The Thing with Feathers by McCall Hoyle

The Quick Cut:

Girl has Epilepsy. Girl is forced to switch from home schooling to public school. Girl hides Epilepsy. Chaos ensues from hidden condition.

A Real Review:

I have Epilepsy, so it's easy for me to relate to this novel - you very much feel broken in the beginning and want to isolate yourself (it's a natural setting many Epilepsy sufferers never break). This novel told that struggle well and in an authentic way. There were a few things that didn't play out real well, but they were really minor quibbles at most.

Can I just also go full writer nerd for a moment on that first sentence?

My mother lost her mind today, and I'm going to prison.

That sounds about right, I begged my parents to let me be home schooled and they wouldn't buy into it. Its a commitment for sure and since I have the form of Epilepsy where you don't convulse, it was an easy justification on their end. Once you're in the bubble, you don't want to be shoved back out of it.

Its what Emilie does after she's in public school that makes me go eyebrow raise and do this:

Hiding her condition from her friends. I'll be the first to admit that I hid the Epilepsy from my classmates at her age. It's a normal response, you're afraid of everyone's reactions. However, your new friends who support you and bare their souls to you? I can't say I reacted the same way she did - I had one best friend in high school and he knew about my condition.

Chatham is a little too perfect, but that's small considering.

Overall, I felt like the core of the story here was genuine and the emotions were as real as it could get. As someone with Epilepsy, I can say this story spoke to me as being a good representation of what its really like (which is a VERY common question I get asked).

I loved this one and it's well worth the read (especially since it's one of few books nowadays that doesn't get preachy on a topic).

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5