Everything, Everything

By Nicola Yoon

Risk everything for love with this #1 New York Times bestseller from Nicola Yoon • "Gorgeous and lyrical"—The New York Times Book Review

What if you couldn’t touch anything in the outside world? Never breathe in the fresh air, feel the sun warm your face . . . or kiss the boy next door? In Everything, Everything, Maddy is a girl who’s literally allergic to the outside world, and Olly is the boy who moves in next door . . . and becomes the greatest risk she’s ever taken. 

"This extraordinary first novel about love so strong it might kill us is too good to feel like a debut. Tender, creative, beautifully written, and with a great twist, Everything, Everything is one of the best books I've read this year."—Jodi Picoult

My disease is as rare as it is famous. Basically, I’m allergic to the world. I don’t leave my house, have not left my house in seventeen years. The only people I ever see are my mom and my nurse, Carla.
 
But then one day, a moving truck arrives next door. I look out my window, and I see him. He's tall, lean and wearing all black—black T-shirt, black jeans, black sneakers, and a black knit cap that covers his hair completely. He catches me looking and stares at me. I stare right back. His name is Olly.
 
Maybe we can’t predict the future, but we can predict some things. For example, I am certainly going to fall in love with Olly. It’s almost certainly going to be a disaster.

Everything, Everything will make you laugh, cry, and feel everything in between. It's an innovative, inspiring, and heartbreakingly romantic debut novel that unfolds via vignettes, diary entries, illustrations, and more. 

And don’t miss Nicola Yoon's bestselling novels The Sun Is Also A Star and Instructions for Dancing.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Random House Children's Books
• Release date: Sep 1, 2015
• ISBN: 9780553496666

Nicola Yoon

Nicola Yoon is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of THE SUN IS ALSO A STAR and EVERYTHING, EVERYTHING. Nicola is also the author of the #1 NYT bestseller, INSTRUCTIONS FOR DANCING (June 1, 2021) and the NYT bestseller BLACKOUT (June 22, 2022, an anthology with Angie Thomas, Nic Stone, Tiffany D. Jackson and others and which has been optioned by the Obama's production company). Nicola and her husband, author David Yoon, have also created the Joy Revolution imprint at Random House Children's Books in the US. It's their mission to publish romance/joyous books by authors of color featuring characters of color. And last but not least, Nicola and Dave have also created Yooniverse Media through which they have a first-look film/tv deal at Anonymous Content. (www.NicolaYoon.com; Twitter/Instagram: @NicolaYoon, @JoyRevBooks, @YooniverseMedia)

Book preview

THE WHITE ROOM

I’VE READ MANY more books than you. It doesn’t matter how many you’ve read. I’ve read more. Believe me. I’ve had the time.

In my white room, against my white walls, on my glistening white bookshelves, book spines provide the only color. The books are all brand-new hardcovers—no germy secondhand softcovers for me. They come to me from Outside, decontaminated and vacuum-sealed in plastic wrap. I would like to see the machine that does this. I imagine each book traveling on a white conveyor belt toward rectangular white stations where robotic white arms dust, scrape, spray, and otherwise sterilize it until it’s finally deemed clean enough to come to me. When a new book arrives, my first task is to remove the wrapping, a process that involves scissors and more than one broken nail. My second task is to write my name on the inside front cover.

PROPERTY OF: Madeline Whittier

I don’t know why I do this. There’s no one else here except my mother, who never reads, and my nurse, Carla, who has no time to read because she spends all her time watching me breathe. I rarely have visitors, and so there’s no one to lend my books to. There’s no one who needs reminding that the forgotten book on his or her shelf belongs to me.

REWARD IF FOUND (Check all that apply):

This is the section that takes me the longest time, and I vary it with each book. Sometimes the rewards are fanciful:

• Picnic with me (Madeline) in a pollen-filled field of poppies, lilies, and endless man-in-the-moon marigolds under a clear blue summer sky.

• Drink tea with me (Madeline) in a lighthouse in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean in the middle of a hurricane.

• Snorkel with me (Madeline) off Molokini to spot the Hawaiian state fish—the humuhumunukunukuapuaa.

