She Flies With Faeries Reviews: EVERYTHING EVERYTHING by Nicola Yoon

Title: Everything Everything

Author: Nicola Yoon

My Rating: 4.5/5 Stars

My disease is as rare as it is famous. It’s a form of Severe Combined Immunodeficiency, but basically, I’m allergic to the world. I don’t leave my house, have not left my house in fifteen years. The only people I ever see are my mom and my nurse, Carla.

But then one day, a moving truck arrives. New next door neighbors. I look out the 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. I want to learn everything about him, and I do. I learn that he is funny and fierce. I learn that his eyes are Atlantic Ocean-blue and that his vice is stealing silverware. I learn that when I talk to him, my whole world opens up, and I feel myself starting to change—starting to want things. To want out of my bubble. To want everything, everything the world has to offer.

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.

***

I’ve been in a review slump for so long because well, life, but I really couldn’t just not review this baby!

Believe me when I say this: EVERYTHING, EVERYTHING is not just your usual YA Novel. Heck, it’s not even your usual love story. And no, I’m not saying that because there are vampires or werewolves here. There definitely are none of those. I’m saying this because EVERYTHING EVERYTHING is simply in a league of its own.

First, you have Maddy, an otherwise normal protagonist–except for the fact that she is locked up in her room all the time, and that she couldn’t be around other people. I have to admit, that was one of the reasons why I read this book–I’m not really the kind of girl who goes out all the time, and to be honest, I’d rather just be cooped up with my cats.

But enough about me. Let’s go back to Maddy. You see, she has never really been friends with anyone, and then one day, she meets this guy who changes everything–EVERYTHING–for her.

Okay, now you may feel like that’s a cliche. At first, I did, too, but then it was so much more than that. Olly changed Maddy’s life in more ways than one and helped her get to know herself better. Their relationship had a lot of barriers. It wasn’t your usual meet-cute, let’s get out, I love you, you love me thing. Olly had to go through hell just to be with Maddy–literally and figuratively.

Another character that I liked here is Carla, the only woman (apart from her mother) that Maddy knew all her life. She helped Maddy make some risks in her life. More than being a nurse, she was Maddy’s friend–and you could just see how important it is to have someone like that in your life; someone who’ll help you break through who you are, and help you experience the world, and life, for what it is.

Challenges? Of course, there were a lot. There were a couple of times in this book where I just wanted to cry, or hug Maddy. And when she found out that BIG SECRET, it changed everything. It was one of those twists that would break your heart–and you know this already, I like this when books break my heart–or something like it.

What I like about what happened after that is the fact that Maddy became a stronger, wiser version of herself. Though her actions may make you feel sad, it’ll also remind you that sometimes, you really couldn’t help  hurt the ones you love. Sometimes, in order for growth to happen, you have to make your own decisions–even though it hurts.

You’ve probably read a lot of books this year already, but EVERYTHING EVERYTHING should have a place in your bookshelf. Or Kindle. Wherever. Just promise you’d buy and read it. It’s one of those stories that will stick with you for a long, long time.