Students love books about kids who are sick and fall in love, so I ordered this novel. As an adult, I did a lot of eye rolling, but so many students are going to really love this novel.

Stella is dying. She's been dying her entire life, for she has CF (cystic fibrosis) and is now down to 35% lung capacity and in hopes of a lung transplant. A type A personality, Stella developed an app to help people with health conditions to know when and what medications to take. She has lists everywhere for tasks she wants and needs to accomplish. She even planned the senior trip to Cabo for her classmates. Unfortunately, Stella develops a sore throat and must check into her home away from home, the hospital, instead of travel with her friends. She does everything she is supposed to do for her CF. She knows that her parents will not survive her death, so she is determined to live for as long as possible. Her best CF friend, Poe, ends up in the hospital with her, so she has someone to talk to. She knows every inch of the hospital, for she really grew up there. She's well known and well liked.

One rule that cannot be broken concerns staying six feet away from other CF patients. Stella and Poe abide by this rule religiously. A new CF patient, Will, comes onto the ward, but he has B. cepacia in addition to CF. This condition is serious and has no treatment. Will's mom has taken him all over the world for new treatments. He was supposed to get a lung transplant, but the B. cepacia ended any hope of lungs. Will is two weeks away from his 18th birthday and plans on living life until he dies. No more traveling the world via windows in hospitals. This is the last trial drug he is trying and then he's finished.

Stella finds Will annoying. He doesn't do anything he's supposed to do. She eventually gets him to do all of his protocols by explaining that she stresses out. He doesn't want her upset, so he follows his regimen and actually feels better. Problem is he and Stella start liking each others. In no world can they ever get closer than six feet apart. Stella decides that she is claiming twelve inches and they'll stay five feet apart. The novel is more than a romance; you also learn about their families and how CF affects everyone, all relationships. It's all very dramatic.

There are mature scenes and topics discussed, so I would recommend this novel to our more mature middle school readers. ( )

Rating: 4.5
"Five Feet Apart" has been constantly compared to books such as "Everything, Everything" and "The Fault in Our Stars", and that's a pretty fair comparison. This book is about Stella and Will, two teenagers who have severe lung problems that keep them both in and out of the hospital on a regular basis. Then, of course, they meet, and their relationship begins to develop as they deal with feelings for each other, the constant feelings of missing out on life, and their own individual fears about their family.

I really enjoyed how modern and fresh this story was. Both characters felt like real teens living in 2018: they use Instagram and get those fomo feels, Stella has a popular YouTube channel she uses to talk about her condition, and they ACT like actual teens without feeling super dramatic in the way YA characters sometimes do. Stella especially was super enjoyable to read about. She's an intelligent, emotional, witty young woman who works hard for the future she wants. She's a gifted coded, too, and uses her skills to build an app that will help her and other users track their medications. Stella also cares deeply for her family and her communication and relationship with them felt genuine.

At first, I thought I was going to dislike Will- he's initially got those "bad boy who wants to die" vibes but quickly we learn there is more to him. Like Stella, he's struggling with missing out on life, but unlike her Will feels like there is less to fight for. His character development is less interesting; however, I liked seeing him and the others (Poe, Jason, Mya, etc) begin to form their group of friends and work with each other to encourage and keep safe their friends.

Lippincott has an easy way of writing, one that is descriptive but to the point and doesn't waste time keeping the plot moving. I felt like a couple scenes could have been beefed up a bit more, but that could also be me just wanting to spend more time with the characters! :D
This is a quick read, and if you enjoy witty contemporary romances then I would recommend this. It's a good wintery read that will leave you with some feels and most likely a desire to see the upcoming film. ( )

Five Feet Apart by Rachael Lippincott, published by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers tells the story of Stella and Will. Stella has admitted herself into the hospital she’s been treated in most of her life. She has cystic fibrosis and now she has a fever and sore throat that has landed her in the hospital again. The staff and other CF patients know her well but she meets a new patient, Will. Eight months ago, Will found out that he has a fatal illness to go along with the CF he already has and he’s in the hospital for a drug trial. He’s tired of being trapped in hospitals and just wants to enjoy life. Will seems to not care about getting better while Stella is compulsive about her strict medical routine. The more I read, the more the story revealed about Stella’s and Will’s lives and their families. The daily CF routines are difficult and time-consuming and if there’s no improvement, the patient struggles to see any benefit. Full of loyalty and friendship, Five Feet Apart lets us see deeper into the difficulties of having cystic fibrosis and the tragedy of young people knowing nothing else but medical treatments and a short life span hovering in their futures. Heartbreaking, hopeful and inspiring all at the same time, five stars! I think that everyone who needs a good cry and a way to hope should read this one. I didn’t realize how much I needed this book until after I finished it and the impact it has had on my life.


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Representation: Side Latino character
Trigger warnings: Chronic and terminal illness (cystic fibrosis), near-death experience, hospitalisation, hypothermia, death of a sister and child from a fall in the past and another child, grief and loss depiction
Score: Seven points out of ten.
This review can also be found on The StoryGraph.

I wanted to read this for a while after I read The Fault in Our Stars (a book similar to this one) and not long after, I finally read it. When I finished it, I had a lot of thoughts on the story, for one it left me feeling what I would best describe as gutted, but simultaneously I felt a disconnect from the characters and I could never fully relate to them. Now with that out of the way, the novel starts with the main characters Stella Grant, or Stella (wait a minute, I've heard of that name) and Will Newman, or Will, living in the hospital for their entire lives since they have a terminal illness. The first aspect that irked me was the instant love. Come on. They only met each other for a little while and then suddenly they start a relationship (That reminds me of The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon.) Really? The dialogue was also unrealistic since I felt like I was listening to a conversation between two philosophers instead of teenagers, which is a shame since if that was fixed the story would've been slightly better. This novel also talks a lot about cystic fibrosis but here's the catch: I don't have CF. It's not clear on whether the narrative is an accurate portrayal or a misrepresentation, but I'd suggest reading reviews from people who have this condition. Did I mention the emotional manipulation is off the charts? There's so much talk about death, like how Stella lost her sister in a cliff diving accident, and another character died. I get that Stella was sick and tired of being controlled all the time but that doesn't mean she can be as reckless with her life (to the point where she almost died) as she wants. The ending is a somewhat high note and I enjoyed reading that. Wow. ( )

Actual rating - 4.5/5

What I liked:

- A BEAUTIFUL LOVE STORY THAT IS SURE TO MAKE YOU CRY
- ABSOLUTE DELIGHT TO READ WITH AN EASY LANGUAGE
- ALSO FOCUSES ON FRIENDSHIP AND FAMILY
- A HEART BREAKING TALE WHICH DOESN'T END IN TRAGEDY SO THAT'S GOOD.
- A VERY SUBTLE TAKE AT THE LIVES AND FEELINGS OF KIDS BORN WITH TERMINAL DISEASES.

What I did not fancy:
- UNRELATED TO THE STORY BUT I CANNOT FIND A BOOK WITH THE ORIGINAL COVER. EVERY WEBSITE HAS THE ONE WITH THE MOTION PICTURE COVER AND I HATE IT!
- DEATH AND DISEASE CAN BE A TRIGGER
- I'M DEHYDRATED FROM CRYING BUT THAT'S ON ME. ( )