Sometimes the rewards are not so fanciful:

• A visit with me (Madeline) to a used bookstore.

• A walk outside with me (Madeline), just down the block and back.

• A short conversation with me (Madeline), discussing anything you want, on my white couch, in my white bedroom.

Sometimes the reward is just:

• Me (Madeline).

SCID ROW

MY DISEASE IS as rare as it is famous. It’s a form of Severe Combined Immunodeficiency, but you know it as bubble baby disease.

Basically, I’m allergic to the world. Anything can trigger a bout of sickness. It could be the chemicals in the cleaner used to wipe the table that I just touched. It could be someone’s perfume. It could be the exotic spice in the food I just ate. It could be one, or all, or none of these things, or something else entirely. No one knows the triggers, but everyone knows the consequences. According to my mom I almost died as an infant. And so I stay on SCID row. I don’t leave my house, have not left my house in seventeen years.

BRTHDAE UISH

MOVIE NIGHT OR Honor Pictionary or Book Club? my mom asks while inflating a blood pressure cuff around my arm. She doesn’t mention her favorite of all our post-dinner activities—Phonetic Scrabble. I look up to see that her eyes are already laughing at me.

Phonetic, I say.

She stops inflating the cuff. Ordinarily Carla, my full-time nurse, would be taking my blood pressure and filling out my daily health log, but my mom’s given her the day off. It’s my birthday and we always spend the day together, just the two of us.

She puts on her stethoscope so that she can listen to my heartbeat. Her smile fades and is replaced by her more serious doctor’s face. This is the face her patients most often see—slightly distant, professional, and concerned. I wonder if they find it comforting.

Impulsively I give her a quick kiss on the forehead to remind her that it’s just me, her favorite patient, her daughter.

She opens her eyes, smiles, and caresses my cheek. I guess if you’re going to be born with an illness that requires constant care, then it’s good to have your mom as your doctor.

A few seconds later she gives me her best I’m-the-doctor-and-I’m-afraid-I-have-some-bad-news-for-you face. It’s your big day. Why don’t we play something you have an actual chance of winning? Honor Pictionary?

Since regular Pictionary can’t really be played with two people, we invented Honor Pictionary. One person draws and the other person is on her honor to make her best guess. If you guess correctly, the other person scores.

I narrow my eyes at her. We’re playing Phonetic, and I’m winning this time, I say confidently, though I have no chance of winning. In all our years of playing Phonetic Scrabble, or Fonetik Skrabbl, I’ve never beaten her at it. The last time we played I came close. But then she devastated me on the final word, playing JEENZ on a triple word score.

OK. She shakes her head with mock pity. Anything you want. She closes her laughing eyes to listen to the stethoscope.

We spend the rest of the morning baking my traditional birthday cake of vanilla sponge with vanilla cream frosting. After it’s cooled, I apply an unreasonably thin layer of frosting, just enough to cover the cake. We are, both of us, cake people, not frosting people. For decoration, I draw eighteen frosted daisies with white petals and a white center across the top. On the sides I fashion draped white curtains.

Perfect. My mom peers over my shoulders as I finish up. Just like you.

I turn to face her. She’s smiling a wide, proud smile at me, but her eyes are bright with tears.

You. Are. Tragic, I say, and squirt a dollop of frosting on her nose, which only makes her laugh and cry some more. Really, she’s not usually this emotional, but something about my birthday always makes her both weepy and joyful at the same time. And if she’s weepy and joyful, then I’m weepy and joyful, too.

I know, she says, throwing her hands helplessly up in the air. I’m totally pathetic. She pulls me into a hug and squeezes. Frosting gets into my hair.

My birthday is the one day of the year that we’re both most acutely aware of my illness. It’s the acknowledging of the passage of time that does it. Another whole year of being sick, no hope for a cure on the horizon. Another year of missing all the normal teenagery things—learner’s permit, first kiss, prom, first heartbreak, first fender bender. Another year of my mom doing nothing but working and taking care of me. Every other day these omissions are easy—easier, at least—to ignore.

This year is a little harder than the previous. Maybe it’s because I’m eighteen now. Technically, I’m an adult. I should be leaving home, going off to college. My mom should be dreading empty-nest syndrome. But because of SCID, I’m not going anywhere.

