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A review by paulina1996
Trouble by Non Pratt
5.0
Trouble brings light to the hard truth of teen pregnancies, the brutal and the ugly. Being a teenager is hard enough without having a child cooking up in your stomach. Non Pratt was rather brave to speak about such a subject and portraying it in a real life way, it brought to light what teenagers are really up to and not what parents are hoping they are doing. The story portrays teenage sex in a way that isn’t shaming the teenagers, it shows it in a way that’s completely normal; which it is.
Hannah and Aaron are two teenagers studying for the GCSE’s, Hannah is a popular girl who likes to have fun, and her mind is on boys rather than school. Aaron is the new guy who seems broody and quiet, complete opposites to each other. Even though the pair don’t know each other that well and are complete opposites when the school finds out that Hannah is pregnant, Aaron steps up and tell everybody he’s the father. For a 15 year old boy, stepping up was so very courageous. I know guys my age who would run for the hills if they were the father, let alone be there for their friend through a pregnancy. The reason why Aaron stepped up for the role wasn’t as innocent as somebody helping out a friend, it was still very brave. Throughout the whole book the question of who is the father of Hannah’s baby is a mystery. Non Pratt did such a great job keeping it that way, there were hardly any clues and when I finally figured it out I was shocked.
Seeing Hannah’s and Aaron’s relationship grow was exciting. Hannah’s announcement of her pregnancy wasn’t her choice, Pratt tackled yet another issue which has been a problem for years. Especially in schools, the constant bullying, the constant sharing of private information between kids in school. Hannah’s pregnancy was announced online, she wasn’t ready to share her news yet. Hannah was therefore quickly pushed off her high status, even her former best friend wasn’t there for her. I wasn’t expecting this book was to be so sex positive. There was no slut shaming (well apart from the assholes in Hannah’s school), or shaming the teenagers for having sex, or the fact that Hannah was pregnant from the adults. Of course there were bumps in the road, her parents weren’t pleased that she was pregnant, there were many obstacles for Hannah and her bump. Having her parents be more supportive than most YA book parents was so nice, I can imagine a lot of real life families who wouldn’t be so quick to be there for their pregnant teen daughter.
I love this story so much. None of the big issues highlighted in the book were romanticised; the pregnancy, how Hannah got pregnant, what happened to Aaron. This was as true to real life as it could possibly get. I haven’t read much British young adult novels, but the ones I have I found them to be far more grittier and hard core than American contemporary novels. Trouble dealt with real problems in real ways, without sugar coating it. Honestly it was such a refreshing book to read, and I am so excited to discover more of Non Pratt’s books.
Hannah and Aaron are two teenagers studying for the GCSE’s, Hannah is a popular girl who likes to have fun, and her mind is on boys rather than school. Aaron is the new guy who seems broody and quiet, complete opposites to each other. Even though the pair don’t know each other that well and are complete opposites when the school finds out that Hannah is pregnant, Aaron steps up and tell everybody he’s the father. For a 15 year old boy, stepping up was so very courageous. I know guys my age who would run for the hills if they were the father, let alone be there for their friend through a pregnancy. The reason why Aaron stepped up for the role wasn’t as innocent as somebody helping out a friend, it was still very brave. Throughout the whole book the question of who is the father of Hannah’s baby is a mystery. Non Pratt did such a great job keeping it that way, there were hardly any clues and when I finally figured it out I was shocked.
Seeing Hannah’s and Aaron’s relationship grow was exciting. Hannah’s announcement of her pregnancy wasn’t her choice, Pratt tackled yet another issue which has been a problem for years. Especially in schools, the constant bullying, the constant sharing of private information between kids in school. Hannah’s pregnancy was announced online, she wasn’t ready to share her news yet. Hannah was therefore quickly pushed off her high status, even her former best friend wasn’t there for her. I wasn’t expecting this book was to be so sex positive. There was no slut shaming (well apart from the assholes in Hannah’s school), or shaming the teenagers for having sex, or the fact that Hannah was pregnant from the adults. Of course there were bumps in the road, her parents weren’t pleased that she was pregnant, there were many obstacles for Hannah and her bump. Having her parents be more supportive than most YA book parents was so nice, I can imagine a lot of real life families who wouldn’t be so quick to be there for their pregnant teen daughter.
I love this story so much. None of the big issues highlighted in the book were romanticised; the pregnancy, how Hannah got pregnant, what happened to Aaron. This was as true to real life as it could possibly get. I haven’t read much British young adult novels, but the ones I have I found them to be far more grittier and hard core than American contemporary novels. Trouble dealt with real problems in real ways, without sugar coating it. Honestly it was such a refreshing book to read, and I am so excited to discover more of Non Pratt’s books.