This week's novel is Eliza and Her Monsters by
Francesca Zappia. I heard about this one because it was a Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for YA Contemporary.
Eliza draws a phenomenon webcomic, Monstrous Sea, which millions of people read. She doesn't care about school or sports or extra-curriculars, and would prefer to not speak if at all possible. All her friends are on-line, and that's fine with her because she can draw during lunch. When a new boy transfers to her school and turns out not only to be a huge Monstrous Sea fan who writes great fan fiction, but also prefers to pass notes rather than speak, she makes her first friend who she can see face to face since high school began. The problem is she can't tell him that she's not just a fan but the comic's creator.
This sounds like a plucky little story about fandoms and on-line personas and what "real" friends are. And it sort of is. It's charming and a little goofy as it goes into what kind of stuff is on the forums and the high jinks of comments sections and what people say on their user pages. It's relatable and spot on in a way that speaks to the author's personal experiences. And I always like it when people talk about fandoms and internet interactions accurately.
And then the story takes a turn into a deep dive into mental illness. There are terrific descriptions of panic attacks and accurate portrayals of the paralyzing fear you can get when people are expecting things from you. Eliza hits a breaking point, and then she breaks, and even though her response isn't rational, it's completely believable because those kind of break downs don't always make sense.
It handled this shift deftly and respectfully, and it makes me want to go read all of Zappia's other work.
***
Next Week: A Face Like Glass, YA fantasy about a cave city and magic cheese by Fances Hardinge
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