This book is devastatingly beautiful.
Teenage Lenny has severe OCD with regards to anything catastrophic (like natural or man made disasters) and is a germaphobe.
This is her coping mechanism because her father is dying of cancer. And her best friend is on the cusp of leaving her for dance school.
I have to admit there were so many moments that I wanted to shake Lenny! In one page she could be tugging on your heart strings by researching drug trials to help her father, the next she's drunk and coming onto his doctor.
Then I realised that Sher was portraying grief and anger through teenage eyes. Actually what Sher was doing was showing how different people cope with an ultimately horrendous situation.
Lenny's mum coped by working so much, Lenny's sister coped by being away.
This book tackles some pretty heavy topics such as self harm and mortality with huge heart, yet wasn't all doom and gloom. It had laugh out loud humour at the most ridiculous things (Don Juan lobster!)m
For a YA novel, this is an outstanding one. It doesn't shy away that ultimately the worst that can happen will happen.
Sher is a talented writer who can bring this 30 something woman to tears. I highly recommend this book.
I would like to thank Readers First for giving me a copy in exchange for a review.
Teenage Lenny has severe OCD with regards to anything catastrophic (like natural or man made disasters) and is a germaphobe.
This is her coping mechanism because her father is dying of cancer. And her best friend is on the cusp of leaving her for dance school.
I have to admit there were so many moments that I wanted to shake Lenny! In one page she could be tugging on your heart strings by researching drug trials to help her father, the next she's drunk and coming onto his doctor.
Then I realised that Sher was portraying grief and anger through teenage eyes. Actually what Sher was doing was showing how different people cope with an ultimately horrendous situation.
Lenny's mum coped by working so much, Lenny's sister coped by being away.
This book tackles some pretty heavy topics such as self harm and mortality with huge heart, yet wasn't all doom and gloom. It had laugh out loud humour at the most ridiculous things (Don Juan lobster!)m
For a YA novel, this is an outstanding one. It doesn't shy away that ultimately the worst that can happen will happen.
Sher is a talented writer who can bring this 30 something woman to tears. I highly recommend this book.
I would like to thank Readers First for giving me a copy in exchange for a review.