Sadly this one isn't for me at all, an I tried three times to get in to it and just couldn't do it .

This book has a really sad undertone and It made me feel all the feels.

It was a tad monotone but it is necessary. It brings you down to how Elizabeth feels. Its beautifully heartbreaking. The book leans heavily on childhood trauma so if thats a trigger for you, do your research before picking up.

It's set over two timelines... and it was well done. I usually hate books who do this but it felt natural the way it was done and I really appreciated the backstory. It helps you to udnerstand why Elizabeth is the way she is. I could feel the her vunerability. I couldn't imagine what she went through. To go through medical trauma and feel like a burden?,.. I felt the pain.

I don't normally read books like this. I am a really emotional person and the smallest thing can make me cry but this book... was done with such care that I felt myself sink in. It's beautifully written and the slower pace was done just right.

4.5 stars

Truly the kind of novel anyone who loves coming of age books should read.

[arc review]
Thank you to Penguin Teen Canada for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review.
I Am the Cage releases February 18, 2025

2.5

After many years of enduring medical trauma, Elisabeth has found solace and safety in the small town of Fish Creek as an isolated homebody.
At nineteen-years-old and with limited trust in others, Elisabeth is adamant on taking care of herself, but a severe snow storm forces her to confide in her neighbour and seek out help.

This is a very character-driven novel with short chapters that include flashbacks of Elisabeth's rehabilitation and integrations of poetry.

I think this would've packed more of a punch as a novella.

This was a difficult read and is chock full of trigger warnings. The subject matter was raw and painful. There is poetry mixed throughout the story. Chapters alternate mostly from Then to Present. My only complaint was the pace. It was slow moving in some parts and you really had to push through. But, it was moving and filled with important subject matter. I would recommend.

A beautiful novel of self reflection and growth as our MC runs from physical and emotional pain. I really enjoyed the raw vulnerability that she showed the reader as she didn’t shy away from her emotions even when trying to hide from their cause. The sweet and slow romance was a perfect method of healing, though I wished she had been aged up a bit to match her inner maturity. The setting really helped to highlight her feelings of isolation and the ending was a great arc for her. Nicely done.

Thank you to NetGalley for my digital copy. These options are my own.

This was a bit boring for me overall. I get the appeal, and I can see how important this book is to the author, but for me it just missed the mark. I think the story was kind of a downer with a dash of romance and frankly, that was where I turned my brain off. I just can't get into teenage/adult romance stuff as much as I used to, I've become way too cynical. Too many YA novels. Too many book talks about those themes. Blah. I know there is a place for this novel out there though, and I know people are going to love it.

Title: I Am the Cage
By: Allison Sweet Grant
Pub. Date: Feb. 18, 2025

Genre:
Fiction, Young Adult, Poetry, Disabilities, Mental Health

Red Flags: Situational Medical Abuse, Self-Harm, Bullying,
(*The content itself is gut wrenching, only recommended for older teens who are emotionally stable.*)

Favorite Quotes:
“How frightening it must be, to wake up to a world completely changed, and to no longer understand your place in it.”

“What’s worse?” He asks a question designed for the universe before us. “Being deceived by others or being deceived by others or being deceived by ourselves?”

“Twinkle, twinkle, little stars, connect the dots between my scars. Sticks and stones and silver pins, map the heavens on my skin.”

“I turn my head up toward the sky. I see no stars, but I know they’re there. It makes me think about the things we can’t see, even when they’re right in front of us, and the things we can see, but choose not to. I think about the times I’ve prayed for the stars to stop moving, and how sometimes I wished they’d move just for me. I think about how sometimes the sky looks so close you could poke it with your fingertip, and sometimes it looks so impossibly far away it’s hard to imagine there’s a good behind it.”

Summary/Review:
Wow! It’s hard to put into words the emotional roller coaster that is “I am the Cage.” Best YA I’ve read in a long time!!! This is a gut-wrenchingly, raw, coming of age story.

Elisabeth is a young adult, who moved to a cabin in the woods to escape her family. This childhood trauma filled narrative is created with poetic moments of pain, angering anguish, and bold pieces of courage. Through Grant’s talented writing we learn the necessary process of pain and healing.

