Holding Up the Universe by Jennifer Niven & Bone Gap by Laura Ruby | Reviews

I had never really heard about face blindness until I read these two books almost back to back. I unknowingly picked up two books that deal with prosopagnosia and now I'm on the hunt for more stories with characters with this disorder as I find it extremely interesting to read from their point of view. 

First up, Holding Up the Universe by one of my favourite authors, Jennifer Niven. She writes stories that just hit my hard every time. The emotions that she can draw out of  you while reading are remarkable. I highly suggest reading everything she writes.

Holding Up the Universe by Jennifer Niven

Published: October 4, 2016

Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers

Pages: 391

Received: bought a copy

Find it online: Goodreads

Genres: YA, contemporary, mental health

Everyone thinks they know Libby Strout, the girl once dubbed “America’s Fattest Teen.” But no one’s taken the time to look past her weight to get to know who she really is. Following her mom’s death, she’s been picking up the pieces in the privacy of her home, dealing with her heartbroken father and her own grief. Now, Libby’s ready: for high school, for new friends, for love, and for every possibility life has to offer. In that moment, I know the part I want to play here at MVB High. I want to be the girl who can do anything. 

Everyone thinks they know Jack Masselin, too. Yes, he’s got swagger, but he’s also mastered the impossible art of giving people what they want, of fitting in. What no one knows is that Jack has a newly acquired secret: he can’t recognize faces. Even his own brothers are strangers to him. He’s the guy who can re-engineer and rebuild anything, but he can’t understand what’s going on with the inner workings of his brain. So he tells himself to play it cool: Be charming. Be hilarious. Don’t get too close to anyone.

Until he meets Libby. When the two get tangled up in a cruel high school game—which lands them in group counseling and community service—Libby and Jack are both pissed, and then surprised. Because the more time they spend together, the less alone they feel. Because sometimes when you meet someone, it changes the world, theirs and yours.

 

Jack and Libby FOREVER!

Okay, this book hit me hard in the feels. First off, Libby holds my heart as a teen dealing with her weight and joining the world of high school after being home schooled for most of her life. She's looking for big change after getting her weight down to a size that she feels comfortable with. She's looking to make friends and get out into the world. She has a lot of life experiences to make up for while she was stuck in her home as an overweight recluse. I adored her character so much. She has sass, she had confidence, she has self-love! I'm sure she can come of as a big arrogant, but I think the fact that she was known as the "fattest teen in America" and being a shut in only added to her either ending up depressed and suicidal or being a confident and in your face kind of person. She's looking to be seen, but not for the reasons she's been known for in the past. 

Jack on the other hand, comes off as a bit of an ass. At first it's annoying, but then it becomes endearing because he really can't help it most of the time. His face blindness causes him to really not know who he is talking to or standing near. He relies on people's hairstyles, voices, postures to know when he is beside his best friends, family or teachers. When someone new talks to him he kind of just gives them the "ya ok" chat because it's too hard to remember what he spoke to someone about that he cannot recognize again. He has some amazingly brilliant moments of self realization and some wonderful monologues when he's talking to Libby or his youngest brother.

The ending got me good and hit me square in the heart. I love how he describes how he knows when he's looking at Libby. It will totally melt your heart. It will make the entire jerky attitude of his fall away and all you will see if love.

Other notable things that I adored in this book:
-the Supernatural references,
-the reference to We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson (I love when books mention other books and the characters have conversations about them - so now I must read this book)  
-the diversity - race, size and sexuality
-they dance all the time and it is adorable
-the quotable writing

“Dear friend, You are not a freak. You are wanted. You are necessary. You are the only you there is. Don’t be afraid to leave the castle. It’s a great big world out there. Love, a fellow reader” 

"You might not want to burn your bridges when you're standing on an island.” 

"...remember this: YOU ARE WANTED. Big, small, tall, short, pretty, plain, friendly, shy. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise, not even yourself. Especially yourself.” 

"... you deserve to be seen.” 

If you would like to read an article where Jennifer Niven talks about writing about facial blindness, check it out over at Read It Forward. 

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And the second book I read that has prosopanosia in the story was Bone Gap by Laura Ruby. I had no idea that this subject matter was even part of the story, I just picked it up because I'd seen it around over the years and I was drawn to this cover so much. 

