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A review by emleemay
Made You Up by Francesca Zappia
4.0
“Sometimes I think people take reality for granted.”
I stand by my earlier claim - YA contemporary is where it's at this year. I thought this book was excellent. Compelling, addictive, really weird and excellent. It was such an unusual novel; I can personally say I've never read anything quite like it and it's a great book for discussion. Such an unreliable narrator, constantly blurring the lines between reality and hallucination.
Alex suffers from paranoia and schizophrenia. Her world is full of colours, objects, people and noises that may or may not really be there. She cannot trust her own senses, so she takes pictures of the world around her, knowing that any hallucinations will eventually fade and the reality will be left behind in the image. And I just loved the way the story unfolded.
See, years ago, Alex was first diagnosed when she recounted an incident that no one else seemed to think happened that way. Despite being haunted by this strange false memory, she always told herself that it was part of her mental illness and she had to accept that her memory was lying. Only... then she meets Miles and she begins to wonder if everything about that day was in her head, or if maybe there's something more to the story.
It's fascinating. You don't know what's real and what isn't. The exploration of the line between reality and imagination kept me turning pages at a crazy pace to find out the truth. And it's such a charming little read with a cast of diverse and interesting characters. The dialogue is engaging and witty, without feeling strained like [a:John Green|1406384|John Green|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1353452301p2/1406384.jpg]'s sometimes does.
I think I liked Alex and Miles because they're both kind of unlikable. Hehe. Alex is moody and antisocial; Miles is a total pain in the ass. But the weird relationship between them made me like them and made me care about them both. The story predictably takes the romantic route, but it happens very gradually and feels like a natural progression. Not the slightest whiff of insta-anything.
Very enjoyable and very unique (at least to me). Highly recommended to all fans of YA contemporary.
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I stand by my earlier claim - YA contemporary is where it's at this year. I thought this book was excellent. Compelling, addictive, really weird and excellent. It was such an unusual novel; I can personally say I've never read anything quite like it and it's a great book for discussion. Such an unreliable narrator, constantly blurring the lines between reality and hallucination.
Alex suffers from paranoia and schizophrenia. Her world is full of colours, objects, people and noises that may or may not really be there. She cannot trust her own senses, so she takes pictures of the world around her, knowing that any hallucinations will eventually fade and the reality will be left behind in the image. And I just loved the way the story unfolded.
See, years ago, Alex was first diagnosed when she recounted an incident that no one else seemed to think happened that way. Despite being haunted by this strange false memory, she always told herself that it was part of her mental illness and she had to accept that her memory was lying. Only... then she meets Miles and she begins to wonder if everything about that day was in her head, or if maybe there's something more to the story.
It's fascinating. You don't know what's real and what isn't. The exploration of the line between reality and imagination kept me turning pages at a crazy pace to find out the truth. And it's such a charming little read with a cast of diverse and interesting characters. The dialogue is engaging and witty, without feeling strained like [a:John Green|1406384|John Green|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1353452301p2/1406384.jpg]'s sometimes does.
I think I liked Alex and Miles because they're both kind of unlikable. Hehe. Alex is moody and antisocial; Miles is a total pain in the ass. But the weird relationship between them made me like them and made me care about them both. The story predictably takes the romantic route, but it happens very gradually and feels like a natural progression. Not the slightest whiff of insta-anything.
Very enjoyable and very unique (at least to me). Highly recommended to all fans of YA contemporary.
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Tumblr