As a professional educator for students with disabilities, so many of my students can relate to and benefit from this novel. A deeply unsettling narrative that will haunt the reader long after the last page. Highly Recommended!

For fans of Kathleen Glasgow, prepare to shed tears, read in one sitting!

Thank you to Allison Sweet Grant, Penguin Group Penguin Young Readers Group, Dutton Books for Young Readers, and Netgalley for the opportunity of an Advanced Readers Copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

#AllisonSweetGrant
#IAmACage
#PenguinGroupPenguinYoungReadersGroup
#DuttonBooksforYoungReaders
#reluctantreaderreads
#advancedreadercopies
#NetGalley

3.5/5 Stars

Elisabeth lives on her own in a small cabin in Fish Creek after leaving her home after a difficult childhood. She likes keeping to herself and being alone with her thoughts. On the night of a big snow storm, she has to accept help from her neighbour Noah, the town sheriff, who helps her work through some of her trauma.

This was quite the emotional read about trauma and healing. The story is told in two timelines, the past when Elisabeth was 11, going through a medical procedure and the aftermath of that and the present. I do think the book became a bit repetitive by the end, but it was enjoyable for the most part. I liked the character development Elisabeth went through, and how patient and caring Noah was towards her. Did find it a bit weird that he was loving on an 18 year old, and serving her alcohol as the town sheriff, but I digress. I was a big fan of the ending though.

I’m apparently not as enthralled with this book as most prior reviewers as I don’t think my opinion is the popular one. While I understand that Elizabeth, the 18 year old protagonist is suffering from PTSD due to some severe medical treatment and lack of support from her mother, I found much of the plot lost behind her “dramatic” stream of consciousness. I am considering that this is a YA book and Elizabeth is young and emotionally immature (in spite of her seeming maturity by living alone and supporting herself) and her mother really does seem to lack empathy and is presented as downright mean. But Elizabeth’s internal lamenting was just over the top for me - I found myself skimming through these lamentations and wishing to just get through the book. There were other aspects that I think would have made the book more readable with some better explanations, such as how did Elizabeth get to the point of seeing herself as undeserving of affection. I get that the medical procedure at age 11 left her feeling damaged but I would have liked more information about how she got from damaged to undeserving. It’s implied that her mother caused this but the details were too sparse for my understanding. I think YA books, at least about older adolescents are expected to have some romance but Noah, while being a sweet man, is just that - a man who is the sheriff and at least somewhat older so his romantic interest in Elizabeth was weird to me. And I was really missing the piece of the story between the resolution of the medical treatment and Elizabeth’s decision to become a recluse. In spite of the extensive picture (ad nauseam) that we get of Elizabeth’s internal dialogue, the missing pieces of the story made her character under-developed. The ending was rushed - I assume her mother sort of apologized and Elizabeth became a “normal” 19 year old college student who repaired her relationship with her best friend, Kacey (whatever caused their rift was another missing piece), but who knows? The inclusion of Elizabeth’s poetry was a nice addition but I think the book would have been so much better without all the dramatic lamenting, more background information and no romance or at least a more appropriate romance. This book is probably more like 2.5 stars rounded up to 3 for me.

A reader certainly does not see a lot of medical trauma in young adult literature so the laser-like focus of this topic makes it special right from the start. Then, Grant's use of the nonlinear timeline to connect the dots to a nineteen year old Elisabeth wanting to be alone in her remote-ish cabin in Wisconsin while working a quiet job with the kind Mr. Ito who doesn't get many customers and the young girl who is afraid of the medical establishment and writes searing poetry as a conduit for her pain and frustration.

Young Sheriff Noah is going to be a person in her life she has to be vulnerable to when a snowstorm hits and confronting her past is really the only way forward into her future. While I don't always like that a man has to be the one to rescue a woman from herself, it isn't overpowering. In a sense, he's doing his duty as a sheriff but then sees the deeper side.

It's got the trauma elements that readers of [author:Kathleen Glasgow|13479611] enjoy with the poetry of her pain for an audience that will connect to it. The scenes are visceral in the best sense of empathizing with her real pain that started with having one leg shorter than another.