Later, after dinner, she gives me a beautiful set of watercolor pencils that had been on my wish list for months. We go into the living room and sit cross-legged in front of the coffee table. This is also part of our birthday ritual: She lights a single candle in the center of the cake. I close my eyes and make a wish. I blow the candle out.

What did you wish for? she asks as soon as I open my eyes.

Really there’s only one thing to wish for—a magical cure that will allow me to run free outside like a wild animal. But I never make that wish because it’s impossible. It’s like wishing that mermaids and dragons and unicorns were real. Instead I wish for something more likely than a cure. Something less likely to make us both sad.

World peace, I say.

Three slices of cake later, we begin a game of Fonetik. I do not win. I don’t even come close.

She uses all seven letters and puts down POKALIP next to an S. POKALIPS.

What’s that? I ask.

Apocalypse, she says, eyes dancing.

No, Mom. No way. I can’t give that to you.

Yes, is all she says.

"Mom, you need an extra A. No way."

Pokalips, she says for effect, gesturing at the letters. It totally works.

I shake my head.

P O K A L I P S, she insists, slowly dragging out the word.

Oh my God, you’re relentless, I say, throwing my hands up. OK, OK, I’ll allow it.

Yesssss. She pumps her fist and laughs at me and marks down her now-insurmountable score. You’ve never really understood this game, she says. It’s a game of persuasion.

I slice myself another piece of cake. That was not persuasion, I say. That was cheating.

Same same, she says, and we both laugh.

You can beat me at Honor Pictionary tomorrow, she says.

After I lose, we go to the couch and watch our favorite movie, Young Frankenstein. Watching it is also part of our birthday ritual. I put my head in her lap, and she strokes my hair, and we laugh at the same jokes in the same way that we’ve been laughing at them for years. All in all, not a bad way to spend your eighteenth birthday.

STAYS THE SAME

I’M READING ON my white couch when Carla comes in the next morning.

Feliz cumpleaños, she sings out.

I lower my book. Gracias.

How was the birthday? She begins unpacking her medical bag.

We had fun.

Vanilla cake and vanilla frosting? she asks.

Of course.

"Young Frankenstein?"

Yes.

And you lost at that game? she asks.

We’re pretty predictable, huh?

Don’t mind me, she says, laughing. I’m just jealous of how sweet you and your mama are.

She picks up my health log from yesterday, quickly reviews my mom’s measurements and adds a new sheet to the clipboard. These days Rosa can’t even be bothered to give me the time of day.

Rosa is Carla’s seventeen-year-old daughter. According to Carla they were really close until hormones and boys took over. I can’t imagine that happening to my mom and me.

Carla sits next to me on the couch, and I hold out my hand for the blood pressure cuff. Her eyes drop to my book.

"Flowers for Algernon again? she asks. Doesn’t that book always make you cry?"

One day it won’t, I say. I want to be sure to be reading it on that day.

She rolls her eyes at me and takes my hand.

It is kind of a flip answer, but then I wonder if it’s true.

Maybe I’m holding out hope that one day, someday, things will change.

LIFE IS SHORT™

SPOILER REVIEWS BY MADELINE

FLOWERS FOR ALGERNON BY DANIEL KEYES

Spoiler alert: Algernon is a mouse. The mouse dies.

ALIEN INVASION, PART 2

I’M UP TO the part where Charlie realizes that the mouse’s fate may be his own when I hear a loud rumbling noise outside. Immediately my mind goes to outer space. I picture a giant mother ship hovering in the skies above us.

The house trembles and my books vibrate on the shelves. A steady beeping joins the rumbling and I know what it is. A truck. Probably just lost, I tell myself, to stave off disappointment. Probably just made a wrong turn on their way to someplace else.

But then the engine cuts off. Doors open and close. A moment passes, and then another, and then a woman’s voice sings out, Welcome to our new home, everybody!

Carla stares at me hard for a few seconds. I know what she’s thinking.

It’s happening again.

MADELINE’S DIARY

THE WELCOME COMMITTEE

CARLA, I SAY, it won’t be like last time. I’m not eight years old anymore.

