The Reading Date

This is a hard book to talk about. The subject matter is horrifying and disturbing. The story is told by "Alice", a 15 year old who was abducted at age 10 while on a school field trip. She is subjected to unthinkable abuse at the hands of her abductor Ray. He gives her the name Alice.Alice is broken and resigned to her fate, and all is very hopeless. Adults around her either don't notice her situation or don't want to know or get involved. She does not trust any adult to help her, many times I wished she would run to get away or try to get help.As Alice grows up into a woman, Ray gets angry and tries to keep her looking like a young girl by starving her, etc. Alice starts to see a way out of her situation when Ray decides he wants to abduct another young girl. We see her struggle with this decision of whether to help Ray abuse another child.The story is very engrossing, thought provoking, and well written. It is just very unsettling to read about this subject matter. I rushed to get through it in one sitting- it is a gripping story, and one I'm sure not to forget. I quickly picked up another book to read right after to try to get over the haunting feel of this book. Recommended for mature teens due to the subject matter. This book is not for everyone, but it certainly makes you think.