My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Summary from GoodReads
Norah has agoraphobia and OCD. When groceries are left on the porch, she can’t step out to get them. Struggling to snag the bags with a stick, she meets Luke. He’s sweet and funny, and he just caught her fishing for groceries. Because of course he did.
Norah can’t leave the house, but can she let someone in? As their
friendship grows deeper, Norah realizes Luke deserves a normal girl. One
who can lie on the front lawn and look up at the stars. One who isn’t
so screwed up.
Readers themselves will fall in love with
Norah in this poignant, humorous, and deeply engaging portrait of a teen
struggling to find the strength to face her demons.
PRE ORDER
REVIEW
I received an eARC from Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.
Although this beauty will not be released until 2017, I really wanted to write this review. The story follows Norah, who has OCD and agoraphobia; it means that she fears everything in the world. When accidentally, because of the groceries, she meets Luke, the cute boy next door, Norah will slowly try to understand better both her life and her growing feelings for Luke.
Mental illness is always a delicate subject in YA. Some believe that it is shown way too raw, others tend to disregard the fact that there are people in the planet who try to live everyday struggling at the same time. Norah is a character like that; living in the house not even daring to get outside, she has her mother and her doctor as her only people she can talk to. She is home-schooled and she is constantly trying to battle with her mind.
When Luke comes into the picture, Norah is flooded with images and possible scenes which through her POV were funny, but brutally honest (her research on kissing had me laugh hard). Also, Luke is not Norah's white knight, he too struggles with his family. His mother is a flight attendant and his father tends to have wanderlust. He is honest and funny and understanding.
The story is short but is filled with lessons about mental illness and how a teen is both struggling with her own body and her every day life. While the ending is not the kind that solves everything in the blink of an eye, Norah becomes a character who hopes for a better future and Luke is her supporter both with his love and understanding.
It was a great read and it's reccomended both for its sweet cover and the inspiring story. ;)
About the author:
My debut YA contemp, Under Rose-Tainted Skies, will be published by HMH/Clarion (US), and Chicken House/Scholastic (UK) in the fall 2016/17.
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