Review: Am I Normal Yet? by Holly Bourne

Title: Am I Normal Yet?
Author: Holly Bourne
Edition: Usborne Publishing Ltd. 2015, UK

Rating: ★★★★★

Synopsis

All Evie wants is to be normal. And now that she's almost off her meds and at a new college where no one knows her as the-girl-who-went-nuts, there's only one thing left to tick off her list...But relationships can mess with anyone's head - something Evie's new friends Amber and Lottie know only too well. The trouble is, if Evie won't tell them her secrets, how can they stop her making a huge mistake?

Review

When I finished this book, I logged straight into Goodreads – it's like a ritual now. I sat there, Goodreads in one hand, this book in the other, being asked what rating I would give it. Initially, I was thinking four stars, but then, out loud, I asked myself "what's wrong with this book?" The answer? Nothing. So five stars is what it gets. 

Review: My Heart and Other Black Holes by Jasmine Warga

Title: My Heart and Other Black Holes
Author: Jasmine Warga
Edition: Hodder & Stoughton, 2015

Rating: ★★★★★

Review

I feel like I've been reading a lot of books lately that centre around mental illness. Not that it's a bad thing, I'm glad to read about these issues, learning a little bit more about them. The trouble I find with them is that there's rarely a happily ever after ending. I totally understand why, but as a firm believer in happy endings, I hate it when a book doesn't deliver, no matter what the story is. 

My Heart and Other Black Holes, however, gave the usually sad story of depression and suicide a, perhaps not happy but, hopeful ending. It brought a little bit of light to an otherwise dark sub-section of YA fiction. 

Review: Fans of the Impossible Life by Kate Scelsa

Title: Fans of the Impossible Life
Author: Kate Scelsa
Edition: Macmillan Children's Book (UK), 2015

Rating:★★★

Review

I've got to be honest. This book did not grab me. I was not immediately sucked into the story. It did grow on me though. Enough to earn itself three stars.

I didn't feel like the first half lived up to the 'impossible' part of it's title. By that, I think I mean that there was nothing particularly sensational in the story. 

That's just the beginning though. As I read on I realised that this is a GOOD BOOK. I'm not the most educated on mental illnesses, I've never suffered and I don't know many people who have, so I'm not in a position to criticise or compliment Scelsa on her portrayal of it. Having said that, I thought she dealt with it really well. She was sensitive but honest about it. She didn't romanticise or glamourise it.