Review: Hold Still

Hold Still
by Nina LaCour
Published September 25th 2009
by Penguin

An arresting story about starting over after a friend's suicide, from a breakthrough new voice in YA fiction

Dear Caitlin, there are so many things that i want so badly to tell you but i just can't.

Devastating, hopeful, hopeless, playful . . . in words and illustrations, Ingrid left behind a painful farewell in her journal for Caitlin. Now Caitlin is left alone, by loss and by choice, struggling to find renewed hope in the wake of her best friend's suicide. With the help of family and newfound friends, Caitlin will encounter first love, broaden her horizons, and start to realize that true friendship didn't die with Ingrid. And the journal which once seemed only to chronicle Ingrid's descent into depression, becomes the tool by which Caitlin once again reaches out to all those who loved Ingrid - and Caitlin herself.

Out of the ten books I picked up at the library last Sunday, Hold Still was undoubtedly the one I was most excited about. Numerous friends of mine had recommended it and the reviews it received on Good Reads were very positive, so I deduced that this book had that 'wow-factor' I'd been searching for ever since I read Stay With Me by Garret Freymann-Weyr (a novel that also revolves around a loved one's suicide). Stay With Me was written in beautiful prose that didn't sacrifice clarity or meaning, which is that 'wow' style I've been on the hunt for ever since finishing.

Hold Still has ended that hunt. The way LaCour laces philosophies into prose is very seamless and leaves the reader thinking without being demanding or preachy. All the things that run through Caitlin's mind, both about Ingrid and life in general, are spot-on and insightful -- but not to the point where we forget that this is a teenaged girl. Caitlin's inner-monologue breathes believability and that, above beautiful prose and quote-worthy lines, is something LaCour should be very proud of.

Another thing that LaCour should get a shiny, gold medal for is her characterization. From absent-Ingrid, to hardly-mentioned-Henry, every character was realistic and unique. In fact, one of my status updates on Good Reads while reading this book was 'I swear these characters are real people and that I've seen them walking around town before.' It wasn't that LaCour spent extensive time describing and building these characters (because she didn't, in most cases), but that she made every word about them count. The only time when characterization may have fell short the tiniest bit was when Alisha's followers were described, based only on their tank tops and actions towards Henry. They were mainly referred to by whatever label was on their tank top (one of them was spoiled, one of them was princess, etc) and for the most part blended together. However, I took a step back and reminded myself that this is through Caitlin's eyes, Caitlin who is only human and deals with superficial people like the rest of us. Considering how well-developed the rest of the cast was, it's safe to assume that LaCour knew what she was doing when she let the followers fade into the background.

Writing, characters, the last thing I want to address is the plot. Hold Still didn't really have a plot, at least not a very defined one. We readers wade through Caitlin's journey in sections labeled off by season and then numbers within each season. The shift in season and gradual shift in Caitlin's mindset were what drove the story, as opposed to a traditional plot. While this may irritate those that are fond of a clear beginning, middle, and ending, I found this format to be very conducive to the story and characters that LaCour wanted to write about. There wasn't a plot that drove Hold Still, but LaCour proved that books don't always need a defined plot in order to be beautiful, memorable, and well-written.

12345 stars