Criss Cross by Lynn Rae Perkins

I recently finished Criss Cross for a youth book club.  When we sat down to discuss this book not a single person in the group liked this book.  I found this interesting because Criss Cross has won awards and came highly recommended to me.  However we all agreed the story was hard to follow and we did not like the conclusion.  Criss Cross is the story of how several people's lives "criss cross" through the novel and how one decision can set off a chain of events that no one could predict.  Interesting right? Well sort of, but the author not only switches between points of view but also writing methods including both illustrations and text in her novel.  She also relies on haiku, and side by side 1st person accounts to tell the story.  I found this confusing and disjointed.  It made it hard to follow the plot.  The book is suppose to take place during the 1970's but this is only very vaguely touched upon, thus leading to further confusion when fashions such as bell bottoms and platform shoes are brought up and listening to a radio show is the a Saturday night's entertainment.  I must admit if a student came into the library looking for a work of historical fiction, I would not suggest this book.