Friday, October 21, 2016

Book Review: Holding Up the Universe by Jennifer Niven


Join us at Hicklebee's as the Teen Advisory Board hosts Jennifer Niven,
 Kathleen Glasgow, Teresa Toten, Brenna Yavanoff
Saturday, October 21 @ 7:00 pm 




Summary: Jack Masselin, a popular boy who is keeping a secret from everyone he knows. His secret: he has prosopagnosia, which means he cannot recognize faces, even the faces of his own family. His disorder, along with other things, makes him long for someone who understands. When he meets Libby Strout, a new girl in school, he finds the kind of understanding he’s been looking for. Libby Strout, formerly known as “America’s Fattest Teen,” returns to the public school system after being severely bullied and the loss of her mother. After years of therapy and losing some weight, she builds up the confidence to go back to normal schooling and finds it’s much harder than she thought. After an incident lands both Jack and Libby in the principal’s office and they are forced to spend time together, they find solace in each other’s company and learn, through each other, to see others in their true light and the power of friendship.

Rating: 4⁄5 Stars

Review: Bestselling author of All TheBright Places, Jennifer Niven, comes back again with another entertaining, inspiring book that will not let down devoted readers - Holding Up the Universe. Although this book had a completely different tone and message than All The Bright Places, I still thoroughly enjoyed it. I really liked Jack’s thought process throughout the novel, especially when he was around people because of his prosopagnosia. It was interesting to watch him struggle with something I’ve never even had to think about before. I also really appreciated Jack and Libby’s friendship and liked how it developed throughout the novel. Their dialogue stayed true to the teenager voice and it kept me engaged with the plot and the character’s lives.

While I enjoyed almost all of the aspects of this book, there were a few things that I felt could have been better. I felt this story was trying to send a message encouraging readers to accept their insecurities and be themselves, but it never quite grasped that theme. I think Libby’s point-of-view had many opportunities to really drive in this message, but those chances were not taken and this energy was more focused on Libby’s relationship with Jack. I also felt that the ending rushed to tie loose ends together such as Jack telling his family about his disorder and Jack and Libby “getting back together.”

If there had been less time spent on how Jack and Libby felt while they were becoming friends and their friendship in general throughout the novel, there would have been more space left to develop Jack and his dad’s relationship, the conversation circle at their school, Libby’s journey of self-acceptance,and others aspects of the plot which would have further diversified the overall theme of the novel.

When thinking about this book as a whole, I would have to say that I really enjoyed it and it has made my love for Jennifer Niven and her books grow even more. This is a novel that I believe readers should definitely look out for and possibly buy at bookstores. I cannot wait to see what else Jennifer Niven has in store for her future books! 

by Tatum J., TAB Member

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