Review: On the Island by Tracey Garvis-Graves

On the Island by Tracey Garvis-Graves 

Publisher: Penguin 

Pages: 281 

Format: eARC 

Buy the Book: Amazon  

Goodreads:  Anna and T.J. are en route to join T.J.'s family in the Maldives when the pilot of their seaplane suffers a fatal heart attack and crash-lands in the Indian Ocean. Adrift in shark-infested waters, their life jackets keep them afloat until they make it to the shore of an uninhabited island. Now Anna and T.J. just want to survive and they must work together to obtain water, food, fire, and shelter. Their basic needs might be met but as the days turn to weeks, and then months, the castaways encounter plenty of other obstacles, including violent tropical storms, the many dangers lurking in the sea, and the possibility that T.J.'s cancer could return. As T.J. celebrates yet another birthday on the island, Anna begins to wonder if the biggest challenge of all might be living with a boy who is gradually becoming a man.




Kritters Thoughts:  A cross between the Tom Hanks stranded on the island movie and one of those controversial stories we hear about teachers falling in loving with a student - it was quite an odd combination.  Anna is a teacher who has been hired to tutor TJ over the summer to get him back on track after battling cancer.  As they head to the vacation destination their plane crashes and they are stranded on an island.  


Their time on the island, I loved.  It was interesting to read about the many things they had to overcome and what a person can do despite all the circumstances.  The illnesses that can occur on an island and how to survive at the most basic level, I loved it.  


The second half of the book that focused more on their relationship lost me - I agree with TJ's family in that the age difference made things weird.  It just didn't click with me.


Although a page turner with an ease of reading, I am just not sure about this one.  The plot points were just a little too awkward for me.




Rating: enjoyable, but didn't leave me wanting more


Ebook Challenge 2012: 35 out of 25  



Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from Edelweiss.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.