Title: Holding Up the Universe
Author: Jennifer Niven
Series: Stand Alone
Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: October 4, 2016
Source: Blogging for Books
Holding Up the Universe....this book was interesting, and despite it being a fictional book, I did learn a little bit of random information from it which is always cool..
So what is it about? It is about Libby - America's former fattest teen and Jack - the boy who is face blind and can't recognize anyone by their face.
Libby is now no longer stuck in her house. Once upon a time she was such a size that they had to cut her out of her house and lift her using a crane to get her out and to a hospital. She is still a larger girl, but she is pretty secure in her body and loves to dance. In this story she is finally returning to school as a high school junior and leaving the home school world and the hiding away behind her.
Enter Jack. Jack is a boy with a rare disorder that causes him not to be able to recognize people by their faces. Every time a persons face leaves his visual field, he forgets it. Of course, being Mr. Popular, he hasn't told a single person about it and tries to hide that something isn't right with him. This gets him in quite a bit of trouble and interesting situations. He's Mr. Cool though so he keeps brushing it off and acting like it was nothing.
One day, not long into the new school year Jack does something very jerky to Libby and their paths get crossed. And the story goes from there.
So what did I think over all? I thought it was good. While I was reading it, I was enjoying it. However, the problem was when I took breaks in reading. This book wasn't necessarily calling me to come pick it back up to finish. Part of that could be this epic slump that I have been in regarding reading, but I think there is another part to it...
See, while I found this book fun and an enjoyable read over all, I was having a hard time connecting to the characters. There was something about them that was missing for me. I especially wanted to be able to connect to Libby. I may not be a teenager any more, but I am no small little cupcake myself. So I wanted to read a story with a larger MC and feel the connection.
NOW! I did eventually start to feel it towards the second half of the book. There was actually a paragraph in there that was describing EXACTLY how I have been feeling lately about "why should it matter to other people what size I am?" and that paragraph was a changer for me.
I wanted the characters to feel a little more real, but they were okay.
And then the ending! By then I was hooked and I really was feeling the emotions that were put towards the end and I enjoyed that. That was when I felt the need to really keep going if I had taken a break. So, there is that!
All in all, I liked it. It does have a really good message that I definitely think needs to be shared and I do recommend this book! Be warned though - there is language and some mild violence in this book (mostly just punches to the face).
My Rating
4 Stars
This review is based on a copy provided to me by Blogging for Books in exchange for a fair and honest review. All thoughts and opinions are mine and mine alone.
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