Review: How It Feels to Float

How It Feels to Float
by Helena Fox

Publisher: Dial Books/Penguin
Publication Date: May 7, 2019

Get ready to feel all the feelings in Helena Fox’s emotional debut novel, HOW IT FEELS TO FLOAT. Biz is an outsider at school in every sense of the word. She has to deal with confusion about her sexuality, the process of losing her best friend to a boy, cruel rumors, and above all, getting over the death of her dad. It doesn’t make it easier that she frequently imagines her dad coming back to talk to her. Later on, after a breakdown, Biz starts to take a photography class. It is here where she discovers that the pictures she takes literally talk to her. This inspires Biz to start on a road trip where she hopes to find memories of her dad in the places he has lived.


I loved this novel from the first chapter. Biz is a perfect example of a flawed protagonist, and her mental health issues are presented beautifully. I felt like I was in the story right along with Biz which led to me rooting for her heavily the entire time, feeling the highs and lows with her. The friendships that Biz makes and breaks throughout, along with her relationship to her mom, brought me closer to her. Biz’s grief, pain, and happiness felt so real and at the end of the novel, I felt like she was someone I knew in real life. HOW IT FEELS TO FLOAT is a stunning debut by an author with a lot of promise and I highly recommend it.

Review: Imagine Us Happy

Imagine Us Happy
by Jennifer Yu

Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Publication Date: October 23, 2018

IMAGINE US HAPPY by Jennifer Yu tells the heartbreaking story of a teenage girl in high school as she battles depression, fighting parents, and her first true love. As she gets deeper and deeper into her relationship and learns more about him and herself, Stella must figure out how to win the internal battle with what she knows is right while trying to figure out what it is she deserves. From crazy house parties with her BFFs to scary fights to pained therapy sessions, this is not an easy topic to read about, but it is written beautifully and I could not put it down! The way the author flashed forward to the future and back to present throughout the story helped grasp the intricate backstory of Stella and her world, and the language was amazing. I loved this book and would definitely recommend it.

Review: The Loneliest Girl in the Universe

The Loneliest Girl in the Universe
by Lauren James

Publisher: Harper Teen
Publication Date: July 3, 2018

The only life that Romy Silvers has ever known is the inside of a massive spaceship tasked with colonizing a new Earth-like planet. Still, when her two astronaut parents are killed, leaving her by herself on the Infinity, she feels utterly alone besides the brief messages from her therapist on Earth as she continues her journey. But that all changes when NASA alerts her that another ship, the Eternity, will be joining the Infinity. When Romy begins to exchange messages with its charismatic captain, J, she thinks nothing could go wrong now that she has this newfound friendship. But as the two of them get closer to meeting, Romy realizes that J’s mission might be one she could never have imagined.

Surprisingly for such a short book, it was amazing. The author included so many cool aspects that you would never expect to see in a sci-fi. For one, the plot was full of constant twists despite the fact that Romy is living alone in a giant spaceship. The author was able to accomplish this through email-like messages as well as notifications from the ship itself. It would be revealing too much to say exactly what was transpiring through the messages, but it would not be an understatement to say they added to the overall eerie feeling of the book. The setting itself also made the whole book feel mysterious as the ship was riddled with strange malfunctions and breakdowns.

The plot also featured heavy reference to a supernatural TV series that Romy really likes called Loch and Ness. When I first began reading this book, I was surprised by the heavy references to this series as the main character often fangirled about it and even wrote fanfiction! I was shocked because I never believed this sort of aspect could be included in a sci-fi book. And not only was it included, but it was an important plot device that was used throughout the book. But this was not the first part of this book that left me shocked.

In terms of characters, Romy was one that I found to be pretty unique in YA. For one, despite the fact that she has lived her entire life in space, she is pretty much like any other teenage girl. She fangirls, she gets lazy, she has homework sent to her, etc. But she also gets anxiety. This was one of the surprise aspects that I mentioned earlier. Who would expect to read about a character that suffers from panic attacks in a sci-fi book? And not only was it written about, but it was written about well. I loved how authentic the author made Romy’s experience feel. And the author didn’t make it feel like a plot device, nor did she use it like a fun little thing to add. The author wrote about Romy’s anxiety as just another part of her life. Readers who relate to her will be very surprised by the author’s honest portrayal as they gain representation in a genre that doesn’t typically deal with issues like this.

The only negative thing that I have to say about this book is that the antagonist seemed too much like a cookie-cutter type of villain. Despite this, he still provided for great plot advancements and twists that readers will never see coming.

I recommend this book for sci-fi lovers looking for a new twist on the genre. James is truly innovative with this book and even readers who don’t typically read sci-fi will enjoy it greatly. This book is great for fans of HONOR AMONG THIEVES or BRIGHTLY BURNING because of the space-ship setting.

Review: Life Inside My Mind

Life Inside My Mind
Edited by Jessica Burkhart

Publisher: Simon Pulse
Publication Date: April 10, 2018

LIFE INISDE MY MIND is an essay anthology focused on YA authors’ personal experiences with mental health. Each “chapter” is a story written by a different author, and each has a vastly different focus: the topics ranged from anxiety to depression to OCD to Alzheimer's. While some of the stories were deeply personal, some were more of a reflection on societal issues and the stigma around mental health. This book was different from any I had ever read. At first, it was hard for me to make the constant switch in tone as the authors shifted, but eventually, I was able to adapt to the format, and I’m so glad I did! This book offers some incredible insights, and I really appreciated the fact that so many of the authors emphasized that there is no one “right way” to manage mental illness. 

