Yoon, Nicola. Everything, Everything. New York, Delacorte, 2015.

Good heavens! I don’t know which hat to put on to review this book. I know that I certainly should be wearing my librarian glasses and talking that way. So for young adult librarians; your readers are going to love this book. Madeline Whittier has an unbelievable life. An immune disease has her living her young life in a bubble. She lives in an air controlled home. Her company is limited to her mom and her nurse Carla. Most of her living consists of reading and what she can see through her window. And then...she sees Ollie in her window. Forever her life is different. Through electronic media, and the view through the window, Ollie and Maddy fall in love, causing them to dare fate and be together whatever the cost. My romantic girls will LOVE this story. Yoon creates the kind of relationship that dreams are made of. She explores the lives of one ill and one abused teen and creates a beautiful new reality for them. And certainly, I can encourage the read. Maddy and Ollie come of age. They become brave, take chances, and defy the world around them.

Which (here comes a different hat…) was what also drove this grown woman and mother crazy! At some level, I’ll want to say, “Here, read this beautiful love story, but don’t ever, ever defy your parents in such a dangerous way!” I’m not sure the ending made the middle OK for me. I understand the idea of young adult literature, and that for the most part I need to remove my parent lense, and I don’t know why this one was so rough for me, but it was, indeed.

So...great fiction. Really neat characters - fully developed. They are intellectual and tough. The approach the world (kind of) with thoughtfulness, and don’t take beautiful days or moments lightly. The ending is the kind of happy that my endless stream of Hallmark movies provides for me. The illustrations by David Yoon are such a cool touch. I love how they accentuate the development of Madeline’s personality. This mixed media of text and art is so appealing to my readers today. Like with Challenger Deep, I love how the two work together to tell the story. Ultimately, is will suspend my disbelief, take a deep breath, and offer this book to my girls. Certainly I will promise them a great story; likely I will encourage them to listen carefully to their parents. I don’t think I will be able to help myself. The good news is that they will laugh at me and read a great new book!