Such a Special Book! In a World Just Right by Jen Brooks

Posted 2 April, 2015 by Danny in Blog / 3 Comments

Such a Special Book! In a World Just Right by Jen BrooksIn a World Just Right by Jen Brooks
Published by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers on 2015-04-28
Genres: Dating & Sex, Love & Romance, Social Issues, Visionary & Metaphysical, Young Adult
Pages: 432
Source: Publisher
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4 Stars

Imagination takes on new meaning for a uniquely talented teen in this debut novel that is a breathtaking blend of contemporary, fantasy, and romance.

Sometimes Jonathan Aubrey wishes he could just disappear. And as luck—or fate—would have it, he can. Ever since coming out of a coma as a kid, he has been able to create alternate worlds. Worlds where he is a superhero, or a ladies’ man, or simply a better version of himself. That’s the world he’s been escaping to most since sophomore year, a world where he has everything he doesn’t have in real life: friends, a place of honor on the track team, passing grades, and most importantly, Kylie Simms as his girlfriend.

But when Jonathan confuses his worlds senior year and tries to kiss the real Kylie Simms, everything unravels. The real Kylie actually notices Jonathan…and begins obsessing over him. The fantasy version of Kylie struggles to love Jonathan as she was created to do, and the consequences are disastrous. As his worlds collide, Jonathan must confront the truth of his power and figure out where he actually belongs—before he loses both Kylies forever.

Remember last month when we had the Big Love Letter Event? I was fortunate enough to have Jen Brooks on the Blog who shared a Love Letter from Jonathan to Kylie, which was so beautiful! And I would say that the Letter is as special as the book!:)

If you could create worlds! How would your world looks like?

Jonathan is a very special boy – ever since he was in a plan crash he can create world just by thinking of them. And.. Jonathan has a lot of time to think of new worlds, and he has a lot he wants to escape too. Because not only did this plan crash change him, but he lost is whole family and now he’s living with his uncle who is never home. So his life changed dramatically and horribly and then also his former friends at school behave weird around him and he’s a complete loner. So, yes he has lots wishes for a better world….

One of his most desperate wishes is that this one girl Kylie finally sees him, so he creates a world where she not only sees him but also falls in love with him..

Such a special special book!!!

I actually don’t want go too much into detail about the book, because I think it’s best not to know too much but rather experience the book while reading. Honestly, I had tons of different theories about Jonathan abilities and I was not so far off. But still, the end was so SO perfect  and so surprising and so amazing! It was a big Twist that I am sure not everyone will see coming. In the end, the story deals so much with grief and how you see yourself and how your self-imposed image reflects on your surroundings. It’s a sad story, it’s heartbreaking yet it’s beautiful in the end! I just would have wished for a little more uplifting moments, I think the tone was very dark and it would have been nice to have some smiling, laughing moments to lift the mood.

 

Bewitched Rating

 

 

Bottom Line

In a World Just Right by Jen Brooks was an incredible debut and it’s a very special story that is unlike anything I’ve read before. It completely took my by surprise by the direction the book took and it’s hard to put a label on the story. Jen Brooks is definitely a very unique storyteller and I am excited to see what she’s coming up next with!

 

  contemporary   

Additional Info

Here I have again the Love Letter Jen Brooks wrote for the Love Letter Event: 
Dear Kylie,
You will never see this letter. I can’t tell you any of this in real life.
In my other world, the one I call Kylie-Simms-is-my-girlfriend, I tell you everything. We talk about track, poetry, tacos, the future. We talk about the family I lost and the family you have. We talk about death and life and the afterlife and the meaning of life. When I have one of my dark days, we don’t talk. We kiss. You hold me, sometimes all night long.
But in Kylie-Simms-is-my-girlfriend, we can never talk about the most important thing: the truth of what I am and what I have created.
In Kylie-Simms-is-my-girlfriend you think I’m a social guy, someone with confidence and a future. But I’m actually nothing like that, as the real you knows. As YOU know. I’m invisible and a loner. I have scars inside and out. If you knew, if you really knew, how deep those scars run inside me, would you forgive me for making a world where we are together? I don’t know. If the situation were reversed, I don’t know how I’d feel.
The version of you I know as my girlfriend makes me feel like I’m worthy of being loved. This might seem like such a small thing to you, who has always had family and friends, but to me it is the greatest gift in the world. When I made Kylie-Simms-is-my-girlfriend, I didn’t know exactly how it would be between us, but I’m sure that if I’d chosen any other girl, she could never have made me feel as healed—as unscarred—as you do. I’m sure this is why I fell so hard for you in real life.
So I guess I’m writing this to say thank you, Kylie. You’ll probably say you haven’t earned my thanks because you never look at me, never speak to me in real life, but I know that’s more because I’ve withdrawn from your world than because you’ve chosen to shun me. I wish I could show you who I am in my other world. You might . . . you might just . . .
In any world, whether you love me back or not, I love you Kylie—eternally.
I wish more than anything I could tell you so for real.
Love,
Jonathan
Intrigued? Any idea what to expect from this book? I actually expected something different. But it’s definitely a book that stays with you for quite a while. Even know, I remember vividly how the book ended! Love when a book manages to stay in your head for so long! 
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