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missmary98's review
4.0
A high four stars. It's been a while since I've read a YA contemporary, so this was awesome.
crankie36's review
4.0
This story is devastatingly adorable. Everything about the adventure that this contemporary novel takes you on is cute or funny or sad, but in the best way possible. It really captures the emotion that Juniper's going through, and portrays what it's like to lose someone and how hard it is to accept that as a fact.
Find a full, spoiler-free review here: https://writtenonthepages.wordpress.com/2017/11/21/juniper-lemons-happiness-index-julie-israel-written-review/
Find a full, spoiler-free review here: https://writtenonthepages.wordpress.com/2017/11/21/juniper-lemons-happiness-index-julie-israel-written-review/
meowzik's review against another edition
5.0
Every so often I'll read a book that just sort of punches me in the face with emotions and I come out of reading it a weird mix of tears and laughter. Juniper Lemon's Happiness Index is one of those. Juniper is a great character - grieving the death of her sister, she's a hot mess of emotions and trying to make sense of it all. The other characters all have their own strengths and flesh out the book beautifully. I love the format of this book - it all fits together really well, even though some parts were a little predictable. Overall, I think it's a book that will stay with me for a while - it's well written, and resonated emotionally for me.
jananza90's review against another edition
5.0
I really really enjoyed this book. Perhaps because it struck a chord in my heart... warning: there are some f-bombs.
cammschwartz's review
4.0
Ok so I don't read contemporary ... at all..
I saw this book on the shelf and it said Juniper.
Let me give you some context to why I picked up this book. My younger sister's name is Juniper and my name is Camellia. I read the inside jacket and nearly screamed!! So I only picked the book up because of the cover. I liked the book a lot, I read it overnight and it was great! The only thing that could of have been better was when Juniper and Brand smoked and they talked about the past on the night of a party where Juniper was super drunk. The way it was written made it feel as though teenagers do this all the time, and it hit me because the entire time I was reading the book, I felt as if I was reading it from my sisters perspective. So it was weird feeling reading from your younger sisters view about you death. But I have to say it was very well written and the story line was amazing too. So I suggest you read it, just read it.
I saw this book on the shelf and it said Juniper.
Let me give you some context to why I picked up this book. My younger sister's name is Juniper and my name is Camellia. I read the inside jacket and nearly screamed!! So I only picked the book up because of the cover. I liked the book a lot, I read it overnight and it was great! The only thing that could of have been better was when Juniper and Brand smoked and they talked about the past on the night of a party where Juniper was super drunk. The way it was written made it feel as though teenagers do this all the time, and it hit me because the entire time I was reading the book, I felt as if I was reading it from my sisters perspective. So it was weird feeling reading from your younger sisters view about you death. But I have to say it was very well written and the story line was amazing too. So I suggest you read it, just read it.
shivangidhiman's review against another edition
3.0
Typical 2010s YA fiction where someone close to the protagonist dies and there’s a hint of mystery, but it was written in a way that made you nostalgic about high school and not cringe while reading it as an adult
undervmountain's review against another edition
emotional
sad
medium-paced
3.0
The main character really pulled this story along for me, her struggles with grief and guilt made her a compelling character that I wanted to stick around for. Which is good, because looking back the rest of the story was very messy.
Juniper has been keeping an index of happy/sad moments since her sister died, and after one of the cards goes missing, finds herself desperately spending every day literally digging through the school trash to try and find it again.
The side characters had me utterly confused, as they acted like Juniper had betrayed them in some way in the way she decided to become friends with them, which I didn't see as that bad. But then, two of them revealed that they had been lying to her all along too?
Nate and Brand were interesting, Nate being the new guy and Brand being the bad boy archetype, and I was never sure if it was supposed to be an almost love triangle or not because Nate and Juniper seemed to be just friends, however I'm simply not used to seeing this in YA stories.
I did feel the ending left us with questions, and storylines were wrapped up a little too easily, to the main of characters making unrealistic decisions. However on the subject of grief, this story knocks it out of the park.
Juniper has been keeping an index of happy/sad moments since her sister died, and after one of the cards goes missing, finds herself desperately spending every day literally digging through the school trash to try and find it again.
The side characters had me utterly confused, as they acted like Juniper had betrayed them in some way in the way she decided to become friends with them, which I didn't see as that bad. But then, two of them revealed that they had been lying to her all along too?
Nate and Brand were interesting, Nate being the new guy and Brand being the bad boy archetype, and I was never sure if it was supposed to be an almost love triangle or not because Nate and Juniper seemed to be just friends, however I'm simply not used to seeing this in YA stories.
I did feel the ending left us with questions, and storylines were wrapped up a little too easily, to the main of characters making unrealistic decisions. However on the subject of grief, this story knocks it out of the park.
delaney572e4's review
I just saw this on a random book list and I went, "wait a minute, I read that in high school, but I don't remember having it logged on my goodreads." And I was right. I didn't mark it as read. I don't know why. Maybe it was before I got goodreads? But it also isn't in my physical list of books so I don't know why I didn't log this one. I definitely did read it, I remember because I really liked the color. And I actually remember quite a bit of the book. Okay, anyway.
bookloversofi's review
5.0
This was a so deep, sweet and strong reading, all at the same time, I've enjoyed it alot
4.5/5 Stars
I want to thank Penguin Random House UK Children's and NetGalley for providing me with this copy in exchange for an honest review
You can find this one and more of my reviews on my blog A Book. A Thought.
The story follows Juniper who recently lost her sister, so we can see her trying to cope with the pain of having lost a loved one. and how it has impacted on her daily life.
