One of my recent reads was the young adult novel Every Last Word, written by Tamara Ireland Stone. This book offers a unique perspective into the life of Sam, a teenager living with Obsessive Compulsion Disorder. She deftly navigates both the secretive inner world of her mental illness and the external world of her friends and high school, finding solace in her passion for swimming. Upon meeting Caroline, a new girl at her school, Sam is introduced to a group of teens who are not only supportive but push Sam to reveal more of herself. She gradually begins to grow away from her old friends, but when a reality comes to light Sam begins to question just how deep her OCD has affected her.
There is a lot that this book gets right, the first being that it features a complex and relatable protagonist. Sam is quite fragile in many ways, but her inner strength still manages to radiate from the pages of Every Last Word. Many of the other characters, namely Sue, AJ and Hailey, are also wonderfully developed and play unique rolls in Sam's life. This novel is also well-written, and the author does a great job of incorporating poetry into the fabric of the narrative. A final positive element about Every Last Word is just how well it manages to dive into the essence of someone's mind who is dealing with OCD. This book doesn't make Sam out to be a victim of an illness, but rather makes her seem like a normal and relateable human being just like anybody else.
Where this book falls just a bit short for me personally was creating an emotional attachment to the characters. Although I thought that Sam was very well-developed and complex, I still didn't have much stake in her journey throughout the plot. I didn't feel for her at all, nor did I feel any sort of emotional attachment to any of the other characters. Another element that didn't work was the plot twist towards the end, as I was expecting it from early on in the book. Lastly, I found the character of Caroline to be a bit bizarre. I liked that she represented Sam's strength and positive traits, but how Caroline was developed and introduced to the reader just didn't sit quite right.
Overall, Every Last Word is a well-written young adult novel that certainly delivers on creating a relatable and likeable protagonist, an intriguingly unique storyline, and it gives great insight into the inner world of suffering from OCD. However, it still falls somewhat flat in a few areas and perhaps doesn't quite reach its full potential. Overall, if you are looking for a new book to read that has equal parts real-life issues, romance, tenderness, and humor then this might just be a book that I would recommend you give a try.
Author: Tamara Ireland Stone
Genre: Drama/Mental illness/YA
There is a lot that this book gets right, the first being that it features a complex and relatable protagonist. Sam is quite fragile in many ways, but her inner strength still manages to radiate from the pages of Every Last Word. Many of the other characters, namely Sue, AJ and Hailey, are also wonderfully developed and play unique rolls in Sam's life. This novel is also well-written, and the author does a great job of incorporating poetry into the fabric of the narrative. A final positive element about Every Last Word is just how well it manages to dive into the essence of someone's mind who is dealing with OCD. This book doesn't make Sam out to be a victim of an illness, but rather makes her seem like a normal and relateable human being just like anybody else.
Where this book falls just a bit short for me personally was creating an emotional attachment to the characters. Although I thought that Sam was very well-developed and complex, I still didn't have much stake in her journey throughout the plot. I didn't feel for her at all, nor did I feel any sort of emotional attachment to any of the other characters. Another element that didn't work was the plot twist towards the end, as I was expecting it from early on in the book. Lastly, I found the character of Caroline to be a bit bizarre. I liked that she represented Sam's strength and positive traits, but how Caroline was developed and introduced to the reader just didn't sit quite right.
Overall, Every Last Word is a well-written young adult novel that certainly delivers on creating a relatable and likeable protagonist, an intriguingly unique storyline, and it gives great insight into the inner world of suffering from OCD. However, it still falls somewhat flat in a few areas and perhaps doesn't quite reach its full potential. Overall, if you are looking for a new book to read that has equal parts real-life issues, romance, tenderness, and humor then this might just be a book that I would recommend you give a try.
Author: Tamara Ireland Stone
Genre: Drama/Mental illness/YA
Pages: 355
Year Published: 2015
My Rating: ★★★☆☆
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