Reviews with content warning for Chronic illness - Breathe and Count Back from Ten

This book is full of heart and will forever be on my list of book recommendations, especially if you're looking for a wonderful summer read with disability rep, Peruvian-American rep, and a fierce female lead who is just so pure and good. Wonderful intersectional discussions about immigration, family obligations, disability access, representation, ableism, healthy first romances, and so much more.

Content Warnings

mmccombs's review against another edition

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emotional reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character

4.0

This is a book that makes me so excited about young adult lit and the wonderful new stories that young folks get to read! This was a very warm novel that powerfully reflected on consent, ownership of our own bodies, and the impact of disability and culture on identity. While I sometimes felt things got quite repetitive, the musings Verónica has on her relationship to her body and to her family and friends were so compelling and made me think of all the ways young adulthood (especially when disability, immigration status, and ableism are in the mix) can render you out of control of your body and your choices. I’m also a sucker for mermaid content (don’t we all have a secret mermaid nook in our brains??) so that was really fun to include. Highly recommend this book for a cozy story and really beautiful messages!

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betweentheshelves's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

There is so much to love about this book. The characters are complex, there are a lot of great discussions about ableism and mental health, and it's really just a book about learning to be true to yourself. Learning to get the courage to stand up for what you want. Verónica's journey is definitely an emotional one, but I loved seeing her find her voice and finally stand up for herself. All of that was so well done.

Outside of Verónica's journey, I wish that her relationship with Alex would have been a little more developed. It felt a little insta-lovey, which isn't always my favorite. And while they did have a few deep conversations, I didn't feel like it got developed much outside of that.

But the whole mermaid thing was cool and awesome and I would totally read more stories about that. Definitely would recommend this book for anyone looking for a complex, emotional summer read!

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readingelli's review

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hopeful reflective medium-paced

5.0

“[I]t seems everyone gets to be whole but me. They get to be seen for who they are, not for what they aren’t.”
“They say they want me to feel comfortable—not happy, or fully supported—just fine, satisfied enough that I’m not in any pain. Which feels like a low bar to me.”
““People talk about pain like it’s measurable. They’ll ask me to put it on a scale from one to ten. But I’ve been pushing it away so long it’s like my barometer’s broken. I don’t know if I can trust my mind. Or my body. I think part of me thinks I deserve it. Like I should endure it, because that would be the brave thing to do. To be strong.””

Verónica’s story and her journey over a summer really spoke to me- as a disabled teen I too struggled with asserting myself with my doctors and trusting my body and my limits. I loved the way Spanish was woven into the text as a bilingual household, and Dani asserting herself as an abled sibling.
I really loved it and highly recommend it.

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