*I suggest you refer to Common Sense Media for the best age rating.*
This touching novel is about a pair of teenagers with cystic fibrosis who meet in a hospital and fall in love. Seventeen-year-old Stella Grant’s life is filled with self-control and discipline even though her lungs are doing the total opposite. She has been going to the St Grace Hospital her entire life, it’s her second home. Will Newman has the same illness but worse. He has B Cepacia and is unable to get a lung transplant, because of that, he has given up on life. As interesting as Stella finds Will, she knows she has to keep her distance, 6 feet at all times. Soon 6 feet feels like a punishment and not safety or security.
What if they could steal just a little bit of the space their broken lungs have stolen from them? One foot. Would five feet really be so dangerous if it stops their hearts from breaking too?
I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed this well-written novel by Rachael Lippincott with Mikki Daughtry and Tobias Iaconis. It’s the literal definition of a tearjerker and a page-turner. The message was well delivered and had an ending that left me satisfied and hopeful.
The dual perspectives that allowed us to connect with both the characters and understand their feelings in various situations. The writing style was so enjoyable for me, a YA contemporary fan. It wasn’t difficult to read and the pacing was exactly my cup of tea.
If I’m being completely honest—nothing really. I have read a few reviews expressing their dislike on the book’s slow pace, but I think it’s important to recgonise what type of reader you are and what genres you enjoy. I believe that can play a major role on your final decision on a book. An example would be: many fans of the fantasy genre enjoy faster paced books.
You love stories with morals. Five Feet Apart makes it very evident that love is not solely based on human interaction. It’s important, true, but not the foundation of a relationship, friendship etc. It’s also a great reminder to appreciate the ability to touch your loved ones. The cover is GORGEOUS! I read this book at the beginning of the year and I was thinking about how crazy its meaning has adapted itself to our lifestyle, now with COVID-19. How we‘ve adapted the wearing of masks and sanitising frequently, to the confinement to a hospital, in my case home. Which leads me to my next point.
The awareness of cystic fibrosis in this book. I am no-one to judge how well it has been represented but the feedback from CF patients reacting and applauding the work, I think we can say the authors have done it justice. I not only learnt about what it is, what life is like for CF patients, the treatments, the equipment and the emotional impact but also the environment of the hospital. It almost felt as if I was present in certain moments.
You learn a lot about how different people deal with these serious illnesses. How the “knowing you have a short life expectancy“ plays a part in their life and how they cope. Sometimes you just have to live in the moment. Yes it may get difficult, but you have to keep fighting.
CHARACTERS
AND THEIR TRAITS I MAY OR MAY HAVE NOT STOLEN FROM THEM👀
STELLA
Positive
Hard working
Loveable
Loves technology so much that she built her OWN app, hence the blog.
WILL
Annoying at first but is actually loving
Caring
Risk taker
Does what’s right
POE
Supportive, funny and loving friend we all need.
FAVOURITE QUOTES
“If I’m going to die, I’d like to actually live first.”
“...Don’t think about what you’ve lost. Think of how much you have to gain. Live, Stella.”
“We need that touch from the one we love, almost as much as we need air to breathe. I never understood the importance of touch... until I couldn't have it.”
And a bunch of other quotes I can’t include because they spoil too much of the plot.😔💔 The saddest part is I don’t even own my own copy because my friend lent me hers.😪
NOW A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE!
Rachael Lippincott was born in Philadelphia and
raised in Bucks County,
Pennsylvania. She holds a BA
in English writing from the
University of Pittsburgh.
She currently resides in Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania, splitting her time
between writing and running a
food truck with her partner.
Mikki Daughtry
(Contributor)
is from Atlanta, Georgia.
She graduated from
Brenau University,
where she studied theatre arts.
She is now a screenwriter
living in Los Angeles.
Tobias Iaconis
(Contributor)
was born in Germany to
an American father and a
German mother. He studied
English literature at Haverford
College in Philadelphia, and
now works as a screenwriter in
Los Angeles, where he lives
with his wife and son.
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Thank you all so much for tuning in... Talk to you later! 💕🌸
PS: Thank you all for the continuous support I appreciate it so much!
Nqobile
Xxx
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