As I have written before, I have a certain passion for books. And I quite often visit the Young Adult section looking for hidden pearls, which I do successfully find! I personally have never been a fan of overly girly pink and sparkly romances or books filled with intense fantasies, I grew up with Harry Potter just like most people my age, but of course when you get older, Hogwarts isn’t enough anymore and you want to see the realistic stories replacing the magical world. I still love it nonetheless, don’t get me wrong, but I need that ‘deep stuff’ sometimes. When I came across Jennifer Niven and read All The Bright Places, I was greatly touched by the sensitive topic and the language it is written in - it is a heart ripping story.
There is something about Jennifer Niven. The way she writes is so attention grabbing. When I read the first book I was hit by a wave of emotions. While reading both of them ( All The Bright Places & Holding Up The Universe)I just devoted myself to the story lines, I walked the pavements with the main characters and went through their emotions with them.
You may think that the story lines are predictable and wouldn’t stand out in the enormous crowd of books written in the past century but they are so much more than just common stories. The emotion that is expressed through the authors words is so strong that you feel the urge to share it with someone; after reading the book front to back covers you feel different, you might look at certain issues and situations from a different angle and maybe even from the character’s point of view. Both of the author’s young adults books are highly inspirational and it is clear that they are written with her whole heart. Every girl has loved a boy and each story is different in its own way - both stories have the same motif, two different plots, a handful of hurt, courage and emotion entwined on the pages.
All The Bright Places & Holding Up The Universe should both be on your 2017 To Read list and Jennifer Niven - an author to keep an eye out for!
-E.
