Finding Audrey by Sophie Kinsella
I had Sophie Kinsella’s first YA novel on my shelf for ages and only picked it up during my reading slump at the beginning of the year. And I’m so, so glad I did!
14-year-old Audrey is unable to leave the house due to severe anxiety – she can’t even take her dark glasses off and look someone in the eye. She hasn’t spoken to a stranger in forever, but then her brother’s video-gaming friend, Linus, enters her life. I was apprehensive at first and worried this would be a “boy fixes girl’s mental health”-type story, but it wasn’t at all. Audrey helps herself all on her own – and Linus is just a cute part of it! Linus and Audrey’s relationship begins with little notes that they pass to each other via Audrey’s 4-year-old brother, and it’s the first time that she starts to open up.
Audrey’s family also feature hugely in the book – which doesn’t always happen in YA – and they were just brilliant, even her Daily Mail-reading mum. For a book that’s mostly confined to the walls of Audrey’s house, it never feels tedious or lacking plot. Sophia Kinsella, of course, uses light humour but at the same time, always takes mental health seriously. Finding Audrey is a brilliantly realistic story of teenage life and living with mental health – I enjoyed every page.
“It won’t be forever. You’ll be in the dark for as long as it takes and then you’ll come out.”
My Type on Paper by Chloe Seager
When it was announced that my friend Chloe was writing a YA rom-com inspired by Love Island, I was immensely excited and not at all surprised. Love Island is one of the things we bonded over when we first met up – she introduced me to the show and I became addicted, watching it for nine hours straight one Saturday.
My Type on Paper is Love Island meets Mamma Mia. Maya has just broken up with (if you can even call it that) her dreamy boyfriend, Freddie, before they were meant to go on holiday together in the summer. Well, he broke up with her. And she doesn’t understand why. While sitting in her bedroom, completely fed up, she takes a quiz in a teen magazine to find out what her type on paper is. She takes it again and again… and all three start to appear one-by-one, at her workplace, Casa Nadar. As she goes on dates with the three boys – one of whom, Jake, has a dog who dances to Taylor Swift – she entrusts her best friends Aimee and Joe to help her choose between them.
My Type of Paper is a laugh-out-loud, cute and fun rom-com, perfect for reading outside (if you’re able to!) this summer. It’s a light read that had me giggling to myself and thankful for being single because Maya’s situation sounds disastrously stressful. Although you’ll get a little more out of it if you’re a fan of Love Island (Chloe uses a lot of phrases from the show), it’s a summery story for anyone who doesn’t want to take life too seriously right now.
Strange Planet by Nathan W. Pyle
For Christmas, my good friend Bella surprised me with Strange Planet. She knew that I was a big fan of the Instagram account and this is such a lovely, gifty book.
Strange Planet is a comic series on Instagram with more than 5 million followers, featuring aliens who speak literally and empathetically. It’s heartwarming, funny and relatable – and incredibly adorable. The book is filled with fan favourite from Instagram, as well as some never-seen-before strips set in a “distant world not unlike our own”.
The comic strips feature topics including dogs, seemingly unexceptional situations, sadness, and relationships, it’s ideal for anyone who needs a little pick-me-up.
#gifted: My Type on Paper was obtained for free in exchange for an honest review.
2 Comments
Julia
23rd May 2020 at 6:12 pmI loved Finding Audrey! I read it four years ago on holiday in Croatia 🙂
Stacey
28th June 2020 at 3:48 pmI love the memories that come with reading and buying books!