The Young Soul Readers book club met in April to discuss All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven. It earned a rating of 3.5 out of 5 stars.
The novel takes place in modern day Indiana and follows two teenagers named Violet and Finch. They meet on top of the bell tower at their school when both are contemplating suicide. They both survive, but it is unclear who saves who that day. Finch is a boy with a harsh past who struggles with mental illness, even though his family and friends won't admit it. He is known as a "freak" at school and gets bullied frequently. Violet is a girl that's coming to terms with past tragedy who also struggles with depression.
As Violet counts down the days to graduation, Finch is counting up, trying to increase the number of days he has been "awake" and trying to avoid the dark slumber of his mental illness again. There is a stark contrast between the sadness Violet and Finch feels because she can trace its origin to the death of her sister the year before. Finch and the people around him have a harder time understanding his struggles because no one can pinpoint an event that caused such sadness in him. Instead, he walks around almost embracing the degrading labels that have been assigned to him by his classmates. As the two characters fall in love, the novel looks at the idea that despite your love for someone, it isn't always possible to save them.
The discussion group found the book extremely thought provoking and agreed that the author did a great job of showing that mental illness is not the same as simply being sad. The juxtaposition of the two main characters illustrated this best. There were a few unrealistic parts, especially the amount of secrecy Finch was able to maintain from the rest of his family, that frustrated some members. Overall, the group would recommend it to readers who want to have a deeper, thought-provoking reading experience, but it is a tear jerker, so don't forget those tissues.
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