Heartstopper - Alice Oseman

           

Heartstopper

- Alice Oseman

🇬🇧 Hello. Hope you're doing great (: Today I'm here with a graphic novel from English Literature.

Check out my last review about The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway.

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Today's review will be about the novel Heartstopper, by the British author and illustrator Alice Oseman.

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It is a collection of four graphic novels (the fifth will be published next year) first published in 2018.

The story is set at Truham Grammar School for Boys, where Charlie Spring is a highly-strung, openly gay, over-thinker teenager. He is in Year 10. His past year hasn't been too great, but it seems like he is not being bullied anymore. 

Nick Nelson instead a cheerful, soft-hearted rugby player. He is in Year 11. He's heard a little about Charlie, the kid who was outed last year and bullied for it, but he has never had the opportunity to talk to him. 

They quickly become friends, and soon Charlie is falling hard for Nick (I mean have you seen what a cutie he is?), even though he doesn't think he has a chance with him. But love, as we all know, works in surprising ways, and sometimes good things are waiting just around the corner, when you least expect them. 

The novel deals with the themes of LGBTQI+, eating disorders, bullying, transphobia, homophobia, mental health issues, self-harm.

It's for a young adult target, but everyone can read it.

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I saw it everywhere on bookstagram, booktok, and so on. Everyone was obsessed with it. Netflix even did a tv-series about it, so I've decided to give a try, to see what was going on with all this obsession, and I turned out to be obsessed about it too. 

I got really emotional in few parts and even ended up badly crying at the end, because of a situation Charlie has to deal with. I really hope that in the fifth and last volume, all will be good for him, because he truly deserves the world. 

It's really well written and I'm glad she wrote it, because I think it should be read in schools and be present in every library. It well explains the struggle of people that have to deal with this weight, and can't be free to release it fully, because they feel "ashamed", or "frightened" of any possible reaction of other people, of the ones they love mostly, just because they fear that they're not good enough. 

Who didn't feel this way at least once in their lives? All of us struggle with this, with the feeling of being accepted, of being "perfect". Shouldn't we all just be human? Be kind to each other? 

As you might have understood, it's a 5/5 recommendation!

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🇮🇹 Ciao. Spero che stiate tutti alla grande (: Oggi sono qui con una graphic novel dalla letteratura inglese.

Date un'occhiata alla mia ultima recensione su Il vecchio e il mare di Ernest Hemingway.

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La recensione di oggi riguarderà il romanzo Heartstopper, dell'autrice e illustratrice britannica Alice Oseman.

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Si tratta di una raccolta di quattro graphic novel (la quinta verrà pubblicata il prossimo anno) pubblicata per la prima volta nel 2018.

La storia è ambientata alla Truham Grammar School for Boys, dove Charlie Spring è un adolescente molto nervoso, apertamente gay e iperpensante. È all'anno 10. Il suo ultimo anno non è stato molto bello, ma sembra che non sia più vittima di bullismo.

Nick Nelson invece è un rugbista allegro e dal cuore tenero. È all'anno 11. Ha sentito parlare un po' di Charlie, il ragazzo a cui hanno fatto outing l'anno scorso e che è stato vittima di bullismo per questo, ma non ha mai avuto l'opportunità di parlargli.

Diventano rapidamente amici e presto Charlie si innamora di Nick (voglio dire, avete visto quanto è carino?), anche se non pensa di avere una possibilità con lui. Ma l'amore, come tutti sappiamo, funziona in modi sorprendenti e, a volte, le cose belle ci aspettano dietro l'angolo, quando meno ce lo aspettiamo.

Il romanzo affronta i temi di LGBTQI+, disturbi alimentari, bullismo, transfobia, omofobia, problemi di salute mentale, autolesionismo.

È per un target di giovani adulti, ma tutti possono leggerlo.

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L'ho visto ovunque su bookstagram, booktok e così via. Tutti ne erano ossessionati. Netflix ha anche fatto una serie tv a riguardo, quindi ho deciso di fare un tentativo, per vedere cosa stava succedendo con tutta questa ossessione, e anche io ne sono rimasta ossessionata.

Mi sono davvero emozionata in alcune parti e alla fine ho persino finito per piangere di brutto, a causa di una situazione con cui Charlie deve fare i conti. Spero davvero che nel quinto e ultimo volume gli andrà tutto bene, perché si merita davvero il mondo.

È davvero ben scritto e sono contenta che Alice Oseman l'abbia scritto, perché penso che dovrebbe essere letto nelle scuole ed essere presente in ogni biblioteca. Spiega bene la lotta delle persone che devono fare i conti con questo peso, e non possono essere libere di lasciarsi andare completamente, perché si sentono "imbarazzate", o "spaventate" di ogni possibile reazione delle altre persone, di coloro che amano principalmente, solo perché temono di non essere abbastanza meritevoli.

Chi non si è sentito così almeno una volta nella vita? Tutti noi lottiamo con questo, con la sensazione di essere accettati, di essere "perfetti". Non dovremmo essere tutti semplicemente umani? Essere gentili l'uno con l'altro?

Come avrate capito, ve lo consiglio: 5/5!

The Secret Garden / Il Giardino Segreto - Frances Hodgson Burnett

   

The Secret Garden / Il Giardino Segreto

- Frances Hodgson Burnett

🇬🇧 Hello, how are things going? Today I'm here with a classic for kids from English Literature.

Check out my last review about A Slow Fire Burning by Paula Hawkins.

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Today's review will be about the book The Secret Garden, by the British author Frances Hodgson Burnett. 

It was first published in 1911 and it takes place in England, in the Yorkshire. It is one of her most popular novels, together with A Little Princess and Little Lord Fauntleroy. It is seen as a classic of English children's literature and became so popular that many stage and film adaptations have been made. 

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The book talks about an orphan child, Mary Lennox that at the death of her parents has to move from India, where she was residing, to England, where her uncle, a certain Archibald Craven lives, in a big manor: Misselthwaite Manor in the Yorkshire.  

When escorted there by the housekeeper Mrs Medlock, she discovers that her aunt, Lilias Craven is dead and that Mr Craven is a hunchback. Apparently since her death, the garden she loved so much has been closed and the key hidden and buried.

The more time passes, Mary starts to like this new ambient and all the little secrets hidden in there. She becomes especially interested in the secret garden and does everything she can to discover where it is. 

