Turtles All The Way Down
By John Green
Genre: YA Contemporary
Recommended For: Ages 15+ readers who enjoy a good cry while they read and really getting into a character’s head

Sixteen-year-old Aza never intended to pursue the mystery of fugitive billionaire Russell Pickett, but there’s a hundred-thousand-dollar reward at stake and her Best and Most Fearless Friend, Daisy, is eager to investigate. So together, they navigate the short distance and broad divides that separate them from Russell Pickett’s son, Davis. Aza is trying. She is trying to be a good daughter, a good friend, a good student, and maybe even a good detective, while also living within the ever-tightening spiral of her own thoughts. 

The Gist:
When an Indianapolis billionaire disappears just before police can arrest him for fraud, an award of $100,000 is offered for information on his whereabouts. Enter our main character, Aza, and her best friend, Daisy. The two hatch a plan to use Aza’s former friendship with the billionaire’s son, Davis, to play detective and get the reward. And the story is off to the races.

Right smack from the beginning we are introduced to Aza’s mental illness that’s a mix of extreme anxiety and obsessive compulsive disorder. Turtles All The Way Down was my first John Green book, and if the rest of his novels are half as good as this one, I’m sold. In no other book I’ve ever read have I felt like I was dropped in the middle of a character’s head. Maybe it’s my own struggles with anxiety, but there were times I felt Aza’s anxiety tighten in my own chest. It’s a beautifully told, story that will grab your heart and twist, but in a good way if that makes sense. Is it darker than most YA contemporary fiction? Yes. Is it deep, meaningful, moving and mesmerizing. Yes, yes, yes and yes.

Honest opinion: Everyone should read this book.

What I Liked:
I don’t even know where to begin.

Just kidding, yes I do.

I am extremely blessed to not suffer with a mental illness (besides mediocre anxiety). But after reading this book, I feel like I got a true glimpse into the brain of someone who suffers with one. It was incredibly eye-opening for me, and the way Green write’s Aza’s thoughts made me feel all her emotions. My heart broke for her so many times in the story. I wanted to reach into the pages and hold poor, sweet Aza. I truly think anyone who reads this book will fall in love with Aza.

Here was the most amazing part for me: I didn’t feel like I knew Aza really well, I felt like I WAS Aza. The inner monologue Green wrote for Aza was truly the best I’ve ever read. I felt her despair and sadness, her nervousness and sorrow.

And I’m new to John Green prose, but man is it stunning. Holy cow the wording and descriptions and dialogue he uses blew me away. It all flowed so elegantly. His descriptions and inner monologue were imaginative and thought-provoking and made me think about things I never would have before.

One of my favorite parts of the story was Aza and Daisy’s friendship. Daisy is your typically bubbly, energetic, outgoing best friend character, but we get to see layers with her as well (how deeply she cares for Aza). Their relationship to me was a very accurate depiction of true friendship, one this isn’t always sunshine and had low parts. But you work together to pull yourselves out of them.

What I Didn’t Like:
This book felt like constant tension. The fact that the entire book takes place in Aza’s head, which is a deep well of anxious and OCD thoughts, meant that I always felt like something horrible was going to happen. My chest was never not squeezed tight. I personally didn’t mind this because I thought it made for a very interesting and engaging story. However, I wanted to put this down in this section in case some people don’t like the constant tension (so I’m not taking away points for this).

Sometimes the teenagers felt too articulate and philosophical. Maybe Green was an exceptionally intelligent teen (wouldn’t surprise me in the least), but I certainly wasn’t. And I don’t think most teens I know of were questioning reality and our place in it and whether we really are…well…real. This only made it feel slightly unrealistic in terms of it been a YA, but the sentiments themselves, the writing about these thoughts, was amazing and written with finesse yet still understandable. So I’m not taking away points for this either.

LunasLuckyRating: 5/5 Lunas (GO READ IT NOW!)