Spoiler Free Book Review

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I finally read Turtles All The Way Down! I bought this book right when this book was released three years ago, but never read it. I loved John Green’s books, but I was scared that this was going to be a let down. Fast forward today, in quarantine, in the mood to read a YA romance novel, I decided it was finally time, and I’m glad I picked it up. If I would of known this book was about mental illness, and anxiety, I would of read this a long time ago. This book made laugh, be on the edge of my seat, and at the end, I cried. This book will forever stick with me. John Green did it again. 

Synopsis

Turtles All The Way Down tells the story of Aza, a junior in high school who suffers with anxiety and OCD. While in high school,  local billionaire fugitive has disappearance before his prosecution for. Information to his disappearance has a reward of $100,000. Aza doesn’t know the billionaire, but she knows his son Davis. Aza and her best friend, Daisy, become money hungry and decide to solve the mystery for their college funds. Not only is this a mystery novel, through the book you learn about the meaning of friendships and relationships, but most importantly, we learn about anxiety and how to deal with your spiral thoughts in life. As Robert Frost says, “In three words I can sum up everything I’ve learned about life: it goes on.”

Synopsis by the publisher

It all begins with a fugitive billionaire and the promise of a cash reward. Turtles All the Way Down is about lifelong friendship, the intimacy of an unexpected reunion, Star Wars fan fiction, and tuatara. But at its heart is Aza Holmes, a young woman navigating daily existence within the ever-tightening spiral of her own thoughts.

In his long-awaited return, John Green shares Aza’s story with shattering, unflinching clarity.

Fan art:

Spoilers Without Context

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Do I recommend this book? Is it better than Fault in Our Stars?

Question #1: Yes! This book shows Aza dealing her anxiety and how her thoughts make her spiral. If you suffer from anxiety, or knows someone who does, this is the book for you. What I loved about this book is that it suggests that anxiety isn’t something that is solved, but it shows how to cope with it. 

Question #2: That question is up to reader. Did you love Fault in Our Stars? Then you’ll love this book. I can only speak from my personal opinion, and as a fan of John Green’s books (except An Abundance of Katherines and Will Grayson, Will Grayson), this book what all I could ask for. It was full of metaphors, mentions great literature writers such as Robert Frost and Emily Dickinson, has quirky love scenes, talks about teenage things, and treats the young adults in the novel as adults. And the end, it made me cry. I totally had a moment of sadness after reading the book. When I finished it, I was speechless, and fell into a spiral for a gratification for this book. But will this book crush your heart like The Fault in Our Stars? I don’t think so. This book may seem sad, but it’s uplifting, and for that, I appreciate it more than The Fault of In Our Stars.

Things to consider before you choose to read the book:

1. It heavily discusses mental illnesses. The book goes into heavy detail of what a mental spiral is, OCD, and how it effects others. It’s a heavy topic to read about, but it’s an important one. It’s important that we highlight and discuss these issues to make connections, and raise awareness of what it’s like to have a mental illness.
2. Not only does this book talk about mental illness, but it also discusses what class is like today. John Green talks about high class, and the many types of middle class. Something I haven’t read in Young Adult literature today. 
3. This is book also includes text messages, blog posts, and poems. As a sucker for literature, I appreciated the references. 
4. Many metaphors on the quintessential meaning of life. Just like John Green’s previous books, he writes about the big question of what is life. 

Favorite Quotes:

Anybody can look at you. It’s quite rare to find someone who sees the same world you see.

You’re both the fire and the water that extinguishes it. You’re the narrator, the protagonist, and the sidekick. You’re the storyteller and the story told. You are somebody’s something, but you are also your you.

The thing about a spiral is, if you follow it inward, it never actually ends. It just keeps tightening, infinitely.

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WARNING: YOU WILL BE SPOILED! AND TRUST ME, YOU WILL NOT WANNA BE SPOILED.