Highly Illogical Behaviour No Spoiler Book Review

by Unknown - Friday, September 02, 2016

This is was very first ARC (advanced reading copy) and when I saw it, I screamed for joy because it's pretty cool when you recieve your first ARC! (But that doesn't change my opinion on the book whatsoever, my review is completely honest and I was not paid to say any of these things).

I quite liked this book for the witty characters and the funny dialogue. The banter between the characters had me laughing, as well as the characters themselves. It was a unique and enjoyable read overall, but keep reading for my in-depth review to see what I thought!

About the book.

Book: Highly Illogical Behaviour
Author: John Corey Whaley
Pages: 256
Publisher: Allen And Unwin
Published on: 29/08/16
Australian RRP: $16.99
Rating: ★★★☆☆
Synopsis: Sixteen-year-old Solomon is agoraphobic. He hasn’t left the house in three years, which is fine by him.
Ambitious Lisa desperately wants to get into the second-best psychology program for college (she’s being realistic). But is ambition alone enough to get her in?
Enter Lisa.
Determined to “fix” Sol, Lisa steps into his world, along with her charming boyfriend, Clark, and soon the three form an unexpected bond. But, as Lisa learns more about Sol and he and Clark grow closer and closer, the walls they’ve built around themselves start to collapse and their friendships threaten to do the same. Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary
Recommended for: Anyone 13+.

This book was kindly sent to me for review by Allen And Unwin however that does not, in any way, change my thoughts on the book. I have written a completely honest review.

My thoughts.

SUMMARY

Highly Illogical Behaviour by John Corey Whaley is about Solomon, a boy who hasn't left his house in three years. However, when driven and motivated psychology student Lisa stumbles upon him, she makes it her mission to get him out as part of her essay writing admissions for a college she wants to get into where she talks about her experience with mental illness. And Clark, Lisa's boyfriend would do anything for her because that's the type of person he is.

COVER

The cover of this book is gorgeous! It's simple but really effective, especially with the lines mapped all over the book. I love how they represent the craziness inside the book and also, the anxiety Solomon deals with when he steps outside and how he feels completely out of control, similar to the different coloured lines on the book. It's also colourful but not overly colourful which I appreciate!

IDEA

I can't say the idea of book is very, very original because I have read other books where due to reasons, people choose not to step out of the house (such as Everything Everything) so it wasn't a hugely new concept to me.

However, it was made quite unique in the way it was written, the plot and the characters. I felt the characters are what really set the book apart from others that I've read! I will be talking more about the characters below so just keep reading!

This book targets a very important issue as well which is anxiety. John Corey Whaley writes anxiety pretty well and is shown quite believably through Solomon. He shows some of the reactions Solomon can have to basic things, he shows the problems he faces and how he learns to overcome them. I liked how the book spoke about something that affects us all (me especially because I can get anxious quite easily) and spreads awareness about it.

WRITING

I can't say the writing was absolutely outstanding, not because it was badly done but because it's more of a personal preference for me that I don't like the third person too much. I find it detaches the reader from the characters and it doesn't flow as well. I often felt like an outsider while reading the book, which didn't make me love the characters any less, but it just made me feel slightly out of the picture.

But the writing had a good flow to it and explained some of the book's intricacies quite well and fluently so it wasn't awkward and clunky, such as Lisa's reason for wanting to help Solomon and Solomon's condition.

PLOT

I felt the plot is what I liked the least out of the book. There was not much mystery left as mostly everything had been explained in the beginning. There weren't many twists and turns and shocker moments for me, which I quite like in a book. But these are all personal reasons rather than actual reasons so not everyone who reads this may feel this way.

The plot generally had a very good flow and was quite logical. The character development (which shall be discussed in the next section) was quite gradual and believable.

The main problem I hit was towards the end was where the ending was too sudden. There was the climax of the book and then the ending action and the conclusion got mushed into the last few chapters and suddenly it was done. The book wasn't very conclusive and took a complete 360 degree turn from where it had originally been, which really annoyed me.

CHARACTERS

The characters are my absolute favourite part and what I was itching to write about since I started typing out this review. They were absolutely fabulous in this book! They were so funny, witty, real, normal and believable. I read most of this book on the train as it's a fairly short read and there were times where I was literally laughing out loud which got me a few weird stares from the near by commuters, but it was so worth it.

I could feel them bouncing absolutely bouncing off the pages. I loved every second of the character interactions and the close relationships the three formed in a very short time.

Solomon was such a lovable and funny character. He had a great sense of humour and despite being isolated from his peers for so long, he was just as good, if not better, at being a teenager than they were. I quite liked getting to read the book from his perspective (as well as Lisa's) because he always seemed to have a witty comment at the ready.

Lisa was such an infectious and bubbly but still sarcastic person. She was such a great main character for her humour, outgoing spirit and friendly nature. The friendship between her and Solomon was absolutely adorable.

Clark is the final main character in the book. He too, like Lisa, is such an easy to love person for his own humour and understanding. He was encouraging and kind but not overly kind and I felt like he was a real person.

The last few people I want to comment on is Soloman's family. The bonds between them are so strong and often enviable because of how much they care about Solomon and how they always look out for him. They're also very funny!

FINALLY...

I didn't love the plot all that much and the writing wasn't outstanding. However, the idea I loved and the characters absolutely blew me away for how realistic and fun they were! Overall, I quite enjoyed this book and would recommend it to others to read!