Young Adult Fiction
Clarion Books
January 3, 2017
Audiobook
320
At seventeen, Norah has accepted that the four walls of her house delineate her life. She knows that fearing everything from inland tsunamis to odd numbers is irrational, but her mind insists the world outside is too big, too dangerous. So she stays safe inside, watching others’ lives through her windows and social media feed.
But when Luke arrives on her doorstep, he doesn’t see a girl defined by medical terms and mental health. Instead, he sees a girl who is funny, smart, and brave. And Norah likes what he sees.
Their friendship turns deeper, but Norah knows Luke deserves a normal girl. One who can walk beneath the open sky. One who is unafraid of kissing. One who isn’t so screwed up. Can she let him go for his own good—or can Norah learn to see herself through Luke’s eyes?
WrensReads Review:
Overall, I really liked this story.
I thought it was more realistic than other mental-illness based books that I have read.
Like:
001. That Norah, our main girl, knows that she is being irrational but also knows she has to do it that way or the world will implode.. irrationally.
002. She calls herself crazy because, again, she knows that what she is doing is not necessary but at the same time it is necessary and she has to do it. Mental illness is weird.
003. Luke, our main dude, reacts the same way we would when Norah has an episode: wide-eyed, cautious and just wanting to help her get through whatever she is doing.
004. I really appreciated the fact that the boy didn’t “cure” the girl. That’s my main enjoyment of this whole book. Too many books have people being “cured” by getting in a relationship. That’s not how life works.
005. I also really appreciated that it was more focused on her being able to do baby steps when she had companionship beyond her mother and her therapist. She can cope with the two women who have dedicated themselves to helping her, but she can slowly rewire herself the more helps she gets. That’s important. As someone who deals with my own type(s) of mental illness, it is so important to have a handful of people to keep you afloat.
006. The narrator, Pheobe Strole, did a phenomenal job.
007. The relationship between Norah and her mother was what touched my heart the most. I think it’s because it reminded me of my relationship with my mother and I wanted to drive five hours to go give my mom a hug.
Didn’t Like:
001. The writing was a little young for my taste, but it was still enjoyable. I think I would have rated it lower actually reading it; but Pheobe Strole did such a great job that it didn’t bother me as much as it usually would have.
And the ending? My goodness, you do not expect something that insane to happen with such a happy-looking book. You don’t expect your jaw to drop (yes, mine did physically drop) and go “is this really happening or is she imagining the absolute worst scenario?” It was happening. I died.
Also, a little P.S. here: You can’t say things like “that’s now how mental illness works” because all mental illnesses are different. Even if I had voices talking inside my head and you had voices talking inside your head, our likeness ends there. How I get better and how I deal is going to be different from how you get better and how you deal. Individuality people. It’s a thing. Which is why you can’t rationalize someone’s anxiety just because you also deal with anxiety.
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