The Perfect Cut

Because of the subject matter of this book, it could have been very good, and it had a lot of potential. However, I don't think that it lived up to the potential of the story, and here is why...
From the beginning of the book, and through to the end, I always felt like it was designed more as an educational tool than as a story in itself. To me, it felt like the author said, "I want to write a book that will teach people about self injury" as opposed to "I want to write a book about a boy who cuts himself". Important details to the story are left out or skipped over in places where it wouldn't fit with the "educational" direction of the story. I felt as though the writer must have done a lot of research on the subject, but didn't truly show more understand it on an emotional level.
The main character Bryan reads like a checklist of symptoms throughout nearly the entire first half of the book. I didn't find him particularly well-developed at all, and he seemed only to exist as a vehicle for said symptoms. The other people in his life fell similarly flat. His father is abusive, but seemingly unrealistically so - and I realize that some people are not realistic, but I think a better job could have been done.
Something that bothered me about this book was the author's tendancy to flippantly and unexpectedly switch POV characters. For a fair bit we deal exclusively with Bryan's point of view, until it suddenly switches to that of his housekeeper, Stella, as she thinks her way through what is almost an essay on self-injury. After this, the author keeps switching unexpectedly in the middle of paragraphs, and to me it made it sound like a fable being read to children. In addition to this, the book was formatted so that each paragraph had a full line of space in between it and the next. This made it hard to tell which things were related, as everything was disjointed, and at the time that the book moved forward in time there was nothing to differentiate that from just normal paragraphs. I think it was a poor choice.
Halfway through the book it does get more interesting, as Bryan sort-of makes a friend, and it starts sounding less like just a fable. However it never quite loses that education-ish edge to it.
The second half of the book is much better, with Bryan ending up in the hospital and going through some treatment. I found it a little too convenient that his psychiatrist also happened to run the mental ward at the hospital, but I can look past that.
Finally dealing with the details of his sister's death added some depth to the character, and it was in the final moments of the book that I felt finally able to connect with him. The story was resolved well in those last few chapters and didn't leave me asking more questions. The last half of the book was good enough for me to put aside the first half's shortcomings and actually enjoy the book. show less

I believe that in today's society, books about social issues are indispensable. The Perfect Cut is one such book. Julie Burtinshaw has taken a hard look at one of today's most (unfortunately) common and much hushed topics - cutting.

While many people choose to believe this is a limited problems - in my opinion, it goes right up there with eating disorders - both issues are growing in leaps and bounds and people are choosing to ignore the problems.

The Perfect Cut describes the perfect, painful pleasure our main character takes in cutting himself (yes, I did say "him") as a way to release his stress, pain and sadness. This book is doubly unusual in that it made its main character a male. Again, most people will assume that cutting is show more strictly a female problem - but I do not believe this argument. What is so fascinating about Burtinshaw's book is that as the reader, I get to "be" in Bryan's mind - before, during and after he cuts himself. The vivid description of the cutting and of the feelings he experiences make this book extremely difficult to read and yet, strangely compelling at the same time.

Cutting is a complex issue and the author does not claim to have it all figured out - yet, this book is a gem - in telling us, simply and honestly, what Bryan is living with day in and day out (some of it in his head and some of it - his reality) we get a sense that this person is deeply hurt and although cutting is not the solution (neither is drugging, eating disorders or drinking for that matter) Bryan, in his own way, is trying to do the best that he can with all that is bottled up inside.

I believe the time for this book has come and I suggest it be read by all Young Adults and their parents alike - you are not going to like what you read, but it is OUR reality now. show less