Saturday, February 6, 2016

Every Last Word

Title: Every Last Word

Author: Tamara Ireland Stone

First Published: June 16th, 2015

Series: Stand Alone

Genre: YA, Contemporary, Romance, Mental Illness

Available As: Hardcover, paperback, ebook

Pages: 368

My Copy: eBook

My Rating: 9/10

Goodreads Summary
If you could read my mind, you wouldn't be smiling.

Samantha McAllister looks just like the rest of the popular girls in her junior class. But hidden beneath the straightened hair and expertly applied makeup is a secret that her friends would never understand: Sam has Purely-Obsessional OCD and is consumed by a stream of dark thoughts and worries that she can't turn off.

Second-guessing every move, thought, and word makes daily life a struggle, and it doesn't help that her lifelong friends will turn toxic at the first sign of a wrong outfit, wrong lunch, or wrong crush. Yet Sam knows she'd be truly crazy to leave the protection of the most popular girls in school. So when Sam meets Caroline, she has to keep her new friend with a refreshing sense of humor and no style a secret, right up there with Sam's weekly visits to her psychiatrist.

Caroline introduces Sam to Poet's Corner, a hidden room and a tight-knit group of misfits who have been ignored by the school at large. Sam is drawn to them immediately, especially a guitar-playing guy with a talent for verse, and starts to discover a whole new side of herself. Slowly, she begins to feel more "normal" than she ever has as part of the popular crowd . . . until she finds a new reason to question her sanity and all she holds dear.
This is an amazing book, dealing with OCD and how it isn't just about obsessing over whether the pencils are straight or not, which is a common misconception. The OCD takes over Sam's life completely, and we can see her struggle to cope with it. Life gets a lot better when Caroline brings Sam to Poet's Corner, where she can write poetry and express herself freely without being judged.

As it is with these kinds of books, there is always a plot twist! *Spoiler alert* Who would have known? Caroline is a figment of Sam's imagination. She was never there at all! Well, I guess I should have known, seeing as the plot twist from Made You Up is similar. However, I think this isn't as bad as it seems, since "Caroline" has always been there for Sam, always encouraged her and gave her the words she needed to speak up. Quite nice. *Spoiler over*

The relationship between Sam and AJ started off painfully slow. He hated her for what she did in 4th Grade, but he got over it when she apologised. It was quite nice, since it wasn't rushed or anything. It builded gradually: from friends to boyfriend/girlfriend. I think AJ is very loyal and supportive of his friends. He's a good match for Sam.

Sam changed a lot throughout the course of the book. She began as a quiet girl in a group of friends who didn't really suit her. True, they've been friends since a young age, but it is plain that Sam doesn't really like them much. Once she joins Poet's Corner and begins writing her poetry, she becomes more brave and develops a voice. Poetry is like an outlet for her thoughts, and I think it really helps her face her fears.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and I would definitely recommend it for those who like Made You Up!

My Chosen Quote
“Everyone’s got something. Some people are just better actors than others.”

8 comments:

  1. This book sounds really good! My friend always complains that I have OCD because I'm neater than she is; now I feel like I should show her this to prove that OCD isn't only about cleanliness! Great review :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for reading my review! Now go prove your friend wrong! :)

      Delete
  2. I've been wanting to read this book! I'm glad I stumbled across this review because I'm so excited to pick this up! I loved your review and I also love your blog! I just followed!
    Alicia #lovebook http://hashtaglovebooks.com/ I hope you'll check out my blog!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks so much! I hope you get round to reading this book - it's amazing! I'll be sure to stop by your blog soon!

      Delete
  3. I've had my eye on this one for a while, but now I REALLY WANT TO READ IT!!
    I've read a few other books where the main character has OCD, and I've really enjoyed most of them, so by the sounds of your review, it sounds like something I'd really enjoy. I didn't actually know this was about OCD, so thanks for letting me know!

    I'm glad you enjoyed this one, Cloe! Fantastic review, as always ♥
    Denise | The Bibliolater

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I hope you read it soon! I know not many people have heard of this book and I think it deserves much more recognition!

      Delete
  4. I'm glad you enjoyed this one - it makes me want to read it more!
    I especially love how it involves a girl with OCD - OCD is a mental illness that really isn't tackled much at all, let alone in YA novels!
    Geraldine @ Corralling Books

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Definitely, OCD and other mental illnesses are usually touchy subjects authors tend to steer clear of. It's insightful to see how OCD really affects someone's life.

      Delete

Hi there! I hope you liked my post! I'd love to hear your thoughts, so if you'd like to drop me a little message/comment, that would probably make my day! :) Thanks for visiting my blog!