I Am The Cage by Allison Sweet Grant opens with nineteen year old Elisabeth working and living in Fish Creek, Wisconsin. It's quiet and isolated and a place she can be anonymous. However, when the town has a massive snowstorm that shuts the entire town down, Elisabeth allows herself to seek out and accept help from the sheriff named Noah. When she starts to open up to Noah, Elisabeth realizes that she can't hide from her childhood trauma.

A huge thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Penguin Young Readers Group for providing me with an Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of I Am The Cage by Allison Sweet Grant. The synopsis was intriguing, so I was thrilled to be approved to read an early copy of this young adult novel.

This story was told from the perspective of the main character of Elisabeth, and it was told from the present day and flashbacks to the characters childhood of the pain she endured from a medical treatment. The alternating storylines were done exceptionally well, and I felt so bad for the character's younger self. There were themes of family, friends, and romance included in the story. If you're not a fan of romance, you don't have to worry about that part being over the top as it was very subtle. I enjoyed the story quite a bit, I found that it was drawn out more than it needed to be. Additionally, I kept waiting for more of a twist than what we received, so that was a bit disappointing.

As far as characters go, there are a limited amount of them throughout the story so it's easy to keep them all straight. Even though we get to know Elisabeth quite well through her flashbacks, I feel like we don't know her all that well in the present timeline. It's as if the author is keeping her at an arms length from the reader. When it comes to the sheriff, the author does a great job of dropping tidbits of his past throughout the story, but he still feels a bit two dimensional as does his brother who doesn't have much character development if any.

Exceptionally well-written, I Am The Cage by Allison Sweet Grant was a intriguing read that gives readers an insight to a specific medical treatment that leaves the audience feeling empathetic and hopefully more compassionate. Four out of five stars is what I rated this young adult novel.

A very powerful character driven novel, I Am The Cage is a beautiful story of breaking free of pain and trauma. I thought the flashbacks of young Elisabeth were so heartbreaking, but oh my goodness, they really showed the need for bodily autonomy and having a voice in what happens to you. Elisabeth was such a well written character and I loved the journey she takes in learning to trust others. I liked the hint of romance, but I really liked that it didn’t overtake the story or Elisabeth’s growth. Like I said at the beginning, it’s a character driven novel so it’s much slower paced with not a lot of action, but the story itself was so well done that I didn’t mind. There is some descriptions of medical procedures and healing injuries and I didn’t think it was horribly graphic, but I do think it’s worth mentioning for anyone who is sensitive to that.
CW: medical trauma

Thank you to NetGalley and Dutton Books for Young Readers for the advanced readers copy!

While I personally didn’t love this story, I can see how some would. As a chronic pain sufferer, I went into it expecting one type of thing and it was very much not that. Not that that makes it bad, I just felt it wasn’t as described. There is a lot of pain and raw emotion, which is very relatable but it also had a lot of her feeling sorry for herself and it felt like she was punishing herself for what was happening to her, rather than figuring out how to help herself and let others help.
And the romance aspect just felt out of context with the rest of the story since the character is so insular. The writing as we,k felt quite amateurish. Not that i could better, but it didn’t lend to being able to connect to the story.
Thanks to Sutton Books and NetGalley for this eArc in exchange for my review.

The body might heal, but the mind never forgets. I AM THE CAGE is in some ways a very brutal book. The agony Elisabeth experiences at the hands of the adults around her, the very ones she should have been able to trust and take that trust for granted, was unforgivable. I cringed every time I read a "then" chapter and had to read all about the excruciating pain Elisabeth endured in her leg and her soul. A particular scene close to the end almost made me gag because of how awful the medical treatment was. I'm shivering just thinking about it. In many ways I AM THE CAGE reads like an abuse survivor's account of the terrible things that happened to them, which I think is apt. This book will likely resonate with anyone who has had to receive any kind of involved medical treatment that lasted longer than one doctor's visit. I would never choose Wisconsin to vanish to, but I definitely understand Elisabeth's desire to escape and breathe without wanting to be a burden to those around her, even if she wasn't actually a burden. I really loved how Allison Sweet Grant structured this novel--the poetry peppered throughout is beyond gorgeous--and really loved Elisabeth's story. It impacted me a lot and I'm sure it will impact anyone who reads it, especially YA kiddos. Mild spoiler: it has a hopeful, happy-ish ending, in case you were wondering!