As the main themes of the story we can see: family and home, but also friendship; the changing to try finding your best self, a sort of regeneration; and even disability.

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I really liked this book. I had high expectations about it because everyone that read it as a child seemed to be really happy they picked it up. And I was too. I was not disappointed. 

The book was short, around 270 pages, so it didn't take me much to finish it, and it kept me hooked and even made me emotional in some parts.

I really liked the settings since the Yorkshire is one of the places I'd like to visit and the fact that the whole book was about a secret magical garden to be restored was amazing. But that's maybe because I love nature and every single little flower, bud, leaf, and blade of grass. 

For ending the book it's totally recommended, a 5/5 (: 

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🇮🇹 Ciao, come stanno andando le cose? Oggi sono qui con un classico per ragazzi della letteratura inglese.

Dai un'occhiata alla mia ultima recensione su Un Fuoco che Brucia Lento di Paula Hawkins.

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La recensione di oggi riguarderà il libro Il Giardino Segreto, dell'autrice britannica Frances Hodgson Burnett.

Fu pubblicato per la prima volta nel 1911 e si svolge in Inghilterra, nello Yorkshire. È uno dei suoi romanzi più popolari, insieme a La Piccola Principessa e Il Piccolo Lord. È visto come un classico della letteratura inglese per bambini ed è diventato così popolare che sono stati realizzati molti adattamenti teatrali e cinematografici.

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Il libro parla di una bambina orfana, Mary Lennox che alla morte dei suoi genitori deve trasferirsi dall'India, dove risiedeva, in Inghilterra, dove vive suo zio, un certo Archibald Craven, in un grande maniero: Misselthwaite Manor in the Yorkshire.

Quando viene scortata lì dalla governante, la signora Medlock, scopre che sua zia, Lilias Craven, è morta e che il signor Craven è un gobbo. Apparentemente dalla sua morte, il giardino che amava tanto è stato chiuso e la chiave nascosta e sepolta.

Più passa il tempo, Mary inizia ad apprezzare questo nuovo ambiente e tutti i piccoli segreti nascosti lì dentro. Diventa particolarmente interessata al giardino segreto e fa tutto il possibile per scoprire dove si trova.

Come i temi principali della storia possiamo vedere: la famiglia e la casa, ma anche l'amicizia; il cambiamento per cercare di trovare il proprio io migliore, una sorta di rigenerazione; e persino la disabilità.

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Mi è piaciuto molto questo libro. Avevo grandi aspettative al riguardo perché tutti quelli che lo leggevano da bambini sembravano davvero felici di averlo letto. E lo sono stata anch'io. Non sono rimasta delusa.

Il libro è breve, circa 270 pagine, quindi non mi ci è voluto molto per finirlo, mi ha tenuta con gli occhi incollati al libro e mi ha persino emozionata in alcune parti.

Mi sono piaciute molto le ambientazioni poiché lo Yorkshire è uno dei luoghi che mi piacerebbe visitare e il fatto che l'intero libro parlasse di un giardino magico segreto da restaurare è stato sorprendente. Ma forse è perché amo la natura e ogni singolo fiore, bocciolo, foglia e filo d'erba.

Per concludere il libro è assolutamente consigliato: un 5/5 (:

Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg

  

Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe 

by Fannie Flagg

🇬🇧 Hello, how have you been doing? Today I'm here with a small book of American Literature. 

Check out my last review about The Count of Montecristo by Alexandre Dumas :)

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Today's review will be about the book Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe, by the American actress, comedian and author Fannie Flagg. 

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The book was published in 1987 and it's set mostly in the Alabama of the late 1920s-1930s.

The story moves back to the past and present through the friendship between Evelyn Couch, a middle-aged housewife, and Ninny Threadgoode, an elderly woman who lives in the nursing home of Rose Terrace, in Birmingham, Alabama. Every week Evelyn visits Ninny, who tells her stories about her youth in Whistle Stop, a small town close to there. There, her sister-in-law, Idgie, and her friend, Ruth Jamison, ran a café. 

These stories, along with Ninny's friendship, enable Evelyn to begin a new and satisfying life, while allowing the people and stories of Ninny's past to live on. 

In the past flashbacks we see the life of the Threadgoode family with their members: Mama and Papa Threadgoode, their many kids, like Buddy, Leona, Cleo, Idgie, and so on. We also see Sipsey Peavey's big family, the chef of the café, a strong black woman, and Idgie's friend Ruth and her hard past. 

The book treats all the possibile themes you could find: from family to ageing, from lesbianism to the dehumanising effects of racism on both black and white people. It explores also the themes of rape, domestic violence and feminism. 

It gained so much success that it was made into a movie in 1991 where you can find Kathy Bates and Jessica Tandy, respectively as Evelyn and Ninny. 

Food is also an important theme of the book, in fact at the end of it you can find the famous recipe of Sipsey for the fried green tomatoes :) If you'll ever visit Alabama, here you can find the original cafe: Irondale Cafe

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I bought this book because I've always been interested in watching the film and I was not disappointed in this story at all. 

I really liked the themes because sadly all of them, the bad and the good ones are still very present in our society, especially the bad ones which we are still not able to extirpate. I could not believe that some of those things actually happened, it seemed like a world of fantasy, which clearly and sadly it is not. 

I've finished it in a little time, because it's of around 350 pages, so short for my standards, but I also was reading it fast because I was hooked since the first page. The stories, the people, the places, I felt connected, to each one of them. Whistle Stop felt like a safe place, a refuge where you could hide when you felt that everything else was going wrong. The people felt like a second family, someone that you would never want to separate from. 

I cried so much at the ending, not only because it's sad, but also because I felt like I didn't want to really let it go. I'm going to miss them all. 

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🇮🇹 Ciao, come sta andando? Oggi sono qui con un piccolo libro della letteratura americana.

Date un'occhiata alla mia ultima recensione su Il Conte di Montecristo di Alexandre Dumas :)

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La recensione di oggi riguarderà il libro Pomodori Verdi Fritta al Caffè di Whistle Stop, dell'attrice, comica e autrice americana Fannie Flagg.

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Il libro è stato pubblicato nel 1987 ed è ambientato principalmente nell'Alabama tra la fine degli anni '20 e gli anni '30.

