My Thoughts: Breathing Underwater by Alex Flinn

4 sweet lemon bars.

Cover Love:  Not really.  It just doesn't appeal to me.

Why I Wanted to Read This:  I always hear about this as a frequently challenged book.  That alone made me want to read this one!  Here's the synopsis from GoodReads:

Like father, like son.

Intelligent, popular, handsome, and wealthy, sixteen-year-old Nick Andreas is pretty much perfect — on the outside, at least. What no one knows — not even his best friend — is the terror that Nick faces every time he is alone with his father. Then he and Caitlin fall in love, and Nick thinks his problems are over. Caitlin is the one person who he can confide in. But when things start to spiral out of control, Nick must face the fact that he's gotten more from his father than green eyes and money.

Romance?: Sort of. We do see the start of Nick and Caitlin's relationship.

What I Liked:

There are a lot of relationship abuse books out there told from the girl's point of view.  And they are good, very good, important books that girls should read--even ones that are not in abusive relationships.  This is the first one that I have ever read that is told from the male's point of view and has him going through therapy to get help for his problem.

The therapy group sessions were so interesting to read.  There was so much growth for Nick and when he finally recognized his actions in another group member it was such a turning point for him.  But you definitely got the feeling that this is a problem he will struggle with for the rest of his life.

There was such a disparity between the Nick we saw--that one had such low self esteem (thanks Dad!) and the Nick that was involved with Caitlin.  He just wanted to control her and his relationship with her.  Not that the verbal and physical abuse was okay, but you certainly knew why he felt he needed to control something.

It was also interesting to see how the school reacted to Nick's actions.  Most of the time the girl and the reader know what is going on but everyone else still thinks the guy is wonderful.  The way his friends turned on him made him such a more sympathetic character.

To Sum Up:  I have no idea why this one is challenged.  I think this could be an important book for young adult boys and girls to read. 

Book checked out from public library.