Review: Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon

Title: Everything, Everything

Author: Nicola Yoon

Genre: Contemporary

Age group: Young adult

Pages: 310 (Paperback)

Publisher: Corgi Chrildrens

Publication date: September 3, 2015

Synopsis from Everything, Everything's Goodreads page

Madeline Whittier is allergic to the outside world. So allergic, in fact, that she has never left the house in all of her seventeen years. But when Olly moves in next door, and wants to talk to Maddie, tiny holes start to appear in the protective bubble her mother has built around her. Olly writes his IM address on a piece of paper, shows it at her window, and suddenly, a door opens. But does Maddie dare to step outside her comfort zone?

Everything, Everything is about the thrill and heartbreak that happens when we break out of our shell to do crazy, sometimes death-defying things for love.

THOUGHTS

I just want to start with this: I loved this book. It made me ugly cry, sad cry, and happy cry, and I never cry while I'm reading; the last time that happened was when I read The Fault in Our Stars.

When I first went into this book, I didn't have a lot of expectations. I knew there was insta-love, and I assumed the ending would be unrealistic. I definitely wasn't expecting what I found.

Everything, Everything is about a girl who is happy with where she is, but not with who she is. She wants to experience the world, and when a boy moves in next door, he gives her that opportunity, and she takes it and runs with it. It was a beautiful story that everyone who reads it will absolutely love.

Throughout the book, there are little drawings, pictures, and endless amounts of little snippets that let the reader see into Madeline's life. I've never been a huge fan of a lot of drawings, as I normally feel like they don't add anything to the story. However, with this book, the story couldn't have been told without them. They add so much to the story and to the characters, and they show parts of Madeline that you can't see in the story, and that she doesn't explain through words.

The plot is extremely well thought out, and even though I was worried it wouldn't be, it was VERY realistic. The doctors, the medical charts; the author doesn't try to hide the parts of the illness, she puts it out there and makes the reader feel for Madeline. Madeline also has accepted her illness at the beginning of this book, and she initially doesn't try to fight it or go against it, which is a refreshing thing in young adult books.

I don't want to say too much about the ending, but I'm ecstatic with it. It's painful to read at times, happy and pleasant to read at others, and real. I've never been happier with the ending to a contemporary novel before, and I couldn't see it ending any other way. It was unexpected, but I'm glad it ended the way it did. If you want more information than that, you'll have to read the book! I definitely recommend it!

Rating - ★★★★★