Review: All The Bright Places by Jennifer Niven

goodreads | 383 pages | contemporary romance,

coming of age | pub jan 6, 2015 | knopf books

Theodore Finch is fascinated by death, and he constantly thinks of ways he might kill himself. But each time, something good, no matter how small, stops him.  

Violet Markey lives for the future, counting the days until graduation, when she can escape her Indiana town and her aching grief in the wake of her sister's recent death. 

When Finch and Violet meet on the ledge of the bell tower at school, it’s unclear who saves whom. And when they pair up on a project to discover the “natural wonders” of their state, both Finch and Violet make more important discoveries: It’s only with Violet that Finch can be himself—a weird, funny, live-out-loud guy who’s not such a freak after all. And it’s only with Finch that Violet can forget to count away the days and start living them. But as Violet’s world grows, Finch’s begins to shrink. 

This is an intense, gripping novel perfect for fans of Jay Asher, Rainbow Rowell, John Green, Gayle Forman, and Jenny Downham from a talented new voice in YA, Jennifer Niven.

spoiler-free review: ★★★★
If you're looking for a funny yet sad read, this is what you're looking for. All the Bright Places manages to be both entertaining yet heartbreaking. What is discussed in this book is dark but never manages to be too overwhelming, and I can see this being a book that people will hail as important.

diversity: ★

I don't know if it's bad reading comprehension or not, but as far as I noticed all the characters in this book were white and straight. Finch, however, was vaguely implied to have bipolar disorder, so that's something. 

Spoilers under the cut.

I have mixed thoughts on this book, but I am left with the majority of them good. All the Bright Things is a book on suicide and mental illness that reminds me of It's Kind of a Funny Story, honestly, and while I don't expect it to reach that level, I think it should. Young Adult fiction needs more books on mental illness; it's something that affects most teenagers, whether directly or indirectly.

Personally, I liked the second half of All the Bright Things more than I did the first half. The first half of the book was overwhelming with Finch's character. Unfortunately, I found him easier to bear once his mental state started declining. In the first half, Finch was too pushy to Violet and too odd for me to really like him. I liked Violet as well, though I think that Niven could have done better in handling her fear of cars and snow as to me it disappeared as the book went on.

I think the book was trying too hard to be quirky. This goes along with the vagueness of Finch possibly having bipolar disorder and what it means when he says he was asleep. Because Finch's possible bipolar disorder is not mentioned until the end, his apparent manic phase seems more like simple quirkiness than mania.

As for the romance, I wasn't on board with it. Part of this has to do with my annoyance that in books, so many important relationships are romantic and I'd like some platonic relationships to feature. It didn't work for me, but it might for other readers.

The ending was heartbreaking, but I liked what the author chose to do with it. Mental illness doesn't always have a happy ending, and while it's not what we all want to happen, the reality is that not everyone eventually gets better. It was a brave choice, and I think Niven executed it well.

I enjoyed this book, and while it didn't personally move me to a flood of tears, I still think this book is definitely one that should be widely read.