I want you to promise— she begins, but I’m already at the window, sweeping the curtains aside.

I am not prepared for the bright California sun. I’m not prepared for the sight of it, high and blazing hot and white against the washed-out white sky. I am blind. But then the white haze over my vision begins to clear. Everything is haloed.

I see the truck and the silhouette of an older woman twirling—the mother. I see an older man at the back of the truck—the father. I see a girl maybe a little younger than me—the daughter.

Then I see him. He’s tall, lean, and wearing all black: black T-shirt, black jeans, black sneakers, and a black knit cap that covers his hair completely. He’s white with a pale honey tan and his face is starkly angular. He jumps down from his perch at the back of the truck and glides across the driveway, moving as if gravity affects him differently than it does the rest of us. He stops, cocks his head to one side, and stares up at his new house as if it were a puzzle.

After a few seconds he begins bouncing lightly on the balls of his feet. Suddenly he takes off at a sprint and runs literally six feet up the front wall. He grabs a windowsill and dangles from it for a second or two and then drops back down into a crouch.

Nice, Olly, says his mother.

Didn’t I tell you to quit doing that stuff? his father growls.

He ignores them both and remains in his crouch.

I press my open palm against the glass, breathless as if I’d done that crazy stunt myself. I look from him to the wall to the windowsill and back to him again. He’s no longer crouched. He’s staring up at me. Our eyes meet. Vaguely I wonder what he sees in my window—strange girl in white with wide staring eyes. He grins at me and his face is no longer stark, no longer severe. I try to smile back, but I’m so flustered that I frown at him instead.

MY WHITE BALLOON

THAT NIGHT, I dream that the house breathes with me. I exhale and the walls contract like a pinpricked balloon, crushing me as it deflates. I inhale and the walls expand. A single breath more and my life will finally, finally explode.

NEIGHBORHOOD WATCH

HIS MOM’S SCHEDULE

6:35 AM - Arrives on porch with a steaming cup of something hot. Coffee?

6:36 AM - Stares off into empty lot across the way while sipping her drink. Tea?

7:00 AM - Reenters the house.

7:15 AM - Back on porch. Kisses husband good-bye. Watches as his car drives away.

9:30 AM - Gardens. Looks for, finds, and discards cigarette butts.

1:00 PM - Leaves house in car. Errands?

5:00 PM - Pleads with Kara and Olly to begin chores before your father gets home.

KARA’S (SISTER) SCHEDULE

10:00 AM - Stomps outside wearing black boots and a fuzzy brown bathrobe.

10:01 AM - Checks cell phone messages. She gets a lot of messages.

10:06 AM - Smokes three cigarettes in the garden between our two houses.

10:20 AM - Digs a hole with the toe of her boots and buries cigarette carcasses.

10:25 AM–5 :00 PM - Texts or talks on the phone.

5:25 PM - Chores.

HIS DAD’S SCHEDULE

7:15 AM - Leaves for work.

6:00 PM - Arrives home from work.

6:20 PM - Sits on porch with drink #1.

6:30 PM - Reenters the house for dinner.

7:00 PM - Back on porch with drink #2.

7:25 PM - Drink #3.

7:45 PM - Yelling at family begins.

10:35 PM - Yelling at family subsides.

OLLY’S SCHEDULE

Unpredictable.

I SPY

HIS FAMILY CALLS him Olly. Well, his

Reviews for Everything, Everything

[barnesbookshelf · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I guessed the twist pretty early on and felt vindicated when it finally happened. I like the short chapters and the additional images. Yoon's writing style is very pretty and metaphoric. The story wasn't exactly what I was expecting. I think if I had read it a few years ago I would be more excited.

[cheryl_in_cc_nv · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Dramatic, yes, but not nearly as melodramatic as much YA. The romance was believable, not meet-cute or insta-love... we saw the kids try to be just friends, and we watched them get to know each other. The girl's 'twist' was predictable (to me, anyway) but I'm glad that the girl is 18, otherwise her & Carla's ability to not turn mom in for child abuse would be unbelievable. The boy's twist was believable and satisfying.