One day Juniper finds a letter addressed to a mysterious "YOU", a letter of rupture written by her sister but which has never been sent, reason why Juniper decides to begin to look for this person to discover who he/she is , but it's also a quest that Juniper hopes will help her close the hole she's been feeling since her sister left
I've really enjoyed the characters, I think everyone has given something special and unique to the plot, although we found some characters that may seem cliché , I think they all play a very important role in the Juniper's life and from the beginning they help with her search in some way or another, besides it's always good to have a great variety of personalities to analyze and to be able to observe different points of view
One of the things I liked the most is the strength that Juniper has during her journey, I think even though she's shattered and deep down she knows she'll never get over what happened, she really tries and every time she falls she gets up again , I admire this character a lot, I can't imagine having such a loss and how he behaved during the book is understandable, in the end I feel that she had a great learning
As I said before the story focuses on the Juniper's search for this person who is totally unknown and mysterious for her, and has been Great, is a very good idea, also make you stay very expectant and make you want to discover what happens next. It has a very deep side that is how to deal with the loss, the suffering, how going forward, the feeling of guilt and many things that have really touched me. In spite of them the book doesn't become too overwhelming or heavy at all, it's fun, light and has given me all those beautiful feelings that I was looking for in a book, I would surely re-read this one
I'm not totally sure about the end, I feel it should have been a bit more closed, but this is of course only my point of view, maybe you feel right about it , I still have enjoyed it, but I feel it had the potential to continue a little bit more
I recommend that you take this book if you're looking for a light reading but full of emotions and with a super important topic as it's how to deal with the loss and to go ahead after it. It has made me spend very beautiful moments, so I would love you to decide to read it to make you feel the same way
4.5/5 Stars
I want to thank Penguin Random House UK Children's and NetGalley for providing me with this copy in exchange for an honest review
You can find this one and more of my reviews on my blog A Book. A Thought.
The story follows Juniper who recently lost her sister, so we can see her trying to cope with the pain of having lost a loved one. and how it has impacted on her daily life.
One day Juniper finds a letter addressed to a mysterious "YOU", a letter of rupture written by her sister but which has never been sent, reason why Juniper decides to begin to look for this person to discover who he/she is , but it's also a quest that Juniper hopes will help her close the hole she's been feeling since her sister left
I've really enjoyed the characters, I think everyone has given something special and unique to the plot, although we found some characters that may seem cliché , I think they all play a very important role in the Juniper's life and from the beginning they help with her search in some way or another, besides it's always good to have a great variety of personalities to analyze and to be able to observe different points of view
One of the things I liked the most is the strength that Juniper has during her journey, I think even though she's shattered and deep down she knows she'll never get over what happened, she really tries and every time she falls she gets up again , I admire this character a lot, I can't imagine having such a loss and how he behaved during the book is understandable, in the end I feel that she had a great learning
As I said before the story focuses on the Juniper's search for this person who is totally unknown and mysterious for her, and has been Great, is a very good idea, also make you stay very expectant and make you want to discover what happens next. It has a very deep side that is how to deal with the loss, the suffering, how going forward, the feeling of guilt and many things that have really touched me. In spite of them the book doesn't become too overwhelming or heavy at all, it's fun, light and has given me all those beautiful feelings that I was looking for in a book, I would surely re-read this one
I'm not totally sure about the end, I feel it should have been a bit more closed, but this is of course only my point of view, maybe you feel right about it , I still have enjoyed it, but I feel it had the potential to continue a little bit more
I recommend that you take this book if you're looking for a light reading but full of emotions and with a super important topic as it's how to deal with the loss and to go ahead after it. It has made me spend very beautiful moments, so I would love you to decide to read it to make you feel the same way
saskiacb's review against another edition
3.0
**338 pages
Juniper Lemon's Happiness Index is smart, comical and heart-wrenching. Dealing with several themes, the most prominent and underlying of all being grief and love. Juniper is struggling from the loss of her sister, Camilla, and the narrative begins 65 days after this major loss in her life. This causes a significant distortion to her relationship with her family and with her best friend, but after losing an index card, Juniper becomes tied to a few people at school.
This novel follows the typical linear YA story line of grief, with the protagonist struggling at the beginning, growing desperate and, finally, learning acceptance that pain doesn't immediately disappear. This is not a critique of the novel, in fact, seeing Juniper's different emotions towards her sister as she is trying to remember the events surrounding Camilla's death, while attempting to help out other souls in school was an integral part of the story.
Beautiful friendships bloom, pain is high, then dwindles and comes crashing back. Time plays a crucial part in this narrative, not only marking different chapters, but different events and states of mind.
Juniper Lemon's Happiness Index is smart, comical and heart-wrenching. Dealing with several themes, the most prominent and underlying of all being grief and love. Juniper is struggling from the loss of her sister, Camilla, and the narrative begins 65 days after this major loss in her life. This causes a significant distortion to her relationship with her family and with her best friend, but after losing an index card, Juniper becomes tied to a few people at school.
This novel follows the typical linear YA story line of grief, with the protagonist struggling at the beginning, growing desperate and, finally, learning acceptance that pain doesn't immediately disappear. This is not a critique of the novel, in fact, seeing Juniper's different emotions towards her sister as she is trying to remember the events surrounding Camilla's death, while attempting to help out other souls in school was an integral part of the story.
Beautiful friendships bloom, pain is high, then dwindles and comes crashing back. Time plays a crucial part in this narrative, not only marking different chapters, but different events and states of mind.