This children’s story was hilarious, impactful, and thematically strong! Front of the line for teachers of young children.

Wonderful story written in verse about a high school girl and her struggle with oxycodone. It seemed like a very real story that a teen could go through. Very fast read and well worth it.

this collection of poetry couldn't keep my interest. I was quite bored and I did not like it at all. I was not a fan

Unfortunately I was not able to read this collection as it expired and have not been able to find the book digitally anywhere. But I do really want to read this book of poetry

It has been a while since I've read this, but I vaguely remember feeling like the poems were slightly overdramatic towards the end. Overall, an interesting collection, but not necessarily something I would recommend left, right, and centre.

Its not that this was bad in anyway, i just kinda failed to see the point? Like was i missing some big plot hole in this? Maybe i will have to read it again.

This was an intriguing perspective of how teens accidentally can become addicts, and just how those consequences come about.

Thanks Net Galley for the preview!

I enjoy books in this poetry/verse format but did not know from the description that this book would be this way. I found this very hard to read in an electronic format. Nevertheless, I enjoyed the quick pace of the book. However, I have a lot of problems with the content. I think it does a little too much romanticizing of drug use, stealing and selling drugs and I don't believe this message should be sent out to teens. I didn't like the ending-the vibe of alright you overdosed but everything is okay and you are grounded but you have your phone and can still text your dealer boyfriend. I completely disagree with the message that sends and feel like the book needs a disclaimer or an info paragraph about who to call when you are struggling with addiction or depression and cannot talk to your family. I think this book had an opportunity to turn into a teaching moment at the end and it really fell short.

I received a copy of Little Pills from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review. Because it was an e-pub file the formatting made it really difficult to read! But, overall I think the format told the story of Charlotte Navarro's struggle with addiction in a powerful way. It showed their struggle as they went to write their story. There was times I did struggle to read it, but I am glad I read it!

Little Pills felt like an attempt to recreate what Ellen Hopkins has done successfully so many times. As a big Hopkins fan, I rally wasn't that impressed with this one. It seems to be more juvenile, despite the fact that this book is about a high school girl addicted to Oxy. This was a short, fast read.

Writing the book in verse doesn't add anything and detracts from the book in my opinion. It also misses a lot of the nuance of addiction by being intentionally sparse. I didn't feel like this was a good look at the opioid crises, more like a morality tale about why taking drugs is bad. I didn't find the writing or story compelling.

The poems themselves weren't bad, but reading them on the ereader was really difficult as the format was terrible. The font was crazy small. That is what made reading this very difficult and I ended up giving up after awhile.

Brutal and beautiful. I don't typically enjoy novels in verse, but I liked this one. It manages to tell a full story that would probably sound more generic in a traditional YA style.

I love poetry story telling. If you are a fan of Ellen Hopkins Crank, Pills will have you turning page after page.

The formatting of this book on my kindle was SO bad that I couldn't read it. Gave up after 3 pages. Rubbish.

Little Pills is a story-in-verses that talks about drug addiction. The verses flowed perfectly, and I couldn't stop myself from finishing the book in an hour. It was so good.

I especially loved the ending, since it was so full of hope and it left me with a smile. Nothing can be better than knowing that you'd accompanied a character in their journey towards becoming a better person than they'd been.

In the limited time they got within the verses, the characters all managed to look whole and real, which I really appreciate. It was a joy to read the verses sporting such well crafted characters.

I really liked the way Little Pills picked up the topic of drug addiction in teens and turned it into a story with such a meaningful, not to mention hopeful ending.

Little Pills was insightful, enjoyable and real. And I loved every part of it.

Seventeen-year-old Charlotte Navarro starts taking pills and more pills until her sister hates her, she meets a dangerous boy, and she steals from her Gramma. Will she get help before it's too late for her and her friends?
"Little Pills" tells a provocative story about addiction and how it affects individuals, families and relationships. I read the book in an hour because I couldn't put it down. But it's a tough read. Any book about addiction, particularly with teens, troubles me since addiction has affected numerous loved ones. Plus, the writing doesn't flow sometimes and the story includes unnecessary details in places. However, this book is also an important read since it offers insight into addiction and its effects. For that reason, I can recommend "Little PIlls."

The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines addiction as a “compulsive need for and use of a habit-forming substance.” For some, these addictions can be as minuscule as a laptop or social media. For others, though, these addictions can become detrimental — affecting not only themselves, but the ones around them. For Melody Dodds’ novel, “Little Pills,” this is exactly what happens.