La storia torna nel passato e nel presente attraverso l'amicizia tra Evelyn Couch, una casalinga di mezza età, e Ninny Threadgoode, una donna anziana che vive nella casa di cura di Rose Terrace, a Birmingham, in Alabama. Ogni settimana Evelyn fa visita a Ninny, che racconta le sue storie sulla sua giovinezza a Whistle Stop, una piccola città lì vicino. Lì, sua cognata, Idgie, e la sua amica, Ruth Jamison, gestivano un caffè.

Queste storie, insieme all'amicizia di Ninny, consentono a Evelyn di iniziare una vita nuova e soddisfacente, consentendo al tempo stesso alle persone e alle storie del passato di Ninny di vivere.

Nei flashback passati vediamo la vita della famiglia Threadgoode con i suoi membri: mamma e papà Threadgoode, i loro tanti figli, come Buddy, Leona, Cleo, Idgie e così via. Vediamo anche la grande famiglia di Sipsey Peavey, la chef del bar, una forte donna di colore e l'amica di Idgie, Ruth e il suo duro passato.

Il libro tratta tutti i possibili temi che potresti trovare: dalla famiglia all'invecchiamento, dal lesbismo agli effetti disumanizzanti del razzismo sui bianchi e neri. Esplora anche i temi dello stupro, della violenza domestica e del femminismo.

Ha ottenuto così tanto successo che è stato trasformato in un film nel 1991 in cui puoi trovare Kathy Bates e Jessica Tandy, rispettivamente nei panni di Evelyn e Ninny.

Anche il cibo è un tema importante del libro, infatti alla fine potete trovare la famosa ricetta di Sipsey per i pomodori verdi fritti :) Se visiterete mai l'Alabama, qui potete trovare il caffè originale: Irondale Cafe

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Ho comprato questo libro perché sono sempre stata interessata a guardare il film e questa storia non mi ha affatto deluso.

Mi sono piaciuti molto i temi perché purtroppo tutti, cattivi e buoni, sono ancora molto presenti nella nostra società, soprattutto quelli cattivi che non siamo ancora in grado di estirpare. Non potevo credere che alcune di queste cose fossero realmente accadute, sembrava un mondo di fantasia, che chiaramente e purtroppo non lo è.

L'ho finito in poco tempo, perché è di circa 350 pagine, quindi corto per i miei standard, ma l'ho letto anche velocemente perché mi sono appassionata sin dalla prima pagina. Le storie, le persone, i luoghi, mi sono sentita connessa, a ognuno di loro. Whistle Stop sembrava un posto sicuro, un rifugio dove nascondersi quando sentivi che tutto il resto stava andando storto. Le persone le sentivo come una seconda famiglia, qualcuno da cui non vorresti mai separarti.

Ho pianto così tanto alla fine, non solo perché è triste, ma anche perché mi sentivo come se non volessi lasciarli andare davvero. Mi mancheranno tutti.

Le Vicende di SinVille - Denny Galati

 

Le Vicende di SinVille

di Denny Galati

🇮🇹 Ciao, spero che voi stiate bene. Oggi la recensione sarà in italiano in quanto ho avuto l'onore di ricevere la richiesta per una collaborazione su Instagram da un autore emergente (:

Date un'occhiata alla mia ultima recensione su Anna Karenina di Lev Tolstoj :)

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La recensione di oggi riguarderà il libro Le Vicende di SinVille, dell'autore italiano Denny Galati.

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Prima di tutto vorrei ringraziare l'autore dell'opportunità e della fiducia datami per recensire il suo libro, in quanto questo mi rende molto felice.

Il libro è una short story di circa 50 pagine, strutturata in capitoli ognuno con un titolo di anticipazione a ciò che ci aspetta in seguito.

La storia narra le vicende di un uomo, Daniel, che sperduto e affamato si ritrova in un paese all'apparenza di altri tempi lontani da noi, ma che ben presto si mostra come un luogo abbandonato da Dio e pieno di gente egoista e arrogante. 

Ma non tutti appaiono così. Fin dall'inizio del libro infatti abbiamo l'eccezione a questo peccato, tramutata nella figura gentile e altruista di un ragazzo, Lyston, che viene incontrato dal nostro protagonista al primo locale poco fuori dal paese di SinVille: il Boccanale. Lyston qui suona il pianoforte mentre i clienti si intrattengono con alcool e prostitute.

Ma la vita di Lyston non è tutta rosa e fiori, nel secondo capitolo della storia infatti capiamo un po' di più cosa deve subire e perché agisce diversamente da tutti gli altri.

La ragione per cui questa città e i suoi abitanti si comportano in modo strano è dovuta al Grande Circo di SinVille. Il proprietario del posto infatti, in combutta con il sindaco ha vietato ogni forma di arte al di fuori del tendone del circo, in quanto verrebbero considerati come concorrenza, il che non gioverebbe ai circensi.

Poco dopo viene presentato un altro personaggio importante della storia: Berry. Un anziano signore che viene pestato quasi a morte dai gendarmi per aver raccontato una storia al sacerdote della chiesa del posto. Raccontare una storia è considerata anch'essa una forma d'arte, e per questo illegale. Daniel aiuta Berry affrontando i gendarmi, e sembra esser l'unico veramente disponibile ad aiutare il prossimo, in quanto gli altri cittadini passavano senza degnar di uno sguardo la scena. Una scena che non sembra poi molto diversa dagli scenari in cui viviamo sinceramente. Il menefreghismo ci ha purtroppo avvolto. 

Berry porta Daniel al "Rifugio", un luogo speciale e importante per la storia, che ha così inizio. 

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Il libro mi è molto piaciuto in quanto conteneva molti temi, quali il femminismo con la figura di Nadia, o le tematiche LGBT con Sasia e anche l'uguaglianza dei sessi con la figura gentile di Daniel. 

Ho trovato alcune citazioni bellissime e molte scene poetiche, quali quella al laghetto alla fine della Galleria del Rifugio, forse anche dovuto al fatto dell'utilizzo del salice piangente come separé. 

"Non sono buono, sono giusto. Mi hanno insegnato a rispettare tutti. Mi hanno insegnato che obbedire agli ordini di una donna è da uomo maturo ma che accettare le sue pretenziosità è da uomo codardo. Realizzare i suoi desideri è da uomo forte ma assecondare i suoi capricci è da uomo debole. Comprendere le sue esigenze è da uomo saggio ma subire le sue ingiustizie è da uomo stolto." 

