This illness isn't real so don't worry

There is a section on New York Public Library's website where librarians recommend some of their favorite books. I have been known to trawl through looking for ideas about what to read next (because I'm clearly lacking in books lol) and that's where I came across Close Enough to Touch by Colleen Oakley. Our main character, Jubilee Jenkins, is a small-town librarian with a big secret...she's allergic to human touch. And I do mean deathly allergic. Let me back up a bit because the book doesn't open with her working in the library and fretting about whether or not anyone has figured out she can't touch them. Instead we meet Jubilee in her home where she has been sequestered away for several years after a bad allergy attack which nearly killed her. She decides the best way to keep herself safe is to not come into any kind of contact with the outside world which of course results in her becoming absolutely petrified to leave her house for any reason. (She even comes up with a system for getting her trash to the curb without going outside.) I had originally been intrigued by this book because it gave me slight Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore vibes but once I got into it I realized that the main difference here is that she's not trying to solve a mystery. Jubilee just wants to live. 

This book's narrative could have been tightened up extensively. There's the exploration of mental illness but there's also a burgeoning romance. AND there was a second subplot involving her romantic interest and his relationship with his adopted son. I think by splitting the focus, none of these were explored satisfactorily. The ending was somewhat confusing and left me disappointed that I had spent the time reading the book at all. And honestly I didn't care for Jubilee. She was extremely wishy-washy and many times I found myself frustrated with her. The initial concept was interesting but the execution and the muddied plot turned this into a low rated read for me: 4/10.

Check out the different interpretations of the story via the book cover:

The cover I had. [Source: TLC Book Tours]

Source: The eBook Hunter

Source: Simon & Schuster

What's Up Next: Deep Dark Fears & The Creeps by Fran Krause

What I'm Currently Reading: Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman

**If you're interested in buying this book or any books really, you can click here or here. The first will re-direct you to AbeBooks and the second will re-direct you to The Book Depository. These are great websites for purchasing books (AbeBooks carries inexpensive used and out-of-print books and The Book Depository ships free everywhere in the world). Full disclosure: I will receive a commission on all sales made by following either of these links. I wouldn't recommend a site that I didn't use and you are under no obligation to purchase anything. :-) **

Umm so young adult romance...I'm into it I guess? Wait, that came out wrong!

If you race home, drop everything, and immediate dive back into a book it's a pretty safe bet that you're 'into it'. Girl Online is one of those young adult novels that sucks you right in and makes you fall in love with the characters right off the bat. Penny is a completely believable character. This is an important point to make because in a lot of novels it's like the characters are too much if you get what I mean and it makes it difficult to put yourself in their place. It's not like that with Sugg's protagonist. I found myself alternately smiling from ear-to-ear and blinking back tears. It's exactly what being a teenager was like for me...except more English. lol The format of narrative interspersed with blog posts wasn't disruptive to the flow either which I appreciated. I predict that a lot of teenagers are going to be talking about this one (if they're not already). If I were you, teen, grownup, geriatric, android, I'd give this one a read. Oh and did I mention that Zoe is already working on a second book? I sure hope it's a sequel!!

Girl Online really put me in the mood for reading more young adult fiction so I'm finally picking up a book that I've had lingering on my shelf for quite a while: Divergent by Veronica Roth. I know what you're thinking, "Holy cow! You're just now reading this?!" I had meant to read this before the film came out earlier this year but other books called my name louder and...well I'm getting to it now, okay! From what I've gathered, this is like The Hunger Games meet The Giver...or did I totally just make that comparison up? Well, if it turns out to be true I'm totally giving myself a gold star. I'll let you know some of the bare bones in my next post. Until then, HAPPY READING!!