Told through prose (think Ellen Hopkins), this story follows seventeen-year-old Charlotte, a young girl whose life is changed forever when she discovers the spiraling world that is oxycontin. Weighing in at only a little over 200 pages, Dodds is able to convey the battle that is addiction, ultimately leaving us with a sorrow in her hearts for those who have dealt with the little pills.

Now, before I continue on with my own thoughts, I do want to note that this novel affected me on a more personal level than most do. As someone who has seen what pain killer and heroin addiction can do to someone I love, I truly feel Charlotte’s story struck a chord with me. Nonetheless, this does not have any effect on my overall review. It simply weighs my opinions.

So, due to this, I think we should get my opinions out of the way.

First of all, I really enjoyed Dodds’ descriptive language when talking about the highs and lows of addiction. Without giving any spoilers, I believe the author really understood what it felt to witness someone come down from a high. While reading this novel, I was transported back five years ago, watching my loved one shake and mutter as they sat on my sofa.

Another thing I really enjoyed about the story was the characters. I’ll be honest, I usually find within hard-hitting novels such as this one that the characters are often bogged down by the topic at hand. “Little Pills,” however, manages to keep the important characters front and center while leaving the lesser-important characters in the chorus.

One character that stood out to me, in particular, was Mia. Now, there isn’t much to say without spoiling anything, but I will say that Mia reminded me of myself at such an impressional time in life.

Of course, there are always some negatives when it comes to any book. “Little Pills” is no exception.

For one thing, the stepfather’s way of handling our main character’s addiction irked me. Perhaps it was simply my own experience (let’s face it, it definitely was), but I feel the entire situation was not helpful to Charlotte.

Another thing I didn’t like was the ending. I promise I’m not going to spoil anything, so that’s all I’m going to say. It was just very unfulfilling and left a lot to be desired.

So, overall, “Little Pills” by Melody Dodds was a harrowing, wounding tale of what our lives can become — whether we’re the one taking the pills or not — when we become addicted. For those who have experienced these effects, the story may open new wounds. For those who are lucky enough to never experience these events, it opens eyes and minds to what really happens behind closed doors. For that, this novel is receiving a 4 out of 5 star rating. Thank you, Melody Dodds, for giving the world an opportunity to understand the true battles of addiction.

There was by no means anything wrong with this book, it just failed to interest me. Perhaps it was the pacing, or the length of the book, or maybe even the fact that it was written in poetry, a genre I'm not too familiar with. But all the same, I'm rating it 2 stars based off of my own personal enjoyment of it, which wasn't off-the-charts high.

I feel like maybe I would have liked this book more if it had just been written in regular prose. Charlotte's story is a very deep one, I just feel like it being written in short poems cut off any complexity it might have had.

I also think that the novel's ending was too rushed, or, if you will, oddly abrupt. When my kindle notified me that I had reached the end of the book, I was quite surprised. I did not feel as though there had been any closure, and I had an endless amount of questions about unresolved elements of the story... Maybe this was the author's intent, to leave readers with a thought-provoking ending, but I honestly only found it frustrating.

Overall, while I thought Little Pills was an okay novel, I can't say I recommend it. I feel as though the book is missing something, even if I can't pinpoint exactly what that is.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with this ARC!

A powerful poetry book, Little Pills by Melody Dodds is the story of seventeen year old Charlotte Navarro, who is struggling in many areas of her life- constantly in detention in school, missing her older brother who is away in the army, fighting with her little sister and wishing her mother did not have to work so many hours to keep body and soul together. The only joys she has in her life are reading, her friend Alexis and her music. When she begins to take some of her grandmother's pain medication to take the edge off, it helps. Life feels like floating on a cloud, and her new boyfriend is only too happy to float along too, but when the pills begin to run out and tempers start to fray, Charlotte is brought back down to earth with a bang when she thinks her little sister's friend has overdosed.
Raw, powerful, emotional , this book had me hooked as easily as Charlotte got hooked on the oxy, I loved it's depiction of how addiction damages not just the addict but also their relationships with family and friends. It may be a short book, but it really says all that is needed. I know a book is something special when it leaves me feeling like the ending of this one did. To say more would be a spoiler, but I am sure that I will not be the only reader hoping against hope that Charlotte makes the right choice.
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.