Mi è dispiaciuto molto quanto Nadia e Sasia abbiano sofferto nel corso delle loro vite e anche ciò che è capitato a Berry. Il finale però è stato molto sensato, in quanto adesso Daniel porterà avanti il lavoro fatto e probabilmente inizierà a combattere la tirannia. 

Voi ci vivreste mai in un mondo senza arte? Un mondo in cui è vietato fare ciò che vi appassiona? 

"Esistono due tipi di artisti: chi fa arte per nascondersi dai riflettori, e chi fa arte per finire sotto i riflettori. Per me l'arte è un dovere morale dell'umanità di creare opere e metterle in circolo, non uno strumento per raggiungere la fame. Si crea per donare, non per vanità. L'arte è umiltà."

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🇬🇧 Hi, I hope you are well. Today the review will be in Italian firstly as I had the honor of receiving the request for a collaboration on Instagram from an emerging author (:

Check out my latest review on Anna Karenina by Lev Tolstoy :)

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Today's review will cover the book Le Vicende di SinVille, by the Italian author Denny Galati.

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First of all I would like to thank the author for the opportunity and the trust given to me to review his book, as this makes me very happy.

The book is a short story of about 50 pages, structured in chapters each with a title anticipating what awaits us next.

The story tells the events of a guy, Daniel, who, lost and hungry, finds himself in a town that appears to be distant in time from us, but which soon shows itself as a place abandoned by God and full of selfish and arrogant people.

But not everyone looks like this. In fact, from the beginning of the book we have the exception to this sin, transformed into the kind and altruistic figure of a boy, Lyston, who is met by our protagonist at the first place just outside the town of SinVille: the Boccanale. Lyston plays the piano here while customers indulge in booze and hookers.

But Lyston's life is not a bed of roses, in the second chapter of the story we understand a little more what he has to suffer and why he acts differently from everyone else.

The reason this city and its inhabitants behave strangely is due to the Great Circus of SinVille. In fact, the owner of the place, in league with the mayor, has banned all forms of art outside the circus tent, as they would be considered as competition, which would not benefit circus performers.

Soon after, another important character in the story is introduced: Berry. An elderly gentleman who is nearly beaten to death by gendarmes for telling a story to the local church priest. Telling a story is also considered an art form, and therefore illegal. Daniel helps Berry by facing the gendarmes, and he seems to be the only one really available to help others, as the other citizens passed the scene without noticing. A scene that does not seem very different from the scenarios in which we sincerely live. The indifference has unfortunately surrounded us.

Berry takes Daniel to the "Refuge", a special and important place for the story, which thus begins.

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I liked the book very much as it contained many themes, such as feminism with the figure of Nadia, or LGBT themes with Sasia and also gender equality with the gentle figure of Daniel.

I found some beautiful quotes and many poetic scenes, such as the one at the pond at the end of the Galleria del Rifugio, perhaps also due to the use of the weeping willow as a booth.

"I'm not good, I'm fair. They taught me to respect everyone. They taught me that obeying a woman's orders is like being a mature man but that accepting her pretentiousness is like being a cowardly man. Realizing her desires is like being a strong man but indulging his whims is like that of a weak man. Understanding his needs is like a wise man, but to suffer his injustices is like being a foolish man. "

I was very sorry how much Nadia and Sasia have suffered over the course of their lives and also what happened to Berry. The ending made a lot of sense though, as Daniel will now carry on with the work he has done and will likely start fighting tyranny.

Would you ever live there in a world without art? A world where it is forbidden to do what you are passionate about?

"There are two types of artists: those who make art to hide from the spotlight, and those who make art to end up in the spotlight. For me, art is a moral duty of humanity to create works and put them in circulation, not a tool to achieve hunger. It is created to give, not out of vanity. Art is humility. "

Anna Karenina by Lev Tolstoj

Anna Karenina

by Lev Tolstoj

🇬🇧 Hello, hope you're all okay in this cold February :) Have you been watching the Olympics? What team are you rooting for? ;) Today I'm here with a big classic of the Russian Literature. 

Check out my last review about A Good Girl's Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson :)

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Today's review will be about the book Anna Karenina, by the Russian author Lev Tolstoj. 

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The book was published in 1877 and appeared firstly in episodes on the magazine Russkij vestnik. 

The novel is divided into eight parts, but the length of each chapter is not so long. It is considered a masterpiece of realism and as all the writers during their times of living, the book was not appreciated until his after many years later. 

The first part of the book works as a sort of introduction to the protagonists of the novel. It introduces to us the first character of the story: Stepan Arkadyevich Oblonsky, also called "Stiva", that cheated on his wife Darya "Dolly" Alexandrovna Oblonskaya. He calls for help from his sister, Anna Arkadyevna Karenina, our main protagonist of the story. She arrives in Moscow where she tries to helps them to patch up their relationship. 

In the meantime, a childhood friend of Stiva comes to town as well, Konstantin "Kostya" Dmitrievich Levin/Lyovin. He's in fact infatuated of Dolly's younger sister, Ekaterina "Kitty" Alexandrovna Shcherbatskaya. The young man proposes to her but she refuses him because she's more attracted by a young official: Alexei Kirillovich Vronsky, who will become the other main protagonist of the story, because here in Moscow that's where he meets Anna. The two will fall passionately in love, but Anna is married and has a child as well. 

In the other parts we will see how this will affect her life, her marriage, her spot in the society, and the relations she had with the other nobles. 

The book deals with the themes of betrayal, faith (especially connected to the sacrament of marriage), family, Imperial Russian society, desire, love, and rural vs city life. 

Trains are a motif through the whole book, with lots of important events and plot points taking place at the train station or on a train. 

The story has been so appreciated that has been turned into many films, opera ballets, theatre plays, and so on. 

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I received the book as a birthday gift from my mum and I was a bit scared by the size of the book, since it's around 800 pages, and by the fact that I started it three years before but I wasn't feeling hooked by it. This time instead I really enjoyed it, I reached also my goal of reading it in less than one month, and I made it with three days of advance. 

The story was really intriguing and the fact that the chapters were really short helped me probably to read it faster. I felt connected to some characters while despised some, which I guess made it even better, because you realise how much a book is well written when you empathise with some of the characters and realise how realistic they are all of them even after centuries that they have been written. 

I really liked how it portrayed the society and how much it was so similar to ours now, even after so much time has passed. Especially about the behaviour of others against Anna while against the other men who cheated everyone was acting the same way around them. 

