Sixteen-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.
First post of 2018! (And first post in like 4 months, sheesh)
I actually read this book when it came out on October 10, 2017, and was all set up to post about it when I finished it. But fourth year is like a void of work and assignments and getting up at 6:45am to be on the bus for 7:40 to be at school for 8:20 so I could work on assignments for 8 weeks. And then Christmas break came along, and I was focused on doing other things. So, there's that. But I still have a week left off school before I go back, and besides working and getting my textbooks for the semester, I'll post about all of the books that I have read between All the Birds in the Sky and now. Starting with this one.
John Green is a talented writer. He knows his typical demographic well. However, the only book of his previous to this one that I really enjoyed was The Fault in Our Stars. Every other book of his has left me feeling indifferent or slightly annoyed. What's so beautiful about Turtles is that you don't have to be a 16-year-old girl to appreciate and enjoy this book. Unlike his other novels, this one is autobiographical in a lot of ways, since he suffers from OCD similar to that of his main protagonist Aza. The moments portraying Aza's crippling thought spirals are intense and terrifying and well-portray what someone with OCD might go through. Although I do not have mental illness, this book spoke to me in a way that cannot be described. It's emotional, heartfelt, and realistic. I also learned first-hand that this is not a book to read on the bus.
While there are the typical John Green cliches, they are drastically downplayed compared to his previous four novels. The characters are all well-realized and developed, and can see their plights and struggles easily. But since it is written from the point of view of someone who is stuck in her own head, it takes a while to see how they are feeling about things, and how Aza's mental illness affects them, which is great writing from John Green. The romance in this book, while an important part of the story, did not overwhelm the narrative and showed an important thing that more people need to understand: love does not and cannot fix mental illness, no matter how strong the love is. It shows the ebb and flow of life, and shows that while sometimes things can be bad, that doesn't mean that things will always be bad.
While the plot and actual storyline runs a bit thin and rushed, I think that is necessary for a book like this. It shows the temporality of things and events in life, and shows that not everything is permanent. It is by far more a character-driven novel than a plot-driven novel. I don't think it would have worked as well as it did had it beeen a plot-driven novel instead of a character-driven novel. If it had been a plot-driven novel, it would not have been so upfront about mental illness and would have either candy-coated it or beaten around the bush which would have detracted from the novel greatly.
Turtles All the Way Down is an unblinking, realistic look at mental illness and how it affects those struggling with it and those around them. It highlights the importance of love and friendship. It shows that every one has a different, personal story with mental illness (there is no universal depiction of mental illness, only variations). This story strayed away from usual cliches of illness narratives and instead of having a boyfriend save her from her mental illness, depicted a very realistic portrayal of how a boyfriend/girlfriend can't save someone from their mental illness. Turtles is a great and emotional novel with a lot of heart. I'm going to give it 4/5
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