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A review by writeronherway
Destination Anywhere by Sara Barnard
4.0
I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Peyton King is seventeen and already feels like her life has gone wrong. She never had any friends and was bullied at school so started sixth form with one goal in mind: to make friends. She achieves her goal but loses herself. After a life-changing, traumatic incident she decides she needs to just go somewhere, anywhere so she books a one way ticket to Canada.
We have all been there. That feeling of wanting to run away from everything is so relatable especially in 2021 when travelling is not an option! This was a perfect read to escape reality with Peyton and feel free for a little while! I would love to go to Canada and ‘have the awe’ (my new favourite quote). Destination Anywhere is a coming of age novel about self-acceptance and true friendship; in all its different forms.
The dual timelines and contrast between past and present allowed Peyton to be reflective and compare the healthy relationships she makes in Canada with the detrimental relationships she had previously. Peyton is self-aware and, with the benefit of hindsight, self-critical. There’s no part of this book that condones running away to another country or (TW:) substance abuse instead the character re-examines the decisions she made trying to figure out how she got there but she still thinks that the roots of her problems is that there is something wrong with her. It takes a trip half way around the world, six strangers and a lot of self-reflection to realise there’s nothing wrong with her and the reason she was so deeply unhappy is that she was not being herself and doing what she loves or wants to do.
It’s when she has stopped seeking out friendship that it finds her. Seva, Maja, Beasey, Khalil, Lars and Stefan, the group she meets at the hostel, are kind, accepting and protective; even as strangers they sense that Peyton is a little lost and want to help her because they like her! They all offer different types of friendship but they are patient, respectful, open and gentle. They give her the space and the opportunity to confide in them, to choose to come with them and to be friends. It’s a really special and beautiful dynamic. There are so many beautiful quiet moments of tender friendship in this book and it’s an important reminder that the opportunity to make friends doesn’t begin and end at school!
I love Sara Barnard’s writing and there are so many quotes to live by in this book! One of my favourites from Maja (asides from the amazing cake analogy): “You can’t set your self-esteem by other people. It is never your fault if people don’t see what’s good in you.”
Peyton King is seventeen and already feels like her life has gone wrong. She never had any friends and was bullied at school so started sixth form with one goal in mind: to make friends. She achieves her goal but loses herself. After a life-changing, traumatic incident she decides she needs to just go somewhere, anywhere so she books a one way ticket to Canada.
We have all been there. That feeling of wanting to run away from everything is so relatable especially in 2021 when travelling is not an option! This was a perfect read to escape reality with Peyton and feel free for a little while! I would love to go to Canada and ‘have the awe’ (my new favourite quote). Destination Anywhere is a coming of age novel about self-acceptance and true friendship; in all its different forms.
The dual timelines and contrast between past and present allowed Peyton to be reflective and compare the healthy relationships she makes in Canada with the detrimental relationships she had previously. Peyton is self-aware and, with the benefit of hindsight, self-critical. There’s no part of this book that condones running away to another country or (TW:) substance abuse instead the character re-examines the decisions she made trying to figure out how she got there but she still thinks that the roots of her problems is that there is something wrong with her. It takes a trip half way around the world, six strangers and a lot of self-reflection to realise there’s nothing wrong with her and the reason she was so deeply unhappy is that she was not being herself and doing what she loves or wants to do.
It’s when she has stopped seeking out friendship that it finds her. Seva, Maja, Beasey, Khalil, Lars and Stefan, the group she meets at the hostel, are kind, accepting and protective; even as strangers they sense that Peyton is a little lost and want to help her because they like her! They all offer different types of friendship but they are patient, respectful, open and gentle. They give her the space and the opportunity to confide in them, to choose to come with them and to be friends. It’s a really special and beautiful dynamic. There are so many beautiful quiet moments of tender friendship in this book and it’s an important reminder that the opportunity to make friends doesn’t begin and end at school!
I love Sara Barnard’s writing and there are so many quotes to live by in this book! One of my favourites from Maja (asides from the amazing cake analogy): “You can’t set your self-esteem by other people. It is never your fault if people don’t see what’s good in you.”