Through the whole book I didn't like the way Anna acted, especially against her husband and son, but at the end (not going to spoil what happens) I understood her, understood her pain and why she acted that way, which made the ending even better. 

The book is totally recommended if you're into classics, and even if you're not, because you truly can't miss this one and I'm so glad my mum bought it for me :) Thanks mum! 

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🇮🇹 Ciao, spero che voi stiate bene durante questo freddo febbraio :) State guardando le Olimpiadi? Per quale team fate il tifo? ;) Oggi sono qui con un grande classico della letteratura russa.

Date un'occhiata alla mia ultima recensione su Come Uccidono le Brave Ragazze di Holly Jackson :)

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La recensione di oggi riguarderà il libro Anna Karenina, dell'autore russo Lev Tolstoj.

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Il libro è stato pubblicato nel 1877 ed è apparso per la prima volta in episodi sulla rivista Russkij vestnik.

Il romanzo è diviso in otto parti, ma la lunghezza di ogni capitolo non è così lunga. È considerato un capolavoro di realismo e come tutti gli scrittori durante i loro tempi di vita, il libro non fu apprezzato fino a molti anni dopo.

La prima parte del libro funziona come una sorta di introduzione ai protagonisti del romanzo. Ci presenta il primo personaggio della storia: Stepàn Arkad'ič Oblonskij, chiamato anche "Stiva", che ha tradito sua moglie Dar'ja "Dolly" Aleksàndrovna Oblonskaja. Chiede aiuto a sua sorella, Anna Arkàd'evna Karenina, la nostra protagonista principale della storia. Arriva a Mosca dove cerca di aiutarli a ricucire la loro relazione.

Nel frattempo, arriva in città anche un amico d'infanzia di Stiva, Konstantin "Kostya" Dmìtrič Lèvin. È infatti infatuato della sorella minore di Dolly, Ekaterina "Kitty" Aleksàndrovna Ščerbàckaja. Il giovane le fa la proposta ma lei rifiuta perché più attratta da un giovane ufficiale: Aleksèj Kirìllovič Vrònskij, che diventerà l'altro protagonista principale della storia, perché qui a Mosca è lì che incontra Anna. I due si innamoreranno appassionatamente, ma Anna è sposata e ha anche un figlio.

Nelle altre parti vedremo come questo influenzerà la sua vita, il suo matrimonio, il suo posto nella società e le relazioni che aveva con gli altri nobili.

Il libro affronta i temi del tradimento, della fede (in particolare legata al sacramento del matrimonio), della famiglia, della società imperiale russa, del desiderio, dell'amore e della vita rurale contro quella di città.

I treni sono un tema ricorrente in tutto il libro, con molti eventi importanti e punti della trama che si svolgono alla stazione ferroviaria o su un treno.

La storia è stata così apprezzata che è stata trasformata in molti film, balletti d'opera, spettacoli teatrali e così via.

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Ho ricevuto il libro come regalo di compleanno da mia mamma ed ero un po' spaventata dalle dimensioni del libro, dato che è di circa 800 pagine, e dal fatto che l'ho iniziai tre anni prima ma non mi prese moltissimo. Questa volta invece mi è piaciuto molto, ho raggiunto anche il mio obiettivo di leggerlo in meno di un mese, e ce l'ho fatta con tre giorni di anticipo.

La storia era davvero intrigante e il fatto che i capitoli fossero molto brevi mi ha probabilmente aiutato a leggerla più velocemente. Mi sono sentita legato ad alcuni personaggi mentre ne disprezzavo alcuni, il che immagino lo abbia reso ancora migliore, perché ti rendi conto di quanto un libro sia ben scritto quando entri in empatia con alcuni personaggi e capisci quanto siano realistici tutti loro anche dopo secoli che sono stati scritti.

Mi è piaciuto molto il modo in cui ritraeva la società e quanto fosse così simile alla nostra ora, anche dopo che è passato così tanto tempo. Soprattutto sul comportamento degli altri contro Anna mentre contro gli altri uomini che tradivano tutti si comportavano allo stesso modo intorno a loro.

Attraverso tutto il libro non mi è piaciuto il modo in cui Anna ha agito, soprattutto nei confronti di suo marito e suo figlio, ma alla fine (senza rovinare ciò che accade) l'ho capita, capito il suo dolore e perché si è comportata in quel modo, il che ha reso il finale ancora meglio.

Il libro è assolutamente consigliato se ti piacciono i classici, e anche se non ti piacciono, perché non puoi davvero perderti questo e sono così felice che mia madre me l'abbia comprato :) Grazie mamma!

A Good Girl's Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson

A Good Girl's Guide to Murder

by Holly Jackson

🇬🇧 Hi, hope you're all doing okay :) Today I'm here with a mystery thriller for young adults. 

Check out my last review about The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett :)

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Today's review will be about the book A Good Girl's Guide to Murder, by the British author Holly Jackson. 

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The book was published in 2019 and is followed by three other books: Good Girl, Bad Blood (2020); As Good as Dead (2021) and the new one Kill Joy (2021). 

The story revolves around Pippa "Pip" Fitz-Amobi, a student at the last year of high school that for her final exam decides to take an intriguing but dangerous topic: a murder that happened five years before in her town, Little Kilton. 

After the disappearance of Andrea "Andie" Bell, the most popular girl in school, her boyfriend Salil "Sal" Singh is being accused of having murdered her. Soon after that, he will be found dead in the woods after he killed himself. 

Pip's researches will uncover terrifying things and dark secrets that people kept to themselves. Nothing is as it seems. 

And most important, not everyone seems available to help her. Someone doesn't want her to find the truth and threatens to endanger her and her family. 

But what did really happen in Little Kilton? Was Sal really the killer? Is Andie really dead? 

The novel is revolved to young adults and includes pages with photos of emails and diaries as proves of her researches, but can be read by anyone. It's really easily written and goes smoothly. 

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I bought it because the plot really attracted me and I've seen that everyone loved it so I decided to go through with it and I wasn't disappointed. 

I literally devoured it in 3 days because I couldn't keep myself from not reading it. 

The story was so intriguing that I felt connected to the characters and I wanted to uncover the truth with them. 

The ending was just perfect and made justice to the happenings of the book. 

I've found also really good that the author put the proves that Pip was collecting as prints, photos, and so on, so you could really study the case along with her. 

