The Girl and the Stars

“Yaz walked on, unseeing, understanding a new truth on her last day: Abeth's ice might stretch for untold miles, but there was, in all that emptiness, no room for an individual.”

Things I love:
??? Lawrence's ability to deliver insightful and philosophical perspective on something as simple as being human. I could pick so many quotes from this, from all his books.
??? The world of Abeth, the planet covered in ice except for a belt of green along equator that dwindles slowly as the ice progresses.
??? That Lawrence's world building always mixes what seems like a long time ago primitive age and futuristic technology.
??? How fierce Yaz, the protagonist is.

I did not like:
??? The pace. The first 3rd is a compelling ride, and the ending is quite the evil cliffhanger, but there's a big chunk in the middle that didn't work for me. Funny thing, I wouldn't change a thing about it. Because I've read The Book Of The Ancestors (also a series taking place on Abeth), I was expecting more brutality and violence. I can acknowledge that Yaz' story is quite different from Nona's, and that Yaz' challenges involve a different kind of brutality. And with that in mind I think the pacing is what it's supposed to be, it's just not quite for me.
??? The characters... give off a vibe that makes the book feel a little YA novel to me. I reckon it's to do with teenage love/jealousy showing its face many times throughout. Also, not for me, but maybe it works for other readers.