Juliet’s arthritis is getting in the way of being a normal teenager. She was diagnosed with arthritis when she was twelve, and It’s so painful, she can’t do things she wants to do. Parties? Clothes she feels pretty in? A love life? She feels out of place, and like this stuff just isn’t meant for her, no matter how much she wants it. Plus, she’s babied by her parents, and some of her friends are less than loyal. She needs a distraction from all the medical appointments, the nasty comments from schoolmates, and all the other things her disability brings. She finds that distraction in online chess — well, the person she’s playing. As their relationship grows, Juliet’s outlook changes: she can  do normal things, and she is  loveable.  “ . . . I deeply missed my old life, the one I had before my diagnosis. I grieved for the life I could have had, and the pain was still there, but it hurt less now I’d learned to live with it.”  This is a book for #disabilityrep #selflove Video review here

The essential handbook for being young and queer. I genuinely think this is one of the most important YA books I’ve read. Dawson begins by mentioning a GLARING omission in the education system: we learn about heterosexual sex at school, but NOT homosexual sex (if you did learn about homosexual sex, your school is the exception!). To me, this seems exclusionary and discriminatory of gay people, and it’s extremely dangerous, too: sex education can keep you safe, so it’s important we ALL get relevant information. That’s what this book brings: it goes into a lot of detail about homosexual sex (!), explores the impact of homophobia, tells you where to meet other LGBTQ people if you're under 18, explains STIs, gives tips on how to know if someone is into you, and even provides a script for coming out, should you want to use it.  This book answers so many questions that I’m sure so many of us have had (whether you identify as LGBTQ or not). A must read! “Your sexuality or gender is as natural as your eye colour, and you should never be ashamed of it.” This is a book for #lgbtq #sexualidentity #genderidentity Video review here

I do NOT recommend this book if you are not feeling emotionally or mentally secure. In fact, I was very close to not reviewing it because it could be extremely triggering. BUT I think it’s an incredible book, if you are in a good place, and wanting to explore the topic of abuse. It is not an escape or a remedy: it is a looking-monsters-right-in-the-face type of book, and that’s really not an exaggeration.  June’s mother died, and while her father is away for work, she stays with her step-mother and step-sister, where she is subjected to horrible abuse. But she finds a friend, Blister, and suddenly there is a little bit of hope in her life. You follow her story, from childhood into her teen years, and watch the way she deals with — and is backed into a corner by — horrific trauma. And then, a very unexpected plot twist.  “I've learnt that if you're careful, you can hold a butterfly in your hand. And that even if it's been trapped, frightened, in a jar, it still has a chance to survive. Because a butterfly with a broken wing can still fly.” This book is for exploring #emotionalabuse, #gaslighting, #racism and the #deathpenalty. Approach it with caution. Video review here

If you’re not born in Britain, you’re not allowed to stay. The England Ash and Zara live in does not welcome immigrants, but Zara is not BB (Britain Born). At first, she manages to fly below the radar, but then, the world turns hostile. This is a love story, and it’s also a nail-biting thriller, made even more terrifying by the anti-immigration views we hear a lot about from governments. Zara is expected to leave Britain, despite it being where her life is, and where her ties are. This book makes politics personal: it reinforces the importance of making sure we vote, and stay politically engaged, so we have a hope of living in the type of world we want to live in. Scarily, the BB policy just doesn’t seem that unrealistic. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time.  “When this [polling card] arrived he was looking forward to voting as a vaguely interesting first-time experience; a mark of adulthood. It was unimaginable, then, how much it would actually matter. ” This is a book for exploring #politics #immigration  Video review here

A lot can happen when you share a seat on a bus.  Eleanor is the new kid in school. She’s bullied for her her big, red hair and the clothes she wears, and for generally being a weirdo. Park thinks she’s weird at first, too, and to be fair, he doesn’t change his mind on that. He learns to love it.  Park’s home-life is cushty compared to Eleanor’s. Her step-dad is horrible. He’s intimidating, emotionally abusive and terrible to her mum and siblings. Some of these descriptions are so raw and tender, I found them hard to read.  But I loved this book. Both main characters are hilarious (Eleanor is so dry and sarcastic I couldn’t get enough, and Park is wholesome and adorable). I want them both to come to my house so I can give them some soup and tell them they’re great.  This book is for exploring #bullying #outcasts #abuse #parentaltensions Video review here

Most rom-coms are straight, so Saoirse and Ruby make their own version. Saoirse and Ruby want to live out all the fun rom-com cliches for themselves, even though Saoirse doesn’t want a serious romance. What she wants is a distraction: her mum has early onset dementia and her relationship with her dad is tense as he prepares to re-marry.  Saoirse’s going through a lot in her family life, and I thought it was really relatable that her desire to protect herself made her fairly spiky. To be honest, it only made me like her more. She’s got a sharp tongue that, despite some of the heavier themes, makes for a lot of laughs. It also has one of my favourite ever YA book covers. I flew through this book! “ You can only go with what you feel right now and if you feel like it might make you happy, even for a while, jump in with both feet, girl, and get wet.” This book is for exploring the impact of #illness #tensionwithparents #parentsbreakingup and #lgbtq Video review here

