Still, she manages to take a pottery class and hold down a part-time job at independent bookstore Dust Jackets. Although she’s seen several therapists, her anxiety hasn’t greatly lessened, and her parents don’t know how to deal with her. Phoebe’s anxiety has made it so that she hasn’t touched anyone in two years-not even members of her family. Instead, she’s scared of accidentally endangering her kid brother with Covid-19––so scared, in fact, that she’s nearly completely isolated herself. Phoebe Benson isn’t a typical 16-year-old she’s not worried about what people think of her, or even about extending her curfew. is disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.Jahn’s latest YA novel follows a high school junior on her summer break who struggles with germaphobia in Manhattan during the Covid-19 pandemic. Foreword Reviews only recommends books that we love. No fee was paid by the publisher for this review. The publisher of this book provided free copies of the book to have their book reviewed by a professional reviewer. Poignant, raw, and hopeful, Phoebe Unfired is a novel about a girl who refuses to let her fears define her.ĭisclosure: This article is not an endorsement, but a review. Though Phoebe makes progress, the book does not end with an unrealistic, fully transformed Phoebe, but rather with one who is still limited by her germaphobia, and yet is hopeful that she can continue to work through it-and confident that she is not any less deserving of love if she cannot. Though Phoebe is ashamed of her condition at first, she comes to realize that her worth is not contingent on her recovery. Its characters work through them in different ways, utilizing support groups and personal mantras. Instead of presenting mental health struggles as personal failures, the novel acknowledges the hardships of conditions like OCD and anxiety. And Phoebe’s boss and mentor, who struggles with anxiety, is always willing to listen to her, while still holding her accountable for her hurtful behavior. JP goes out of his way to make special arrangements for Phoebe at his concert, and he encourages his friends to welcome her, differences and all. Phoebe’s friends and family are supportive, though unable to relate to her struggles. She can either face her fears, or continue blocking everyone out. But when Phoebe meets an intriguing musician, JP, and his eclectic group of friends, she is reminded of the world she once was a part of. Isolation seems the surest way to keep her fears at bay. Though it seems that everyone else has moved on from the Covid-19 pandemic, it left Phoebe with paralyzing germaphobia after she put her immunocompromised younger brother, Toby, in the hospital. Amalie Jahn’s touching novel Phoebe Unfired pays tribute to all those who struggle with mental health through its strong heroine.
0 kommentar(er)
