Review: All of the Above
08:00
By Juno Dawson
Source: Library, paperback
Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance, LGBT+, Mental Health,
When sixteen-year-old Toria Bland arrives at her new school, she needs to work out who her friends are in a crazy whirl of worry, exam pressure and anxiety over fitting in. Things start looking up when Toria meets the funny and foul-mouthed Polly, who's the coolest girl that Toria has ever seen. Polly and the rest of the 'alternative' kids take Toria under their wing. And that's when she meets the irresistible Nico Mancini, lead singer of a local band - and it's instalove at first sight! Toria likes Nico, Nico likes Toria, but then there's Polly...love and friendship have a funny way of going round in circles.
I really liked Juno Dawson’s other book, Under My Skin, so I knew I was going to enjoy this one too, even if I knew it would be a little different. This book was comforting, and so much fun! It was a quick read, and a brilliant book, so I’d highly recommend it to fans of the genre!
It was very much a character driven book, and I adored most of the characters. I wasn’t keen on Toria - the protagonist - but I loved everyone else! I cared so much about the plot, because of how loveable everyone was. I felt like the characters were my best friends, and I do wish they were real!
This book discussed lots of pretty dark themes, and handled them very well. I’ve heard a few people saying to got a bit crowded, and should have just focused in more depth on just one important topic, but that’s not the case for me! It was true to real life, and I think it was handled so well. It has some very important messages, yet is still a super fun book.
One thing that makes this book stand out from others of the same genre is the poetry. There’s about 10 poems in the book, so they don’t occur very often. I think they fitted in really fell with what was happening, and added a lot to the story. Some of the more emotional ones were especially moving, so I do hope Juno’s books feature more poetry!
I really liked the ending. I thought everything was wrapped up well, and gave me full closure. Overall, this was an important book, yet a light read. It was everything I hoped for, and I really enjoyed it!
Hello! I'm D - a dog-loving feminist from the UK. You'll probably find me with my nose in a book or playing my clarinet
14 comments
I haven't read this one, but I definitely see what you mean about how focusing on a variety of tougher themes is more true to real life, where we can't pick and choose just a handful. Lovely review, as always ❤
ReplyDeleteYeah, I think lots of books just focus on one thing (like mental health), and it doesn't make them as impactful. Thank you so much, Erin ♥
DeleteIt sounds interesting, but the synopsis mentions instalove!! Is it really instalovey? :/ I love character driven novels, but I tend to stay away from instalove! :/
ReplyDeleteI know! That put me off a little too, but it's completely not like that. There is a little insta-love, but it's only a really small part of the book. The synopsis is so misleading!
DeleteIt's kind of funny,everytime I go to the English books section in the bookstore I go to, I see this book. I feel like it's a sign I should read it at some point, haha! This book sounds quite good, and I think I'll give it a try, thanks to your review ! :)
ReplyDeleteIt is!! The Earth is trying to tell you something, Marie... ;)
DeleteThat's so nice that they included poetry too. This sounds like a very interesting read, and I hadn't even heard about it. Great review, Denise! :D
ReplyDeleteIt's really good! I hope you get to it soon :)
DeleteI do want to try Under My Skin, but I'm not sure about this. I think it sounds fairly good and I always love when I enjoy a book by one author and can cross that enjoyment into another book. But maybe I'll be a bit more convinced if I try Under My Skin more?
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed Under My Skin a lot more, so I'd recommend you read that first! They're both really good books though (at least imo!), but if contemporary isn't your genre, I'd say Under My Skin is a better bet for you ☺
DeleteAwesome that it is a character driven book, this one sounds really good! Lovely review
ReplyDeleteThank you!
DeleteI've seen this book circling the blogosphere for a while! It looks like a very interesting premise, and I do love contemporaries! Great review :)
ReplyDeleteIt's quite popular here in Britain! I hope you read it :D
DeleteThanks for commenting! I read and respond to every comment, so make sure to check back to see my reply. Have a nice day! ☺♥