The fairy tale bit frustrated me. Instead, why why couldn't they have just gone to San Diego? Hawaii without proper ID, and isn't Olly a minor? No, not going to happen. While we're on the subject of what it means to be an adult, this is not for 'tweens. I know kids tend to read up, and the romance is loving & supportive, but if you're protecting your 11-12 yo, you'll want to encourage them to read something else. The reason they went to bed so fast, relatively speaking, is that they're teens, and Maddy is not used to new experiences & so overwhelmed, while Olly is rather desperate for affection. I thought the 'sex' scene lovely and realistic (well, except for no pain or blood). But some parents might object.

Parents also might object to the parental characters, but ppl like that exist, and stuff like that happens. And irl there are lots of teens who have to face that, or worse, and a story that makes them feel less alone is valuable.

Anyway, I just loved the details that went into crafting the book, too. Maddy's journal and book reviews. The books she reads and how she references them. The illustrations that were just that, illustrative. Maddy's purchase of colored t-shirts and, later, live plants for the sunroom. Carla's daughter. Olly's sister. The fact that Maddy is biracial, but we don't know that right away and it's not a big fat deal. Fonetik Skrabl, which seems like so much fun. The architecture, and the astronaut in the model.

And the writing. "I don't want [my heart] to heal. Because if it does, I might be tempted to use it again."

Recommended, even to ppl who aren't avid YA readers if you want something different. And I will look for more by the author.

Btw, I picked it up because it's my local library's (inaugural?) pick for the Teen Book Club and I'm just impulsive that way. I don't read a lot of YA because usually I find that it is too melodramatic & juvenile about love. (Dramatic is fine, as teens are dramatic, but melodrama is wearing. And sometimes I do think the Juv. audience has a better handle on what it means to love one's life partner, or even one's best friend, than do hormone addled teens.) (And what is up with making teens deal with hormones and decisions that will reverberate through their lives during the same few years? Cut the kids some slack!)

[muumuumousie · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I liked this book very much. It’s optimistic and upbeat, and it’s got really interesting characters. They feel real, and their chemistry is believable, and they have distinct personalities. They’re charming, for want of a better word. I liked the audio version, but then I found out that the printed book had pictures and diagrams, and that really gave it a unique flavor, too. This book was a delightful surprise in many respects.

[taliainthetardis · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Sometimes I think it’s a cardinal rule to not watch a movie before reading the book. Other times, there’s a chance where I’m probably never going to read the book. Who knows?

In this case, I watched the trailer, said “I’m watching this,” watched the movie, and promptly bought the book afterwards. No shocker here. I’ve done it a million times before (I won’t mention Les Miserables, which I saw in theatres three times before purchasing the book. It’s still sitting on my shelf, judging me for not reading it already. Oops!)

Let’s start with: I loved the movie, and I definitely cried a little bit.

Now back to the book.

According to her mother, the DOCTOR, Madeline Whittier has a very rare, very difficult to understand disease: Severe Combined Immunodeficiency, known as SCID. Yeah, it’s a disease I haven’t heard of either. Essentially, the disease is so deadly, anything and everything can cause a reaction and potentially kill Madeline; so her mother keeps her on a tight leash, locking her in the house as if Madeline was Rapunzel.

Actually, now that I’ve made that connection, I have just realized that this is basically a retelling of Rapunzel. Mother locks daughter in the house for her “protection.” Prince/boy next door saves the girl, and they live happily ever after.

Basically the nitty-gritty of this story, HA. But I’m a sucker for a cute romance.

When Olly (our “prince”) moves in next door with a very verbally and physically abusive father, a worn-down mother ready to give in, and a sister who is plain done with it all, Madeline can’t help her curiosity once she gets a glimpse of Olly. Madeline usually ignores the new neighbors because they always seem to come and go, but something about Olly makes her want to know him.

From across the yard in their rooms, they exchange emails, only to be even more fascinated with one another. Madeline relishes learning about the outside world through Olly, while Olly dies (bad pun seeing as how “everything can potentially kill Madeline”) to learn more about why Madeline’s mother has her locked away. What starts out as a strange friendship soon becomes a forbidden love story.

