Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
An unlikely friendship forms between two teens when they become acquainted at a hospital. Jamie, who suffers from chronic depression, is working as a volunteer when David, a patient with cystic fibrosis badly in need of a lung transplant, is admitted. Although popular David has plenty of visitors, including his equally popular girlfriend, he is most eager to see Jamie. Jamie also looks forward to her visits with David, and as she teaches him how to do origami and introduces him to classic movies, their relationship moves from confidantes to something more romantic. Jamie's mother, a nurse at the hospital, worries that the teens are growing too close, particularly after Jamie breaks rules and takes risks in fulfilling one of David's requests. Alternating Jamie's and David's points of view, McGovern (Say What You Will) skillfully raises the dramatic tension. Additional, effective narrative techniques include David's surreal out-of-body episodes, reminiscent of those in Gayle Forman's If I Stay. Sobering in its exploration of mental and physical illness, McGovern's sensitive, well-crafted novel leads readers to an optimistic outcome. Ages 14--up. (Jan.)
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Review by Horn Book Review
In this slow-burn romance novel told from alternating perspectives, McGovern (Say What You Will, rev. 7/14; A Step Toward Falling, rev. 9/15) introduces another pair of disparate teens who forge an unlikely connection, this time over a shared experience with chronic illness. Jamie, homeschooled for most of her life, feels isolated after her fathers suicide and her own hospitalization for depression. Then she meets and befriends David, the senior-class president, while she is volunteering at the hospital. At school, David is a celebrity, but at the hospital, he is a cystic fibrosis patient grappling with a dire prognosis. The two divulge their nerdy interests (for Jamie, old movies; for David, ballroom dancing), exchange gently flirtatious emails, and share deep thoughts over origami. Their conversations are notably forthright; they approach difficult topicssuch as the stigma of hidden illness, impossible expectations from friends and family, and the intersections of mental and physical healthfrom sensitive and age-appropriate perspectives. The thrill of intimacy inspires despondent David to seize control of his increasingly limited life, but when he enlists Jamie to sneak him out of the hospital, disaster ensues. The subsequent cascade of consequences veers toward melodrama (for example, David hovers over his body in a coma dream for a few chapters), but the resolution, like the teens relationship, unfolds carefully, without sugarcoating, and feels genuinely earned. Jessica Tackett MacDonaldJanuary/February 2020 p.91(c) Copyright 2020. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Two troubled teens form a deep friendship in a hospital room.David Sheinman is senior class president and "mascot to the pretty-girl/jock crowd." He's also an expert at minimizing the life-threatening aspects of his cystic fibrosis. Jamie Turner, a friendless 10th grader at the same school, volunteers at the nearby hospital. After her artist father died by suicide 18 months ago, Jamie fell into a depression so severe she required hospitalization. Now David's waiting for the lung transplant that, if successful, might extend his life by a few years. In the face of his parents' denial, he's struggling to figure out what kind of life he wants given how short it's likely to be. Alone among the people who visit him, Jamie understands and accepts this truth. She offers him old movies, origami, and the comfort that comes from having already faced death. At the same time, she realizes David is a situational friendonce he's well enough to leave the hospital, he'll return to the high school where he's king and she's nobody. David's desire for some degree of normality leads them into a wholly believable, tender tragedy. Told in alternate first-person voices, the novel is extraordinary for its unflinching look at both depression and chronic illness. Without sugarcoating, sentimentalizing, or trivializing either, it never slips into pathos. The depiction of mental health struggles is profoundly accurate and understanding. Major characters are white.A gift to readers. (Fiction. 14-18) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