My personal favorite essay was written in a poetry format called “This Is How You Unravel” by E.K. Anderson, which told the story of a girl living with bipolar disorder. I loved this chapter in particular because of its ability to genuinely portray the negative aspects of mental illness while offering a hopeful message. There were many essays that had a profound impact on me, though, not just this one! Even though I was skeptical about this collection at first, I would highly recommend this collection to anyone, regardless of whether they have personally experienced any of these conditions. Although I personally haven’t, I was still able to relate to all of the authors because of the honest, candid emotions that they shared with readers. Because of frequent references to suicide, addiction, abuse and violence, this book is probably best suited to older teens.

Review: The Place Between Breaths

The Place Between Breaths
by An Na

Publisher: Atheneum
Publication Date: March 6, 2018

The PLACE BETWEEN BREATHS by An Na explores the impact of schizophrenia on a family. After her schizophrenic mother disappears and likely dies, Grace's father devotes himself to finding a cure for the disease. As an intern in her dad's lab, Grace works at her own personal dream of becoming a scientist, while juggling high school and her best friend's personal dilemma. Without the attention of her father and an absent mother, Grace slowly slips into her own world, succumbing to the disease herself.

I really wanted to like this book, and although it was beautifully written, I was definitely confused for most of it. There were abrupt time shifts back and forth without much explanation or background, and it took me a while to figure out what was happening. Plot lines were started and never finished, and big details were left out. However, the flashback scenes of Grace's childhood with her mother were incredible and raw, provoking real emotion. The book ended a bit abruptly, but it almost felt like all of the faults I found within the book were intentional, invoking the effects of schizophrenia itself. Still, this was a wonderful and quick read and I would highly recommend it!

Review: Turtles All the Way Down

Turtles All the Way Down
by John Green

Publisher: Dutton Books for Young People
Publication Date: October 10, 2017

John Green has done what I thought was impossible: he has out-John Greened himself. This is TURTLES ALL THE WAY DOWN in a nutshell: an emotional tale riddled with obscure literary references that only someone who has read an entire library would understand, the quirky best friend(TM), and too many internal monologues to count ...and I loved every second of it. More than just a romance, or a look at teenage friendship, or a coming of age adventure, TURTLES ALL THE WAY DOWN is about personal struggles with mental health and the inescapability of one's own mind. Aza, the main character, tries to live her life and not be controlled by her "thought spirals", but is held back by the very thing only she has control of: herself.

This book was a bit different from some of Green's other books, in that it was less plot based and more based on the internal emotions of the main character, but I think that he was really able to convey true and raw depth of the characters, especially Aza. His own personal experiences with mental health are visible through Aza; her struggles don't seem fake or exaggerated and are grounded in the roots of John Green's own fight. This is not a book to read passively; it demands a deep connection from the reader to actively root for and against the characters, often at the same time. Following the publication of this book, there is likely to be a trend in YA focusing on mental health, as seen in the effect of Green's other books after their releases, yet I doubt any of them will be able to match the caliber and power of TURTLES ALL THE WAY DOWN. There were definitely some problems, don't get me wrong. The freedom of these 16 to 17 year olds to do whatever they wanted is highly implausible, and the lack of any actively responsible parental figures is a bit strange, but these are commonly overlooked in YA fiction, whether it be a misunderstanding of the lives of modern teens or the need to further the plot, but it doesn't have too much of a negative effect on the novel as a whole. I was really impressed at this book overall, and hope that John Green doesn't take as long to write his next one. 

Review: Ten Miles One Way

Ten Miles One Way
by Patrick Downes

Publisher: Philomel Books
Publication Date: March 21, 2017

Q and his girlfriend, Nest, are walking through their small town. As they walk, Nest narrates and tells him everything: about her life, her parents, her dreams, and her struggles with bipolar disorder. TEN MILES ONE WAY is a touching and beautifully written novel that confronts mental illness. Patrick Downes draws Nest’s character superbly; she is so realistic, it is almost as if you could reach out and touch her. This book brings readers to tears. You will be thinking about it for days after you finish the last page. I highly recommend TEN MILES ONE WAY.

Review: When I Was the Greatest

When I Was the Greatest by Jason Reynolds
Publisher: Atheneum Books
Publishing date: January 7, 2014

This novel is about 15 year old Ali, his family, his best friend Noodles and his brother Needles, who has Tourette’s Syndrome. I really enjoyed this book- it’s character driven and mostly dialogue which I really like. The characters themselves are all incredibly developed, and I felt as though for most of them I either loved them, or loved to hate them, which is a good thing. I read the book really fast, because the relationships the characters have with each other are so realistic and enticing that I wanted to read it whenever I had any time at all. There is no romance in this book- and to be honest I didn’t miss it. I would recommend this book, highly, to anyone over 12 years old.