A book, location, plot and story with a a lot of potential, this kept me reading until the end. However, having reached the end I am not entirely sure that the destination was worth the voyage.

See tag. ( )

I didn't get this one. The first 120 pages were spent establishing that 1) John Egan is big for eleven. Really big. 2) John's parents are freaked out by how big he is 3) John is sad because he parents don't treat him like a little boy anymore. 4) John is interested in detecting lies.

Once those things are established (i.e., pummelled through the reader's skull) through a variety of rather repetitive scenes, there's a plot shift, which at first feels interesting because finally something's happening! or, well, almost happening. Then I got vicariously addicted to meth via Nic Sheff's "Tweak," after which I was (barely) able to stomach the rest of "Carry Me Down." ( )

This didn't go the way I thought it would, and it ended up being one of those books where I dislike all the characters too much to really care what happens to them and so lose interest in the plot, I'm afraid. Kind of similar to The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime, but more irritating. ( )

Carry Me Down is the story of a twelve-year-old boy named John Egan. He lives in Ireland in his grandmother's house with his mother and father. His father has quit his job, and is studying for the entrance exam at Trinity College . John is obsessed with the Guinness Book of World Records, and wants more than anything to be in it. When he notices a physical manifestation in his body when someone lies to him, he thinks he could make it into the book as the first human lie detector. John pursues truth relentlessly in his quest to get into the book, at the risk of damaging his relationships with friends and family. The book follows John's quest through his parents' marital problems, his father's rift with his grandmother, and through their reduced circumstances after his grandmother kicks them out – leading up to a terrible, and somewhat implausible solution.

Hyland writes a compelling narrative. This is definitely a page-turner, and the reader is able to identify with John up until the novel's shocking conclusion. There is something missing, however, some elegance of writing style or profound statement on humanity that renders the book unmemorable. It will be interesting to see what Hyland can do to enhance her storytelling skills in the future.