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🇮🇹 Ciao, spero che stiate tutti bene :) Oggi sono qui con un thriller misterioso per giovani adulti.

Dai un'occhiata alla mia ultima recensione su La Metà Scomparsa di Brit Bennett :)

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La recensione di oggi riguarderà il libro Come Uccidono le Brave Ragazze, dell'autrice britannica Holly Jackson.

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Il libro è stato pubblicato nel 2019 ed è seguito da altri tre libri: Good Girl, Bad Blood (2020); As Good as Dead (2021) e il nuovo Kill Joy (2021).

La storia ruota attorno a Pippa "Pip" Fitz-Amobi, una studentessa dell'ultimo anno di liceo che per il suo esame finale decide di affrontare un argomento intrigante ma pericoloso: un omicidio avvenuto cinque anni prima nella sua città, Little Kilton.

Dopo la scomparsa di Andrea "Andie" Bell, la ragazza più popolare della scuola, il suo fidanzato Salil "Sal" Singh viene accusato di averla uccisa. Subito dopo, verrà trovato morto nel bosco dopo essersi ucciso.

Le ricerche di Pip scopriranno cose terrificanti e oscuri segreti che le persone si tengono per sé. Niente è come sembra.

E, soprattutto, non tutti sembrano disponibili ad aiutarla. Qualcuno non vuole che trovi la verità e minaccia di mettere in pericolo lei e la sua famiglia.

Ma cosa è successo davvero a Little Kilton? Sal era davvero l'assassino? Andie è davvero morta?

Il romanzo è rivolto ai giovani adulti e include pagine con foto di e-mail e diari a testimonianza delle sue ricerche, ma può essere letto da chiunque. È davvero facile da leggere e scorre velocemente.

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L'ho comprato perché la trama mi ha davvero attratto e ho visto che tutti lo adoravano, quindi ho deciso di andare fino in fondo e non sono rimasta delusa.

L'ho letteralmente divorato in 3 giorni perché non potevo trattenermi dal non leggerlo.

La storia era così intrigante che mi sentivo in contatto con i personaggi e volevo scoprire la verità con loro.

Il finale è stato semplicemente perfetto e ha reso giustizia agli avvenimenti del libro.

Ho anche trovato molto positivo che l'autrice abbia messo le prove che Pip stava raccogliendo come stampe, foto e così via, così da sentirti come se stessi davvero studiando il caso insieme a lei.

The Moon and the Bonfire by Cesare Pavese

  The Moon and the Bonfire

by Cesare Pavese

Hello I'm back for a review of a modern classic of Italian Literature. 

Check out my last review about The Mirror Visitor Saga by Christelle Dabos :)

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Today's review will talk about the book The Moon and the Bonfire (in Italian La Luna e I Falò) by the Italian writer, poet, translator, and critic of literature, Cesare Pavese. 

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The book was the last of his published in 1950 and dedicated to the woman in his life: Constance Dowling. It presents autobiographical elements and it takes place in Piedmont, a region in Northern Italy. 

The story revolves around the main character, of which the name is never told, but only his nickname: Anguilla ("Eel" in English). It focuses also on the other characters that he relations with in a town in the Valley of Belbo, of which we also don't know the name of. The book is a mixture of past and present, with events being told thanks to the thoughts and reflections of the protagonist. 

The book begins with Anguilla coming back as an immigrant from America after the Liberation (from the war). He comes back home with the thought of how his life started there, abandoned at the doorstep of the Duomo of Alba and then brought to the hospital of Alessandria, where he would have later been adopted by Padrino and Virgilia. 

After her death and a hail storm that destroyed their vineyard, Padrino decides to sell their house. Anguilla then will be transferred to the farm of the Mora, where he starts to work for the first time. There he finds wealth together with Sor Matteo and his three daughters: Irene, Silvia and Santa (the youngest). 

As a reader I happily got lost in the memories, sometimes sad that Anguilla relives with his friend Nuto because he is able to understand how much everyone needs a town, a family, an anchor, a point of reference that keeps us connected somewhere. Anguilla realises this when he's been called back from that sense of belonging together with a mix of nostalgia.  

Because of this, Anguilla will go to visit the house of Padrino, now belonging to an old man called Il Valino and his son Cinto, a crippled and solitary young boy. Cinto will remember to him how it feels to be young and he will try to be to him what Nuto has been to him. Thanks to this relationship, they will begin to be friends and Cinto feels like he can trust him with a shocking revelation that will happen later in the book. 

Anguilla will then find out about the other people who were part of his life before leaving for America, and it will make him realise that everyone of us needs a town. 

"A town means never being alone, knowing that in the people, in the plants, in the ground there's something yours that even when you go away, it's there, waiting for you."

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At the beginning it started really nice but then got lost in the middle for a bit of boring plot, but I must admit that reaching the end was totally worth it. The revelation of the fate of the other characters interconnecting with him were shocking and unexpected. Especially the fate of the poor Cinto and the three sisters. 

The friendship between Anguilla and Nuto, is that kind that everyone would like to have. Even if he left for America, when he came back, Nuto was back for him, as if, he actually never left. 

If you're into books talking about the after war period, this is totally the one for you ;)

The Mirror Visitor Quartet by Christelle Dabos

  The Mirror Visitor Quartet

by Christelle Dabos

Hi (: I'm here with another review of an entire saga.  

Check out my last review about Mr Mercedes by Stephen King :)

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The review of today is of the saga of The Mirror Visitor (Le Passe Miroir in French and L'Attraversaspecchi in Italian) by the French author Christelle Dabos. 

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The first book of this quartet is called "A Winter's Promise" (Les Fiancés de l'Hiver / Fidanzati dell'Inverno). The story follows the new world after "The Rupture" that shattered it into many floating celestial islands. These places are now known as Arks, 21 that developed in distinct ways and where on each of them a spirit of an omnipotent ancestor abides.

Ophelia lives on Anima, an ark where objects have souls and are (as the name suggests) animated. The young girl has the power to read and communicated with these souls just by touching them with her bare hands (that's why to protect herself from involuntary readings, she wears gloves), and the ability to travel through mirrors. Things changes, though, when she is promised in marriage to Thorn, from the powerful Dragon clan. Because of this, she will have to leave her family and move to her fiancée's ark: The Pole. Why did they chose her? Why can't she say who she really is, but must hide her true identity?

