good. Definitely a unique take on a much written about issue.

Libby G

This book was very good. It's hard to talk about without giving anything away. From the first page new information is being reveled, all of it is important. I almost took this book back to library before reading it because it was close too its due date but I'm glad I didn't. I feel like I could read this book several more times, at several different ages and still get more from it.

A.S. King

'Moving, unapologetically strange, skilfully constructed.... Read this book, whatever your age. You may find it’s the exact shape and size of the hole in your heart.' New York Times Sixteen-year-old Sarah can't draw. This is a problem, because as long as she can remember, she has 'done the art.' She thinks she's having an existential crisis. And she might be right; she does keep running into past and future versions of herself as she wanders the urban ruins of Philadelphia. Or maybe she's finally waking up to the tornado that is her family, the tornado that six years ago sent her once-beloved older brother flying across the country for a reason she can't quite recall. After decades of staying together 'for the kids' and building a family on a foundation of lies and domestic violence, Sarah's parents have reached the end. Now Sarah must come to grips with years spent sleepwalking in the ruins of their toxic marriage. As Sarah herself often observes, nothing about her pain is remotely original—and yet it still hurts. Insightful, heartbreaking, and ultimately hopeful, this is a vivid portrait of abuse, survival, resurgence that will linger with readers long after the last page. I am late to school because I don’t exactly remember the bus I took to get here before. The minute I step into the building, I open the umbrella and walk toward my locker. Superstition abounds. Students act as if I’ve brought a curse upon the building, but that’s only because they don’t know that there is already a curse upon the building. The curse is: Nobody here focuses on the now. A. S. King is the award-winning author of eight acclaimed YA novels. Her novel Please Ignore Vera Dietz earned a 2011 Michael L. Printz Honor and Ask the Passengers won the 2013 Los Angeles Times Book Prize. King lives with her family in Pennsylvania, where she returned after a decade in Ireland living off the land and teaching adult literacy. ‘One of the best YA writers working today.’ John Green 'A. S. King has always brought her unique touch to her YA novels, but she may have outdone even herself in Still Life with Tornado.' Bustle 'You’ll find Still Life’s exploration of an artist’s inner strength particularly enriching.' Teen Vogue 'The presentation of the surreal as real, the deeply thoughtful questions she poses, the way she empowers her teenage characters to change the trajectory of their lives—King writes with the confidence of a tightrope walker working without a net.' Publishers Weekly 'King understands and writes teen anxieties like no other, resulting in difficult, resonant, compelling characters and stories.' Kirkus ‘A slow burn of a novel concerned with the difficulty of coming to terms with life as it is...A riveting and rewarding read.’ Adelaide Advertiser ‘Still Life with Tornado is a slow-burning but fascinating book...With elements of magical realism, this novel is one that will have you glued to the pages. The writing is as lyrical as it is poignant, and I couldn’t recommend this one enough for people wanting to delve into the sub-genre I call existential contemporary.’ Written Word Worlds ‘Still Life With Tornado is the perfect blend of magic, mystery, and real life. It’s clever, heartbreaking, and hopeful.’ Bookish Manicurist ‘A. S. King shows a deep understanding of teen anxieties and writes with streetwise humour, tenderness and originality...Hers is a magical style that dances off the page.’ Otago Daily Times ‘Amid the dark ubiquity of fractured relationships, crumbling families, adolescent angst and rebellion that characterises YA fiction, it is an unusual novel that rises above that common ground, that explores that generic territory in a fresh and compelling way. A. S. King is one writer who does just that.’ Magpies ‘An authentic representation of the effect of domestic violence on an ordinary family, and the complex consequences of trying to keep together while being as wind-swept as a tornado. A thoughtful read.’ Reading Time ‘A fantastic mix of contemporary and magic realism with some of the most well-developed characters I have ever read. If you’re a fan of character-driven novels, then this one is for you...This book has gotten under my skin.’ Younger Sun

Victoria Grace

In the words of the Queen Taylor Swift ‘When you are young, they assume you know nothing’ and in that is art. 

Elena Garcia Navarro

Becca Leigh

I appreciated the plot as a whole, and the interesting concept of literally seeing yourself in the past, in the future. However, the writing style just did not click with me at all. I wish I enjoyed the story more, because the ideas were so unique and interesting,