Hit - Hardcover

Hit is a lot more than it seems at first glance. It may sound like a story about forbidden love, but it only takes about three chapters --- when Sarah is hit by the car --- to make you realize it's about so much more than that. Sarah has a fairly typical crush on her young and handsome poetry teacher, who in return is unsure about his own feelings toward the brilliant and pretty high school senior. It's quickly stated that Sarah is indeed 18 and that Mr. Haddings is indeed a graduate student acting as a student teacher at the school. So while the idea of a student-teacher relationship may make you uncomfortable, just know that this is not the focus of the book. What makes this book unique and interesting is everything that happens following the car accident. It's a realistic take on a situation such as this, and it certainly hits home for those that have been in this position before. We see the events unfold through both Sarah and Haddings' eyes, getting the whole story when these characters only have part of the tale. Sarah's thoughts as she's being flown to the hospital, getting prepped for surgery, and coming-to post-operation are crushingly real, often funny, and often tragic. Her whole world has been turned upside down, and she doesn't know where to look. But on the other side of the window you have Mr. Haddings. It would be easy to hate him, to blame him for the accident, but you feel for him at the same time. It truly was an accident, and he wants to do everything he can to rectify the situation. But can he? And we must always question his motivations --- is he doing this for himself, the sake of his career, or for Sarah? The characters in this book are hyper-realistic, and as such, they are not always likable. But considering Hit was, in fact, inspired by a true story, we would expect nothing less. * Hypable *

After receiving a full-ride scholarship to Mills College for Girls, it appears Sarah's future is all laid out before her ... that is until she walks into a poetry class led by Mr. Haddings, a student teacher from the nearby University of Washington. Suddenly, life on the UW campus seems very appealing, and Sarah finds herself using her poetry journal to subtly declare her feelings for Haddings. Convinced Mr. Haddings is flirting back, she sets off for school in the rain with a poem in her back pocket-one that will declare her feelings once and for all. Mr. Haddings has noticed Sarah's attention; the fallout from any perceived relationship with a student is too great a risk, and he has decided to end all speculation that morning. But everything changes when Mr. Haddings feels a thud on his front bumper when he glances away from the road, and finds Sarah in the street with blood pooling beneath her.