The second book instead is called "The Missing of Clairedelune" (Les Disparus de Clairdelune / Gli Scomparsi di Chiardiluna). Our heroin, Ophelia is being promoted to vice-storyteller by Farouk, the spirit of the Pole, which will put her into the public spotlight and everyone will know her special gift. She will have to read his Book that it's including all his memories in an unknown language that no one can understand. This will lead to the grudge of the other citizens that will see her as a threat. She discovers that the only person she may be able to trust is only Thorn. As one after another influential courtier disappears, Ophelia finds herself implicated in an investigation that will lead her to see beyond the illusions of the Pole to find the actual truth. 

The third book is called "The Memory of Babel" (La Mémoire de Babel / La Memoria di Babel). This time Ophelia finds herself on another ark, the magical city of Babel, guarding a secret that may provide a key to the past and future. 

After two years and seven months biding her time on Anima (I'm not going to spoil the ending of the previous book, just going to say that because of something that happened, she gets sent back to her birth ark), it's time to act on what she discovered in the Book of Faruk. She changed her identity using the name of Eulalia to live on Babel, a cosmopolitan ark where androids have taken over human's jobs. Under this ideal life, though, unrest chaos fed by memories of a purge and the inhabitant fear of being replaced. Will her talents as a reader be enough to enter into the Memorial of the town? 

The last book of the saga instead is called "The Storm of Echoes" (La Tempête des Échoes / Echi in Tempesta). Ophelia and Thorn discover that the truth they have been seeking has always been hidden behind the mirror. 

Finally the distrust between them has been overcome and now they love each other passionately. But they can't show their love, because of the fake identities they've created on Babel. Only like that they can continue their journeys to understand the indecipherable code of God and the truth behind the mysterious figure of the Other, whose responsible for the fall of the arks, plunging thousands of innocents into the void. 

Their journey leads them to the Observatory of the Deviations, where Ophelia will be a sectioned patient. There they will hope to discover the truth that will hopefully bring the world back into balance.

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I need to say, I loved it. All the books are amazing and I felt deeply connected with the figure and description of Ophelia, which resembles me a lot. The love story with Thorn is perfect, because it's structured so good that at the beginning you despise him, just as Ophelia does, but you slowly start to appreciate him and love him at the end.

Mme Dabos clearly knew how to make it this perfect that you couldn't just put the book down anymore. Once you start reading it, you're completely hooked and you want to finish it, even though that makes you sad. 

To be honest yes, the only thing I didn't like was the ending, but I guess that has to do also with the fact that I wasn't ready to say goodbye to Ophelia.

So, I totally recommend it if you like fantasy stories. 

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

 The Picture of Dorian Gray

by Oscar Wilde

Hi :) Today I'm reviewing a book I read for the second time, because, let's be honest, is amazing. 

Check out my last review about The Life Before Us of March :)

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The book of today is The Picture of Dorian Gray by the Irish writer Oscar Wilde. 

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The novel was easy to read since it doesn't use so many harsh words, and most of the foreigner ones (ex. he uses some German, Italian and French words) are written with notes below to explain the meaning. 

It is the story of a young and easily corrupted man, Dorian Gray, who is sitting for a portrait made by the painter Basil Hallward. This one is so impressed by Dorian's charm and beauty that he feels like he's making the painting come alive for how stunning he is. 

Through Basil, Dorian will meet, Lord Henry Wotton, a dandy and aristocrat who believes in a philosophy of self-indulgent hedonism. Beauty and sensual fulfilment are the only important things in life. 

Because of this meeting, Dorian expresses that he would like to sell his soul if he could stay young forever, but that the picture instead, would age at his place. 

The wish comes true, though, making him appear always young, even after 18 years from the beginning of the story, while the portrait is getting older and showing every sin ever committed by him. 

Will he be able to redeem himself and start acting good again? Or is his soul already damned? 

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I loved it just as the first time I read it. It's a true masterpiece and never gets old, just like Dorian's figure. 

It's the modern recreation of the Faust's myth. 

It's a really short book, so it can be easily read even in one day or two and it's totally worth it. 

Many adaptations were done from it, movies, tv series and even musicals. 

The Color Purple by Alice Walker

The Color Purple

by Alice Walker

Spoiler alert: If you've already watched the film with Whoopi Goldberg,

then there are no spoilers.

Hi, here I am with another review.

Today I'm going to talk about the novel The Color Purple written by the American author Alice Walker. I wanted to read this book because I loved the film and I've seen that a lot of people on Bookstagram were reading it also, so I got curious to see if it was different from the film or not.

The book is composed by letters written by Celie, the main protagonist, and by her sister, Nettie, from which she is divided. The book focuses on the life of African-American women during the 1930s, addressing their low position in the American social life.

Celie is a 14 years old girl at the beginning, she writes her story through letters addressed to God. Almost immediately she gets married to an older man that she calls Mr. -, because she doesn't even know her name. Her life changes when she is divided from her sister Nettie, and then meet a friend of Mr., Shug Avery, a female singer, with whom she becomes friend and lover, and thanks to whom she experience her sexuality. 

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I mean, what else can I say except the fact that I loved it? It's really enjoyable, short and fast to read. It is exactly as the film, but the thing I enjoyed the most, is the fact that they actually showed Celie discovering that she's attracted to Shug and not to men, something that you can't clearly understand from the film. It's a really short book though, and I wished it was lasting a bit longer.

This month's recommended books

Hi everyone I'm back with the monthly recommended books:

«Simon vs The Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli» 
  
Simon is a 16 years old guy, who has a secret that hasn't confessed to anyone. He's gay. No one knows, not even his friends because he's not ready to do his coming out yet. But then he starts to exchange emails with someone calling himself Blue, who seems to be attracted by him. These emails though falls into the wrong hands and Simon starts to be blackmailed by Martin, the class clown. If he doesn't help him win the attention of Simon's friend, his sexual identity will become everyone's business, and the privacy of Blue will be compromised. 

The book is really short and light and part, of course, of the LGBTQ+ community, as am I. A film was also based on it, called Love, Simon. It's not the typical teenage drama, because it shows you the point of view of Simon's family as well, making you see how hard it is to be stereotyped in this world.

✧༺♥༻∞　　∞༺♥༻✧

«Emma by Jane Austen» 

Emma Woodhouse is one of Austen's heroine, not as popular as Elizabeth Bennet or the Dashwood's sisters, but is also considered as the most captivating and vivid character of them all. She's beautiful, spoiled, vain and witty. She organises the lives of the inhabitants of the invented village of Highbury and plays to be a matchmaker, but with, of course, devastating effect. 

