Hi guys. I am back with a new book review. Today I will review the book Am I Normal Yet? by Holly Bourne. This book is the first book in a series called The Spinster Club. It is about a girl named Evie trying to be ‘normal’ after almost being taken off her meds. However, it is easier said than done.

Warning: SPOILERS UP AHEAD! ( IF YOU’VE READ IT, GREAT! BUT IF NOT THEN DON’T SCROLL UP OR IF YOU JUST WANT TO SPOIL IT FOR YOURSELF THEN GO AHEAD) 

My book review:

Book itself

• Love the book title!!
• I realised that when you tilt a book at different angles, you can see hidden text in the background that looks like her thoughts which are all over the place, like same…
• I liked the images and diagrams in the book. Very cute. 
• I liked the inclusion of the thoughts as being labeled ‘bad’ or ‘good’ or something completely different. 

Characters

• Evie is very relatable, like so relatable.
• I thought Ethan was going to be great but thanks to Evie’s spoilers, we know that’s not the case.
• Jane was a very interesting character. I mean I didn’t like the way she kept ditching Evie for her boyfriend Joel. I mean I kinda suspected she was going to change when Evie said ‘She didn’t laugh,’ in Chapter 3.
• But I’m glad it led her to her new friends, Amber and Lottie who appreciate, understand and are always by her side, no matter what. 
• Oh my god, I really like Lottie and Amber. They are like the best friends you want to have in your life. 
• I thought Oliver was really sweet and he was like Evie. 
• I really do get the social anxiety. 😰
• Lottie really makes you think a lot which you haven’t thought before and it gives you new ways at looking at the world around you.
• Amber is really bold and I like that about her. She doesn’t care what other people think. 
• I sympathise with Amber and Lottie and Evie. They all deserve better! 
• I didn’t have much interest in Joel. He was just Jane’s boyfriend and part of a band.
• Guy is an interesting character. Like Evie, thought he was nice and caring but definitely not the case.
• Like Amber, I found the brother 🧒 to be annoying as hell.
• I liked her therapist Sarah. 👩‍⚕️
• I liked Rose 👧. She was so sweet and understanding.
• The parents 👨‍👩‍👧‍👧 were okay. 
• If only I had the same discipline as Evie to clean 🧹 my room often 🤣

Plot

• I really liked that the author ✍️researched a lot about OCD and other disorders to make it really authentic, but like she said in the Q & A it doesn’t represent everyone’s experiences. 
• I really liked the creation of The Spinster Club.
• I liked that Evie finally told Amber and Lottie about her condition at the end. 
• I liked the interactions between Evie and Oliver, albeit it was short. I really liked them comparing their top fav movies list. 
• The scene with Guy and Evie at his house near the end was quite uncomfortable ngl. I felt bad for Evie.
• I really liked the banner Amber and Lottie made for Evie.
• I hated that Evie had to go through that big moment where her OCD was blaring in her head during that battle of the bands scene but it also represented one of the many situations that people with that condition go through in their lives. 

Moments

• It was insightful to read Evie discussing the misconceptions of people misdiagonising themselves saying ‘Oh they are OCD too’ etc and how mental health was this taboo thing but now its not and now everyone is super aware of it but they don’t truly understand it. And the way it’s ‘mainstream’ now. I think this is true today.
• The way they made each girl have a Spinster Club meeting to discuss a different issue regarding feminism was really cool. I kinda wanna do that with my friends. 
• Also, it was very interesting to read about different perspectives from Lottie, Amber and Evie on the topic at hand. 
• I liked all of them, Amber’s topic on periods 🩸, Lotties on dating and Evie on mental health 🧠❤️‍🩹.
• I liked the membership cards that Amber made for The Spinster Club.
• I liked that at the end, Evie reached out to Oliver again. 
• Damn, sociology and film 📽️ studies sound cool!
• I liked that Sarah is a big feminist at the end. 
• I’ve never heard of the conkers game until I read this book. Interesting game
• I felt really bad for Lottie and her relationship with Tim. I’m glad that Amber and Evie were there to console and comfort her. 

Overall it was a nice and informational book. I loved the friendship between Amber, Lottie and Evie. I gotta go and read the others too! 

Comment down below which part of the book was your favourite!

Also, comment down below any parts, characters and plotlines that I missed!