After much begging, Madeline’s nurse, Carla, allows Olly a visit. And our love story grows from there.

I don’t wanna spoil too much of this book, but it was a really cute, although sometimes confusing, teenage romance. Madeline was a sweetheart, and I saw a little bit of myself in her (not that I was locked away from everything by my parents, but because I read a lot and preferred my own company most of the time). But I liked Madeline and Olly. I thought they were a sweet couple who tried desperately to be together throughout the difficulty of Madeline’s “disease”and Olly’s family issues. All I wanted was for them to be together in the end.

But then there was Madeline’s mother. Meeeeehhhh. I liked and disliked her. Her mother seemed fine at first. I mean, who could blame her for being obsessively worried about her daughter who could die at any moment from any small thing? Ha. Ha. Ha. (insert eye roll here. You’ll understand if you read the book or saw the movie.) Don’t get me wrong. I definitely felt for Madeline’s mother.


(SPOILER ALERT HERE: skip ahead if you don’t wanna know this bit)

I mean, her son and husband died. Who wouldn’t be worried about their last surviving child after a deadly accident???

(END SPOILER).

[sweetiegherkin · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Eighteen-year-old Maddy has lived the majority of her life limited to her own home, with almost no visitors besides her nurse as Maddy has a rare disease that makes so many factors in the outside world possibly fatal for her. As she has been living this way since she was a baby, she doesn't remember or know an alternative. But when a cute boy moves in across the street, Maddy is intrigued by him and strikes up an online friendship. Once she starts learning more about the outside world, can Maddy still be content with the life she has?

This was an engaging and compelling read. Admittedly, romance is not really my genre but I did enjoy this title. For starters, Maddy and Olly both felt closer to real people than archetypes. They both have hobbies, such as reading/reviewing books and playing board games for Maddy and parkour and building an orrery for Olly. They both have their own familial issues to deal with and their own histories before meeting each other.

Also, I appreciated how the thing keeping the romantic pair apart was not some silly, contrived misunderstanding but a serious barrier due to illness. When it later is revealed that Maddy is not sick at all , I at first thought that was a cop-out and a real deus ex machina moment to solve the problem. However, I thought it was both appropriate and well done for the first reactions to this news to be Maddy dealing with how this affects her life in other ways -- her relationship with her mother primarily, but also her relationship with her nurse Carla, her schooling, her living situation, and finally her relationship with Olly. I think a more stereotypical romance novel would have jumped right to the last part first, but this way was more accurate to real life.

I do feel like the ending, while beautiful in its circular nature, left me wondering more about what was going to happen with these characters, but many of the best reads do conclude in such a way to make you regret leaving that world.

The audiobook was narrated extremely well by the main reader who put some much emotion into it; a couple of extra voices and sparingly used sound effects enhanced the experience. However, the print book also has fun little doodles and more, so I recommend having a copy of each to read.

[daumari · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

2.5, rounding up to 3.

I've never read a John Green book so I figured hmm, maybe I'm not as familiar with contemporary doomed teenage love stories, but I thought this was cute up until the third act twist. It's a shame because parts of this book are pretty cute (and how often do we see Blasians in fiction? Apparently not in the movie??) but between how Maddy finds a way to take control of her life and how it ends I just got taken out of the story (especially with the former- would she know how money/finances work?)

A bit of light reading that reminded me about teenage feelings but tinged by a couple leaps that don't quite make it.

[SaoriWinter · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

On each page, I could feel the characters' emotions, and I couldn't stop reading with each page. (Translated from Spanish)

[dawn.zimmerer · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Loved it! It ended too abruptly for me though...

[kaitiek-54688 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Not my usual kind of book, but once I started reading I couldn't put it down.

[Visol · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

What can I say, young adult novels have their charm, although they can sometimes be very cliché and you can predict what will happen in the end. This one doesn't do that; at the beginning, you feel empathy for the protagonist because of her way of life due to her illness and the strength she has to cope with it. The beautiful and cheesy part begins when the boy who touches her heart appears and the adventure they embark on. And as a shocking ending, you find out a big surprise. It has everything and will be one of my favorites. (Translated from Spanish)

[jessicareadsthings · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I think I read this in a matter of hours. It was fantastic.

