I received a copy of this title to read and review for Wicked Reads 
 5 Stars. 
 I'm not entirely sure how to review Come Sit By Me. I read it from page one until the end in one sitting without a break, where I now find myself moments later trying to put my thoughts into words. Being speechless is not a common place a writer often finds themselves. 
 I'll start by saying that if this book had been written in anything other than 1st person, it would not have had its intended impact. The narration runs like a constant stream of thought, actions being told in a storytelling fashion versus being shown. If written any other way, it wouldn't have felt as authentic. 
 Paul moves to a small town in Pennsylvania (my home state) after devastation rocks the community in the form of a school shooting, taking eight souls: seven innoncents and their suspected killer. 
 Paul begins his senior year, only to find out he was given Caleb's locker- the killer. Interested in journalism, Paul beings sticking his nose where it doesn't belong, connecting events from the 1920s through present time, trying to solve the one question everyone asks but can never answer. 
 Why? 
 Tenacious to a fault, to the point he loses focus on his own self-preservation, Paul finds out why. During the journey, he connects to Caleb in a way no one had while the boy was alive. 
 It was an interesting point of view, being able to be empathetic enough to understand what courses of action brought a boy to commit a string of heinous murders. I, the reader, understood how just a nudge in the wrong direction can derail your entire existence, until you do something you never thought possible. 
 The narrator takes us on the journey with him, not only seeking truths but showing us how Caleb spiraled down via his own actions, only he had the strengths and intelligence to walk a different path. 
 I found Come Sit By Me to be a highly intelligent read, with a great wealth of compassion, understanding, and realism. 
 A lot of healing could be achieved if we all took a step back and looked at every situation with the fresh eyes of someone who wasn't directly involved, leaving our own emotions out of the tragedy. 
 Right or wrong, there is always more than one side of a story to be told. Just because the point of view being voiced is on the side deemed wrong, doesn't mean the voice holds any less truth.