BOOK REVIEW: All the Bright Places

One of the many goals I set up for myself this year was to read more books. I started off this goal with this book, which was highly raved about, so of course I needed to check it out. This book was written by the author Jennifer Niven and was geared towards young adults and talked about mental health issues, along with coping with death, bullying, suicide, and eating disorders. Here is a brief summary taken from the Barnes & Noble website:

Theodore Finch is fascinated by death. Every day he thinks of ways he might kill himself, but every day he also searches for—and manages to find—something to keep him here, and alive, and awake.

Violet Markey lives for the future, counting the days until graduation, when she can escape her small Indiana town and her aching grief in the wake of her sister’s recent death.

When Finch and Violet meet on the ledge of the bell tower at school—six stories above the ground— it’s unclear who saves whom. Soon it’s only with Violet that Finch can be himself. And it’s only with Finch that Violet can forget to count away the days and start living them. But as Violet’s world grows, Finch’s begins to shrink. . . .

The story of these two characters is told from each of their point of view, which I thought was really interesting. Finch was by far my favorite character. He was sweet and funny and quirky (a little too quirky at times). He was a brilliant and well thought out character. Violet was an amazing character as well and I loved seeing her develop throughout the book. To be quite honest I was a bit disappointed when I first read this book because I thought it would be your typical “outsider falls in love with popular girl and popular girl surprisingly falls in love with the outsider”, but it was so much more than that! This book was raw and real when it came to mental health and I loved that. More and more people are speaking out about mental health and their own issues, but I know there are still people who suffer in silence and can’t cope with their feelings or don’t know how. The book showed that some cannot cope with their feelings, despite their intentions to feel better, something that I think many of us don’t understand. However, it also showed that others to learn to cope and find things that help them move through their life.

Honestly, it was hard not to read this book all at once because it truly consumed me and by the end of it I was a mess. I was heartbroken, but also hopeful and at peace all at once. I give this book ★★★★☆ definitely recommend it if you’re looking for something to read.

Thanks for reading and until next time!

Abby XX