I must admit, I liked it, but I still prefer Pride&Prejudice and Sense&Sensibilty. In my opinion, nothing can still beat them. Anyway, this novel is enjoyable, because it's more comic and full of lovely characters as Emma, Harriet and Mrs. Weston.

✧༺♥༻∞　　∞༺♥༻✧

«The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger»

The narrator of this book is a born old 16 years old guy, Holden Caulfield, whose native of New York. He leaves his prep school in Pennsylvania and goes underground in NYC for 3 days. There are many feelings going on in him, but as most of the people, he keeps almost all of them inside himself. The book talks about his experience alone in NY. 

I must admit, I loved this book when I was in middle school. I know it's not probably so not easy to understand, because it's a bit confusing sometimes, but I think that's actually the point of it. That's a totally recommended book that will help you understand what is going on inside a teenager's mind. 

This month's recommended books:

Hi everyone, the books recommended for this month are:

«Milk And Honey by Rupi Kaur» 
  
Milk And Honey is a collection of poetry and prose about survival. About the experience of violence, abuse, love, loss and femininity. It's divided into four chapters, each one of them serves a different purpose, because it deals with a different pain and heals different heartaches. 

The book will take you through a journey of the most bitter moments in life to find sweetness in them as well, because sweetness is everywhere if you're just willing to look. 

If you're into poetry, this book is totally recommended as well as her other book The Sun And Her Flowers.

✧༺♥༻∞　　∞༺♥༻✧

«To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee»

To Kill A Mockingbird is a novel published in 1961 by Harper Lee. It approaches the theme of racism and acceptance for the people that are considered different from us. 
The novel is told by the point of view of Scout, the youngest daughter of Atticus Finch, a lawyer that will need to defend a black young man, Tom Robinson, who has been accused of assaulting a white young woman. 
The book is full of compassion, drama and is deeply moving and touching. It will take you to the roots of human behaviour, through innocence, kindness and cruelty, love and hatred, humor and pathos. Today it is considered to be a masterpiece of American literature. 

✧༺♥༻∞　　∞༺♥༻✧

«Frankenstein: or The Modern Prometheus by Mary Shelley»

This novel written by Mary Shelley narrates through an epistolary form the story of Victor Frankenstein, the scientist and his creation that it's defined by him as a monster, a fiend. 
Through the book, though, and the point of view of both characters, it will be possible to understand that the real monster is indeed the human, Victor, while the creature, or Adam, as he will be referred to after, is just an imagine of how we treat who's different from us, who's not accepted, and for this we're afraid of. 
I must admit this is one of my favourite classics ever and I wasn't expecting to like it as much as I did. 

Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov

Lolita

by Vladimir Nabokov

Spoiler alert: The book is controversial, so not for an easy and
pleasant reading, since it talks about the topic of pedophilia.

 

Hi, here I am with a new review.

Today I'm going to do the review of Lolita, written by the Russian-American novelist Vladimir Nabokov. I've came across this book because my cousin suggested me to read it, even though it has been on my to read list for a long time.

The novel is famous because of its controversial subject. The protagonist, a middle-aged literature professor that goes under the nickname of Humbert Humbert, is obsessed with Dolores Haze, a 12 years old girl, with whom he becomes the tutor by being hosted by her mother in their house. He's an unreliable narrator.

Later he will become sexually involved with the girl after he becomes her stepfather by marrying Mrs. Haze. He will give Dolores a private nickname, "Lolita", that gives the title to the book. The name "Lolita" has been assimilated in our popular culture and used to imply that a young girl is sexually precocious. Dolores and him will then travel around the country when the mother accidentally dies. A lot of consequences will happen to both the characters.

Lolita quickly attained a classic status and it's considered to be a cult book. The novel was then adapted into a film by Stanley Kubrik in 1962, and then in 1997 by Adrian Lyne. It has also been adapted in musicals, ballets and operas.

It has been considered as one of the greatest work of the 20th by many authors and listed as one of the best books by Time, Le Monde and many others.

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I need to admit that I was really into reading this book at first, but as soon as I started it, I was really shocked by how he could go around, flirting with her, without any consequences. The more I read and the more I understood that it was going against everything I believed in, but also I was more attracted to it, because the plot was thickening and the situation was getting worse for Humbert, which made me feel better. 

The end of the book is both sad and happy, that's why I liked it, because you have a realistic ending.

A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara

A Little Life

by Hanya Yanagihara

Spoiler alert: A thousand napkins sadly won't be enough.
This story is deep and full of sadness, but also
love and friendship. So you need to be prepared to be
emotionally touched.
 

Hello everyone

Today I'm going to do the review of A Little Life, written by the American novelist Hanya Yanagihara. I've came across this book because my cousin suggested me to read it, and I really loved it. Despite the book is quite long and full of heavy material, it became a best-seller all over the world. The title refers to the poem "The Waste Land" of T.S. Eliot.
The book talks about the relationship between four classmates from a college in Massachusetts that move to New York to start a new life. They are, though, broke and adrift, holding on only because of their friendship and ambition. Willem is kind and attractive, he's an aspiring actor, while JB is a painter trying to make it in the art world. Malcom is a frustrated architect working at a prominent firm. The centre of their gravity is the enigmatic but brilliant Jude, with a sad and dark past that doesn't want to tell about.

As the years passed by, though, their friendships seem to get deeper, but darker as well, because of addiction, success and pride. The greatest challenge is Jude, incredibly talented but also a broken man, with the mind and body scarred by an untold childhood. He's haunted by his trauma that seems to overcome him and define his life forever. 

The book is divided into 7 parts following a chronological order, interrupted by flashbacks. At the beginning of the novel we see as an omniscient narrator is telling the story, while the focus is slowly moving towards Jude, his interactions with the others, his flashbacks and his own experiences. The story is told by an unspecified future version of Harold, the mentor and professor of Jude in university.




The novel deals with different themes, most of them difficult ones. The main themes are: male relationships and homosexuality; trauma, recovery and support; chronic pain, disability and self-harm.

Due to the heavy themes, the book can be really touching, especially if you dealt with these topics, so it's recommended to talk to someone after it, if you feel worse. Otherwise, the story is really interesting, especially their friendships and relationships with other people, as Harold for Jude.