[Bree14 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Beautiful book. I loved it; I can read it over and over again and I won't get tired of reading it. (Translated from Spanish)

[thewallflower-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Why is there so much “sick kids romance” I’ve read. The Fault In Our Stars, Five Feet Apart, Me, Earl, and the Dying Girl and now this (not counting crappy movies like Clouds). And it plays just like a Sick Kids Romance.

I think I’m too old for this kind of book, for young love stories. I see them and I’m like everyone reacting to The Little Mermaid now. Like when she says "I'm sixteen years old, I'm not a child anymore." Like "Yes, you are young lady."

I’m forty. I’ve been married for fifteen years. I’m on antidepressants. I get no thrill from hand-holding anymore. A younger me might’ve.

Also, I knew the ending so all I saw was Room, where a monster is keeping her prisoner. Room and its concept terrifies me. I feel like the book should have explored that aspect more–the PTSD that comes from being trapped in a single place for all your life. Like Plato’s allegory of the cave. This book puts a syrupy family drama onto it that feels facetious.

[CrisLuna · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

An easy-to-read story with a simple plot that may entertain some but may not please others, leading them to not finish it.
I think the protagonists' story is sweet and tender, although I would have liked to hear a bit more about the boy's family relationship and that there was something more serious.
Overall, I liked it but I don't think I'll read it again. (Translated from Spanish)

[reader1009-863136 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

teen romance from perspective of an 18-year-old "bubble girl" (who has read a LOT of classic fiction). This was a quick read (lots of im chats and cute pictorial graphs).

[sallyelizabethmurphy · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Sweet, easy read

[1997Libros · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Sometimes, our pain plays with our minds, convincing us that we are doing the right thing for others. When the reality is that we do it out of fear of moving forward.
One type of love is the one that allows you to be free and enjoy life; the other is a selfish and obsessive love that doesn’t let you breathe. (Translated from Spanish)

[angeljmartin · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Reread 02/2021: I think I love this book more than I did the first time.

Original Review: When I started this book, I didn't expect to get sucked into it the way I did. I was actually really nervous for this one because I was worried I'd be part of the small percentage of people who didn't like it, but it was actually really good.

I did kind of predict the end, though at one point I genuinely thought my prediction was wrong. Either way, I was extremely frustrated with the revelation toward the end, predicted or not. I understand her mom's perspective, but I also believe she took things too far; I'd be just as angry if I was in Maddy's place.

Excluding Maddy's mother - and Olly's father - I loved the rest of the characters. Maddy was one of the most genuine book characters I've discovered, and I immediately loved her. Carla was probably my favorite character. She was just so sweet and loving, and I'm glad Maddy had her in her life.

Maddy's relationship with Olly is probably one of the cutest I've read about in a while, and they reminded me a lot of my own boyfriend and I.

Overall, I believe this was a really cute book. I'd recommend it to whoever hasn't read it yet, though I feel like everyone's already done so. I definitely wish I'd read this sooner. Honestly, I'm not even entirely sure why it took me this long to read it, but I'm glad I did.

[buzzinglibrary · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Her other book was so good. And this was so... predictable. It just ruined it for me.

[composingcomposer · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

2 1/2 stars.

I was quite underwhelmed by this book. I decided to listen to the audiobook because everyone had been gushing about how good it was. I found it to be quite formulaic and predictable, and I had trouble believing the romance. Or at least, I had trouble believing that they were in love and not just infatuated. I also looked up munchousen syndrome by proxy as Maddy's mother had, and as far as I could tell (I didn't do extensive research) this disease is largely caused when people want attention/money. While it's possible that there may be a type where the reason the person has for doing what they do is to protect their child/parent/charge, but it seems odd that that would be so much harder to find stories about that.

Well, I at least learned how to say humuhumunukunukuapua'a since I was by coincidence I listened to the audiobook about a week before going to Hawai'i.

[readingbeader · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Imagine living your whole life inside, because you are allergic to everything. What if one day a beautiful boy moved in next door? Is the world you know enough? Or do you choose to want more?

