Five Feet Apart

SYNOPSIS:

Will’s exactly what Stella needs to stay away from. If he so much as breathes on Stella she could lose her spot on the transplant list. Either one of them could die. The only way to stay alive is to stay apart. But suddenly six feet doesn’t feel like safety. It feels like punishment.

REVIEW

(3 STARS)

This review will be more like an exposé of my issues with "Five Feet Apart". 1. Is it important to have a book about cystic-fibrosis? Yes, I think it's important to have books that talk about real-life issues. Not all of us live ordinary healthy lives and literature lacks more diversity. There are not many books with disabled or diseased characters (either mental or physical), so I was glad I got to know more about cystic-fibrosis through "Five Feet Apart". However, should we romanticize illness? I don't think so. John Green set up this precedent and even though I enjoyed "The Fault In Our Stars", it proffers many misconceptions about the group in question. Everyone falls in love, but by adding this element, the story is not about the illness anymore. It's about the romantic bond that connects those two characters. The author is not representing a group anymore, but a feeling and the audience connects with that feeling instead. It's not about the struggles of a patient with cystic fibrosis anymore, their lives, daily routines, disappointments or fears. The story is now about a couple and their struggle to live their love. But can't we have both romance and representation of an illness? I guess. But not like this, not by romanticizing every little aspect of the disease in question. Everyone falls in love. But I don't think anyone with cystic fibrosis would suddenly refuse new lungs because they have fallen in love. It's something you wait for your whole life! Who would do that? Knowing the risks of B cepatia, who would waste their 35% lungs to live a wild date night? Probably no one. Which leads me to my second point: 2. Can healthy individuals accurately represent diseased people? I don't think so. Authors base their stories on their personal experiences. Of course, they can draw inspiration from other people's stories, but it's not the same. The reader can tell when an author went through something or if (s)he's just imagining what it feels like. And so, most often than not, they misrepresent their sample. They romanticize. They mould their characters to a reality they understand. And so, their story becomes like so many others that already exist. Fantasized. Irrealistic. Void of meaning. If it had been a patient of cystic fibrosis to write this, I would be more believable. Only (s)he would know the struggle. But since it wasn't, "Five Feet Apart" became just another dramatic love story that yes, made me cry, but didn't really mean anything. 3. Hype can ruin a book and "Five Feet Apart" was no exception to the rule. My expectations were too high because of the excitement surrounding this story. 4. Teenagers are a pain in a hole. Self-centred, egoistic, stupid and extremely rude. Stella and Will fall into these. Poe was an exception (somehow secondary characters always seem more reasonable for me). I think I should give up on YA romances and focus on Fantasy from now on. Teenage drama is not for me anymore. It's too dull. Teenagers are blind to other people's sacrifices and are ungrateful brats. I'm not exempting myself from this description, I was not an easy teen after all. I'm just glad I came to my senses. 5. Trying to imitate another successful young-adult romance isn't always the best idea. In my opinion, "Five Feet Apart" was too similar to John Green's novel. So, if I felt like this, why did I gave this book 3 stars? To reward the effort, I guess. Because it made me emotional and hit the mark (that is, made me cry). Because when I finished the story, I wanted to know how Will fared and if Stella was enjoying her new life. Because Lippincot made me care and that's worth something.