Holding Up The Universe by Jennifer Nivenβ 400 pages
Book Blurb:
Everyone thinks they know Libby Strout, the girl once dubbed βAmericaβs Fattest Teen.β But no oneβs taken the time to look past her weight to get to know who she really is. Following her momβs death, sheβs been picking up the pieces in the privacy of her home, dealing with her heartbroken father and her own grief.
Everyone thinks they know Jack Masselin, too. Yes, heβs got swagger, but heβs also mastered the impossible art of giving people what they want, of fitting in. What no one knows is that Jack has a newly acquired secret: he canβt recognize faces. Even his own brothers are strangers to him. Heβs the guy who can re-engineer and rebuild anything, but he canβt understand whatβs going on with the inner workings of his brain. When the two get tangled up in a cruel high school gameβwhich lands them in group counseling and community serviceβLibby and Jack are both pissed, and then surprised. Because the more time they spend together, the less alone they feel.Β Because sometimes when you meet someone, it changes the world, theirs and yours.
My Review: 3.5 stars
Holding Up The Universe is the follow up work to Jennifer Nivenβs best selling book thatβs being made into a movie, All The Bright Places. Like her first book, this too is in the YA genre and involves two kids dealing with their own demons. In one case itβs obesity and in the other its prosopagnosia (face blindness).
Little did I know, that even before the publication of this book, reviewers and early readers were in an all out tizzy over the blurb on inside flap of the book. Apparently many thought it was offensive for saying that Jack felt he was βbrokenβ because of his face blindness and Libby felt she wasnβt part of the βhuman raceβ. Literally there was an attack on twitter about the offensiveness of this blurb. The final jacket cover has since been changed but I found all this quite amusing.
The book itself read quickly and like her earlier work, was told from two alternating POVs of the main characters. I found many similarities in both books, but while All The Bright Places left me in tears, this book left me with a smile. Anytime characters can transform to be the better version of themselves, itβs a good message being sent. I liked how the main characterβs relationship blossomed and seemed relatable in todayβs day and age.
I am no expert at face blindness and found myself intrigued about it. What fell short for me was his not knowing his own parents and siblings. Iβd make an assumption that heβd know his immediate family by their voices and their living in his house. I think the author shouldβve trusted the reader to know this.
This book brings a lot of teenage angst and issues to a head: Appearance, weight, friends and foes, bullies, loss, loneliness, fitting in, being popular, trying out for things, first loves, driving, social media and more.
What was most important in the book is about looking on the inside of people and not on the outside. This story is reminiscent of Wonder regarding the importance of this lesson. Cool or not cool, we should all be ourselves and search for the true self in others. In a nutshell, the book reminds us that weβve all got something and whether we choose to share it or hide it, itβs never ok to judge someone else.
Quotes I liked:
This is what I know about loss. It doesn’t get better. You just get (somewhat) used to it.β
-βYou might not want to burn your bridges when you’re standing on an island.β