The Art Of Being Normal by Lisa Williamson

Hey, guys!
I'm back with a review on one of my favourite books!
It has a spoiler-y section at the end, so watch out!

Basics

Title: The Art of Being Normal
Author: Lisa Williamson
Release Date: January 1^st 2015
Publisher: David Fickling Books
ISBN: 1910200328
Number of Pages: 368
Genre: Young Adult
What's special? EVERYTHING

Summary

14-year old David wants nothing more than to be a girl.
But except his two best friends nobody knows the truth. His parents think he's gay and the whole school calls him a freak.
Leo Denton transfers to Davids school tries his best to seem repellent. But then he falls in love with the most beautiful girl in his class and she falls for him too.
When David is brutally mocked by one of his classmates, Leo stands up for him and they slowly become friends.

But not only David has his secrets, Leo, too, has buried something deep down...

My Opinion

This gif summarizes my thoughts perfectly:

Oh my god, this book made me feel all the feels. It had me on a hike up and down.

I cried, I giggled, I gasped.

Lisa Williamson has the talent to write her characters so real. They were complex with many, many layers and everyone was well thought-out. Even the side characters had depth and weren't only 'there' to show that our main characters had friends.
I cared for (almost) everyone and loved Leo and David so, so much.
I desperately need to know more about them!

Even though, I cry really fast, I normally don't while reading. But there's one scene (on page 316) where I just couldn't fight back the tears.

The book made me feel sad constantly – even tough, nothing bad was happening. And then, that one sentence broke my heart. Not only broke it but shattered it into tiny pieces.

There are some Harry Potter references in here, too!

And there's this plot twist which I would have never guessed. Maybe it was obvious, but it wasn't for me.

I read that particular part while my mom was driving me to my Korean class and I scared her so much because I gasped that loudly.

Then: that ending. There's no ending which would have fitted better.
I loved it! David's friends are so thoughful and kind! I hade a huge grin on my face while reading the last chapters. You guys rock.
When I closed the book, I just sat there, hugged it and stared into blank space(I'm not even joking).

Afterward I told my mother the whole plot – now she knows it as well as if she had read the book!
I litereally talked her ear off.

This is such an important book – especially right now - and Lisa Williamson mangaged to convey her messages so well, I honestly don't know why nobody is talking about this book!

But enough about the inside of this book, let's talk about the cover! It's gorgeous.
The front is rather minimalistic and speaks for itself and the font! Lovely!
And then you turn the book around!
There's no text on the back, except for #whatisnormal?

Everything about this book is just perfect.

And everybody should read it!

Rating

5 out of 5 stars and a spot on my favourites-shelf!

Spoiler Section! Proceed with caution! Don't proceed at all, if you haven't read the book!There's something I need to know!
Do they fall in love with each other? Or is it just their kind of friendship?
Because at the ball, when David says that dancing with Leo is 100 times better than dancing with what-was-his-name-again, Leo blushes and they were holding hands before – am I reading too much into these scenes?
Tell me your thoughts on it!
Stay funky!

Franzi