Five Feet Apart
Author: Rachael Lippincott, with Mikki Daughtry and Tobias Laconis
Published by: Simon & Schuster
Pages: 280
Format: Paperback
My Rating ★★★★
Can you love someone you can never touch?
Stella Grant likes to be in control – even though her totally out-of-control lungs have sent her in and out of the hospital most of her life. What Stella needs to control most is her distance from anyone or anything that might pass along an infection and jeopardize the possibility of a lung transplant.
Sic feet apart. No exceptions.
The only thing Will Newman wants to be in control of is getting out of this hospital. In one week, he’ll turn eighteen, and then he’ll be able to unplug himself from all these machines and actually go see the world.
Will’s exactly what Stella needs to stay away from. But now six feet doesn’t feel like safety. It feels like punishment. What if they could steal back just a little bit of the space their broken lungs have stolen from them? Would five feet apart really be so dangerous if it stops their hearts from breaking too?
My thoughts
In this moving story two teens fall in love with just one minor complication—they can’t get within five feet of each other without risking their lives.
Stella Grant is every bit a seventeen-year-old: she’s attached to her laptop and loves her best friends. But unlike most teenagers, she spends much of her time living in a hospital as a cystic fibrosis patient. Her life is full of routines, boundaries and self-control -- all of which is put to the test when she meets an impossibly charming fellow CF patient named Will Newman.
There’s an instant connection, though restrictions dictate that they must maintain a safe distance between them. As their friendship/relationship intensifies, so does the temptation to throw the rules out the window and embrace that attraction. Further complicating matters is Will’s potentially dangerous rebellion against his ongoing medical treatments.
Stella gradually inspires Will to live life to the fullest, but can she ultimately save the person she loves when even a single touch is off limits?
This was my first romance novel in a pretty long time. I unexpectedly watched the film version on Netflix over the Christmas break, and enjoyed it enough to want to also read the book afterwards. The book is based on the screenplay of the movie, and fortunately there isn’t much deviation in the plot.
It surprised me how much I enjoyed reading Five Feet Apart, and I really didn’t expect to become so emotionally invested in the story. There were moments that had me on the verge of tears, and both of the main characters felt worth routing for. It was inspiring to see two people find hope and happiness in a life full of health complications, worries and restrictions.
Within the CF community itself, Five Feet Apart has received mixed reactions, having even been boycotted by some. However, others see value in how it depicts the disorder’s mental toll, and I agree that this is probably the real strength of the novel.
Whilst I don’t have cystic fibrosis myself, as a teenager I did spend several months living in a hospital, so I think the plot appealed to me in the way it explores those themes. I can honestly say that the most unrealistic part to me was perhaps how the experience of living in a hospital was portrayed, especially in the film. All in all, the teens on the ward seemed to have things pretty good.
Rachael Lippincott has delivered an interesting, emotional, well-plotted and well-written read here with relatable and likeable characters that I couldn’t help but to fall in love with right away. The story is told in alternating perspectives between Stella and Will and I really enjoyed both narratives equally. They complimented each other so well and I really felt for them. I liked the characters and was intrigued by their situation. I could empathize with them. I liked Stella and Will's relationship, which felt sweet and innocent throughout.
The writing style was very laidback and simple, making this an easy read to fly through in just one sitting. In the length of time it took me to drink my cup of coffee in Starbucks as I read the first few chapters, I was already gripped and dying to read more. I went home that night and completely devoured the rest of the book. I particular loved the ending and felt satisfied with how the book concluded. It was sweet, romantic, heartfelt and optimistic. Everything you’d want from a YA romantic fiction. If you like the genre I’d definitely check this one out.
Overall reaction: