Review - Eleven Minutes

Eleven Minutes (Fracture #0.5)
by Megan Miranda
Date: 2012
Publisher: Walker Publishing
Reading level: YA
Book type: short story
Pages: 28
Format: e-book
Source: Amazon.ca

Fracture is told from Delaney's perspective, and if you've read the first two chapters, you know that she falls through the ice in chapter one, and she wakes up 6 days later. And what happens in between—well, that's Decker's story.

This is the story of those eleven minutes, and the six days that follow, from his perspective. Because while it must be terrifying to be trapped under the ice, it's a different kind of terror seeing your best friend trapped...

Especially if it's your fault.

(synopsis from Goodreads)

This short story was included at the back of my copy of Fracture.  Though I'd just managed to slog through the book and was kind of glad it was over, I decided I might as well read this story and see if it was any better than the book.  It is.  It's a lot better.  Weird...

Or maybe it isn't so weird, since Eleven Minutes is narrated by Decker, the only decent character from the book.  While I eventually took to calling Delaney by another nickname (she's "Duh-laney" in my notes, on account of her being so stupid), I quite liked her longtime neighbour and friend.  Through Decker's eyes, we see what happened in the eleven minutes when Delaney was under the water in the frozen lake, and during the subsequent week.  He's a lot more likeable, and I feel like I know more about him -- and even Delaney -- after reading this short story than I learned from Fracture.

I wish that the author had written Fracture from Decker's point of view in the first place.  But then I guess we couldn't have had the whole plot with Delaney running around with a sociopath and trying to become valedictorian (because she's so smart).  Poor Decker; he really deserves better than Delaney.

Quotable moment:

"You coughed," he said. "Her finger twitched." He paused between sentences. No and. No then. No connection. Two isolated incidents randomly happening at the same time.

I turned away from the doctor, leaned in close over the bed, and whispered in Delaney's ear, "Do it again."

Her mother leaned forward with me.

"You're seeing what you want to see," the doctor said.

"No," I said. "You are."

Recommended to: readers of Fracture who liked Decker and are curious about his point of view

Plot: 3/5
Characters: 4/5
Pace: 3/5
Writing & Editing: 3/5
Originality: 3/5

Enjoyment: 3/5

Overall Rating: 3.14 out of 5 ladybugs