Bone Gap by Laure Ruby

Publisher: Balzer + Bray

Published: March 3, 2015

Pages: 373

Received: purchased

Find it online:  Goodreads

Genres: YA, magical realism, romance

   

Everyone knows Bone Gap is full of gaps—gaps to trip you up, gaps to slide through so you can disappear forever. So when young, beautiful Roza went missing, the people of Bone Gap weren’t surprised. After all, it wasn’t the first time that someone had slipped away and left Finn and Sean O’Sullivan on their own. Just a few years before, their mother had high-tailed it to Oregon for a brand new guy, a brand new life. That’s just how things go, the people said. Who are you going to blame?

Finn knows that’s not what happened with Roza. He knows she was kidnapped, ripped from the cornfields by a dangerous man whose face he cannot remember. But the searches turned up nothing, and no one believes him anymore. Not even Sean, who has more reason to find Roza than anyone, and every reason to blame Finn for letting her go.

As we follow the stories of Finn, Roza, and the people of Bone Gap—their melancholy pasts, their terrifying presents, their uncertain futures—acclaimed author Laura Ruby weaves a heartbreaking tale of love and loss, magic and mystery, regret and forgiveness—a story about how the face the world sees is never the sum of who we are.

I love a good magical realism book and this book did not disappoint. At first, I wondered when those elements were going to show up as the beginning just felt like the story of a small town with eclectic townspeople in it. The magic shows up in so many places and actually added to the wonder of the story. 

I really enjoyed Finn's story and how over time, he is made to realize that it's not his fault that he couldn't describe the person who took Roza away. It takes the love of a girl to finally unravel the mysteries of his mind and his ability to not recognize people. I love how he truly sees people for who they are not what they look like. He's an observer of peoples quirks and mannerisms more than of looks and traits. He has a way to look at the world that others do not and it makes me want to know a person just like him. 

The story is told from multiple POVs by in third person. It works well for this style of narration. The writing is beautiful and whimsical. It's just lovely and made for such a quick read. I wanted more from every character because they were so poetically written. Finn, he is everything - the weird boy that no one understands. Petey - the ugly girl with the brash words and who cares for bees. Roza - the gorgeous newcomer who disappears as suddenly as she appears. And Sean - the man who cannot deal with more loss, bless his soul.

Finn and Petey are quite the pair. He sees her as more than the "ugly" girl everyone else sees. He sees her for her personality, her uniqueness and loves her for her. I think they bring out the best in each other and they fight so hard for the other to see themselves the way they see them. Priscilla aka Petey, doesn't think she's pretty, knows they town thinks she's ugly and doesn't care, but when Finn starts to visit and spend time with her, he makes her feel like the most beautiful girl in the world. And Finn starts to understand more and more about his absent mind and day-dreamy ways with the insistence of Petey. She figures out his mind and how it works differently and why he comes across all forgetful and lost. At one point I worried that she was self sabotaging their relationship as she tries to help him understand his undiagnosed memory issue. But their relationship is one of the most wonderful parts of the book.

Honestly, the theme felt more about being seen or only seeing what you want to see and I loved this so much. Take Sean for instance, he sacrifices a lot to take care of Finn when their mother leaves, but when Roza disappears and no one knows why, besides Finn, he doesn't really try to look for her. He just acts like she's another person who disappeared on him. He's choosing to see what he wants to see based on previous circumstances, but if he truly dug deep in his heart where his love for Roza lay then he just might have fought harder to look for her. 

Other things I loved in this book:
-the gaps - gaps in time, alternate dimensions whatever your take on this element in the book is one piece of the magical realism
-the relationships - romantic, friendship, familial, other
-diversity

In the end, you'll laugh, you'll cry and you'll gasp. You'll see true love, heartbreak, humour, terror and more. It's full of magic of all kinds - realistic or not.

“People look, they don't see.” 

“But wasn't that love? Seeing what no one else could?”

“There will be boys who will tell you you're beautiful, but only a few will see you.”

“He was tired of everyone believing they knew everything there was to know about him, as if a person never grew, a person never changed, a person was born a weird and dreamy little kid with too-red lips and stayed that way forever just to keep things simple for everyone else.” 

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Now in 2020, I have decided the find more books that feature face blindness and see what they are all about and so far I've come across the following:

Both are thrillers and are so completely off the charts compared to the YA contemporaries that I've previously read that I'm wondering how the topic will feel given the settings and genre. I feel like the theme of the two YA books was being truly seen while I wonder if the thrillers will be more about being taken advantage of. I'm thinking since they are different genres that effects the overall feel of the topic.

Have you read any books that have face blindness as a topic? Let me know below. Or if you've read any of the books mentioned in this post please let me know what you thought of them!