No Place Like Here-Book Review
No Place Like Here by Christina June
Goodreads Summary:
Ashlyn Zanotti has big plans for the summer. She’s just spent a year at boarding school and can’t wait to get home. But when Ashlyn’s father is arrested for tax evasion and her mother enters a rehab facility for “exhaustion,” a.k.a. depression, her life is turned upside down. The cherry on top? Ashlyn’s father sends her to work with a cousin she doesn’t even know at a rustic team-building retreat center in the middle of nowhere. A self-proclaimed “indoor girl,” not even Ash’s habit of leaving breadcrumb quotes—inspirational sayings she scribbles everywhere—can help her cope. With a dangerously careless camp manager doling out grunt work, an overbearing father trying to control her even from prison, and more than a little boy drama to struggle with, the summer is full of challenges. And Ashlyn must make the toughest decision of her life: keep quiet and follow her dad’s marching orders, or find the courage to finally stand up to her father to have any hope of finding her way back home.
Personal Review: 4 coffee cups
*Thank you to NetGalley for an early copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review*
Going into this book, I was not aware that this was part of a modern fairy tale series. However, the books are not necessarily tied together, so they can be read as stand-alones.
When I started reading, the first piece that stood out to me was the dedication, "for the quiet girls." Seeing that, I knew this novel would be important for so many girls growing up. It was also incredibly reflective for me, as a 31-year-old, to look back at similar experiences I had during my teenage years. As I worked my way through the story, I could see so much of my high school self in Ashlyn. Ashlyn is the type of character that has had her voice "quieted" by years-upon-years of unrealistic expectations, met with very little praise. While I did not have the same experience she did with family members, I did have some similar experiences with friends. I know how hard it can be to feel like your voice and your opinions are tossed aside like they mean nothing. And in this day and age, it is imperative that we let young girls (and boys) know: we see you, we hear you.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, I also read this book as a mom. Ashlyn's dad places very high expectations/standards on her with no praise. He sets goals for her and finds a way to map out her life without any input from her. As a parent reading this, my heart broke for Ashlyn. I understand the importance of setting realistic expectations and knowing that sometimes our goals for our children are just that....OUR goals. It's also crucial to have an open line of communication and be able to talk through mistakes. At the end of the book, I was happy to see there was a little turnaround on her dad's part and that Ashlyn found her strength to be able to voice her thoughts.
Other aspects I enjoyed:
*The wilderness retreat setting
*The focus on developing a friendship with her cousin
Overall, I felt like this book was fairly tame for the YA genre. And I hate to use that word, because I feel the message in this novel is incredibly powerful and important. However, I do feel like middle school age could read this with no problem.
