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A review by emily_1215
The Year We Fell from Space by Amy Sarig King
4.0
4 stars
I love a hard-hitting middle-grade, and this one is amazing. A.S. King writes incredible YA fiction, and apparently, she can also do great things for younger genres.
Content warning for parental depression, teenage situational depression, and divorce
This book does something really unique. I've read a handful of books that tackle parental depression (both middle-grade and YA), and this one does something a lot different than the parent who won't get out of bed (which is absolutely an accurate and no less valid depiction of depression; it's just what I've seen most commonly), and Liberty's dad is pretty present throughout almost the entire story. Every single character in this book is a little messy in the way that real humans are. It made me laugh, cry, and reflect.
Although the characters do or say the "wrong" thing sometimes, there is amazing character growth that is believable and heart-warming. I wish this book had been around when I was twelve/thirteen. I would have been obsessed because I was having some of the same thoughts as Liberty and felt very isolated (I also used to think I was from a different planet sometimes too). This book will mean a lot to so many kids and adults, and I'm glad it exists now.
It took around fifty pages for me to buy into the story and start caring about it, and I wish Liberty had a close friend character, but overall, this book is amazing, thoughtful, and potentially life-changing. I seriously hope A.S. King does more middle-grade novels!
I love a hard-hitting middle-grade, and this one is amazing. A.S. King writes incredible YA fiction, and apparently, she can also do great things for younger genres.
Content warning for parental depression, teenage situational depression, and divorce
This book does something really unique. I've read a handful of books that tackle parental depression (both middle-grade and YA), and this one does something a lot different than the parent who won't get out of bed (which is absolutely an accurate and no less valid depiction of depression; it's just what I've seen most commonly), and Liberty's dad is pretty present throughout almost the entire story. Every single character in this book is a little messy in the way that real humans are. It made me laugh, cry, and reflect.
Although the characters do or say the "wrong" thing sometimes, there is amazing character growth that is believable and heart-warming. I wish this book had been around when I was twelve/thirteen. I would have been obsessed because I was having some of the same thoughts as Liberty and felt very isolated (I also used to think I was from a different planet sometimes too). This book will mean a lot to so many kids and adults, and I'm glad it exists now.
It took around fifty pages for me to buy into the story and start caring about it, and I wish Liberty had a close friend character, but overall, this book is amazing, thoughtful, and potentially life-changing. I seriously hope A.S. King does more middle-grade novels!