Everyone seems to know a story about a “bubble boy”…one of those kids who is allergic to everything and has to live in a sterile environment. Maddy knows the story all too well. As a teen diagnosed with severe combined immunodeficiency, it’s her reality. In her case, her bubble consists of the airlocked home that her mother designed to keep contaminants out…and to keep Maddy in.
For years, she was content with only having her mother, her nurse, and her books to keep her company, but everything changes when a moving truck appears across the street. From her window, Maddy spies on her handsome new neighbor Olly and manages to make contact with him through email and chat.
Late-night emails begin as a thrilling way for Maddy to actually make a friend, but their relationship soon develops into something more. For the first time in her life, she has a crush. For the first time in her life, she wishes she could leave the bubble. Will Maddy risk everything to experience the world the way everyone else gets to? Is Olly worth risking her life for? More importantly, is her life really worth living if she has to spend it under lock and key?
Everything, Everything is a lovely exploration of new love, isolation, and how to live the life you want to (even when it seems to be trying to kill you). Even better—the main characters are diverse and multiracial, which is something that older readers deserve to see more of in their books.
320 pages ISBN:978-0553496642 Ages 11 and up
Highly recommended by Molly Crumbley, Librarian, Maryland, USA.