The title says it all: this is a book full of reasons to stay alive. The first Matt Haig book I ever read, and it changed my life. At tough times, I will always go back to it. The best thing about this book is that it comes from someone who’s been at the bottom of the pit and clawed his way out. It’s got credibility. It’s well researched and full of facts that prove if you’re struggling with your mental health, you really aren’t alone. One of my favourite things about this book is the numbered lists to help through the hard moments, when bite-size instructions are all that will sink in.  And it gives you the reasons you need, so many you can’t ignore them, to hang in there.  “[Depression] may be a dark cloud passing across the sky but – if that is the metaphor – you are the sky.” This is a book for anyone struggling with #anxiety #depression #suicide #panicattacks Video review here

Both Finch and Violet feel like life isn’t worth living, but they end up trying to convince the other they’re wrong. This book explores how grief, and physical and emotional abuse, affect mental health. It shows that for all the people who let you down, or don’t want to listen, there are people who want to be there for you, too.  The story is told from both Finch and Violet’s perspectives, and I really like that about the book: Finch thinks Violet is amazing, but she can’t see that herself, and vice versa. It’s really interesting to consider that how we see ourselves is so different to the way others see us. Finch and Violet are witty and clever, and the stories about their mental illnesses, and the way they take over, ring true. I wanted to scream at both characters that everything will be okay, and just hang on . . . but mental health battles are harder than that. It’s not enough, sometimes, for other people to say it; we have to believe it ourselves.  “It's my experience that people are a lot more sympathetic if they can see you hurting, and for the millionth time in my life I wish for measles or smallpox or some other easily understood disease just to make it easier on me and also on them.” “You are all the colours in one, at full brightness.” This is a book for #depression #suicide #grief #bipolar #selfharm #bullying #estrangedrelationships #physicalabuse #alienation Video review here

Marin escapes to college on the other side of the country, but her anxiety and grief follow.  Reading this book is like reading a poem: the writing is so beautiful. Marin leaves her hometown San Francisco to go to college in New York City, but there’s a cloud when she goes. She stops talking to her best friend Mabel, and it’s unclear why. Marin plans to spend Christmas in her dorm alone. It ’s almost like she’s trying to cure her loneliness with more loneliness, and weirdly, I relate to that, or I have at different times in life. The strands of the story slowly come together when Mabel comes to visit Marin during the holidays. The fairly simple plot leaves room for amazing characterisation, and descriptions of anxiety that were so familiar. All the overthinking! And that need to just hide away.  I took away this: People who love you don’t just forget about you, no matter how hard you try to push them away.  This is a book for #grief #anxiety #loneliness #lgbtq Video review here

A heartbreaking story of child abuse and the power of friendship. Julian has no one. His loving parents died in an accident. He has no other close family. And he finds it difficult to make friends. He does a brief stint in a lovely foster home, but then a distant uncle takes him in, and life gets worse than he ever imagined. There’s a sliver of light when Adam, his old foster brother, starts spending time with him at school. Adam can tell something is wrong, so he digs and digs, until he discovers the devastating truth.  This book is genuinely heart-shattering, and genuinely shocking. It goes to some extremely dark places, but it also shows that friendship can pull you out of the deepest depths. It also has representations of characters with ADHD and dyslexia.  “Hate ricochets, but kindness does too.”  This is a book that explores #childabuse #loneliness #ADHD #dyslexia  Video review here

Five students go to detention, only four leave alive. The beauty, the brain, the bad boy, the athlete and the outcast are all in one room, so it’s never going to be boring. High school drama hits a new level in this fast-paced mystery thriller, which is split so you can read from each character’s perspective.  This book is about secrets and the desperate lengths people would go to hide them. Simon, the one who dies, runs a gossip blog, and he’s planning to post private, sensitive news about each of the people he’s in detention with. They’re desperate to keep him quiet forever. So desperate they have motive for murder. I couldn’t put it down. Totally addictive page-turner.  “You find out who your real friends are when stuff like this happens. Turns out I didn’t have any.” A great book if you’re in need some #thrills, or an exciting #escape.  Video review here

A schoolgirl dies, and the case is closed, but Pip doesn’t believe the explanation. Andie Bell was murdered by her boyfriend, Sal. Everyone in Little Kilton knows that. But Pippa Fitz-Amobi isn’t buying it.  Ever just know you’re right about something, even though everyone is saying you’re wrong? Pip faces huge scrutiny, and puts herself in grave danger, for refusing to ignore that inner voice. She decides to re-investigate Andie Bell’s death, and find out the truth, once and for all. This is the book, and now Netflix series, that everyone’s been talking about. It has twists and turns and does not disappoint. I love the way the reader is given visual clues to look at, so you can solve the mystery alongside Pip.  “I’m not sure I’m the good girl I thought I was. I think I lost her along the way.”  A book about listening to that #innervoice and if you just need a bit of a thrill. Video review here