Radiance by Alison Noel

Reading Response: Radiance by Alison Noel 

Taitu Fedenko 812

I am currently reading the book Radiance by Alyson Noel. The book is about 12 year old Riley who is now dead and in the afterlife, Here. Riley doesn’t understand what is going on but is about to find out that she is destined to be a soul catcher. As I am reading have noticed the fact that this book makes you question your life and all the things we take for granted in life. I have not finished the book yet but I can already tell that it will help me to think about, life, living, and taking life for granted in a whole new way. 

When I was reading the book at first I noticed the way that the author talked about what other characters were thinking. I liked this because it helped me to understand what these characters were really like not just who Riley, the main character, saw them as. As I read on in the book, I realized that Here, the afterlife, for an energy source uses thoughts so anyone can really hear your thoughts if you do not control them. This might affect Riley in couple of ways. For one, the truth is not always thing that we want to hear. Sometimes it is too hard to listen to things when we know it is true, especially when it is about us. Another example is: What if someone hears what you think about them? When you think about either way someone gets hurt and that can affect relationships that Riley has between other characters in the book. For example, Riley thinks in her head that this guy is dorky and he hears her, as well he is extremely offended. It turns out that same guy is supposed to train her to become a soul catcher; could this one thought Riley had change their relationship? If so, how would it affect Riley?

Then, when Riley’s older sister, Ever is introduced it seems like Riley spent her entire life as Ever’s shadow. Riley’s life seems to revolve around Ever. Riley: stole Ever’s clothes, watched Ever make out with her boyfriend, and it was Ever who got the better bike that was lime green, and a lot faster than Riley’s crappy one. Riley feels like her whole life has been one big lie that revolves around Ever. Riley didn’t want believe it, because she had her whole life ahead of her, or so she thought. But what happen now that Riley is dead?

Later on in the book, Riley is called in by the council to be assigned soul catcher. Riley stands up for herself by telling the council the way that she feels about this entire situation. I think that Riley is building up her anger and the council was the one that she took out her anger on. Riley has never had an outburst like that so I think that she is becoming stronger by standing up to the council. I believe that if she can stand up to them she can stand up to anybody. Then I thought about the way I’d feel in Riley’s position since we are about the same age. I realized that I would be angry too if my life was stolen away from me, being dead at only twelve doesn’t give you much of a life to live.

I am still learning a lot about this book , but it helped me to realize that life is too short to be taken for granted.