Hi everyone!
I thought, since the movie adaptation of Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon is out in cinemas (at least in America, according to IMDb), that I would write a little review of the book. I haven’t seen the movie yet (it’s not out in Australia yet), so I can’t do a comparison type review, but I will tell you my thoughts on the book, what it did well, and what it could have done better (if I can think of anything).
Nicola Yoon’s Everything, Everything is a love story involving Maddy Whittier, a girl allergic to everything, and Olly Bright, the boy who moves in next door. She knows the moment she sees him that she will fall in love with him and that it will end horribly. They communicate through email, then progress to Olly visiting her, as she obviously can't visit him. There was a lot I liked about the book, such as the interesting plotline, the well-developed characters, and themes of family and doing anything for love. Without spoiling anything, I wasn’t especially a fan of how cliché the ending was, other than that, I loved it.
I have never read a book quite like this one. The plotline is very inventive, creating tension in places without even a hint of it. I could just feel it, you know? I have read quite a few romances in my time, but none that used illness as an obstacle. There was always a fight between the main couple, or a misunderstanding or something like that. Never before has it been something that could actually pose a threat to one of their lives. That’s what I love about this story. It’s so unique. The themes were another reason I loved the story.
I read Everything, Everything over a period of about 24 hours, which just goes to show how gripping and engaging it was, during the summer holidays. This was mostly due to the themes of the story. It was all about family and overcoming obstacles for love, (in this case, risking your life) which kept me enthralled all the way through. I loved reading how the relationship dynamic between Maddy and her mother changed throughout, and how comfortable Maddy became with Olly. In the beginning, Maddy loved her mother completely, without question, but as the novel progressed, she grew more and more suspicious of her. *SLIGHT SPOILER ALERT* There is a part in the novel where Maddy goes outside to talk to Olly, showing that she will do anything for him, despite her illness. I also really love how good the characters are.
I, having read it in a day, really got to know the characters on a personal level, feeling their pain, happiness, and everything in between. Maddy was particularly good. It was written in her perspective, so I was literally in her head and really got to know her as a character. For example, the opening sentence of the story is “I’ve read many more books than you,” (to which I was like ‘wanna bet?’), and sets the tone for the story, and gives Maddy at least one trait straight off the bat. Books are quite a common theme throughout the story, using them to push the plot forward, or give little bits of foreshadowing here and there. The chapter titles also added a bit of foreshadowing.
The way the book was split up was great. The chapters had a variety of different lengths, some being only a sentence, but the titles are where it's at. Some of my favourite chapter titles are “Brthdae Uish”, “No Yes Maybe”, and “Fifteen Minutes Later”. Note: doesn’t mean my favourite chapters, just the titles that are great (not saying I hate those chapters, btw). They give some foreshadowing, or they lead to confusion, depending on how you read the book. If you read it all in one go, like I did, the chapters will make sense and almost be an extension of the story itself.
The ending, for me, was a little bit cliché. I’m not going to spoil it, in case you want to read it, too, but just know it was cliché. The buildup of tension in the scenes prior to the ending was so great, and then the payoff is just meh. It was kind of expected when I think about it, but at the time I really enjoyed it. I don’t wanna say what it is, but it semi-tainted my overall reading experience.
In conclusion, Nicola Yoon has written a really great story in Everything, Everything. The plotline, the characters, the chapters, and the themes of family and risking it all for love, were amazing. The only bad thing I could say about it is that the ending was a bit cliché, but still a really good story. I highly recommend this story for reading on holiday/vacation, as you will finish it quite quickly (if you’re anything like me), but not for young readers as there is some occasional swearing and a bit of a sex scene (kind of). Overall, I would rate this story a 4 out of a possible 5 stars. Thank you, Nicola Yoon, for a great book (did I mention that this is her debut novel?! Amazing!).
Have you read Everything, Everything? What were your thoughts on it?
Love, Nicky x
PS: This post is not sponsored, I just wanted to review it!
No comments:
Post a Comment