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aprilius_maximus 's review for:

Finding Audrey by Sophie Kinsella
1.0

Watch my video review or read on for the written review :) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4mD7VF5jQts
Thank you so much to Doubleday Children's for sending me this book!
I have a lot of mixed feelings about this book! At first I was so excited for it because it sounded perfect for me because when I was Audrey's age, I had actually gone through something freakishly similar to her in this book! But then again, I had issues with it that I was hoping wouldn't arise but unfortunately I couldn't ignore.
I'll start off by saying that a lot of things about Audrey and this book were so similar to me that I was freaking out a little bit. Like, Sophie Kinsella, did you steal my diary from when I was 14 or what? When I was 14, I was bullied and had a really rough time in high school, so much so that I couldn't go to school, or even leave my own house (all of which happens to Audrey). I also developed a relationship with a boy who helped me greatly and moved schools (like Audrey plans to do). IS THAT NOT FREAKY?
Anyway, Sophie Kinsella's writing style is great because it reads like one of those comedy tv shows and it also contains film scripts and notes that speed up and enhance the reading experience!
Moving on to the many things that I had issues with:
- The fact that you never find out what happened in detail to cause her anxiety to dictate her mind.
- The unrealistic and stereotyped parental figures. Her mother was the typical "video games are bad for you and you need to play outside because that's what I did when I was younger" except exaggerated TIMES A THOUSAND. Her father was a classic 'always on his blackberry and never hears what his wife says and just agrees with everything she says' kinda guy and I found them to be REALLY unrealistic. I mean, I'm sure there are parents out there that are like this, but to the extent where I found myself questioning how exaggerated these stereotypes were was ridiculous.
- The insta-love. Now, I understand that at Audrey's age, you get into a relationship and you're telling each other you love them straight away (I know, because I did that too. Oh how silly I was!) but I thought it was a bit strange that one minute Audrey was having such bad anxiety that she couldn't look him in the eye or even face him and the next minute they're making out? It just didn't make that much sense to me, especially coming from someone who has experienced severe anxiety at that age and throughout my entire life.

It had its cute moments but I wouldn't recommend it. I really wish I could have loved it :(