Thank you to NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group | Dutton Books for Young Readers for the ARC of this lovely novel.

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Group Young Reads for the eARC.

My heart aches for Elisabeth. My goodness she deserved so much more as both a child and a young adult. Her mother sucked, plain and simple.

This book depicts some medical trauma. It was hard to get though at times but was well done. The poetry was beautiful, and we love Sheriff Noah!

I devoured this book, wanting to fully understand the emotional anguish the main character Elisabeth was striving to leave behind after a childhood medical trauma broke her. I loved the evolution of Elisabeth’s desire to be independent, ultimately her loner worldview, into acceptance that it is ok to rely on others at times, especially when snowed in without electricity. Beyond that, her realization that reliance on others can bring joy and other emotions that lead us into finding new strength and new directions was powerfully explored. I loved the minor characters and their backstories as much as I did Elisabeth’s, and how they each, in their own way, were juxtaposed to her own. The ending wasn’t what I was looking for, but after some thought, it made more sense the way Grant wrote it.

Thank you to Penguin Young Readers Group, Dutton Books for Young Readers, Netgalley, and the author for early access to this novel.

I AM THE CAGE by Allison Sweet Grant is a rare story of grievous harm done to a child and their subsequent choices to be more, live more, and do more with their lives than remain trapped in a time of utter terror and helplessness. I loved the writing, did not always enjoy the scenes and flashbacks, but all felt entirely logical, authentic, and essential to hold this exceptional work. I'd recommend it to book clubs and adults rather than stick with its YA label. This character is every woman at different phases of life, age-independent. Ultimately, I think this is one of those stories that will resonate for me for years, not the least for its wonderful poetry and superb prose. I received a copy of this book and these opinions are my own, unbiased thoughts.

“When we’re at our worst, when we’re hurting, it touches everything.”

What a beautifully written story of healing and acceptance of one’s self.

Elizabeth is running from her past and wants nothing more than to be alone. She craves the solitude and doesn’t trust anyone after having such a traumatic childhood.

Noah is a beautiful guiding light. He’s charming and fun and his patience, understanding, and guidance are beautiful. You could feel the hope igniting within Elizabeth.

“The hurt in my heart just feels too big.”
“Maybe it’s just making space for something better.”

The writing is phenomenal. As we navigate back and forth from the present to past, we experience everything Elizabeth went through and continues to struggle with. It’s very descriptive and it’s so very raw and you can feel everything. My stomach ached and my heart hurt for her. I felt as if I was there with her. I could feel her pain, her sorrow, her hope, it was palpable through every chapter.

This story is creatively written. I loved the poetry and I felt like a lot of the story also read very poetically.

This is an emotional story of how your pain and trauma can shape you and overcoming your fears. It’s hope, inspiration, courage, strength, and healing.

“Maybe it takes courage to stay and courage to go.”

Thank you to Netgalley and PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group | Dutton Books for Young Readers for an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I enjoyed this book and felt for Elisabeth and her story. I could relate to her in some aspects of her story. I would recommend this book.

'I Am The Cage' by Allison Sweet Grant was a five-star read for me. This is a YA read but definitely does not read on an immature level. This book handles sensitive themes and emotions brilliantly. The cast of characters were few and the chapters were short, both of which are assets in my opinion. As the plot progresses you begin to realize more and more that everything is not 'okay' for Elisabeth and hasn't been in a long time. The book did not have a happily ever after romantic ending but rather a couple of pieces of poetry tied up the story. I really loved both of the pieces as they were central to the theme of the book. I would definitely recommend this read for adults from the later years of secondary school and upward. I would like to thank (the now extinct) BookishFirst and also Penguin Random House for getting this ARC in my hands. I thoroughly enjoyed it.