PUBLISHER: Macmillan Children's
FORMAT: Paperback
BUY IT: Waterstones
RATING: 4 Stars
SUMMARY
Amy is unflinchingly honest about her limitations. Born with cerebral palsy, she can't walk or talk without help. But trapped inside this uncooperative body lies a brilliant mind and a luminous spirit - a girl capable of truly loving and worthy of being loved in return. Matthew has his own set of challenges - a mind consumed by unwanted repeated thoughts, obsessive rituals and a crippling fear that he can't explain. But underneath all of the anxiety lies a deep seed of hope for someone to come along who believes in him...This is the story of Amy and Matthew. It may not be a fairy tale romance or set in an imagined world far from our own. But the love they share is real. And yes, there's magic in it.
REVIEW
I didn't really know what this book was about, the blurb is deliberately vague other than to say it's a love story. I started reading it on Sunday morning and I soon found it was Sunday night and I'd finished it! Amy is funny, insightful and doesn't let her Cerebral Palsy stop her from doing what she really wants - it's not her body that is limiting her actions, it's her mother. She has spent her life surrounded by adult helpers but hatches an ingenious plan to get to know people her own age - pay them to help her get around school. Matthew becomes one of her helpers and they soon become friends.
The interactions betweens the two of them are sweet, funny and full of hope for a better future. It's a very different kind of love story - it's bound to draw comparisons to Fault in Our Stars simply because the teenagers aren't 100% "normal" and are suffering from certain conditions, but it's really nothing like it. It's much more about Amy and Matthew's personal journey, the romance is just a side effect of that really. Anyone who likes stories that will make them laugh and surprise them should definitely give this a go!
- Gem.
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