Turtles All the Way Down by John Green

Content warning: Anxiety, OCD, self harm, references to teen drinking, car accident

SynopsisSixteen-year-old Aza never intended to pursue the mystery of fugitive billionaire Russell Pickett, but there’s a hundred-thousand-dollar reward at stake and her Best and Most Fearless Friend, Daisy, is eager to investigate. So together, they navigate the short distance and broad divides that separate them from Russell Pickett’s son, Davis.

Aza is trying. She is trying to be a good daughter, a good friend, a good student, and maybe even a good detective, while also living within the ever-tightening spiral of her own thoughts. 

Review: Turtles All the Way Down has been highly anticipated for quite some time. As someone who enjoys John Green's other books, I was extremely excited for his new book. Especially when I found it out centered on anxiety and OCD. I don't have Aza's brand of OCD, so I'm not going to talk about that, but I know all too well what her anxiety spirals are like. The anxiety rep in this book was very well done and Aza as a character was easy to relate to. Even her habit of digging her nail into her finger was something similar to what I've done and little instances of self-harm like that are not generally discussed in books.

Review: The story in Turtles was...interesting. Aza and her friend Daisy try to figure out where a billionaire has disappeared to, and she somehow finds a way to reconnect with a childhood friend, the billionaire's son.Aza and Davis' relationship didn't feel quite right. I didn't mind it, but I think it would have felt more natural if we saw them interact together more before Davis' dad disappeared. I did appreciate how Aza not only connected with Davis, but also with his brother Noah. More than anything, I loved how this book explored being vulnerable. With Aza, Davis, Noah, even Daisy, it discusses what it means to be honest and vulnerable even when you can loose what's important to you.

4 howls

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