This was quite a roller coaster ride for me. I felt so much for Maddy. I wanted her to not be stuck inside. I marveled at her patience. I was excited at the prospect of a new friend for her. Olly was an interesting character, but I wanted to know more. Since we’re limited by Maddy being the narrator, we didn’t get into Olly’s head like hers. I wanted to know more of what he was thinking.

I don’t want to talk about the plot too much as it will turn spoilery. But I read this in two big chunks, so it kept my attention easily. It’s filled with charts and drawings to illustrate Maddy’s thoughts, and has email transcripts that further the plotline. I’m glad I bought this for the library. I think it will be popular.

[carriewuj · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is a charming debut novel -- YA, though I didn't know it when I grabbed it from the Popular Picks shelf. The protagonist, Madeline Whittier is also the narrator, so all we get is her point of view, though she tends to be very honest. She is 18 years old, but ensconced in her house -- essentially a "bubble girl" because she has Severe Combined Immunodeficiency. To date, she has been satisfied with her life --- it's all she has known. She has read a gazillion books, has online tutors and a full-time nurse, Carla and is under her mother's care. Her mother is an MD, though it never mentions a specialty if she has one. We learn early on that her father and brother were killed in an accident when she was only months old. Then, a new family moves in next door and from her window Madeline observes the handsome boy and his sister as well as a drunken, abusive father and mother who is a victim. Oliver and Madeline begin to communicate through the window, then online and finally with Carla's help, in person. Like Romeo and Juliet, the nurse facilitates their meetings (though Olly has to go through the house's decontamination chamber first) and naturally, they fall in love. What Maddy decides to do to act on her feelings is heroic and a little far-fetched, but ultimately calls into question the nature and power of love. The Little Prince by Antoine de St-Exupery is her play-book and she is both impulsive and true to her heart. Some surprises here -- one you might see coming -- but the book is well-conceived and a nice collection of Madeline's journal, emails, hospital records, artistic imagination, doodles and drawings.

[Cris ¿Qué libro leo? · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A novel that undoubtedly invites you to reflect on whether you are truly living life or simply watching it pass by in fear. I really enjoyed the romance; the story makes you fall in love with its characters... and it is also written in an extraordinary way, with a quite interesting plot and extremely rich characters. In conclusion, the reading fills you with hope and love, which causes your heart to smile with each page. It is totally recommended for enjoying a lovely love story. (Translated from Spanish)

[Julsbennet · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Undoubtedly, the plot is unexpected, filled with emotions from the main character Maddy. From my point of view, I didn't find it very entertaining; it needed more context, but in the end, the book has a very good imagination. (Translated from Spanish)

[agustinaevelyn · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I love it, it's a read that I highly recommend. The plot, the unexpected twists, its uniqueness and love make this book one of my favorites. (Translated from Spanish)

[violet2325 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Is it true that love changes everything? Life is full of ups and downs, but if you’re like me (which is somewhat unlikely), it means you only know a fraction of the world, your world. I haven't left my house my entire life, and you might say that's great, but no, I'm missing out on many things, and it’s not cool to be sick and live every day of your life trapped in a routine. I need a change. Olly changed my life; he made me see that the world is full of wonders. He taught me that loving is a gift that life gives us, and no one can deny it, no matter how hurt you may be. I’m going to live my life and let me (if I’m still me, of course) enjoy every moment, just like I enjoyed that tropical paradise by the seaside. (Translated from Spanish)

[cata09 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I got into the story from the very beginning, a wonderful story. (Translated from Spanish)

[snickel63 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Quick read that was very enjoyable. I loved that there were notes, drawings, texts, and other things throughout the book from the main characters point of view. I was surprised by the ending, but I loved the reading the entire book. Would definitely read again.

[Iamestefania04 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Do they really believe that love changes everything??? I believe it does, Madeline's life changed completely when she met Olly because she found true love. Through all that love, she discovered that everything about her illness was a lie, as her mother just wanted to protect her from all the dangers outside. That's why she created a fake illness, but the good thing is that no matter what happens, love is the only thing that matters... (Translated from Spanish)

[samnreader · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Solid 3.5. Super enjoyable and sweet.