The NerdHerd Reads: Everything, Everything {by Nicola Yoon}

Title: Everything, Everything

Author: Nicola Yoon

Genre: YA Contemporary

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Source: NetGalley

My disease is as rare as it is famous. Basically, I’m allergic to the world. I don’t leave my house, have not left my house in seventeen years. The only people I ever see are my mom and my nurse, Carla.
But then one day, a moving truck arrives next door. I look out my window, and I see him. He’s tall, lean and wearing all black—black T-shirt, black jeans, black sneakers, and a black knit cap that covers his hair completely. He catches me looking and stares at me. I stare right back. His name is Olly.
Maybe we can’t predict the future, but we can predict some things. For example, I'm certainly going to fall in love with Olly. It’s almost certainly going to be a disaster.

There is a lot of hype surrounding this book, including an option for film even before release. And let me tell you, the hype is totally deserved. I usually don't say that about book, but I get it with this one. This was so touching, unique, emotional, and beautiful. It was an amazing story, one that is sure to stick with you for a long time.

Madeleine is allergic to the world. She is confined to her house, where everything is white and pristine and sterilized. She takes classes online, has a home nurse, and can never go outside. Then, some neighbors move into the house next door. Their teenage son's window looks right into Madeleine's, and soon the two strike up a friendship. And soon, the life that Madeleine isn't enough for her. She wants more, even at the risk of her life.

Although Madeleine is a sick girl, this book isn't only about her sickness. It's about life, and learning to live, and finding out who you are. I will say, at the beginning, I was annoyed and thrown off, because Madeleine becomes the cliché over-obsessed girl who's "in love", and I can't stand those kind of people. There's also the point that Olly the first boy she's really gotten to even be friends with, so it in inevitable that she would be "in love" with him?

But this book does tackle bigger issues such as life, and living. Madeleine soon realizes that she isn't really living life. And I loved that point, I loved that theme throughout this book. I think that it really resonated with me. And although this is a love story, I think there is something here that can resonate with everyone.

And there is a twist, that I did not really expect. There comes a point in the story where you do realize that it's coming, where you can predict that it is going to happen. But from the beginning of the story, I did not realize it was coming. But all in all, this is a beautiful book, one that I think everyone needs to read.

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